Robert Rodriguez gets inspired by Frank Frazetta with FIRE AND ICE

Frank Frazetta is an icon in the world of great fantasy artists.  Boris Vallejo, Julie Bell, Michael Whelan, and Frank Frazetta are four of the more common names thrown around, but Frazetta was different.  His unique style had a lot of texture and as a result the environments and people he painted always had a more gritty and rougher look.  At last week’s Comic Con, director Robert Rodriguez announced to the slobbering fan-boys (and fan-girls) that he is working in conjunction with the Frank Frazetta estate to produce a live-action version of Fire and Ice.  The name may not trigger anything  for some, but others might recall a 1983 fantasy cartoon of the same name that included fierce warriors, arctic landscapes, and scantily clad women (this was no Toy Story).  Now, new images have surfaced that give us a look at the style Rodriguez is going for.

Entertainment Weekly was able to grab production art for the live-action film that will begin shooting in early 2012.

Rodriguez told Entertainment Weekly that he wants “it to look like you just stepped into one of his paintings, where you get to see his world, and how he saw people, anatomy, and composition and color. It will feel like it’s real, but not real. It’ll be his reality. He saw things differently. He painted from his imagination. He didn’t take a photograph and just paint it.”

Blue Underground released the 1983 animated film back in 2005 on DVD.  The film is directed by Ralph Bakshi, who was also influenced by the art of Frazetta when making it.  The official synopsis of Rodriguez’s take on the material as well as production art for the film is below.  The art below was created by Rodriguez and his team at Quick Draw which mimic the style of some of Frazetta’s famous paintings.

From his stronghold in Ice Peak, the evil Nekron sends forth a wave of deadly glaciers, forcing humanity to retreat to Fire Keep, a kingdom ruled by a generous king. When King Jarol’s daughter Teegra is kidnapped, young warrior Larn teams with the mysterious and legendary Dark Wolf, to rescue the princess and the realm from Nekron’s evil sorcery.