Semiotics is the study of signs and symbols and their use or interpretation. Film posters are full of them meaning that the audience can take in alot of information and remember them with or without knowing or being aware that they are doing this. They are remembering the symbols and signs through their visual memory allowing them to refer back to them therefore leading them to remember the film making them want to watch it. All posters are full of semiotics as its very important that they include as many images as possible with bright colours, large font and a dramatic memorable layout. The semiotics of a film poster and if theyre effective effects how many people will go and see the film or want to see it.
Examples of the use of semiotics in Film Posters...
ONE MISSED CALL
This film poster is very dramatic, shocking and thrills the audience due to the main image in the middle of the poster. The visual imagery of a face and two mouths screaming as eyes is very disturbing, scary and mysterious. The title 'one missed call' is something that is very regular and happens in day to day life that people wonder who it was or what they want but thats about it. This title with the image in the middle makes people look at that missed call in a very different and scary way thinking that in this film, that one missed call could lead to a whole load of scary, trilling and dramatic events. The typography of the title of the film stands out from the black background and is blurred at the bottom giving it a very mysterious and fading effect implying that something strange and unexplainable will happen. Its a very simple title that everyone can relate to but when shown in this way with the image of the person above it gives it a complete new meaning and gives a audience a bone-chilling reaction. The image on its own is also very strange and mysterious as it has some of the features of a human however has screaming mouths as eyes showing its not human and it gives the audience a shock factor making them remember the image therefore leading them to remember the film.
The tag-line 'What will it sound like when you die?' contrasts to the title of the film as its completely different and is very forwardly scary unlike the title which is simpler and mysterious. The tagline however links in with the mouth's as eyes on the central image as they are obviously screaming making the audience question what noise them mouths are making. The colour of the tagline is red symbolizing blood and death and the fact its also in capitals shows the death of whoever dies is dramatic and involves physically killing them with the result of screaming and blood. Having the image in the middle of the poster makes the audience remember the film more as its so shocking and different to any other poster that people would tend to come across making them remember the film more leading them to researching the synopsis and reviews.
THE RUM DIARY
This is a very interesting film poster and the semiotics of it is very different to other film posters. With such a big star Johnny Depp starring in the film it is odd that there isn't an image of him in the center of the poster as film posters tend to feature a large photo of the main star attracting fans to watch the film and make people remember the film because of the huge star. The title of the film The Rum Diary is made up of bottles of rum which is also very artistic, creative and different making it stand out to the audience therefore helping them to remember the film leading to go and watch it which will increase profit and viewers. Because the bottles are all different shapes and sizes, this makes it more artistic and different instead of the same bottle throughout which would make it boring and simplistic. The fact the poster looks like a book cover also links in with the title of the film 'The Rum Diary' as a diary is a book.
There is a very catchy tagline 'one part outrage. One part Justice. Three parts Rum. Mix well' This tagline is in the style of a recipe as its telling people what to mix and how much in order to make the final product. This links in with the film and the idea of making something eg rum. The fact the tagline is also split up throughout the poster also makes people have to look at the whole thing in order to read the name and get the idea of the poster. Johnny Depp's name is written in capitals on the top of the film poster showing that hes the main star and the only important actor that is worth mentioning in the film. There are not very many listings of the production and cast on the poster making it more simple and less packed like most posters.
LIMITLESS
The visual imagery in this poster is very powerful, dramatic and different to any normal film poster. The semiotics are very powerful how the background image stands out and is blurred to give it a fast, quick moving effect with the central image of the two main character's standing out with a more clear, crisp image. The two main characters are of very big hollywood star encouraging fans of these actors to go and watch the film increasing the profit and views of the film. The title of the film is in upper case and stands out as its in white font and is very large and clear, standing out on the poster this makes the audience remember the poster, and therefore remembering the film making them more willing to watch the film. The tag-line 'Everything is possible when you open your mind' is also in capital letters and gives the audience an idea and indication of what the film is about and the synopsis it has. At the top of the poster are the names of the main actors informing people who stars in the film and the fact that they are in capitals, clear and at the top of the page shows their importance and how they are not unknown actors and are fairly big, respected and well known in the industry. The background image of New York blurred is very striking and memorable for anyone who comes across this poster as the visual effects are very different to any other film.
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