FILM POSTER ANALYSIS

BY AYA WA N I S

WHAT IS A FILM POSTER?A film poster is a promotional poster used to advertise a film. A Film poster is a creative and engaging way used to provide the information needed to the audience. The purpose of a film poster is to create excitement and attract audience attention to increase the viewers. Furthermore a film poster informs the audience for important release dates and information. In addition film posters provide some indication about the narrative to clearly make the genre of the film stand out.

What is the different types of Posters ?Teaser poster: A teaser poster is an early promotional poster used to wet the audiences appetite. It does not reveal information or characters but used to hype the audience to watch it.Main poster: The main poster is the original poster and it differs from the teaser poster because it reveals and displays the releasing date and the production company name. In addition it reveals the main characters which grabs the audiences attentions and makes them want to watch the film and name of the director.

WHAT MAKES A FILM POSTER SUCCESSFUL ?For a successful movie poster, it should be grabbing the attention” of people passing the poster and it is important because as a marketer you want as many people to notice the film as possible. Iconography• Identifying main themes in the film without actually telling the story or

revealing makes a good movie poster.Using imagery can establish the film’s plot while looking iconic. The use of colours

and graphics the relates to the movie such as red for blood for horror movies.Not revealing which excites the audience to watch it and grab their attentionBold font and writing linked to the genre of the movie.Tag lines or skylines to amuse the audience and give a slight hint e.g. “ Based on a

true story” for horror moviesEmotional development of characters displayed on poster e.g. for drama film

posters

Teaser poster

Main poster

The skyline shows that these two films were excellent and attracted many audiences and “ The conjuring will be suspenseful and good as they have same director.The title of the film is at the

top in sharp black bold writing to make it stand out and clear suitable for all. The sharp edges of the title could link to the film iconography used such as a knife or a axe which connotes murder

This sentence gives information but not too revealing about the genre/narrative. It adds suspense and excitement to the poster which scares and wets the audience appetite. “ True” refers to the films scenes as realistic and haunted to engage the audience and make them feel the films spooky atmosphere.The background image shows a tree with no leaves and an isolated house in a wood. This is common in horror movies which gives a hint to the audience about the genre. In addition the reason for not using characters in the image is to create tension and keep the narrative mysterious and to make it seem remote and empty with no help from anyone. The use of a hanging rope connotes death and murder which adds suspense.The Lighting in the poster is unclear and foggy which suggests a sense of mystery and dullness and the use of a shadow without a human shows the murder and death of a character.

The Layout of the poster is very simple and clear. The emptiness of the poster suggests inexplicable motion and lifelessness. This adds tension to the audience and excites the audience to watch it and reveal its secrets. If the poster had many images on it , it would seem messy and annoying for the audience to view and read it.The Billing and Release date inform the audience when it is out and the production name, and help the audience identify character names to create audience excitement by known characters used.

The skyline shows that these two films were very successful in attracting the audience and if you watching them you'd be willing to watch this one as well.The Colours used are a flow of saturation, bleak and lifelessness. Uncommonly for a horror, the colour red is not used however, the colours grey black and white connote sorrow. Using black tones rather than red illustrates the seriousness to the audience and therefore would provoke a scare.

The Title is bright white and the simplicity of the title stands out, even though it fits in with the colour scheme. The vibrancy of the title creates illusion and confuses the audience. White connotes innocence, purity and peace which contradicts with the genre and narrative causing disorientation.

The Main image or the dolls face is the main focus as its only visible to us. The smile contradicts with the poster

and it connotes happiness and love. However in this case it

represents supernatural as the doll is not alive creating

suspense to the audience. The eyes are staring directly at the

camera intimidating the audience. In addition the doll

is covered in blood and scratches meaning death or

injuries.The main image shows an isolated girl from the back holding a doll. This means that people wont go near her as there is something wrong. The rocking chair connotes antiquity which shows that the girl may be ancient or cursed. The use of white clothing for the doll and girl shows the resemblance between them. The colour white connotes peace, innocence which is contrasting with the genre and image.

The credit block is places in the teaser as well as “Coming soon”. This creates a mystery for the movie and makes the audience want to see the next poster.

EVALUATIONTo evaluate I have learnt that to make a successful poster you

need to include such things as bold fonts that stand out, interesting backgrounds colours that relate to the genre for

example horror you use dark colours such as black grey or red. In addition iconography is very important as it intimidates the

audience and creates a fearful effect. Furthermore, I have developed me knowledge in knowing the difference between a teaser poster and the main poster and the best ways to create suspense and illusion in the posters to be able to have a wider

audience.