Movie Posters

Though many posters were regarded as artistic and thought-provoking works throughout Europe (and Paris in particular) in the early 20th century, as soon as this medium came to America, it was exploited for selling movie tickets. The irony is, that while movie posters are sometimes seen and forgotten as little more than annoying theatrical trailers in print form, much artistic design actually goes into the making of a movie poster.

The History Of Movie Posters

Movie posters were originally made for the exclusive use of a theater that was showing the promoted film. After the film's run ended, the posters had to be returned to the distributor, and up until 1984 the National Screen Service was responsible for printing, distributing and collecting the movie posters. This organization did their part for the environment by recycling the posters and then remaking them into new promotional materials. Remember that between the 1940's and 1980's many films could stay in circulation for years, not just months as in the modern cinema age. This meant that old movie posters were usually badly worn by the time they were returned. They would either be thrown away or given to collectors.

Movie Posters Today

The National Screen Service stopped its operations in 1985 and many warehouse stored movie posters are collectible items today. Some authentic age old posters have been auctioned off for over $500,000! The record price paid for movie posters belongs to the 1927 film “Metropolis” which sold for $690,000. Today, it is a slightly different story. Although there are some vintage movie posters still out there, many movie posters have been reproduced due to the growing demand. In addition, there are also many impostor posters that have been produced without studio license. To the collector this is a big deal – to the average movie fan, it is hardly a concern.

Today, studios handle poster distribution and produce original movie posters in larger quantities for wholesale prices. This is because they are sold not just to theaters anymore but to retailers and the general public. Many posters are available directly from websites. Some popular selections today include classic movie posters, Hollywood movie posters, black movie posters and horror movie posters. The 300 movie poster is a top seller in the market day, 300 movie posters being the official merchandise of the Zach Snyder film, based on the graphic novel by Frank Miller. You can find images for movie posters at MySpace, as well as commercial websites which offer a library of titles.

Don't forget to buy some cheap movie poster frames while you're in the nostalgic mood. Movie poster frames can help to preserve a poster that will otherwise deteriorate over a couple of years. Movies end quickly but movie posters are forever!