163. The Human Touch: Kenny Gravillis on Biggie, the Oscars & Outsmarting AI

The Creative Boom Podcast

He branded the Oscars. Designed the iconic Ready to Die album cover. Created film campaigns for Inglourious Basterds, West Side Story, Dune and more. In this episode, our founding editor Katy Cowan chats with creative director Kenny Gravillis, the East London-born designer who's helped shape the visual language of contemporary film.

The founder of Gravillis Inc., Kenny shares how he went from designing panty shield ads to working at Def Jam by age 21, and later building a studio in LA that now works with the biggest names in Hollywood. He reflects on meeting Spielberg, working with Spike Lee, and why staying humble (and kind) has been his secret weapon.

They also talk about the challenges of breaking into a closed industry, navigating the shift from music to film, and why AI won’t replace the nuance of human-made art anytime soon.

Oh, and the time Christoph Waltz thought he'd been cut from Inglourious Basterds because Kenny didn't give him a poster.

This season is proudly sponsored by the School of Communication Arts.