Film by Design: The Art of the Movie Poster

Contributions by Vlad Dima, Laura Hatry, Alicia Kozma, Lynette Kuliyeva, Madhuja Mukherjee, Frank Percaccio, Gary D. Rhodes, Courtney Ruffner Grieneisen, Marlisa Santos, Michael L. Shuman, and Robert Singer

Movie posters, regardless of their country of origin, have become indelibly linked with the films they represent, often assuming a status as visual encapsulations of films within collective memory. Long after their initial role in promotion is complete, these posters endure as iconic images, etched into film history and cultural consciousness. One can hardly hear mention of Steven Spielberg’s landmark production Jaws, for example, without immediately picturing the evocative poster art of Roger Kastel.

Film by Design: The Art of the Movie Poster is a groundbreaking and comprehensive exploration of the international and Hollywood movie poster as a dynamic artistic and cultural formation. Drawing inspiration from such prominent genres as horror, science fiction, and noir, the twelve essays in this collection provide insightful analyses of the movie poster as a vital component of the cinematic landscape from the silent era to the contemporary period. Crucially, this anthology rejects the notion of movie posters as mere historical artifacts or advertising tools and instead examines them as integral parts of a broader aesthetic framework interwoven into their respective film narratives. Each chapter, whether focusing on controversies, close-ups, or Cuba, is accessible to scholars, students, and fans alike. Through its intervention in film studies, Film by Design reveals the movie poster to be an ever-evolving medium, firmly grounded in both theory and practice, while serving as an essential and enduring element within the realm of film art.

Gary D. Rhodes is professor of media production at Oklahoma Baptist University. He is author of numerous books, including The Perils of Moviegoing in America and The Birth of the American Horror Film. He is also the writer/director of such films as Lugosi: Hollywood’s Dracula (1997) and Banned in Oklahoma (2004). Robert Singer is retired professor of liberal studies at CUNY Graduate Center. He is the author of Beyond Realism: Naturalist Film in Theory and Practice. Rhodes and Singer are coeditors (with Frances Smith) of ReFocus: The American Directors Series and (with Stefanie Van de Peer) of ReFocus: The International Directors Series for Edinburgh University Press.