The History of Film Posters

Used to advertise a film, a movie poster can be printed in a variety of sizes for domestic or international uses.  Prior to the 1990s, it was more common for illustrations to be used on a film poster whereas today it is more common to see main actors photographed.  The National Screen Service in the US was where film posters were initially printed then distributed between 1940 and 1984, they would then be recycled and eventually thrown away after they are no longer needed.  Film posters also made great memorabilia for collectors; those from the NSS that were returned would sometimes be stored for collective purposes and have a high value.  In the early 20th century; printing was not easy and expensive therefore the price of promoting was high, this drastically changed over the years.

1920s

• Traditional hand drawn stills, depicting scenes from the movie 

1930s

• Bolder, typographic designs and illustrations focus more towards main characters of the films

1940s

• Character illustrations are most prominent, with typography more defined

1950s

• Poster designs take a more conceptual approach with subtle film clues and content, with more focus on typography than illustrations

1960s

• Film poster are more focused on importance of layout such as the central cast member 

1970s

• Photography begins to play a role for the first time in movie posters; taking up the majority of the space in the canvas 

1980s

• The evolution in film poster is clearly seen; reflecting poster conventions which we usually see today - such as the big photographic backgrounds with more balanced types and imagery

1990s

• Posters become more formulaic; with the large photographic backgrounds, slogans/ taglines and headlining cast members

2000s

• The revolution of movie posters is most clear, following the layout see from the 1980s onwards of large scenic photographs and minimalistic approaches