Guests arrived to champagne and surprise treats at their seats, with the venue’s Edwardian charm setting the tone for an evening of cinematic excellence. Christopher Corbould, the Academy Award–winning special effects supervisor behind fifteen James Bond films, and Marek Reichman, Aston Martin’s Chief Creative Officer, shared insights into the craft behind the franchise’s most iconic automotive sequences, followed by cocktails and gourmet confections from a cinematic candy station.
Their conversation revealed the creative alchemy behind Bond's most iconic moments and the stories that ultimately shaped the pages of the book.
The Origin of the Magic
It all starts from the script. What's written down in the script is our benchmark, and then we run with it from there... How can we make this more spectacular? That's the first thing." This philosophy has produced moments like the legendary tank chase in GoldenEye, Pierce Brosnan's first 007 film. - Christopher Corbould.
The Moment That Defines Aston Martin on Screen
We went to an emotional place in No Time to Die that we hadn't been to before… I'll never forget our first conversation when I went up and met with Merrick, and Marck said, Well, what car are you going to use? And I said, "I suppose the DB5, I think there was a bit of a silence in the room because they obviously wanted their latest car off the production line to sell a few more cars, obviously, but once they got over that, it was then… Well, how many do you want? - Marek Reichman
What Drives a Movie Car into Iconic Status
The cars themselves are beautiful, so the movie is an advert for the product. They have to have character. The thing you'll notice about all our vehicles is that they literally have faces. So the actual icon is that there is a face, an expression, eyes, whether that's the DB 10, the DB 5, the DBS in Casino, the Vantage, or the V8, sorry, from No Time to Die as well. They all have an expression, and I think those expressions become part of the iconography and the imagery. - Marek Reichman
The Car That Could Fill Many More Chapters
I have a soft spot for the Aston Martin V8. - Christopher Corbould
Choosing the Stories That Made the Final Cut
I decided to get writing, writing, writing, and writing. And I could have written it probably twice as big, but Assouline was clever. They picked out all the bits that were relevant to the images they had and used what worked for the book. They didn't give me any agenda to follow. They just said, Chris, write what you know about the cars. We want all the stories and anecdotes about what went on behind the scenes, what happened when you were filming. - Christopher Corbould