German Film Poster Collection
1927 - 1945
Welcome to the German Film Poster Collection website.
- All posters in the Collection are originals - no reproductions - and are very rare because the majority of these films were banned after WWII and in some cases are still taboo films today. All German posters have the Filmprüfstelle censor's stamp of approval printed on them. The Belgian and Italian posters have their national censor's 'postage stamps' intact.
- Most German posters are the A0 "3 sheet" size (approx. 38 inches x 64 inches / 96.5 cm x 137 cm ). Smaller A1 German posters, such as GPU, DIESEL, DIE GROßE LIEBE, are approximately 23.3 inches x 33.1 inches / 59.4cm x 84.1 cm) in size, and the HITLERJUNGE QUEX Kleinplakat is A3 in size, or approximately 11.7 inches x 16.5 inches / 29.7 cm x 42 cm.
Non-Germany posters vary in size, basically in sizes A2, A1 and A0 (1-sheet, 2-sheet, and 3-sheet sizes). The largest French and Italian posters are a slightly larger format than the German A0 size (by about 3 inches in both length and width). The Belgian posters, other than the JUD SÜSS, are all A3 in size, and mostly printed on the back of previous posters because of paper shortages during the Occupation. The Belgian JUD SÜSS is A2 in size, or 16.5 inches x 23.3 inches / 42 cm x 59.4 cm ).
The largest posters in the Collection include the Italian OHM KRÜGER (with brown background) which is equivalent to two A0 sheets, printed in two halves, and the giant SCIPION L'AFRICAINE. The largest French posters, SUIS-JE UN ASSASSIN? (ICH KLAGE AN, 1941) and LES ADVENTURES FANTASTIQUES DU BARON MUNCHHAUSEN, are both 63 inches x 94 inches, equivalent to two side-by-side A0 "3 sheets" sheets printed in two halves.
- All posters are part of a permanent collection and are not for sale. Scholars may request non-watermarked TIFF and JPEG images of posters for legitimate publication use. The Collection has well over 200 rare original German film posters from Germany, Italy, Spain, Occupied France and Belgium, and Scandinavia from this era. Only about half of the Collection's holdings is on display on this website. A few original posters of Italian fascist propaganda/military films, also in the Gillespie Collection, such as SCIPIONE L'AFRICANO, UOMINI SUL FONDO and I TRE AQUILOTTI, are also shown.
- The two posters shown for TITANIC ( the green design, below left with the £ sign, and the red stretched lettering, below right ) ; as well the the poster for DER VERZAUBERTE TAG, all have been printed for cinema distribution with the official Filmprüfstelle seal, but shortly after printing these two feature films were banned from being shown within the Reich, and never were seen by German audiences until 1948-1951. These particular posters, then, are very rare as they have been printed and approved for distribution across Germany, but then never used.
Follow these links to explore this website further:
You may also contact us at contact(at)germanfilms(dot)net
Copyright © 2004-2010 germanfilms.net. All rights reserved.