Anton Corbijn’s first feature documentary ‘Squaring The Circle (The Story Of Hipgnosis)’

23 May 2023 - Press release

 

The doc focuses on Hipgnosis, the legendary music art design studio, with interviews with Paul McCartney, Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, and Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant and Jimmy Page.

 

Today the official trailer for the documentary SQUARING THE CIRCLE (THE STORY OF HIPGNOSIS), about the famed art design studio behind album art from Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, will have its UK premiere at the Sundance Film Festival London on 7th July 2023.

SQUARING THE CIRCLE (THE STORY OF HIPGNOSIS) explores the rich legacy of Hipgnosis, the legendary music art design studio. After premiering at the 2022 Telluride Film Festival, the documentary is set to screen at the 2023 Sundance Film Festival London. A Raindog Films Production, written by Trish D Chetty who also produced the film together with Ged Doherty and Colin Firth, SQUARING THE CIRCLE tells the story of the world’s most sought-after album design team, who manifested innumerable quintessential album covers in the 1970s for artists including Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, Paul McCartney, Wings, Black Sabbath, and AC/DC. 

Corbijn previously directed Control, the acclaimed biopic of Joy Division’s Ian Curtis, A Most Wanted Man starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, The American starring George Clooney, Life starring Robert Pattinson, and iconic music videos for The Killers, Joy Division, U2, Metallica, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Arcade Fire, Depeche Mode, and Coldplay, among many others.

Featuring brand new interviews and never seen before footage with artists including Paul McCartney, Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters, David Gilmour, and Nick Mason, Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant and Jimmy Page, Peter Gabriel, 10cc’s Graham Gouldman, and Oasis’ Noel Gallagher, the film has been praised as “A delightful doc full of great stories” (Variety), “So much fun; A highly watchable good time” (IndieWire), and “A treat for anyone with a taste for rock, for rock imagery and for the glories that can be found in that piece of cardboard wrapped around a record” (TheWrap). 

Celebrated filmmaker, photographer, and creative director Anton Corbijn’s first feature documentary SQUARING THE CIRCLE (THE STORY OF HIPGNOSIS) tells the story of Storm Thorgerson and Aubrey “Po” Powell, the creative geniuses behind the iconic album art design studio, Hipgnosis. As Hipgnosis, the pair were responsible for some of the most recognizable album covers of all time, including Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, Paul McCartney and Wings’ Band on the Run, and Led Zeppelin’s Houses of the Holy, all three of which celebrate their 50th anniversaries this year. While Storm and Po never played a note, they forever changed how we look at music.

“My life has been dominated by Sound and Vision as it were,” said director Anton Corbijn. “At 17, I started taking photos of musicians who created the soundtrack of my youth, first for magazines and later for record covers, and then trying out moving images as a director for music videos from the early 80’s onwards. It was a long road, but I eventually made feature films: my first one, Control, dealt with music I loved, and now my first documentary deals with record covers and their beauty and power, and the craziness to get there. It has been an honour to tell Hipgnosis’, Storm’s, and Po’s, story in SQUARING THE CIRCLE.”

“My passion for music developed in the age of the vinyl record. Album art by Hipgnosis was a huge presence for me throughout my teens and so it’s been a pleasure to bring their story to the big screen,” said Academy Award-winner Firth. “This film coming out on the 50th anniversaries of the most significant albums of that decade feels fortuitous and cause for celebration. I’m excited for audiences to discover the landmark collaborations between Hipgnosis and some of the greatest bands of all time.

SQUARING THE CIRCLE is a BMG and Hipgnosis Songs Fund presentation of a Raindog Films production and produced by Trish D Chetty, Ged Doherty, and Colin Firth. Executive Producers include Hartwig Masuch, Alistair Norbury, Stuart Souter, Merck Mercuriadis, Thorsten Schumacher, George Chignell, Andrew Hulme, and Nick Angel. Co-producers are Guy Thompson & Christian Holland. Dogwoof is the UK distributor and Rocket Science is handling international sales.