In May, we brought you an exclusive gallery from Matthew Chojnacki's Alternative Movie Posters II: More Film Art from the Underground, and I've recently gotten my hands on the book, a beautiful edition worthy of the finest coffee tables. The book, large and colorful, boasts almost 100 new artists, as well as fifteen returning artists from Alternative Movie Posters I. Both books are gorgeous and filled with lively commentary, and together or separately would make a terrific gift for the film art nerd in your life.

Each artist represented is asked a few questions to go along with the vibrant reproductions of their works in the book. Artists speak to Behind The Posters (how the piece was commissioned or came about), Influences, Favorite Film/Genre, First Film, Preferred Medium, Clients and Additional Remarks. It's a revealing addition to the incredible images we see on the page, giving us a sense of the artist's motives and method.

Some of my favorites:

Studiohouse Designs have a Goonies and a Hellraiser print included in the book, and the Hellraiser poster, designed like the infamous Lament Configuration with the intricate markings creating an upside-down cross, is especially stunning. Artist Cody Brown says of his favorite film, "My fondest memory is stealing my mother's copy of Hellraiser and sneaking it up to my room. I remember shitting my pants because it was so scary."

Matt Taylor (responsible for the cover of our own Star Wars magazine!) is represented in Alternative Movie Posters II with two lovely, poignant posters, one for Lost in Translation and one for The Graduate. He says of the Lost in Translation piece, which shows Bill Murray's Bob Harris watching Scarlett Johansson's Charlotte laughing in a crowd of lights, "Lost in Translation was a private commission from a group of avid poster collectors. They wanted me to create a poster for a film that they felt hadn't been served well yet with a print. They gave me a list of potential candidates and Lost in Translation jumped out at me, as it's a favorite of mine."

Jessica Deahl has two really striking posters included here: one for Carrie, in which the torso of the title character looms, giant and bloody, over her ominous-looking house, and an AMAZING print for Coming to America in the form of a vintage advertisement for Soul Glo. She says of the print, "I have a real affinity for the 1980s Eddie Murphy films. They are equal parts smart and silly, and oh-so-quotable. The 'Soul Glo' product almost plays its own role in Coming to America, from that amazingly soulful jheri curl commercial to advertisements behind the actors in the barbershop. It was a lot of fun to revisit that film and create what I would imagine as the real 'Soul Glo' advertisement based on the streets of Queens. All of the swirly hair was fun to draw and ink, and I added some distress and intentional misregistration to make it feel a little rough around the edges."

There's more, much more, to be had in Alternative Movie Posters II, and to get an idea of some of the eye-embracing art, look on for a few really cool examples.

From Akiko Stehrenberger:

From Anthony Petrie:

From Brian Ewing:

From Chris Garofalo:

From Matthew Esparza:

From Tim Anderson:

From Tomer Hanuka:

From Tracie Ching:

From Van Orton Design:

Get your copy of Alternative Movie Posters II at the below link, and its prequel edition here.