The curse of Trajan

I came across the Vox video below by chance to be honest, but it really struck a chord with me after talking about semiotic theory.

    

In the video Graphic Designer, Yves Peters talks about how different genres of movie posters tend to feature particular typefaces. For example, comedy films tend to use big, chunky typefaces, sci-fi movies might use thin, overly kerned and capped up typefaces and romances tend to use a lightweight serif.

So, why when creating movie posters do designers choose these particular typefaces?

This isn’t a random choice - it relates back to Barthes connotation theory that I outlined in my last blog post. Over time designers have built up certain typographic styles for the different movie genres. By using these styles they are sending out an instant message to the viewer to inform them of the type of movie to expect. The viewer has built up a memory through their cultural experiences of different movie posters and in turn has a certain expectation.

Yves talks about how in the late 90s movie posters became saturated by the typeface Trajan. Designers began to have a ‘lazy’ approach and Trajan became an easy choice for them, and was seen on posters of all genres. It meant the typeface held no meaning or connotation and is now rarely used for that reason.

The reason this video stood out to me was because I have come across this exact same problem in my own work. At the design agency I practice at we do a lot of work with the private school sector. Often schools approach us needing a brand refresh as they feel their current one lacks warmth, personality and originality. You guessed it, nine times out of ten the typeface of choice in their logo is Trajan. It then often gets used for headings throughout their marketing materials.

Serif typefaces often tend to be used to give the impression of heritage, history and prestige. This is why Trajan has also become the ‘lazy’ choice for those designing for private schools, as it ticks all those boxes. However, these schools then tend to lack identity, so they require a serif typeface or a brand style that has that same connotation but stands out from the rest.

Below are some before and after examples - some we were able to completely transform, but others were more of a subtle change in the logo and an overhaul of marketing materials.

The curse of Trajan continues, not just in the movie industry!