Film poster positioning and sizes

Production companies use a range of different media platforms to get their film lots of publicity. Here are some examples of where they advertise and why these are good or bad strategies.

Place	Advantage	Disadvantage
Bus stops	It can’t be turned off (like a TV can). People waiting for the bus will almost definitely read it out of boredom if nothing else. They may be seen by lots of people in the buses. Many people are at bus stops, at all times of the day. The large, colourful designs are eye catching. It reaches a varied audience.	Bus stops often get vandalised. It is hard to appeal to specific audiences. People don’t always read bus ads. There are probably more people using social media/watching TV than waiting at bus stops. These are therefore more effective places to advertise. They might be costly.
Billboards	They are huge and eye-catching. They attract attention from all drivers and people passing by. They are also seen by masses of people in buses/trains etc… By advertising in such a grand way, it shows that the film is high budget and good quality. They also can’t be turned off or changed by people. They are placed in populated areas.	They are very expensive. They are taken down after a while. It is again, hard to target specific people with such a broad form of advertising.
Magazine	The ad can be placed in certain magazines to appeal to a specific type of audience. Magazine’s get lots of readers. Magazines are kept longer than newspapers, since they are placed in offices or passed around between friends and families. The higher the magazine’s status, the higher the perception of the movie. Magazines are sold nationwide.	Some people ignore the ad sections. The magazine has to agree to the sponsor. It can be costly. Magazines have to made months in advance, so the film company has to meet those early deadlines and be patient in the film’s release. Magazines are quickly outdated. The reader will probably read it once before buying the next issue in a week.
Cinema	A lot of people enjoy watching the trailers before the movie starts. They get to experience in high definition, with surround sound and popcorn. This makes the film look better. It is a guaranteed audience, with a room full of people. No one can change or skip the ads. The audience will be a certain target group, since they are watching a particular film. Unlike print ads, cinema uses sound as well as visuals to capture their audience.	People might forget about the trailer, after having watched many other trailers as well as the film they paid to see. The other trailers shown are competition. Half of the audience are arriving/going to the toilet or not paying attention at the time when trailers are shown. It might be expensive.

Film posters are printed in various different sizes, depending on where they will be placed.

1. Here is an example of a movie poster, advertised at a bus stop:


They are always portrait (due to the shape of the bus shelter), with a large, eye-catching main image and the important text at the top of the layout. This is because people are unlikely to see the bottom of the poster. Their size is 40x60 inches (1016x1524mm).













2. Here is an example of a one sheet portrait poster. They are 27x40 inches (508x762mm).

















3. Here is an example of a UK 'quad' sized film poster. These are movie posters which can be advertised on the side of buildings. Cinemas usually have framed quad posters on their walls to advertise upcoming films. A quad film poster is 40x30 inches (686x1020mm), in a landscape format.