Magazine Cover Analysis

In order to establish a basis for the design of our magazine cover we looked at covers of two leading film publications in the UK; Empire and Total Film.






The seemingly ever present feature of these film magazine covers, released on a monthly basis, is that the cover is devised from a generic template built around a photo shoot image from the biggest picture in which there is revealing previews or the actual release in that month. The examples here are King Kong (Peter Jackson, 2005), Alice in Wonderland (Tim Burton, 2010), Iron Man 2 (Jon Favreau, 2010) and The Dark Knight (Chris Nolan, 2008) respectively.

The aforementioned template of the magazine, especially these four, follows a simple layout:

• The Title - At the centre and top of the page in a large print, the title is the first thing that a shopper reads and has its own definitive font. Whether it's due to an already dedicated fanbase or the importance of the film, magazines such as these don't necessarily prioritise the complete clarity of the font, which can be compromised for extended artwork, as shown in all four of these.
• Other Fonts - The main font advertising the film is, in these instances at least, synonymous with the character or film depicted. The 'Joker' font is rigid, messy and sharp; representative of his character. The 'King Kong' font is simply blocky and bold (both in literal terms and terms of colour). The '2010 Preview' font is slyly representative of Depp's Mad Hatter, and the 'Iron Man 2' font's blue outline provides a metallic-style element.
  
• The Features - Usually to the left or right of the cover to emphasise the photograph. In covers such as the first, there will be a prolonged feature (in one of these cases the winter preview) and more including interviews and articles that are contrastingly typed on the other side.
• The Header and Footer - Another oppurtunity to cram information of the issue into the public perception. This content can vary between reviews of lesser films, previews and/or magazine giveaways.
• The Picture - For the most part, images are of instantly recognisable characters, with the picture sometimes being a mid shot but usually a close up portrait.

Jamie