Hi there,
I/we have begun fundraising and pre-production for a feature film. I want to get a poster made quickly to post on our fund raising site and for marketing purposes. I have just spent a couple of hours on line searching for artists and have found nothing! What am I doing wrong in my searching?
Hello Anne,
Looking directly for an artist is typically the wrong way to go. Typically you get better results by posting an ad or posting on a forum like this one. Also there is the good old fashioned networking. Asking people you know in real life if there is anyone they know who can help is probably the best bet.
For budget reasons should we try to use photography which we give to a poster artist or let a poster artist design something after reading the screenplay? what are the pro's and con's?
It depends on how fast you want the work done, who is doing the work, and if you are paying by the project or by the hour. Most designers will give you a quote for the project based on how long they think it will take them to complete.
Odds are the designer does not want to spend an hour or more reading your screenplay, unless you are paying them to do so.
If you are supplying art, that may make the process easier. It might not. If the photo is complete crap, low res, blury, or what have you, it may make the job of the artist harder or the poster suck. You also have to either know what it is your looking for in the poster or be willing to take what they offer.
Most artist are not going to want to spend a bunch of time with a client that doesn't know what they want and have to go back and forth doing revision after revision because the client doesn't know what they want. Especially on a low budget project. Conversly, don't have such a locked in idea that it is going to be impossible for the artist to create it.
When you find an artist, talk to them about what you, mention you have art you may want to use, and let them look at it. For the poster they will probably just want an idea of the overall concept, any particular art/fonts you want to use, and the copy (text) that should go on the poster.
It also will vary if they have to design a logo for the project to go on the poster. They need to know if the logo will have to be in the film or not. Some designs look good on paper but not so much on screen. IF you are working with a more advanced designer, you may also at this time want to work out if the logo will be animated at any point in the future so they can build the logo/poster accordinly.
Let them know what format you want files in. It helps to know up front if they have to make a print ready files, several web sized jpgs, etc.
or, is there a DIY option that is not tacky and affordable?
If you have photo manipulation or layout software (photshop, indesign, gimp, etc.) you can always make your own poster. You could draw and scan or draw and photograph a poster.
Can any of the veterans out there recommend an artist who is great or upcoming who can help us?
If you tell us your actual budget for the poster someone here may be willing to do it, or know someone who is. A "small budget" could be anything from $10 to $1000 depending on what you consider small and how extensive the design work is.
Also telling a little more about the project/poster idea might be helpful.
