Cinema posters through the decades – in pictures

In the age of streaming, we may not think too deeply about the impact of film posters, but for decades these designs played a vital part in guiding cinemagoers on what to see. In a new book edited by Tony Nourmand, a vast selection of posters spanning the past century offers insight into contemporaneous tastes and styles, showcasing the medium’s eye-catching artistic innovations: glamorous paintings for 1922’s Salomé, scratchy, left-field illustration for 1987’s Withnail and I, and that terrifying, looming shark for 1975’s Jaws. “These images and artworks that covered our streets and consciousness over the last 100 years did not just appear by accident,” says Nourmand. “They were and are the work of some of the most talented artists of our time.”

• 1001 Movie Posters: Designs of the Times will be published on 3 September by Reel Art Press

Cinématograph Lumière (1896, France)

Art by Marcellin Auzolle (1862-1942). Nourmand writes: “The very first movie poster produced for a paying audience on 1 January 1896 at the Grand Café in Paris.” [• This caption was amended on 11 August 2024 to change the poster’s date from 1986]

Le Accenture Straordinarissime di Saturnino Farandola (1913, Italy)

Art by Albert Robida (1848-1926). “Robida was an illustrator, caricaturist and novelist and a contemporary of Jules Verne. His extraordinary artwork for the Italian release of this early futuristic science-fiction film imagines chemical and underwater warfare.”

Metropolist (1927, German export)

Art by Heinz Schulz-Neudamm.“This expressionist, art-deco and futurist masterpiece is a holy grail among poster collectors. Back in 2005 when I was a dealer, I brokered a sale of this poster for $690,000, which still holds the record today for the most expensive poster sold. One of only a handful of copies known is in the permanent collection at MoMA in New York.”

Another Fine Mess (1930, US)

Art by Albert ‘Al’ Hirschfeld (1903-2003).“The classic Laurel and Hardy poster which combines the elegant illustration by Hirschfeld with one of the duos most famous quotes, also the title of the film.”

Casablanca (1942, France)

Art by Pierre Pigeot (1903-unknown). “By far my favourite poster on the film. Bergman’s oversized profile and the lines of smoke streaking across the poster, depicted in warm hues of pink and orange, are an unusual and striking design choice. The ambiguity of the film’s outcome is also conveyed in the decision to depict the chess scene. It is a great example of the artistic freedom afforded to European artists during this period.”

The Man in the White Suit (1951, UK)

Art by Alfred Reginald Thomson (1894-1979). “The head of marketing at Ealing Studios, S John Woods commissioned leading British artists to work on his poster campaigns, one of whom was the renowned portraiture artist Alfred Reginald Thomson, who created one of the most instantly recognisable designs from 1950s British cinema.”

Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961, US premier)

Art by Robert Edward McGinnis (born 1926). “The portrait of Audrey Hepburn by McGinnis, used as the key art on the American poster campaign, has become the quintessential image of her. McGinnis is mainly known for his illustrations of pulp paperbacks and numerous illustrations for James Bond films.”

Jaws (1975, US)

Art by Roger Kastel (1931-2023). Design by Tony Seiniger (born 1939). “Seiniger is a true titan in the industry; his distinguished career includes more than 2,500 campaigns over 50 years. For Jaws, he got the studio to buy the rights for the illustration by Kastel and used it on the worldwide movie poster campaign. It has become one of the most iconic film graphics of our times.”

Pulp Fiction (US “dictionary” advance)

Photo by Firooz Zahedi. Design and logo by Tod Tarhan. Art direction by James Verdesoto. “Called the ‘dictionary’ advance due the use of the dictionary definition of the word ‘pulp’, in keeping with the opening sequence of this Quentin Tarantino classic.”

Do the Right Thing (1989, US)

Photo by Anthony Barboza (born 1944). Design by Art Sims (born 1954) and 11:24 Design. “The pioneering Black graphic designer and artist Sims is celebrated for his work in entertainment media and is particularly noted for his visionary body of poster designs for director Spike Lee’s films, most notably for this poster, a copy of which is in the collection of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture.”

Walk the Line (2005 US advance)

Art by Shepherd Fairey. “I can only assume that the highly unusual decision to use Fairey for this movie campaign four years before his iconic Obama ‘Hope’ poster was by the film’s director James Mangold who is a movie poster fan and has an exceptional eye for design.”

Parasite (2019 UK advance)

Design by La Boca. “La Boca is a London-based boutique design studio with a global reputation for dynamic commercial art. The studio was established in 2002 by Scot Bendall and Alain de la Mata. Note the Academy Award underneath the table in the artwork. A premonition of things to come?”