MOVIE POSTERS- Christina Rita

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How has use of visual hierarchy and grid evolved with the emergence of digital technologies over the traditions qualities and potential constraints inherent in letterpress? Find 2 examples to compare and contrast.

There is no doubt that many of the aspects of visual hierarchy and grids used throughout various mediums have evolved as a direct result of the prominence of digital design technologies. The case study of movie posters reflects this transformation, demonstrating how new technologies have caused  many of the design aspects to change, but also how the fundamental composition and hierarchy has  remained consistent. 

Above are 4 examples of movie posters for movies from their original release to their contemporary re-interpretations.  There are clear aesthetic differences between the two, with all of them transforming from vibrant illustrations to highly digital, photograph based posters. The typefaces from the original examples seem to also be more decorative and custom formed around the illustrations. This is because much of the posters were designed by hand, allowing the typeface to be customizable, seemingly dictating the composition of the whole poster. This is quite different to the contemporary examples where the headlines are generally quite subtle and standard and emphasis is put onto the photograph/image. The older examples also seem to feature more extra text boxes positioned quite freely once again attributed to the freedom of the artist , whereas he contemporary examples appear to be minimal with a very structural grid.

Beyond this however, there are several qualities that remain consistent. All of the posters feature large titles with a somewhat heavy, decorative typeface positioned  a very central area. All of the posters also feature a simple tagline and credit/production information list, in a finer typeface and in a border form positioned at the bottom of the page.

These examples echo the same transformation that has occurred with letterpress technologies. With the use of digital technologies comes the heavy emphasis on the graphic components (photographs), leaving the treatment of type to be quite structural and subtle so as not to dominate the images. The adoption of these technologies mean that the visual hierarchy of the work is formulaic and of immaculate clarity, where as the traditional examples, relied purely on the eye and the natural response to order. 

Below are examples of movie posters for contemporary movies that have been re-imagined and designed as though released in the 1950's:

References:

1. 'movie posters', http://au.movieposter.com/mpw8/19501.html<accessed 13th May 2013>

2. mail online, http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2089807/Avatar-Inception-Movie-posters-recreated-1950s.html <accessed 13 May>

3.internet movie database, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0360717/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1 <accessed 13 May>

4.'The 90 Year Evolution of Movie Posters', http://creativeoverflow.net/the-90-year-evolution-of-movie-posters/ <accessed 13 May>