Getting people interested in your movie can be a difficult mountain to climb. We all know this because we have lived this. The first thing is something that was told to me by the founder of Raindance, Elliot Grove. He said, “You made a film? No! You made a movie! You can’t even get your own mom to come and see a film… But a movie? That’s different, people will pay money to go see a movie.”
But what is the difference between a film and a movie? I suppose two important things: A movie has a poster and a trailer, a film has neither. Films at elementary school, that our teachers shows us are definitely “films.”
I only remember seeing a movie at school one time all throughout elementary school and that was the movie, “Patton” starring George C. Scott. I don’t remember seeing any films, because they are so unmemorable, but we saw them all the time.
So what was the difference between a movie like Patton and the myriad of films we watched? I think it was that Patton had a very strong image in their poster.
What is the first thing people see and think, “That looks great! I’d like to see this movie!” Your movie poster! Yes, think about it. What one image sticks in your mind about a great movie you saw?
The one thing that requires only 1 second to see and make people think, “I’d love to see this movie” is your poster.
But often, the poster for the movie is usually an after-thought for most movie directors or producers. And I get it, because after the shooting and editing, often one is so exhausted that one more mountain to climb is a bridge too far!
But I am here to tell you that the movie poster is critical — and might be the most critical thing to get people to sit and watch your movie — for the success of your movie. It is the primary and always the first thing that will spark interest in your movie.
A movie poster, especially a great one, will tell a story and get people motivated to fork over money to actually go to the theater and sit and watch your movie.
It is the key foundation of the success of a film.
So, I run a film festival in Japan and I see lots of posters. Some are good. Most are bad. A few are really good. Of course, everything is subjective, but I think the good ones, the really good ones, are few and far between.
Why are there so many bad movie posters? That’s a good question. As I said before, just completing a movie is difficult enough… I have been so sick of my movies after I finished them. I understand about being too tired to care about the poster sometimes,
I think many posters are not given the time and thought put into them to make them the best they can be. It is simply because the director or producer hasn’t the energy to think deeply about what message they want their poster to convey to the audience. Do most filmmakers take the time to consider their poster or is it an after-thought? Or they haven’t conveyed what they wanted well enough to the artist (which could be because they haven’t thought deeply about it also). I know people who have hired an “good” artist and then told them, “Just make the image you think is good and I will check it.”
I don’t think that is good. Whose movie is this? The director’s or the poster artists?
A good poster tells a story. You know the old saying, “A picture is worth 1000 words?” That’s what we need to keep in mind for this critical piece of the puzzle towards our film’s success.
I was thinking about my poster art for a long time. I don’t like to rush. This time I was taking my time to do the art the correct way.
My newest movie was about a sixties art icon, Ono Yoko. I wanted to poster to reflect that time and that artist.
I made dummy art with my friend based on a poster from the sixties and used that as basis for the my poster. After all, didn’t the great Oscar Wilde say, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery!” So, we are indies artists, no one will criticize us if we imitate the masters!
What is “the sixties” to me? Pop art (Andy Warhol, Peter Maxx), the Vietnam War, the Beatles…That’s the image I wanted for my poster.
And what better place to find a model than a poster for that period? I found one in a few seconds searching on Google search!
“But I don’t have much money to spend on an artist!” I can hear you say. Of course you don’t. That is why this article appears on the webpage of an indies film festival. This article is for people like us.
First off, you don’t need a famous artist! There are literally millions of young and undiscovered artists, comic writers, photoshop hot designers just dying for the chance to show their skills. You just gotta find them! Every college or university is just filled with young and hungry artists! You have to give them the chance to get their name out and start on that road to fame!
Young filmmakers should reach out to their art friends for favors (film and visual artists go to the same schools, have the same social circles). I think artists should be paid fairly for their work, of course. But if the artist is young and hungry, and wants to work for cheap, that’s their choice, and your benefit. I was lucky to have a friend who wanted to help, but usually gets paid top-dollar.
Is there an undiscovered artist that doesn’t want to do a big festival movie poster art? I doubt it!
So you too can have a poster for your movie that makes people go, “Wow! I want to see this movie!” You just have to take the time to consider what exactly you want and convey that message to your artist. Give your artist the image and the tools they need to make your dream come true.
Like I said, the first image people will see concerning your movie is the poster. It is the first image that will spark interest and get your film accepted at festivals and get your name and the artists name out to the world.
The artist I found was a guy named Adam Feldpausch. He wrote:
“I created this poster for Mike because he’s a friend, and I was intrigued by the Yoko Ono narrative. Mike also gave me a bunch of images and articles about Yoko as inspiration, but it wasn’t until I watched Grapefruit that I really understood the project; it’s an art film. Mike didn’t want to use photography or a film still to promote the picture. He wanted art that added another layer to the project.
Some things to consider when creating a poster: If you directed a movie, you have the best understanding of what the movie is about and what you want the poster to say. How you introduce your movie really matters; it’s the first impression, and it sticks, so make it good. Avoid clichés and take risks if your movie does. I like to draw ideas really small to test if they are clear enough to work from far away, or a small online ad, or a quick social media flash. If it works in a small format, it will be understandable for most people.”
Filmmakers! Create your dreams. Make the effort and spend the time. Find that artist who will be a part of your dream! Your poster is the most important thing that people will see first!
The original movie poster for the movie “Grapefruit” (2023). Very basic layout. But what does this poster tell you? Sixties Pop Art (Andy Warhol, Peter Maxx), a classic sixties design by Adam Feldpausch. An unforgettable image of a much better time and a great movie.
For more check out this article.
Mike Rogers [aka Mike (in Tokyo) Rogers] is a director, producer, and a radio host.
He was also known as “Nigel Nitro”, former lead singer of the Los Angeles punk band, The Rotters (who had the monster hit, “Sit on My Face, Stevie Nix” in the late 1970s.
Currently, he hosts the Mike Rogers Show on InterFM in Tokyo and on Radio Neo in Nagoya, Japan.
He is also the writer, producer and co-director of the 2017 feature film, “Ghostroads – A Japanese Rock n Roll Ghost Story” which premiered at the Raindance Film Festival 2017.
He is a founding member of the Mt. Fuji – Atami Film & VR Festival.
