Film Posters

Randy Man ranman
Tue Sep 7 16:45:52 EDT 1999


In addition to the questions posed by Li Hoo Cheong about Japanese movie
posters, does anyone know of any companies anywhere that sell reproducitons
of the classic Japanese posters, as is now commonly the case with Hollywood
posters?

Randolph Man
College of Santa Fe

----- Original Message -----
From: Li Hoo Cheong <lbhcli at polyu.edu.hk>
To: <KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu>
Sent: Monday, September 06, 1999 1:22 AM
Subject: Film Posters


> I like to re-introduce my queries on Japanese film posters
> regarding their collection, exhibition, and sales.
>
> First, who collects them.  I guess every country's national
> archive collects its own posters, and only collects foreign film
> posters if donated.  But are these collections listed or
> catalogued?  Where are the noted collections of Japanese
> film posters?  Do art galleries collect film posters?  Do
> film studios keep good record of them?
>
> In Nov. to Dec. 1998, the National Film Centre in Tokyo
> held an exhibition of "Japanese Film History in POSTERS
> from the Collection of Kyohei Misono."  The publicity
> leaflet informs us that the Misono Kyohei collection holds
> about 3,000 items.  Some past exhibitions of film posters,
> especially posters of Kurosawa's films, were held during
> the Tokyo International Film Festivals.  Even if exhibited,
> exhibition catalogues of film posters are rare,  if not
> non-existent.
>
> This leads to the question of sales as posters are collected
> by movie fans and film lovers.  In Japan, film posters are
> sometimes available for sale when a Japanese film is first
> released.  A standard size one costs 300-500 yen, and
> it may costs more later at shops selling movie memorabilia.
>
> By standard size, I mean the B2 size at 52cm.X 73 cm.
> Some film posters are double that size, and some huge
> ones are four times that size.  I have collected a few
> Roman-poruno film posters that are half that size (26X73)
> with kanji and kana only but no illustration.  One Higashi
> Yoichi film poster has an odd size of 34X73 cm. with an
> illustration.
>
> I have in hand a poster sales catalogue of 107 items issued
> by Inagaki Shoten in Tokyo at about 1990.  A 1951 Rashomon
> poster with Venice triumph costs 90,000 yen, a 1960 mint
> condition Dodesukaden poster costs 10,000 yen, a 1960
> mint condition Spider's Web (revival) poster costs 4,000 yen.
> The "revival" note means that the poster is not the original one
> when the film was first released.  Three undated posters of
> Yojimbo, Sanjuro, and Red Beard (all revivals) also costs
> 4,000 yen each. Now that the Master is dead, one would
> expect that the prices of his film posters have also risen.
> In 1993, there is a new revival film poster of Ozu's
> Tokyo Story.
>
> I was told that posters cost more in Tokyo than other cities.
> In Japan, the Kurosawa posters available are presumably
> Japanese ones, but there are other Kurosawa film posters
> produced in other countries.  After Kurosawa, Oshima,
> Itami, and Kitano have also become quite international.
>
> Auction of Hollywood film posters are not uncommon
> and in Australia, there used to be an annual auction sale
> of movie memorabilia held in Sydney.  I wonder if there
> were any recorded auction sale of Japanese film posters,
> in Japan or elsewhere.
>
> Any information on this topic is eagerly expected.
>
> hc
>





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