Magazine Covers Analysis and Research

I have decided to look at Magazine covers for 3 different movies and 3 different magazines. I have done this so that I can compare them and look at the similarities and differences. Also so that I can get a good idea of what makes them successful.

This is a magazine cover advertising the release of the film 'Pirates of the Caribbean 4'. The magazine 'Empire' is a very popular movie magazine which usually advertises a film on the front on every issue. It is made clear in many ways that this magazine is advertising the film 'Pirates of the Caribbean 4' as the star of the previous films is on the front cover. Jack Sparrow is the character from the film that is included on the front cover and this is because many people have seen him in the previous films and will already be familiar with the character. Also it says in the circle on the left side of the poster 'pirates 4  the on-set exclusive' which tells the people who see the magazine that information on the new movie will be in the magazine. Although this font is quite small it stands out as the circle it is in is black and the font is white and therefore the high contrast makes it stand out even more. Also the 'Pirates 4' part is in bright yellow which stands out very much on the poster. Another piece of information that tells people the magazine is focused on the film is on the right where it says 'Captain jacks all-new crew'. This gives people an insight into the film as it tells them that the main character will be joined by new characters in the film. The photo of Johnny Depp on the front cover is him in character as Jack Sparrow. This is done so that people will know straight away what film is being advertised. This image of Jack Sparrow dominates most of the space of the page, it even covers up some of the title of the magazine which shows its importance. It is important that Johnny Depp is dressed as Jack Sparrow because the magazines aim is to advertise the film and not the actor. This image of him is looking into the camera and therefore connects with the people who see the magazine cover. He is also holding a gun in this photo which shows people the role he will be playing is a fierce one. His overall look is easily seen to be a pirate and his facial expression is quite serious. Although this magazine is mainly focused on the release of Pirates of the Caribbean 4, the front cover also mentions other films on the right such as 'Transformers 3' and 'Green Lantern'. It is important that the magazine mentions other films on the front cover as some people may not be interested in the Pirates of the Caribbean films but may be interested in one of the other films mentions. Therefore all people who see the magazine cover will be able to find something they want to know more about. The title of this magazine is very bold and in red which is the same for every issue of the magazine. The title stands out a lot and is in a very large font. Although the title is an important part of the magazine cover, because people are familiar with this magazine it does not matter too much that some of the title is covers by Jack Sparrows head.

On this magazine cover the film being mainly advertised is 'Transformers 2'. We know this because the name of the film is written above 'Megan Fox'. Although the font isn't very big people will know that the film is being advertised because in the photo Megan Fox appears to be in character and people will remember her from the first Transformers film. The name of the film stands out as it is a black bold font against a red background. Most of the magazine cover includes red, black and white which is fairly typical of magazines about movies. These colours stand out well and look very bold and eye-catching. The image on this poster is of the famous Megan Fox. This photo is of her in character from the move Transformers and this helps to advertise the film even more. Her pose in this photo is quite serious looking and she also looks somewhat scared. This shows that the film she is in is more of an action or adventure because she does not look happy which is how she would look if she was starring in a rom-com movie. She has been used on this poster as she is very famous and people will recognise her and want to know about the new film she is in. Also this photo of her will attract men to the poster as she is a good looking woman. The image takes up all of the background of the cover and this shows it is something that will be in the magazine. Also no other photos are included on the poster which shows that the magazine is mainly focusing on attracting people who want to see transformers which would mainly be men. The title of the magazine had been placed over the photo in this magazine which is different from other magazine covers where the image over-takes the title. This may have been done because the magazine is not as popular and they wanted the name of the magazine to be seen and remembered. Other movies have also been mentioned on the front cover but Megan Fox's name stands out the most which suggests the magazine will include and interview with her. Most of the text on this magazine cover is in capital letters. This is done so that the words stand out more when people look at the cover. This is something that is done on most magazine covers and makes the words seem more bold and eye-catching.

Here is a magazine cover which is mainly focusing on the film 'Twilight'. At the top of the magazine cover is says the name of the film which stands out a lot as it is in a black, bold font and has been placed on a grey background colour. It also stands out as it has been postitioned at the top of the cover and is in a circle. As well as the name being at the top of the magazine cover, it has also been put in a very large font at the bottom of the magazine. The font is very large and bold and stands out just as much as the title of the magazine. This makes it clear to people that the magazine will be very much about the film 'Twilight'. As well as the name of the film being put on the cover, it also says underneath the name of the film 'if the vampire movie explodes, so will their lives, Are they ready for the fame?'. This not only tells people that the film is about vampires but suggests that the stars of the film will be interviewed in the magazine. The image on this magazine cover is of the twilight star Kristen Stewart. In this photo she is not in character and this helps to advertise her as an actress because she was not very famous when 'Twilight' was first released. The photo is quite close up to her face which helps the people who see the cover connect with her. Her facial expression is quite happy and she is looking into the camera which will make people more drawn to the magazine cover and to her.

After looking at all of these magazines and analysing them I have noticed some conventions that they all include. All of these magazine covers have only three or four main colours for their fonts. This is something that helps to make them successful and is something I think we should think about as a group when producing our own magazine cover for our movie. Also most magazine covers have barcode or price tags on the front cover. Using a barcode or price tag on the front of our magazine cover is also something I think would be important as it would make the appearance of our magazine more realistic to an actual magazine cover. All of these covers also have a large title which is placed at the top of the magazine cover and is in a bold font. I feel it will be very important for us as a group to discuss magazine titles and I think having ours placed at the top of the magazine cover is something that will be very important. The images in all of these magazine covers are only of one person from the movie. Therefore we will probably only use the main character of our film on the front cover of our magazine. None of these covers have too much small writing on them. They all have large font which is easy to read and is in a colour which stands out. When producing our cover we will have to try and only include text that relates well to our magazine and is most important.