Analysis and Comparison of design styles, visual codes (semiotics) and references to be found in my artwork (poster for a family comedy)

I am also providing a contextual analysis, stating whether it is successful in its implementation and delivery.

As much of my poster is still in the conceptual stages, I will be presenting this blog in a back – to - front format, discussing the poster’s context first: For my contextual analysis, I am referring to the genre of Family Comedy made popular by such actors as Adam Sandler, Rob Schneider, Owen Wilson, Ben Stiller, Will Ferrell, Steve Carrel, Vince Vaughn…who have been referred to as ‘The Frat Pack’. Some of their movies are produced by Adam Sandler’s ‘Happy Productions’.

Movies such as ‘Fifty First Dates’, ‘The Animal’, ‘Hot Chick’, ‘Step Brothers’,’ Meet the Fockers’ and ‘Zoolander’, fit the genre of Family Comedy because their main emphasis is on humour which is often  produced by exaggerating characteristics of real life; Adam Sandler is hilarious in ‘Hot Chick’ where he appears in a supporting role as a stoned character elaborating on the way he can store marijuana in a little container…he is so funny because he keeps obsessing over something which normally a person would only mention once ;Rob Schneider in ‘The Animal’ is often funny because he can look so vulnerable in weird situations, for example, when he is ‘taken over’ by a goat on heat, to the music of Marvin Gay, ‘let’s Get it On’; Schneider is also hilarious in the gender – swapping role in ‘Hot Chick’.

I have attempted to reference the genre of simple family humour with my movie poster design, showing a mid-shot / heads and shoulders photo, of my main characters’; Doctor DoHuge, who is a reversal of the character Doctor Doolittle, and one of his ‘patients’ who are centrally placed in the frame.  Here, I have been influenced by many of the movie posters which concentrate on personality close-ups of the well-known actors in the comedies. Doctor Do Huge, is actually a homeless man who takes on the persona of a Doctor because he        thinks that doctors are popular with women. I will probably frame the midshot above and below, with the typeface for the title of the movie and the actor’s names. At the moment, I am still debating whether to place the bolder font for the title, either diagonally or horizontally. I have noted that the smaller fonts giving lesser names and credits are sometimes created in narrower typeface so they can be fitted in the poster’s frame; I would like to avoid this as it is best to have the typefaces unified.

I will choose a brightly lit background – either plain white, or a warm colour such as yellow or red, to indicate the happy/ comedy genre. I am endeavouring to make the typeface consistent – either all black or just one colour, so it will be easy to read and will contrast well with the background. The images will not be complicated with symbols although the character of Doctor Do Huge may have a white coat and stethoscope, to indicate his Doctor status, and he may be swinging this stethoscope so that it tangles around his patient. To reinforce that it is a family comedy, both figures are laughing happily.

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