A vintage movie poster is an original advertising print that is at least twenty-five years old. They are collectible art forms. Vintage posters have an interestingly long history. Countless vintage movie posters were made and there are several different techniques of collecting them that different curators and collectors employ. Movie posters came into existence around when movie cinemas emerged in France and the U.S, movie posters became very popular as they were always released to advertise a new movie to be seen at the cinema. In many parts of the world, movie posters evolved during the twenty years between the advent of movie cinemas and World War 1. Movie posters are peculiarly connected to the art of filmmaking for film lovers all over the world. Filmmakers adopted the use of movie posters to make film lovers more curious about the movie, to make them want to see the movie. Movie posters were everywhere you turned to, always colorful and intriguing to catch the eyes and attention of passersby. Classic movies like Robert Aldrich’s thriller, “Whatever happened to Baby Jane” in 1962 would always be remembered by its bright and interesting posters.
Aside from enticing people and inducing their curiosity to see the movie, vintage movie posters also serve as memorabilia of films and as artifacts. They are special as they make us remember good movies of the past. A collector sees special features in movie posters and this makes them always collect more and more movie posters, to them the poster of a recent Disney or Marvel movie has similar features with vintage movie posters.
Just as you cannot keep dogs without knowing anything about dogs; as someone that wants to have a vintage movie poster collection, some valuable information about vintage movie posters is necessary. Of all the important things to know about vintage movie posters, the types or categories top the list.
The knowledge of the different types of movie posters helps in making an informed decision as regards collecting movie posters. Movie posters could be:
- Reproduction movie posters: These are movie posters that are copied versions of the original movie posters. They are usually licensed.
- Counterfeit movie posters: These are fake posters that have been copied from the original and not licensed.
- Alternative movie posters: They are usually limited editions of movie posters that have been licensed.
- Original movie posters: Original movie posters are those that are produced by movie cinemas and filmmakers to promote their movies.
Movie posters also come in different sizes. The most common sizes are:
- 40 x 27 inches: This is the commonest size used in the U.S, it is also referred to as ‘One Sheet’.
- 22×28 inches: This is more like a revision of the one-sheet posters. It is also called ‘Half sheet’.
- 14×22 inches: This is commonly called window card size.
- 8×14 inches: This is a small version of the window card, it is often called a mini window card.
There are also many other sizes of movie posters that are used all over the world.
In the process of starting a vintage movie poster collection, there are some factors to be aware of. They are essential in guiding you when collecting vintage movie posters for sale.
The condition of the movie posters is important to your collection. This is because the movie posters are vintage and there are chances that they have been handled by different people over the years. When you’re getting your vintage movie posters, they may be arranged in the order of neatness. To be sure of the condition of the vintage movie posters, you have to verify them yourself.
To make value out of your vintage movie posters, you also have to consider scarcity. This means you should look out for those vintage movie posters that are not commonly available. Just like every other product or collectible, you tend to get better sales offers when your movie posters are very hard to find elsewhere.
To get your vintage movie posters, you may have to check online stores since original movie posters are not usually sold to the public. These stores are specifically designated for vintage movie posters for sale. Check vintage movie posters online at Film Art Gallery to get original movie posters that you can’t come across just anywhere.
