Film Poster Conventions and analysis

EYE CATCHING AND CAPTIVATING

The long shot of the protagonist, The Dark Knight, is immediately eye catching for an audience as he clearly represents the famous Batman character as he is depicted in that mise-en scene of the costume.

The use of flames is captivating for an audience as it represents the thriller and action genre and also adds a new dynamic to the poster as the rest of the image is in a gloomy colour. In our film poster I would like to incorporate the same idea of having one image stand out more prominently through it’s colour.

The atmospheric and eerie sky and setting will draw in an audience as it reflects the themes and mood of the film that those who are interested in the superhero and action movies will be immediately drawn in. I would like to create the same mood in our poster to reflect the darken tones in the film.

The logo will immediately attract fans of this genre and it represents the famous Batman series and thus suggests a more modern take and a darker mood to it.

FOCAL PICTUREThis poster draws in an audience immediately with their use of a large focal picture. The image depicts the infamous antagonist, the Joker who is casted in a dark shadow holding a playing card with the Dark Knight on it. Thus this represents the idea of how the Joker is ‘playing’ with the Dark Knight and therefore is sending the audience a clear message of the genre and themes.

The contrasting colours goes on to make the poster captivating as it’s very atmospheric and communicates the genre strongly. The use of black and white is something I wish to use in our film poster as firstly low key/chiaroscuro lighting is a convention of noir but it also creates the poster to be more intriguing.

TITLE IS LARGE AND CAPTIVATING FONTApart from the focal image, the title is the second largest image on the poster. This is eye catching for the audience and allows them to immediately see the film’s name.Moreover the sparkling blue colouring and is captivating but also allows the audience to decode the fantasy genre of the film.In our poster we will definitely have a large, bold title as it makes the poster stand out and it is easy for the audience to know the title of the film

DEFINES FILM GENREBy having a large mid shot of the female character gives the sense that this is going to be a romantic film – as typically these genres have a female protagonist who is involved in a love struggle.

However her facial expression gives the sense that the film may be a drama as it suggests an atmospheric and dramatic tone.

The large image of a male character goes on to represent the same idea that the genre is a romance but again the mise-en scene of his body language suggests the genre of a drama as he is facing away from her suggesting conflict or a struggle.

The long shot of the couple together emphasises the idea created by the mid shots that this is a romantic film however by having them together as the smaller image this could represent the drama genre as it suggests the romance between them is not the main theme in the film.

The mise en scene of the setting also suggests a romance/drama genre as it is a beautiful, stereotypical romantic setting.

DESIGNED TO ATTRACT LARGEST AUDIENCE POSSIBLE

The indication that it is a Disney film is used in this film poster above the title, as Disney is a large conglomerate in the film industry; therefore they have an extremely large audience.

By having the main character of Cinderella in the film poster in her famous blue dress and glass slippers is a strong indication of what the film is about even without reading any further information. This will attract audiences from really young children to young adults who would’ve grown up with the original filmsOn the other hand

by having the real actress on the poster and not an animation (which all princess stories originate from) this will draw in an even larger audience as older audiences will prefer to watch a film with real actors in rather than an animations.

The background of the dark, atmospheric sky is another technique of drawing in the largest audience possible as this may attract to those who aren’t necessarily interested in Disney but the background suggests that the narrative may have more complex and dramatic themes than previous Cinderella telling's.

INDICATION OF WHEN FILM IS RELEASEDAll film posters will give an indication of when the film is being released. Here you can see that the date goes underneath the credit block in a bolder, larger font; therefore it is easy for audiences to read and notice.

Another convention is highlighting the symbiotic relationship with cinemas/posters on the film poster; therefore audiences will know exactly when and where they can watch the film.

CREDIT BLOCKA credit block is used in all film posters. These are to give the audience the following information:DistributorProduction companyDirectorMain actorsEditorCostume designWho the music was byWritersDirector of photographyProducers.

REVIEWS/OTHER FILMS COMPANY HAVE MADE

This review from Peter Travern, Rolling Stone, is used on the film poster for Brick to draw in an audience by highlighting that it is an exciting film and will keep the audience engaged through out. This is a decision made by the distribution company in order to attract the largest audience possible.