Looking for links between graphic communication and cinema: a journey through the Coen brothers’ filmography through the posters of their films

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.20868/ardin.2026.15.5668

Keywords:

cinema poster, graphic communication, advertising, Coen brothers, American independent cinema

Abstract

The Coen brothers are currently one of the leading exponents of American independent cinema. This paper approaches his work by analysing the promotional posters of 17 of his films, proposing a methodology based on the graphic communication of the promotional poster applicable to the analysis of a single movie or an entire filmography. From Blood Simple to Hail, Caesar!, the graphic communication of each poster has first been analysed individually, relating it to the characteristics of each film. Subsequently, a joint analysis of all the posters was carried out to find parallels between graphic design (colour, typography, image, composition) and the cinematographic discourse of the Coen brothers. The results show that the visual design of the posters is related to seven of the 13 characteristics of the Coens' cinema studied: violence, silly» character, wandering character, parody or black humour, philosophical content, objects and places. Furthermore, images and colour are the graphic elements that best transmit these characteristics, with composition and typography being secondary elements. Finally, the visual characteristics of the archetypal poster for a Coen film have been defined.

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References

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Published

2026-04-30

Issue

No. 15 (2026): ArDIn. Arte, Diseño e Ingeniería

Section

Articles

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How to Cite

Ampuero-Canellas, O., González-del-Río, J. ., & Tarazona-Belenguer, N. (2026). Looking for links between graphic communication and cinema: a journey through the Coen brothers’ filmography through the posters of their films. Ardin. Arte, Diseño E Ingeniería, 15, 263. https://doi.org/10.20868/ardin.2026.15.5668