The medium shot of the male character serves as the main basis of the poster. This takes up the largest area of the poster and therefore suggests that the character is very important to the narrative. The medium shot has perhaps been used instead of a closer one in order to show the props and to hint at the issues and themes to come with the narrative. The main colour of the image is very dull and grey, which suggests the protagonist's view on his life. He is carrying out a stereotypically masculine sport, as suggested by the mise en scene of boxing gloves. The composition of the frame and the body language almost suggests discomfort in the character, as his arms are bent, which suggests there is not much room to move. This might connote themes surrounding that of entrapment. The colour scheme is almost broken up a little by the bright pink writing, which distracts from the image, yet creates an association between the title and the imagery. Pink connotes femininity and may therefore suggest issues and themes that challenge sexuality and/or gender, considering that the protagonist is a male portrayed as being masculine.
The shallow focus of the background in the shot creates some negative space, although it is not a solid colour and therefore may still need to be seen to add to the meaning of the poster. Some of it has been filled by laurel leaves and for a small line of credits. The rest has been superimposed on top of the lower half of the male character, which still allows the reader to see the main aspects of the image. It may be a convention to short film posters that there is less negative space left by an image compared their feature film counterparts.
The text placed on the poster varies in font, colour and size, which suggests the order and importance of what the reader is consuming. The largest and most eye catching text within the image is certainly the pink title, which makes the poster successful in creating communication between the name of the film and the image in which it is superimposed on top of. The only other element of text on the image is the credits, which are conventional in the way that the font is compressed in order to fit as many in as possible, and is hard to read at a distance. This is kept with the dull colour scheme as it is white in colour. Also on this poster is a row of laurel leaves, which suggests that the film has been to several film festivals and made it to the official selection for some, which,with the absence of star ratings and reviews, may reassure the audience that the film is somewhat successful and is appreciated by others. The absence of star ratings and reviews as mentioned by intermedial companies may be a convention of short film posters, as short films are less often reviewed by magazines and newspapers.
The actual font used for the title carries the effect of a scratched paint texture. This may connote an aggressive action, which further communicates and associates with the image. Furthermore, the title is Slap, which implies anger and/or violence. It is an onomatopoeic word which further connotes a narrative surrounding conflict. However, the word choice and colour suggests femininity and an implication of binary opposition.
Considering what is placed on the poster helps to identify the context it which it was created. The hints towards attending film festivals not only suggests that the film is successful, but also that it has been circulating such events since being released, and therefore that this is likely to be a newer version of the film poster. Furthermore, the dimensions suggest a portrait view within a magazine, or perhaps on a wall as an advertisement, or poster spaces that cater for portrait dimensions, such as at a bus stop.
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