Film Poster Analysis

2. The first film poster I have chosen to analyse is
‘San Andreas’, which is an action film. My
reason behind my choice is that, the poster
uses very simplistic colours, there isn’t a
variation of say perhaps very bold colours such
as, red/green, however these colours still make
the poster appear captivating. From my
research, I have found that the title of the film is
usually positioned very low down on the poster,
which spreads across the entire horizontal. The
title of the film is usually the largest and boldest
text, which is shown on this poster. The colour
of the title (an off white) conforms to the
conventions of an action film poster, as having
white text on a dark background makes the text
stand out more.
The text on the poster is very simplistic and the three
main pieces of informative text are in bold which
immediately catch your attention. Underneath the title
positioned in the centre, bold, however small in
comparison to the title the words ‘May 29’ are shown.
This informs the audience of the release date so that if
they decide they want to see the film they know roughly
when to go. Furthermore, below the release date reads
the words ‘SEE IT IN READ D 3D’, this shows that the
film was made from a high budget company, opposed
to low (they are able to present the film in variations) as
they are better and more popular with the attention and
profit they receive.

3. The central image of the poster is of the protagonist, Dwayne Johnson, who is a Hollywood star and one
of the unique selling points for the film. This is reinforced by the above text which has his name in small
but bold text. I look at this poster as having 3 central parts, his name, the film title and the release date,
as they stand out most being white on a relatively dark coloured background. Behind the protagonist is
an image of ‘San Andreas’ which appears to be destroyed and in dire conditions. I am aware of this
because there are large clouds of smoke coming out of various buildings, further to that, there is a huge
parting within the ground which indicates that there may have been an earthquake. Using Propp’s
narrative theory, combining the two images alludes to the fact that protagonist could be the hero of the
film, this is reinforced by him being framed at a slight angle above the disaster which could show that
he has more control. His costume shows that he has some sort of authority within society (he is a rescue
pilot for the Los Angeles Fire Department). This shows that he feels that it is his duty to save people in
such a huge crisis as the one shown in the image.
The character is looking side on from the disaster,
however he is not looking at the camera (mode of
address is not apparent). This shows that, his
character is based around seriousness, which is
reinforced by his facial expression it indicates a man
who is ready for business, the furrowed eyebrows and
intense glare support this.

4. Here is a teaser poster which was released
before the official poster. This is a vey
simplistic poster which in itself is self
explanatory as it hints a the plot. The central
image is of ‘San Andreas’, however the city
is split in half, and it is shown as going all
the way down into the ground.
From prior research, San Andreas is known
as ‘California’s sleeping giant’ as this place
is largely responsible for California’s
earthquakes. As audience members who
would already be aware of this information,
they would know that the film is going to
perhaps be about a major earthquake which
takes place as the central plot.
The tagline ‘WE ALWAYS
KNEW THIS DAY WOULD
COME’ directs the
audience personally, for
those who know about the
San Andreas fault. The
tagline makes it seem as
though this is something
that the not only the
characters in the film have
been waiting for, but also
what the AUDIENCE have
been waiting for (use of
direct address).
As this is only a teaser poster, a release date
for the film has not yet been established
which is why it says ‘COMING SOON’, in
small, bold letters. The name ‘Dwayne
Johnson’ is a key aspect to this films publicity
as he is a infamous Hollywood star.