Movie Poster Size report
Movie posters are a form of posters launched before the film is released to introduce and promote the movie. The movie poster usually contains a brief introduction of the movie, the pictures of the movie, the primary creative team, the release date, and other information. The text content of movie posters should be concise and concise, and the design should be novel and beautiful.
Early movie posters were purely for advertising for the release of movies. Like most promotional posters nowadays, they were drawn by hand, also known as hand-painted movie posters. Original hand-painted movie posters are rare. The early Hollywood films "Gone with the Wind," "Breakfast at Tiffany's," and "Casablanca" were all hand-painted. The pictures are exquisite and detailed, and they still have high artistic value.
With the popularization of movies and the development of movie poster production technology, movie posters have become a kind of art because of their gorgeous pictures, unique designs, and rich connotations, with appreciation and collection value. Movie poster collectors generally only collect original movie posters. Let's start to know the unique features of movie posters from standard movie poster sizes and types.
Origin of movie posters
On December 28, 1895, the French Lumiere brothers screened short films such as "Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat" to 35 viewers in a restaurant in Paris. At that time, the poster entitled "Lumiere Movie" may be the world's first movie poster. Movie posters were printed in several different sizes and shapes in the era from 1910 through 1980. The most common format for movie posters has always been the One Sheet. Until around 1985, the typical One Sheet measured 27" x 41"; since then, the standard movie poster size has been 27" x 40".
Movie Poster Size Guide
As we all know, the film industry has a long history, and the development of poster sizes and types has also experienced nearly a century of development. Some once popular poster sizes and styles have long been eliminated, but this also means that some old movie posters have sufficient collection value. And different countries also have different movie poster size standards.
Common US Movie Poster Sizes
Although the general poster size is not regulated, the US film industry does have standard movie poster sizes for official advertising posters in movie theaters and bus stops. The standardized movie poster sizes are as follows:
- One-Sheet size: 27×40 inches. This size is the most accessible standard movie poster to identify, and it is also the most popular size for movie poster collectors. These movie posters are usually displayed in front of the theater or the hall. The aspect ratio of the one-sheet movie poster size is slightly greater than 2:3. That is, the width is 67.5% of the height. Studios often print several posters for a movie, including "trailers," which are released before the film is released to attract potential audiences. This size became popular in the early 1900s and was reduced to a typical 27" x 40" around 1985.
- 40 × 60 inches. It is the standard movie poster size for advertising in bus and subway stations. The aspect ratio of this super large movie poster size is exactly 2:3. In the 1960s, these posters became just larger copies of the one sheet, which could be put on an easel to display in large areas. 40" x 60" movie posters were printed in limited numbers, and few survived till today, this size consequently are very rare and very collectible.
These are the only two movie poster sizes used by movie studios for official advertising purposes. Any movie poster of a smaller or larger size may be made after the fact, just as a poster company bought the copyright to the image to sell in its retail store.
There are several rare movie poster size today: Lobby card - 11" x 14"; window card -14" x 22"; Jumbo window card - 22" x 28", etc.
| US Types | Size(inch) | Size(cm) |
|---|---|---|
| Lobby Card | 11" X 14" | 28 X 36 cm |
| Jumbo Lobby Card | 14" X 17" | 36 X 43 cm |
| Window Card | 14" X 22" | 36 X 56 cm |
| Jumbo Window Card | 22" X 28" | 56 X 71 cm |
| Midget or Mini Window Card | 8" X 14" | 20 X 36 cm |
| Insert | 14" X 36" | 36 X 91 cm |
| Half Sheet or Display | 22" X 28" | 56 X 71 cm |
| One Sheet | 27" X 41" | 69 X 104 cm |
| Three Sheet | 41" X 79" | 104 X 201 cm |
| Six Sheet | 81" X 81" | 206 X 206 cm |
| Twenty-Four Sheet | 246 X 108" | 625 X 274 cm |
| 30" X 40" | 76 X 69 cm | |
| 40" X 60" | 102 X 152 cm | |
| Door Panels | 20" X 60" | 51 X 152 cm |
| Subway | 54" X 41" | 137 X 104 cm |
International Movie Poster Sizes
Movie posters are gorgeous. Even if it is for the same movie, different countries' versions will have different expression methods and may also highlight different themes. An ordinary movie poster has only one or two layouts, while a popular blockbuster film may have dozens of designs. The poster of the "Titanic" should be the poster with the most layouts at present.
| Types by Countries | Size (inch) | Size (cm) |
|---|---|---|
| Australia - Daybill | 13" x 30" | 33 x 76 cm |
| Australia - One Sheet | 27" x 40" | 69 x 102 cm |
| Australia - Three Sheet | 41" x 81" | 104 x 206 cm |
| British - Quad | 40" x 30" | 102 x 76 cm |
| British - Double Crown | 20" x 30" | 51 x 76 cm |
| British - One Sheet | 27" x 40" | 69 x 102 cm |
| British - Three Sheet | 41" x 81" | 104 x 206 cm |
| France - Mini | 16" x 22" | 40 x 55 cm |
| France - Small | 23.5" x 31.5" | 60 cm x 80 cm |
| France - Medium | 31" x 47" | 80 x 120 cm |
| Italy - Locandina | 13" x 27" | 33 x 69 cm |
| Italy - Photobusta or fotobusta | 19" x 27" | 48 x 69 cm |
| Italy - 1 Foglio aka Soggettone aka Double Photobusta | 27" x 37" | 69 x 94 cm |
| Italy - 2 Foglio (Due) | 39" x 55" | 99 x 140 cm |
| Italy - 4 Foglio (Quattro) | 55" x 78" | 140 x 198 cm |
| Germany - A00 | 46" X 65" | 117 x 165 cm |
| Germany - A1 | 33" X 46" | 84 x 117 cm |
| Germany - A2 | 23" X 33" | 58 x 84 cm |
| Germany - A3 | 23" X 17" | 58 x 43 cm |
| Germany - A4 | 11" X 17" | 28 x 43 cm |
| Japan - B0 | 40" X 58" | 102 x 147 cm |
| Japan - B1 | 30" X 40" | 76 x 102 cm |
| Japan - B2 | 20" X 30" | 51 x 76 cm |
| Japan - B3 | 14" X 20" | 26 x 51 cm |
| Japan - B4 | 10" X 30" | 25 x 76 cm |
| Japan - B5 | 7" X 10" | 18 x 25 cm |
Movie Poster Types
- Functionally, it can be divided into two categories: movie posters and movie derivatives. The second category is for advertising and promotion, and its products are often marked with the words "For Promotion." Movie derivatives are mainly used for advertisements, theater posters, gifts, including postcards, keyrings, souvenir cards, mugs, and T-shirts. These are all derivative products of movies.
- Movie posters can be divided into two major categories in terms of version:
The first category is original movie posters, that is, movie posters issued by movie distribution companies, which have strict regulations on distributing quantity and quality. Generally speaking, the size of all original posters is basically 27x40 inches, and the size of reprinted posters is the same. Each version of the original poster is printed in limited quantities, so its value as a collection is priceless. Movie poster collectors only collect original movie posters.
The second category is authorized movie posters, the available size is 88 x 59cm, 42 x 30cm, but 88 x 59cm is the mainstream size. The authorized movie posters are relatively cheap and have a larger circulation than the original movie posters, so there are more common in the market.
