What makes a good film poster?

I have been looking into what makes an effective film poster.
I found this website to be extremely helpful.
http://www.webdesignerdepot.com/2011/02/7-elements-of-a-great-movie-poster-design/

The web article explain 7 elements that make a good film poster. These consist of:

1. Gripping the audiences attention. this is known as AIDA which stands for attention, interest, desire, and action.
2. Using iconic themes from the film without giving too much of what the film is about away.
3. Create interest, make the audience want to see the film. The article explains that if the film is more serious and iconic images can't be used, it is effective to use an image that hints at what the film is about, the image should be interesting and be based on a exciting scene of the film.
4. The poster should appeal to a wide audience and appeal to fans of the director, actors etc. as well as people who wouldn't particularly call themselves 'fans'.
5. The style of the poster should fit in with the style of the film and also be used consistently when promoting the film and in the film itself e.g. the style of font used, colours, images, quotes etc. this creates a more recognisable image and people will remember it more.
6. Create a look that suits other formats. this means that you should create an image that could also be used on the DVD front cover release and for other things. This could have more of an effect on the audience as the poster could become more iconic, the article has used the           'Jurassic Park' poster.
7. This last point talks about sequels to films however in a nut shell the point basically is saying make the poster recognisable.

 

Here are two film posters from The Blair Witch Project. as you can see the first poster has used a lot of the points made in the web article. The poster is eye catching, iconic and interesting. The writing on the poster doesn't stand out very much however what it actually says is very interesting and makes me want to watch the film.

I really like the second poster as it has been created in the style of a missing person's poster. I think this is extremely cleaver as it is very eye catching and also iconic as it tells us about the film but also makes us think that the film could actually be a true story. The fact that neither of the posters have written the names of the actors or the directors in big and bold writing adds to the effect of the film and makes it more realistic. by this I mean, if they had put the actors and directors names in big writing on the poster it would immediately tell the audience that it is a film and not footage that has been found.

 

 
I found this film poster from an Indian found footage horror film called '?:A Question Mark'. I really like this poster as it tells us a little about the film without relieving too much. I think it is very effective as it doesn't give too much away and makes the audience question whether or not the film is a true story or fictitious. I think the colours used in the poster suit the genre of the film and also hint to the audience what genre the film actually is as the colours are dark and therefore people automatically think it would be a Horror, or Science fiction film. However I do feel that the title of the film is quite unclear and I had too search the Internet to find the actual name of the film. I personally think the name of the film should have been more clearly stated so that people will know what the film is called. I think that this kind of simple yet effective poster is something that we should try to create as it makes people stop and look.

I also found this website that I thought was very helpful. A lot of the points have been touched upon already on the previous website however there are a few helpful points. http://www.tutoriallounge.com/2011/05/tips-and-tricks-of-designing-a-great-movie-poster/