The movie poster about… you
An autobiographical exercise that invites reflection on one's life by creating a movie poster.
Duration: 80 minutes. Introduction: 10 minutes. Making posters: 30 minutes. Presenting posters: 20 minutes. Wrap-up: 20 minutes.
Difficulty level: 4/5
Preparation
A3 paper, one sheet per participant. Markers, crayons, glue, Scotch tape, scissors, stickers, decorative tapes, cut-outs, DIY decorations, and other selected accessories. Colorful magazine pages for cutting out images and text. Tables and space for creating posters. A designated area for hanging up the finished posters.
Introduction (10 minutes)
Introduce the purpose of the exercise. Explain that the poster can depict key moments from their life or convey what they wish to share with the world about themselves—essentially, a graphic narrative of their identity or a chosen aspect of their personality. Encourage participants to imagine that this poster serves as a teaser for a movie featuring them, where they could play either the leading or supporting role.
The poster can take the form of a drawing, painting, graphic, comic, sketchnote, collage, or any other format the participants prefer.
In addition to an eye-catching design, the poster should include the following elements: the movie title, premiere date and time, cinema name, ticket price, director, main cast, and film genre (choose from: adventure, science fiction, comedy, melodrama, western, musical, fantasy, historical, psychological, romance, biographical, family, general, animated, fairy tale, or thriller).
Instructions
Participants create posters based on the guidelines provided during the introduction (30 minutes).
Your role is to manage the time allocated for creating the posters and encourage participants to unleash their creativity during the process.
Once the posters are finished, each participant hangs their poster in the designated area to create the effect of a movie lobby. Then, each participant presents their poster (20 minutes). You can use the following questions:
What inspired this particular representation of your life on the poster?
What should viewers pay special attention to when observing your poster?
What influenced your casting choices for the movie roles?
Why did you select this particular film genre?
It’s important to reward each poster and its presentation with applause and words of appreciation.
Helpful tips
Present this exercise as a fun and inspiring activity, encouraging participants to imagine creating their own individual films with themselves in the lead role.
If this exercise is too difficult to complete individually, encourage participants to work in pairs or small groups.
Wrap-up (20 minutes)
Invite participants to join a group discussion about their impressions. Ask:
How did they feel about themselves in the lead or supporting role?
What was the biggest surprise during the exercise?
What emotions did they experience?
What will they do with their poster after returning home?