Year in Review: My Top 10 Posters of 2025
As another year of incredible posters comes to an end, it’s time for me to (try!) and pick some of my favourites from across the year. I always say I could have picked plenty more, and that’s as true this year as any other! Let’s get going shall we?Read More
Next Level: Great film posters that tell stories using layers
Every great film poster has layers – the literal layers that combine to make up a clear central visual, but also the metaphorical layers of story that the designer uses to fire our imaginations and leave us wanting more.
But sometimes the story of a film or TV show might invite a more undisguised use of layers – adding visual complexity and depth – along with all the emotional and narrative implications that come with these styles. These stories are a gift for designers. Because – whilst these posters are often breathtaking – the best ones have something deeper at play – and this kind of story doesn’t come along too often.Read More
Drawing Interest: How mixing photography and illustration can make film posters stand out
From the Silent Era of film all the way up until the 1980s, hand-drawn film posters were commonplace. Crafted in painstaking detail and incredibly atmospheric, many of the posters created at this time are still regarded as iconic. Read More
My Top 10 Posters of 2024
Around this time I like to look back on the year that’s just passed, and pull out some of my favourite posters. As always, this is hard because narrowing it down to just ten doesn’t seem fair – but it does fit neatly into a single article so that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
So without further ado…Read More
Masters of disguise: How film posters use hidden images to add meaning
We all love stories because they take us on a journey. And films are no different. Whatever the genre, a good film grips us with twists and turns – playing with our expectations – so that we stay engaged until the final moments. And great film posters? Well, they take us on a journey as well. And some of the cleverest posters can even replicate those twists and turns too. How? One way is by using hidden images. Read More
8 incredible alternative posters that are even better than the originals
Alternative Movie Posters or AMPs are big news in 2024. Whilst they’ve probably existed – in one form or another – as long as films themselves, their popularity has skyrocketed over the last ten or fifteen years. And it doesn’t show any sign of stopping.Read More
Blurring the Lines: How double exposure creates powerful film posters
Double exposure is a powerful tool in visual storytelling. Using layers of shape and imagery, it can produce striking posters that can catch a viewer’s eye and encourage them to look twice. It can be bold or subtle and the atmosphere it creates is often highly emotive. It can also be an effective way of linking narrative elements – characters or places – whetting an audience’s appetite for the film to come. Read More
Smoke and Mirrors: How film posters use reflections to bring stories to life
From a storytelling point of view, designers can face a lot of challenges when creating a film poster. Within just a single image, we need to spark intrigue without giving too much away and we also need something eye-catching that ideally gives the viewer something more to see upon closer inspection. And all the time staying true to the tone and specifics of the story.Read More
A game of two halves: Using duality in film posters
In our culture, we have a long history of duality in storytelling. From thematic duality like an epic fight between good and evil or the journey from innocence to experience right through to duality within one personality such as in The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mr Hyde – the concept of opposing forces has long been a key catalyst for creating drama. Read More

