Gulls and Gods - Poster Analysis

Gulls and Gods

This poster for Gulls and Gods, a short film directed by Austin Ludwig, creates an intense and enticing scene to attract spectators towards the low budget short.

The monotone and unsaturated blue colours dominate the majority of the poster, demonstrating the despair the sole male character as he appears to be alone in this setting of a beach. The sea behind him connotes liminality and adds to his desperate body language and facial expressions as he looks to be shouting up to the gods which are referred to in the title. The placement of the title above him reiterates the idea of the man crying out to the gods for help. The large, clean font is a convention of many short films as it emphasises the most important piece of text, with the billing block and actors names much smaller as they are less likely to influence spectators to watch Ludwig's film. The prop of a message in a bottle is on the table next to him, and is reiterated within the title behind the word 'gods' to suggest that this will be a significant message sent by the gods. The handwritten style of font adds to the idea of the message inside the bottle, and therefore generates continuity throughout the poster. Multiple hidden meanings appear to be placed within the poster, which is conventional of short films as they want audiences to expect an exciting and well crafted narrative within the short amount of time.

The bright, warm and vibrant colours generated by the fire suggest a glimmer of hope within the film, perhaps brought through the message in the bottle. This contrasting light creates a focal point of the poster, which is a convention of many short film posters which often have one image which dominates in order to convey meaning. The fire allures peoples attention to this point in the poster, highlighting the possible importance of this symbol of hope, as it could be the one thing keeping this distressed man warm in this deserted setting.