History of Horror

Let’s follow horror to its’ roots. The history of horror is a vast and probably a foolish thing to take on.  As I said last month, horror is somewhat unique among the film genres.

As we look at how the horror genre has changed over time, we must not think of its’ history as something under strict guidelines. New films borrow from old films creating a constant remix of subgenres and new practices to make something for modern movie lovers - such as yourselves. 

Faces of Horror
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So who did the first horror films borrow from? Monsters, murderers, demons and beasts have been around forever.  Ghost stories have been told around camp fires since we learned how to talk. But the roots of horror films were based off of Gothic Horror.  This type of writing was developed by writers in both Great Britain and the United States.  The Gothic part of the name refers to the buildings that these stories took place.  Imagine old castles on dark and stormy nights surrounded by gloomy forests, dungeons and secret passage ways.  The perfect beginning to any horror film. 

Preview of Poster Selection
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In 1896 Georges Méliès created what is considered to be the first horror film ever made.  Check out a segment of the "The Manor of the Devil" – if you dare. *Witch cackling* Although, this film was one of its' kind at the time, horror films made a break through when they learned how to scream. Sound transformed the cinema in the 1920's.  Your favorite horror films wouldn't be the same without sound.  From there horror movies went on to be divided into sex, psychology, and gore.  While the first horror films to present day slashers can be divided into these categories, a horror film still has the potential to swoon movie lovers. 

Don't Forget

This week BOS is holding a sale on our stock of vintage horror film posters.  Our friends at allposter will be helping us out with the sales process. Follow the link and find your favorite classic horror film poster – the selection is endless. All proceeds will go towards the winner of our Jamie Hanson Halloween party makeover drawing. Not sure what that means? Then you didn’t get a change to listen to Box Office Smash’s fist official podcast. Check it out here à https://soundcloud.com/bosmash/halloween_drawing. Follow the instructions in the podcast to be entered into a drawing to work with our personal interior designer Jamie Hanson this Halloween.  The winner will be announced through Facebook and Twitter October 30^th, so don’t forget to check in throughout the week. 

Five Movies That Scared You Senseless

In the early years of Box Office Smash, management veered away from producing suspense and horror film poster campaigns. These types of films bring an entirely different arrangement of challenges to creative minds. The choice to focus on the sheer fear, suspense, or plot build in the poster of a horror movie can alter box office sales drastically. Whereas, other films reel in movie lovers through the promise of action, love, comedy etc. horror films have just that - horror. But, BOS finally took the plunge into this elusive genre with the 1982 film Poltergeist. The poster was so wildly popular, BOS finally arranged for a horror genre to be introduced as a department.

My grandfather was the mastermind behind the poster himself, and it was one of my mother's favorite horror movies. Considering this, I watched Poltergeist at a young age and it scared me enough I was not able to sleep in my own bed for weeks. So, with October and my first encounter with a horror film in mind, I would like to dedicate this blog post to the top five movies that scared me senseless growing up.  With the help of our friends at Rotten Tomatoes, I'll provide you with a second opinion on the general quality of the movies as well.

Number One: Poltergeist

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Poltergeist

Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 88%

The film revolves around a normal family whose house is built on a Native American burial ground and the spirits become upset.

Number Two: When a Stranger Calls

Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 9%

A babysitter is left alone with the kids in a house in a remote location. A stranger calls.

Number Three: The Fourth Kind

Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 19%

The Fourth Kind follows a psychotherapist’s videotaped sessions with her patients that offer the most compelling evidence of alien abduction ever documented.

Number Four: Misery 

Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 89%

A writer is in a car accident, and thankfully the person who rescues him turns out to be a former nurse ... and huge fan.

Number Five: Sinister

Rotten Tomatoes Rating: 62%

A true crime novelist who discovers a box of mysterious, disturbing home movies that plunge his family into a nightmarish experience of supernatural horror.

These films are not organized weighing one film more frightening than another because each held their own significance when I first viewed them.  As movie lovers yourself, I hope that you will be able to revisit at least one of these films this October season.  Follow the link in each movie title for a Rotten Tomatoes' review. Don't take them personal - they mean well. 

We Thought You'd Look There

In blatant terms a movie poster is an advertisement; they take the most memorable and important pieces of a film and form them into something a consumer can easily recall. 

What I'd like to focus on today is how we as consumers read a movie poster. Not just the text, but how we interpret the images and shapes a poster consists of. Our eyes naturally follow the content through its' alignment and structure on the page.  

Poster layout example
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As a company whose main goal is to create a lasting image of specific movies for consumers solely through a handful of posters, we are very knowledgeable in this area. We have to (and do) know where you look first in a poster. We position profiles of famous actors and actresses, dramatic scenes, and shocking images where we know they will best reach our target market. 

There are tens of different ways to layout an advertisement - similarly with movie posters.  The most common type of layout used in movie posters is coincidentally tilted "poster layout" or "big picture layout". This layout shows a single, large illustration that dominates the space with minimal text and a logo or signature. It emphasizes importance to the main visual. Simple, yet grabbing.  

The "silhouette layout" is a concept less used in the movie poster industry, but can prove to be just as effective. It deals with all design elements being clustered together to create a recognizable shape, and can be seen by one solid color. This emphasizes the shape of product or in this case movie characters.—

Silhouette layout example
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I would love to share with you an example of every possible movie poster layout, but if you are interested in finding more you'll have to stop by our newly introduced Instagram account.  

Breast Cancer Ribbon
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Lastly, this month we are starting an exciting project to help raise money for breast cancer awareness. The Breast Cancer Awareness Foundation has reached out to BOS to create a poster for their ongoing fundraising campaign. We are eager to begin this project but need your help.  As Box Office Smash fans and followers we would love for you to submit either a drawing, photo, or graphic design of a breast cancer ribbon. With these images BOS will create a mosaic forming a breast cancer ribbon to feature in the poster campaign. The poster not only has potential to reach thousands of people, but for every ribbon submission we receive, BOS will donate $.50 to the Breast Cancer Awareness foundation. Box Office Smash believes in pink.  We believe tomorrow is another day, and we believe in miracles.  Every submission helps.  If you're interested send your design to cvtcmarissa@gmail.com. 

Now You Don't

As you may know Box Office Smash was responsible for the original Now You See Me poster campaign.  With the soon approaching 2016 movie release of Now You See Me: The Second Act we have taken to the drawing boards for creative planning.

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Main poster concept for original Now You See Me campaign

                                                             - Spoiler Alert -
For those of you who had the pleasure to indulge in the first film (Now You See Me) you would remember making the realization that Dylan had been responsible for bringing the Four Horsemen together all along.

We find out that Dylan was the magician's son. After his father's accident, he takes on a new persona to avenge his father. He targeted Tressler’s insurance company and the French bank because they both denied his family any benefits after the accident.




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Dylan being reviled for beginning the Four Horsemen

Now You See Me: The Second Act continues our story one year after the Four Horsemen had outwit the FBI and won the public's attention with their mind-bending demonstrations. They resurface only to find themselves face to face with a new enemy who enlists them to pull off their most dangerous heist yet.




We have constructed the following concept to help announce the updated and exciting cast list for The Second Act. Any further creative ideas for the complete campaign cannot be released until the film industry allows.

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Mock poster for cast release

Daniel Radcliffe
Lizzy Caplan
Morgan Freeman
Dave Franco
Isla Fisher
Jesse Eisenberg
Woody Harrelson
Mark Ruffalo
Michael Caine


What I can share is that we will be featuring a beautiful vehicle in one poster of our lineup for Now You See Me: The Second Act.  Our friends at Monocle Luxury Motors recently featured the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat as the number one luxury vehicle to keep our eyes on this fall.  Quoting the blog author Rob the SRT Hellcat holds, "a top speed of 199 MPH this is one wild ride. Available in 11 colors, this is a car that will make everyone in your neighborhood envious of you."

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Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat

Although available in eleven colors, we will be featuring a black Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat. If you are interested in this prestigious vehicle Monocle Motors will be opening sales to a limited number.  Check out their blog at monoclemotors.blogspot.com.