Evaluation (Film Poster):

1. In what ways does your media product use, develop or challenge forms and conventions of

real media products?

Film Posters:

• Definition of a poster:– A large, usually printed placard, bill, or announcement, often illustrated, that is posted to

advertise or publicize something

– placard designed to be posted in some public place for purposes of commercial announcement or propaganda

• Definition of film posters:– a poster used to advertise a film. There may be several versions for one film, with variations

in regards to size, content and country of production of the poster

– any poster, placard, video slick, photograph, or other printed pictorial matter that is intended for use in the advertising or exhibition of any film to the public; and includes a miniature representation of the whole or part of any such poster

– Studios often print several posters that vary in size and content for various domestic and international markets

Conventions of Film Posters:

• Common conventions of film posters:• Normally contain an image with text.• Today's posters often feature photographs of the main actors. • Prior to the 1990s, illustrations instead of photos were far more common • The text on film posters usually contains the film title in large lettering and often the names of the

main actors. • May also include a tag line, the name of the director, names of characters, the release date, etc.• Film posters are displayed inside and on the outside of movie theaters, and elsewhere on the

street or in shops

• There are a few main points that are focused on and will stand out to the audience immediately; these can consist of:

• Images• Film title• Text/slogan • Colour

My Film Poster – Images:

– I decided to have a primary image in my poster which would be on the side of the poster then a secondary, smaller image filling up the rest of the poster. Upon researching into film posters using the internet to search for various ones, it seems apparent that my style of design seems to challenge typical conventions of film posters when it comes to images.

– Typical film poster consist of usually one large main image, which is normally of the main character or one of the actors, then the rest of the poster is filled with the background of the same image and text. This is visually apparent in the majority of modern film posters and seems to be a trending convention which I have challenged.

This poster consists of one image; taking up the entire poster with text on top. The main part of the image is the main character in the centre of the poster, instantly catching the eye. On either side of this character are more character which the eye eventually leads to and catches attention. This convention of only using one image has clearly worked well to create an appealing poster.

Again this is evidence of posters only using one image to fill the entire poster. This image consists of what again seems to be the main character, however he is not taking up the centre of the poster but is more to the side. This image seems like it has been taken straight from the movie and involves the audience, even if the single image doesn’t reveal a lot about the film

My Film Poster – Images:

• Even though film posters using just one main image proved to be very effective and appealing, I wanted to challenge the typical conventions of these posters and pull of an appealing final product.

These were the two images I intended to use in my film poster. The mask was significant as it was what the main villain wears throughout the trailer, and it creates a scary effect. This was the image I intended to be my primary image.

The photo of the garden was taken straight from the trailer and I think once edited and tweaked it could pull off a good effect in my poster.

This is my final product and as you can see both images have been included in my poster. I believe this poster challenges typical modern film posters and still pulls of an aesthetically pleasing effect. However my image of the mask could be portrayed as a bit plain and maybe something could have filled up the eyeholes as they look a bit blank.

My Film Poster – Text:

• Text used within my film poster matches the conventions of text used in the majority of modern film posters about. The text I used consisted of:

– Film Title– Film Credits/Actors names– Slogan

• My film title is large and bold; standing out from the rest of the poster. This is common among film posters so I think my title matches conventions of typical film posters nicely.

• The film credits I used in my poster are similar if not near enough the same to the majority of film posters around (similar font, size, style) However, my research into posters has shown I have slightly challenged this convention; most film credits on a film poster are normally found at the bottom of the poster, usually underneath the film title. However, I placed mine at the top of the page, above both images. This looked appealing to me rather than having it at the bottom of the page and I believe this challenge in this convention has worked well on my poster to pull of an appealing effect.

This is my film title used on my poster compared to some other titles. It is clear that my title follows the form of other film titles; it is a clear, bold font with strong colours used to stand out from the background which works well.

My Film Poster – Text:

• Research into film posters has shown me that almost every film poster has some sort of slogan or catchphrase on the poster. Therefore I thought it was suitable to follow this convention and place one in my poster. I placed it just under the film credits as on most other film posters they are found near the film title or credits or any other text.

• Overall I think the use of my text was very relevant to my poster and the research I put into poster helped me greatly in decided which types of forms and conventions to try and go with. IT has helped pull of what I think is an aesthetically pleasing product.

I thought this was appropriate placing for the slogan as it catches the eye quite quickly but doesn’t draw the audience straight to it. The colour of the text was also appropriate I thought, as it follows the same kind of colours used throughout the poster but is not too bright or bold, so it doesn’t instantly catch the eye and lead it away from everything else.

My Film Poster – Colour:

• Most modern film posters tend to stick to using the same, if not similar colours throughout the images, text, background etc of the poster. Horror film posters follow this convention a lot; the colours used are usually dark, bland colours such as black, grey brown or red. These colours can create a sense of fear, insecurity and mysteriousness. These colours can define what genre the film is to the audience looking at the poster.

• 28 Days Later portrays this convention well; a completely red background fills the

poster with the eyes coloured red too. Black is then also used for the sign behind

the title and the silhouette at the bottom. These two colours are ideal for creating

a sense of fear and horror.

• The Hills have Eyes poster also follows this convention; using bland, brown colours throughout

the poster. The film title and slogan even consist of similar colours, where some would say it

makes it difficult to read. However, it is apparent that a lot of posters follow this convention

and that it pulls of a good, appealing effect.

My Film Poster – Colour:

• Consists of 3 main colours:

• Red

•White

•Grey

Bold shade of white used for the film title to stand out and catch the eye clearly

Red background used behind the text to help it stand out and make it more clear, as it is quite unclear on a grey background

Black and white image used in the centre of the poster. It has been edited to be in black and white to follow the theme of these colours used and to add to this sense of darkness and fear within the poster

Although I do not stick to one main colour on my poster, I believe I have followed the conventions of typical horror film poster within the use of colour; I have kept to the same type of colours .