About 

Poster Design History

Movie posters developed in the early 20th century as an extension of circus posters, borrowing sizing standards from existing lithographic companies.[1] Between 1910 and 1915, film studios began to involve themselves more in poster design and production, working closely with artists to convey a specific image.[2]

Posters are considered to be "paraphilia", like book jackets.[3] They "give interpretive readings" of the work they describe. Posters appeal to memory, sometimes long after the memory of the actual film has waned.[4] After World War II, poster design exploded all over the world. As the studio system collapsed and television took over, poster designers had more creative leeway, especially in countries devastated by the war like Poland, Japan, and Italy.[5]

Now, movie posters are not the central marketing tool they once were, but they're vital to cultural heritage.

American Soft Power and Cultural Exports 

All of the films in this series are American and set in New York City, but many of the posters come from Europe and Asia. 

Film is one of the many aspects of soft power, a type of cultural dominance that can influence global public opinion. American dominance in entertainment in the 20th century is a classic example of this soft power, emitting from the soft glow of a movie theater.[6] 

New York City has benefitted immensely from this soft power. The films depicted in this poster collection portray the city in every possible light, as a city of desperation, a city of romance, a city of nightlife, a city of capitalism. These posters and the films they reference create the city and its image.

Picking The Titles 

I did not pick the titles in a scientific manner. Several of them are from the 1970s, when there was a boom in indie cinema and the graphic design revolution of the 60s had come to pass.[7] I wanted to make sure there were several different nationalities, designers, and points of view represented. I am also a film enthusiast, and I picked films that resonated with me and my experience living in New York City.

Creator Issues 

Some foreign posters incorporate designs from American designers, in which case I credited both the foreign and the American artist. I tried to credit all creators whenever possible, using CCO rules for unknown artists. If a creator is not listed on Posteriati, but their name is in the catalog, it came from the Internet Movie Poster Awards website.[8]

Footnotes 

  1. ^ Rhodes, Gary D. “The Origin and Development of the American Moving Picture Poster.” Film History 19, no. 3 (2007): 228–46. 505219217, pp. 228–46. Art & Architecture Source. https://doi.org/10.2979/FIL.2007.19.3.228.
  2. ^ (Rhodes 2007)
  3. ^ Gary Don Rhodes and Robert Singer, eds., Film by Design: The Art of the Movie Poster (University Press of Mississippi, 2024).
  4. ^ (Rhodes and Singer 2024)
  5. ^ Jütka Salavetz et al., eds., Art of the Modern Movie Poster: International Postwar Style and Design (Edition Olms, 2008).
  6. ^ Ross Melnick, Hollywood’s Embassies, How Movie Theaters Projected American Power Around the World (Columbia University Press, 2022), https://doi.org/10.7312/meln20150.
  7. ^ (Rhodes and Singer 2024)
  8. ^ “IMP Awards - All the Latest Movie Posters,” accessed May 6, 2026, http://www.impawards.com/.
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