Minimalism as Style: Minimal Movie Posters
by Kaitlin Aguilar
I am not that far removed from college and I still haven't really figured out what I am doing. What I do know is that there are so many different realms of design, I can go anywhere.
I am not a movie buff by any means but I want to talk about movie posters. I have seen some really incredible movie posters. For fun sometimes I love looking up movie posters after I've seen the movie. My favorite movies posters are the ones that can tell the most about the movie without saying or using a lot of flashy design elements. I want to share some of my favorites here.
Ferris Bueller's Day Off
Easily one of my favorite movies this one had to go first. A '61 Ferrari 250 GT California in free fall on a black background with some type, pretty straight and to the point.
Ratatouille
This movie poster by Joe Haddad for Pixar's Ratatouille is pretty darn cute. Using simple vector images this poster design shows what has to be the main character Remi as part of a cheese wheel as the main focal point and the movie title at the bottom with five stars restaurant rating, which I think is a pretty clever touch.
Drive
I really enjoy this Drive poster because I really enjoy neon signs and when it comes down to it this poster is just the title of the movie. However, this neon pink was pretty prominent in the movie and like how they chose to just focus on that saturated color on a dark background that fades to black. I like how the pink is also carried throughout the poster in the fine print. I think it ties everything together but doesn't distract the viewer from the main attraction--the movie title.
Goonies
This Goonies movie poster is pretty awesome. It features a consistent color palette and a illustration that shows some texture. It shows a lot of elements of the film, the house, the skull, a ship's whell and the unground cave where the designer cleverly placed the Goonies title and famous saying inside. I think it is pretty minimalist while still offering many fun elements to excite the viewer.
The Birds
The Birds is an iconic film and this poster does it justice I think. It features a singular bird feather with a little shadow on a pure white background. The title is centered in big sans-serif text below with the actors name aligned underneath. This provides some consistency and hierarchy and the viewer's eye will follow the feather down to see the title.
These are just a some of the movie posters that I really enjoyed but there are so many to be discovered. Do a simple movie poster search for your favorite movie and see which one you like best!