Party posters come of age

Leighton Williams, Staff Reporter

Party posters were once plain pieces of paper with one style of writing. Now, they are attractive items with elaborate designs, and they do not come cheaply. The glossy paper is more expensive than the plain type, but most promoters still use them. "It's more attractive and it brings more excitement and attention to the event," explained Solomon Sharpe of RAS Promotions, which puts on Beer Vibes and Hot Shots.

These are the posters of the modern days. In the 1970s and 1980s most 'bills' advertised street dances somce as stage shows, sessions and nightclubs were still novelties. Where pictures tell the story of the upcoming show today, words were the preferred medium of the early promoters. That was to change 11 years ago.

In 1990, DiMario McDowell introduced a poster that was to change the Jamaican poster landscape forever. The event was Sting 1990.

"I don't think promoters of that time paid much attention to graphics. They never had to pay for graphics, because people had to come to the events. They never saw it (poster graphics) as necessary. People told Isaiah Laing in 1990 that he was wasting his money," Mr. McDowell said.

The poster, which was done on glossy paper, had taken McDowell a month to design and complete the mechanical artwork. A further two weeks were spent trying to get the right colours and pictures.

A poster of that nature would now take a designer about a day.

In all of this, the posters can cost a pretty penny. The prices range from a low of $12,000 for 1,000 posters up to $100,000 for about 10,000 or 15,000 posters, depending on size. "The cost of the posters varies and people generally print from 5,000 up. The price generally includes teasers, flyers, posters and tickets," explained Nicola Demercado, manager of Digital Prepress.

As the flyers, posters, and teasers have become commonplace, some graphic designers and printeries have gone into more innovative areas. They are now using bookmarks as form of event promotion.

"The proliferation of graphic designers has caused some amount of innovation to market the product of the promoter, so the designer will try to be creative at all times," Mr. McDowell said.

Innovative packages require innovative designs. Those who opt for fancy posters will have the opportunity to show off a variety of things, depending on the occasion. From skimpily-clad girls to a montage of artistes' faces, these posters have made the Jamaican party scene an exciting affair.

"It depends a lot on the party. What sells is sex, so you sometimes use models who dress skimpily, depending on the event that is taking place. You also use previous parties, nightclubs and, as I said before, it depends a lot on the event," Ms. DeMarcado said.

Events such as Sting, which is known for deejays expected to clash, will usually have the two persons clashing facing each other on the poster. Some events will show the artiste singing. Beach sessions which are usually hyped as events where there will be an abundance of women, are usually promoted with the use of skimpily clad girls.

As much as parties and events of that nature are held all year round, printers and designers do booming business in summer and Christmas, with most customers opting for the glossy look on cards and paper, to sell their event in these competitive seasons.

"Posters are generally associated with the event, so image is important. If the poster looks good, then people will assume that the event will be good. Something that is ordinary will be severely criticised. The days of black and white are almost gone, because promotion is important and posters are important parts of promotions," explained Errol Wonder, who puts on Portmore Carnival.

Isaiah Laing, who promotes Sting, thinks the posters are just as effective and important as other media in promoting an event. "Some promoters do promotion without radio and television and they use posters and they work. The glossy posters are a bit more durable than the older ones and Sting has a name, so we have to ensure that it maintain its presentation and standards," he said.

Glossy posters, which usually take up less than 10 per cent of the promoters' show budget, come in various sizes, but there has been a reduction in their proportions in recent times. "People have cut down on poster sizes. They don't go for the big ones anymore, so you may have 9x6 (inches) or 8x5 (inches) size posters. A lot of people combine flyers and posters when they come to us, so you have them doing more flyers than posters," Stafford Demercado of Phoenix Printers explained.

The theory is that smaller posters are easier to pass around and are likely grab the attention of the person you hand it to. But Wonder believes that the big posters are also effective, in that persons will tell others about it, especially when it looks good.

In all of this there are still people who opt for the black and white or bland posters, filled with words rather pictures.

Those posters, which cost about $3,500 for 1,000, are still common, especially among promoters who put on street dances as part of their efforts in entertaining the community.

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