James Reeson

Comparison of Conventions in Posters

A slogan has been used to give insight into the movie concerned, and to also reflect the genre of the film. Both slogans on the

magazine convey a chilling feeling, which is typical of the thriller genre. Both slogans also force a potential audience member to ask questions of the film, such as ‘Who is missing?’ and ‘Warned about what?’ The slogan entices people in while revealing little, making it

conventional of a thriller film poster.

A main actor from the film is used on the front cover in a shot that clearly reveals the face. Research revealed a variety of shot types to

be used, but both the images on these two posters reveal clearly who the actor is. Audience members want to know what actors are

in the film. It is part of the appeal of going to see a movie, so making use of this convention was important.

The use of lighting has been carefully considered to create the cold feeling that thriller films portray. Very low key lighting is used on the poster for Shutter Island, whereas my poster uses slightly less

low key lighting. Both posters still have what could be described as dull and gloomy lighting, which is an important component of the

thriller genre. I felt that if I went for a higher key of low key lighting, the setting could be better revealed.

Both posters make use of the convention of adding the names of the leading actors on the poster. Again, the reason for using this convention is that it is intended to draw in potential customers. People are attracted to watch films by the actors who appear in them, so telling them who is in the film is a major selling point.

Building block credits have been added on to the bottom of the poster, but formatted in a small font and in a colour that doesn’t

make it jump out like the rest of the poster. The credits are conventional because of the convenience they give to a reader if

they choose to find out more detailed information concerning the film advertised on the poster.

Corporate information is again added for those who wish to discover detailed information. Both posters contain the logo of the production company, and my poster takes the step of including an age rating for the trailer, which is useful in case younger audiences were thinking of watching the film. Research suggested that not all

posters include an age rating, though a healthy proportion of posters do.

A release date for the film is given at the bottom of the poster, formatted in a colour that opposes the colour around it. Both

posters also offer a vague release date. It isn’t a specific date, such as 7th December 2013. Perhaps this is conventional of the thriller

genre because it has elements of mystery in itself. It could motivate an interested potential customer to do more research into the film,

which opens up additional marketing methods.