2001: A Space Odyssey - (re) Visiting the Stanley Kubrick Archive

Post-Grad Community partnered with UAL's Archives and Special Collections Centre to bring materials from the Kubrick Archive out for postgraduates, following a screening of Kubrick's iconic 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968).

Post-Grad Community Ambassador Zina Mbanefo (MA Public Relations, London College of Communication, 2025) took part in the session and reports back.

At the bottom of the design block in London College of Communication sits the quaint but rather inviting Archives and Special Collections Centre. Having only ventured through this part of the college once, it felt so accessible and I was unaware about how much greatness I was in store for. The Archives and Special Collections Centre holds over 45 archives and collections, including their infamous Stanley Kubrick Archive, holding material from throughout the esteemed director’s entire career. Yet, today’s activities consisted of the viewing and handling of iconic archival works from Kubrick’s ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’. The film was perhaps one of the first films I watched as a nerdy young film student wanting to engross myself into Kubrick’s work and without a doubt is a film with an everlasting legacy and a profound impact on the industry today.

Upon walking into the centre, the artefacts were placed neatly on three tables, separated in works from initial stages, pre-production and post-production. The wonderful archive experts gave us a whistle-stop tour of all the artefacts on show and then allowed us to have a look for ourselves, giving us clear instructions on how to handle all the delicate photos, reports and notebooks in a way that still allows us to really digest all the information and see 2001 from Kubrick’s lens.

Starting with the the initial stages section, Kubrick’s real notebooks detailing his workings when putting together the concept of the film clearly showed his methodical but equally imaginative creative process. The endearing sketches of actual scenes in the film just showed his clear vision from the beginning and characterised Kubrick as a director whose ideas and work just come to him with undeniable clarity. However, as a Public Relations student, I naturally gravitated towards the post-production section, where I found marketing plans and materials from the films release including special editions comics and planned scripts for radio advertisements. I couldn’t help but be fascinated at how inventive and targeted their marketing tactics were, including room for celebrity endorsements.

Going over to the pre-production section, the concept I was most fascinated by that linked the post and pre production sections together was the partnerships and relationships with companies that Kubrick fostered over this film. From a space themed 2001 inspired children’s menu for hotel and restaurant chain ‘Howard Johnson’s’ to correspondences with IBM surrounding lending computers for the film or sharing insights into what a future supercomputer would be like. The comical exchanges between Kubrick and IBM take on an added layer of amusement when the company comes to the realization that Hal is, in fact, a formidable killer. Their reluctance to be associated with such a menacing entity further underscores the transformative influence of film, highlighting how even the minutest details can sway audience perceptions and reshape perspectives.