Film Studies: Analyzing Movie Posters Name _________________________________ Date ___________ Period ________ How to analyze movie posters http://www.mediaknowall.com/gcse/bbustermovies/movies.php?pageID=posters Posters occupy a space between art and advertising. They have a clear commercial purpose - to promote an event or product - but they also have artistic value. People buy them and hang them on their walls. Museums have whole galleries devoted to poster art. When analyzing a poster it is important that you evaluate both how well it fulfills its purpose (i.e. promotion) as well as its aesthetic value. First steps: When analyzing a poster, you should consider the following broad questions before you start to focus on the details:

o What are the main colors used in the poster? What do they connote? o What symbols are used in the poster? Do you need audience foreknowledge to decode the symbols? o What are the main figures/objects/background of the poster? Are they represented photographically,

graphically, or illustratively? o Are the messages in the poster primarily visual, verbal, or both? o Who do you think is the intended audience for the poster? o Given that all movie posters have the same purpose - to get audiences to go see a movie - what persuasive

techniques are used by the poster? o Which genre conventions are referred to? o Is a star used as a USP? o Are "expert witnesses" (i.e. critics) quoted? o What pleasures (gratifications) are promised in the poster? o How is attention gained (humor, shock, surprise familiar face of a star)? o How does the tagline work? (humor, pun, alliteration etc.?)

Critical Evaluation: Finally, you have to pass judgment on the poster.

o Is it a good poster? o Does it communicate effectively with the audience? o Are there any alternative readings which might harm the message of the marketing campaign? o Is the poster offensive in any way? e.g. representation

Practice: Study the following movie posters using the above questions as a guideline.

               

  Reflection: Write a one paragraph response to the following question that includes concrete details

What features/ characteristics did you notice are similar and different in noir film posters?

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________