This page links to dozens of images from Shakespeare cinema: posters, lobby cards, inserts, photos, plus some memorabilia.

Scholarly study of the marketing of Shakespeare films is in its infancy, and most people do not do it very well. Scholars consider if a film was a financial success, but do not consider the competing films released at the same time. We note the reputations of the actors and directors who made the films, but not the images used to sell the films to the public even though these images are chosen to attract audiences. This site collects publicity images in the hope that we may learn more about how studios wanted the public to perceive these films.

We cannot truly capture their original context. Images designed to entice filmgoers are now objects of hindsight. We view these them through twenty-first century eyes. Art design that seems "of its era" today may have been common or even cutting edge to its first viewers. These images show us what first audiences saw, but now how they saw it. 

Still, the images do reveal much about what film marketers hoped audiences would find alluring. If this work is done well, it will change the way we understand these films.

This collection includes a large sampling of images from around the world, and it is interesting to see how the images are sometimes changed when used in other countries. Note the French poster for Branagh's Henry V as an example of cultural transformation. We have much to learn about the marketing and cultural travels of Shakespeare films.

How to use this site
Images are organized by film. Click here for a menu of all the films with images on this site, select a film, and then wait for the thumbnails to load. You may then click the thumbnails for a larger image.  Use the back button to return.

Disclaimer
My intent is to collect these images in one place in the spirit of fair use. They come from various sources, including screen captures of items for sale on e-Bay, and may include their camera icon in the bottom right corner. I have saved these images for my own study, but have decided to share them with the scholarly community. I ask that you be discrete about using the images on this site, so that we can keep them available for study.

Please contact jensensh@hotmail.com with suggestions, corrections, and if you have any images not on this site that I might add, or cleaner and larger versions of the images I already have. My goal is to make this site as complete and useful as possible. Thank you.

Use this link to find the menu of films.