Archive 81 is a Netflix series about an archivist that takes a job restoring damaged videotapes from 1994 and gets pulled into the vortex of a mystery involving the missing director and a demonic cult. We were brought in to design the title logo and key art for the series.
Throughout the series, the timelines of the two main characters, Dan and Melody, begin to entwine and overlap. As the storylines flip between present day and 1994, we wanted to evoke some of that 1990s typographic nostalgia through the logo in a modernized way. The logo was designed to be adaptable for specific use-cases with the red recording dot present or removed depending on the application.
For the logo – based on Neue Kabel – and key art, it was important to showcase the tension between Dan and Melody and to visually represent the way their storylines begin to entwine. Generally, the key art is minimal in nature with keen attention to the details. We underscore the themes of horror and romance with a visual divide between the two characters; a tear of static and analog distortion that both connects and separates our protagonists.
The series rose to the number 1 spot on Netflix as the most watched series in the US and globally within 24 hours of its release.
View the full case study on scorpionrose.studio
