1. CENTRE STAGE POSTER
ANALYSIS
By Kirby Sztanko

2. The masthead and title of the film is
displayed in the bottom center third of
the poster. The typography of the
masthead is in bold red font, and is very
contrasting to the black and white
picture. Although the image on the
poster is the largest part, the audience
will be equally as drawn to the bright
bold font. The main protagonists’
names are all printed in the bottom
third of the poster in small compacted
font. It is readable to the audience
however, the text does not stand out
like the masthead does, due to it being
so small and in grey font.

3. Above the text at the bottom of the
poster is the tagline. The typography is
grey in colour and in capital bold letters
so again, stands out to the audience. It
says ‘LIFE DOESN’T HOLD TRY
OUTS’ which gives the audience an
insight as to what the film is about and
that dancing is a tough career with
challenges. The term ‘try outs’ is specialist
dance terminology which would get
through to the target audience of dancers.
They would understand what a try out is
so it will appeal to them more as they
would want to know the result. A try out
is another word for an audition It is larger
and more prominent than the other grey
small text which implies that the tagline is
more important. The grey font blends in
well with the colour palette and house
style of the poster; does not stand out too
much, but enough for the audience to be
drawn to it.

4. In this picture, it is very different to most
dance posters. The actors and actresses
faces, are not what the audience would
first be drawn to. It would either be the
bright red typography of the title or the
dancers shoes. The characters faces are
blurred and out of focus and their shoes
are the part of the image that have ben
focused. Dance shoes are conventional
iconography that are associated with
dance films so they have been placed on
the poster to make it clear to the audience
the genre of the film. You can see from
the image that the shoes have been worn
out and are scruffy. This connotes the
idea that dancing is a tough career and
very hard work; you have to train hard
and long hours to get a shot. The colour
scheme connotes an idea that the dance
world is very ‘black and white,’ you either
do well or you don’t. This coincides with
the tagline.

5. The colour palette of the image is black
and white which again is not commonly
seen on dance film poster. We can see
that the dancers are all using direct
mode of address to make the audience
feel as though they are being
involved, even though their expressions
and faces are out of focus. The main
three actors have been placed in a
‘triangle’ centre position, to show that
they are the main characters in the film;
the others are gathered around them.
Their positioning shows the audience
that they all have a close relationship
with each other and that they are all
friends, due to the intensity and
closeness of their positioning.

6. The mise en scene of the poster, looks as
though it is in a dance studio. The
surroundings are plain, to ensure that no
attention is being drawn away from the
image and the title. Although dance films
are mostly set in a dance studio, not many
commercial posters show the mise en
scene in a dance studio. This is one of the
only posters that is set in the studio.
The target audience and age certification
for Center Stage is a 12. There are some
scenes in the film that would not be
appropriate for younger viewers. The
target audience would be both girls and
boys who enjoy dancing, who are over the
age of 12 or younger who are watching it
with an adult. It could also appeal to a
secondary audience who are fans of the
protagonists and also the adults who will
be watching it with the children.

7. At the bottom third of the poster, in
small grey typography, there is a web
address, where the audience can go onto
to find out further information about the
film. This is a good marketing
technique, as on the website you would be
able to buy this poster, for fans of the
film and actors/actresses. The text in the
bottom third also includes who
directed, choreographed and put the film
together etc. The logo of the film’s
production company ‘Columbia Pictures’
is located in the right hand bottom corner
as it is more recognisable to the audience
and stands out more than text. If the
audience have seen a film and enjoyed it
from Columbia Pictures before, then they
may be more inclined to want to watch
this film.

8. On the website
Fanpop, film
posters are
available to buy.
There are many
posters of Centre
Stage on this
website, including
individual
character posters.
They tend to
produce these if
the protagonists
have a large fan
base and as use as
collectibles.