Concept artist David Levy was kind enough to share some of the concept art and designs he created for Ridley Scott’s return to science fiction after 30-years, 2012’s ‘Prometheus’.

Opinions really do differ on Prometheus and the film sparked a polarized reaction within the Alien fan community. I think I understand what Scott was trying to do, but cannot decide if it is well executed or not. Don’t get me wrong, the film is a return to the setting of Alien, in all its science fiction glory, it looks great and most importantly, it is something new.

It is commendable that Scott is trying to do something new with the Alien franchise. Weaving together the background story of the ‘Space Jockeys’ (Engineers) we glimpsed in the first Alien film with speculation about extraterrestrial influences on ancient earthling civilizations. The film also dabbled in the idea of how dangerous artificial intelligence can be. If we are to believe Scott, A.I is what he will focus on in the coming sequels to Prometheus and ‘Alien: Covenant’. Scott said in a recent interview that it was time for the franchise’s focus to shift away from the xenomorphs, to A.I.

“We are [going to make another], we are. I think what we have to do is gradually drift away from the alien stuff. People say, ‘You need more alien, you need more face pulling, need more chest bursting,’ so I put a lot of that in Covenant and it fitted nicely.

But I think if you go again you need to start finding another solution that’s more interesting. I think AI is becoming much more dangerous and therefore more interesting.”

Prometheus is missing that powerful, perfect blend of the space-travel and horror genres that “Alien” tapped into. It is missing that claustrophobic anxiety and primal sense of adventure, with simultaneous thrill and terror of the unknown. Credited to a large degree by the designs of the Swiss graphic artist H. R. Giger, that has been etched into the pop-cultural DNA ever since.

Fantastic sequels often dare to do something narratively and thematically different, while still remaining visually and aesthetically comparable to what had come before, Aliens, The Empire Strikes Back and Terminator 2: Judgment Day are good examples. Prometheus does this as well, but halters somewhat by the weakness of the story — the screenplay — with “Prometheus” kind of spoiling itself with twists and reversals that pull the movie away from its lofty, mind-blowing potential.

Prometheus is imperfect yet compelling, especially visually. The film is fascinating on a visual scale, with shots that alternate between panoramic landscapes and tight zoom-ins on the actors. The production designs are enthralling and the enormous amount of Prometheus’ visual detail balances up any perceived weakness in the screenplay, at least in my opinion.

Of utmost importance in making Prometheus that visually compelling was the conceptual production process.

David Levy worked on the concept art for Prometheus. He worked on many concepts including variations of the rover, the medpod, landscapes, and set designs. Feast your eyes on some of the concept art that David Levy created for Prometheus and you can see more of David’s work here and here.

 

 

All images used with permission by the artist. All images © David Levy or their respective copyright holder.