CODES AND CONVENTIONS

OF A FILM POSTER

BRIEF ANALYSIS- INCEPTION

Bold film title

Reference to an A list actor

Intriguing tagline

Reference to directors work

Credit block

Reference to release and where it will be shown

Main focus area of image- hinting at storyline

MAIN IMAGE• The majority of film posters allocate the entire

space for the main image which they think best represents the film.

• Creators will create a whole separate photoshoot to be able to have a varied number of different images to use.

• The main image is the main focus of a film poster. It allows the audience to guess at the film genre and also at what the film may be about.

• Take the two examples I have included… if someone had not heard of Harry Potter before they would probably be able to guess that it is an adventure film while people could assume that ’27 dresses’ is a romantic comedy because of the stereotypical attractive female main character in a white dress.

TAGLINE/ CATCHPHRASE• Taglines are often used on film posters to give

the audience an idea of what the film is about or just a few words related to the concept of the film.

• They can be positioned anywhere on the poster although it is often placed at the top of the page to balance out the amount of text at the top and bottom of the page.

• It is often separated from other pieces of text so as soon as the viewer sees the main image and title the tagline is the next thing they will see.

• Not all films do use to have a tagline as they do not feel it is necessary to give the audience more information e.g. The Amazing Spiderman poster did not have a tagline which I assume is because Marvel already have a following so know they will have a fan base without providing a lot of information about the film.

The Hunger Games tagline emphasises the scale of the story.

Total Recall provides a little more information about what the story may be about.

FILM TITLE• The font size is often a lot bigger than any other

information on a poster as that is what the creators of the film want the viewer to remember most as that will encourage them to go and see it once it is in cinemas.

• Most title font styles chosen for a poster quite often will tie in with the genre/ theme of the film. For example Sherlock Homes is an action adventure film set in Victorian times and the style chosen for the title reflects this.

• The colour of the text will contrast the background colour e.g. red against black would more suiting of a horror film while shades of pinks against a white background would suit a rom com better.

• Some films have developed their own style for the film title which has become iconic in itself e.g. Star Wars.

CREDIT BLOCK

• Above is an example of a credit block from the film poster for the marvel film Thor.

• All film posters which include a credit block often use the same font style and usually take up the same amount of room on the poster.

• It includes the important main production and distribution companies are included as well as the names of the important crew members such as the producer, director, editor, director of photography ect…

• In this general area of the poster the company logo will be included as well as the release date and links to social media accounts and the films website address.

GENERAL INFORMATION FEATURED• BBFC rating and/ or logo

• Some may include a critic review such as a well established film magazine or website like Empire and Rotten Tomatoes

• Comment on previous successful work by the director

• Mention of any awards won e.g. Academy award winner…

• Release date in cinemas/ on DVD

• Connections to social media e.g. Facebook and Twitter.