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You will find here main movie poster sizes, ordered by country. The shadow of a famous secret agent will allow you to evaluate the size of a document at a glance.
This list is not exhaustive. Are presented only the most common original movie poster sizes for a selection of countries.
Sizes are specified in centimeters and in inches.
Important : the sizes are approximative ! In a given poster family, French poster 120x160 cm for example, sizes can vary by several centimeters from one movie to another.
French movie poster sizes
France - giant format : 400x300 cm, 4x3 m, 158x118"- this poster has several sheets, generally eight, and is mostly dedicated to movie theatre front or to metropolitan.
France - 4 sheets : 240x320 cm, 94x125" - this poster has four sheets of 120x160 cm each. Format abandoned nowadays.
France - 2 sheets : 240x160 cm, 94x63" - this poster has two sheets of 120x160 cm each. Format abandoned nowadays.
France - Grande format : 120x160 cm, 47x63" - the basic french format, the most common movie poster in french movie theatres, the noble format of french movie posters.
France - Format pantalon : 60x160 cm, 23x63" : vertical format, dedicated to movie theatre doors and to Morris column.
France - half large format : 80x120 cm, 32x47". This poster is half size of the basic french 120x160 cm poster. It was used until the 1980's, and nearly abandoned since. A beautiful size.
France - medium format : 60x80 cm, 23x32". Beautiful format, almost abandoned today.
France - small format : 40x60 cm, 15x21" - this poster often goes with the 120x160 cm poster in french movie theatres.
IMPORTANT : Note that since the 1960s and the replacement of lithography by offset printing, the format of these small posters has decreased to approximately 40x54 cm. This is explained by the fact that the lithography required having 1 different plate per format (one for the large 120x160 posters, one for the small 40x60). With the offset process, only one plate is used for these two formats, and when the format is reduced to 120x160 cm in a homothetic manner, we obtain a poster of approximately 40x54 cm. Nevertheless, movie poster collectors continue to call them "40x60 posters".
Please note that 120x160 cm posters are the basic size for French movie posters, meaning the most seen in movie theatres, and the most valuable for collectors. This size is the same since the first movie poster created in 1896 for le Cinématographe Lumière (l'Arroseur Arrosé). For a long time, French large movie posters have been systematically folded by the printers before being delivered to movie theatres. 120x160cm posters are often accompanied by 40x60 cm movie posters. Please note that 40x60 cm posters have replaced 60x80 cm in the 80's, because they were easier to display.
See all french vintage original movie posters for sale
US movie poster sizes
US One Sheet : 69x104 cm., 27x41" - the most common size in US movie theatres, the most valuable for collectors
US Insert : 35x91 cm., 14x36"
US Half Sheet : 55x71 cm, 22x28"
US Window Card : 35x55 cm, 14x22"
US 40x60" : 101x152 cm, 40x60"
US 3 sheets : 104x205 cm, 41x81"
US 6 sheets : 205x205 cm, 81x81"
Please note that there are more than 15 movie poster sizes in USA ! Biggest have 24 sheets, meaning 246x108" - 6 x 3 m !
See all american vintage original movie posters for sale
Japanese movie poster sizes
Japan - B1 : 74x101 cm, 29x40" - very rare size
Japan - B2 : 51x74 cm, 20x29" - the most common size in japanese movie theatres, the most valuable for collectors
Japan - B3 (Nakazuri) : 35x50cm,14"x20" - is double-sided
Japan - B5 (Chirashi) : 18x25 cm, 7"x10"
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Italian movie poster sizes
IT - 1 foglio : 55x81 cm, 22x39"
IT - 2 fogli : 100x140 cm, 39x55"
IT - 4 fogli : 140x200 cm, 55x78" - has 2 sheets.
IT - Locandina : 33x69 cm, 13x27"
IT - Photobusta : 69x48cm, 27x19"
Comments : the Locandina et the 2 fogli are the most common Italian sizes.
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Belgian, Australian, Polish movie poster sizes
Australia - Daybill : 33x76 cm, 13x30" - the most common size in australian movie theatres, the most valuable for collectors
Australia - One sheet : 69x101 cm, 27x40"
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Belgium - petit format : 35x55 cm,14x22" - the most common size in belgian movie theatres, the most valuable for collectors.
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Poland - One sheet : 69x101 cm, 27x40"
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UK and Czech moie poster sizes
UK - British Quad : 76x101 cm, 30x40" - common British size. It is one of rare horizontal movie posters, with US Half Sheet
UK : Double Crown : 50x76 cm, 20x30"
See all british movie posters for sale
Czech - small : 28x40 cm, 11x16" - among smallest world movie posters.
Czech - Standard : 58x83 cm, 23x33" (same size than the German classic size)
Conclusion
As you can see, some movie poster sizes are more valuable than others for collectors. Generally, it is the poster size that is the most usually displayed in movie theatres. Also note that some posters have more than one sheet, like the italian 4 fogli for example. Most of them are vertical, but some are horizontal like the british quad. Above all, we see that movie poster sizes are varying a lot from one country to another, and that within one country you can have several sizes of original movie posters avalaible to promote a film in movie theatres.
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We hope that this page was usefull,
Best Regards
Mauvais Genres.