Lucasfilm celebrate the 40th anniversary of Raiders of the Lost Ark by looking at some of the unique posters from around the world created for the first Indiana Jones theatrical adventure.
Like today’s global movie releases, which often include different versions of posters for regions around the world, Raiders of the Lost Ark had several posters produced tailored to local aesthetic and cultural sensibilities. The handful featured below are just some of the unique artworks created to introduce the world to the adventures of Indiana Jones.
U.S. ONE-SHEET BY RICHARD AMSEL, 1981
The poster that most fans are instantly familiar with is likely Richard Amsel’s artwork for the 1981 first release poster, which was used in the U.S. and in several other regions, primarily Europe (initially). An elegant composition that successfully captures the dusty, old-world era in which the story takes place, it is unusual for an Indiana Jones poster in the larger sense, due to its quiet, restrained depiction of the action hero. Of course, with Harrison Ford’s star quickly rising after his appearances in both Star Wars: A New Hope and Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back, perhaps it’s not so surprising that a clear, uncluttered portrait of the actor was chosen for this first release poster.
1981 U.S. ONE-SHEET BY RICHARD AMSELITALIAN TWO-FOGLI POSTER BY DREW STRUZAN, 1981
While Drew Struzan would become a prolific illustrator for Lucasfilm movies in the years to come, his poster artwork for Raiders was ironically not used in the U.S. film marketing campaign. Created for international release in regions such as Italy, Japan, and elsewhere, Struzan recalled being given a four-sentence synopsis of what the film was about as well as a handful of reference imagery. The depiction of Marion was originally not as pronounced as she ended up being in the final artwork, the result of the studio requesting that she be represented as an equal in the final composition. The artwork did ultimately see some exposure in the U.S. when it was used to great effect on the cover of the Raiders of the Lost Ark story album available in record stores.
ITALIAN TWO-FOGLI BY DREW STRUZAN, 1981U.K. ONE-SHEET BY BRIAN BYSOUTH, 1981
While the first release posters for Raiders in the U.K. utilized Richard Amsel’s portrait artwork of Indy, the campaign quickly moved to replace it with an illustration that marketers there felt would better convey the action and high adventure of the film. According to reports at the time, there was also concern that there might be confusion looking at the portrait image of Indy against a dusty backdrop and wearing a hat, which might suggest the movie is a desert Western. As a result, Bysouth was asked to capture more of the film’s action sequences with his artwork, which notably omitted Indy’s customary leather jacket and fedora in the central figure image. According to the artist, these were not yet icons associated with Indiana Jones, and so were not considered critical to include. This artwork did see some use outside the U.K., in Spain, Germany, and Taiwan, among other regions.
U.K. ONE-SHEET BY BRIAN BYSOUTH, 1981JAPANESE B2 POSTER, 1982
While Japan utilized a number of different designs for their Raiders of the Lost Ark campaign, the one prominently featuring director Steven Spielberg and executive producer George Lucas is exclusive to that country. Likely trying to capitalize on the star-power of Spielberg, who had recently directed Jaws and Close Encounters of the Third Kind, as well as Lucas, whose two Star Wars movies were still in re-release during the early ‘80s in Japan, this poster asked potential viewers to see the film based on the strength of their filmmaking alone, a decidedly unique marketing strategy.
JAPANESE B2 POSTER, 1982
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