Analyzing the Impact of Emotional Cue and Color Tone on Film and Drama Posters with Eye Tracking

Starting from the 19th century, posters have been a primary means of visual communication in advertising. The design of posters can have different impacts on the audience. The factors that influence the communication effectiveness of posters and how to enhance their promotional capabilities have been a focus for both scholars and designers. Posters are also extensively utilized in the film and theater industries as promotional tools. This study investigates the effects of emotional cue (positive and negative) and color temperature (warm and cool) in film and theater posters on viewers. Two posters with positive emotions and two with negative emotions were used as stimuli. Each poster was then adjusted to represent both warm and cool color tones. Participants were presented with four types of posters: positive mood with warm color, positive mood with cool color, negative mood with warm color, and negative mood with cool color. An eye tracker was incorporated into the experiment to record the participants’ viewing process. The gaze data reflects and quantifies individuals’ responses to the different poster types. Data analysis revealed that posters with negative moods attracted attention more quickly from viewers, as indicated by a shorter Time to First Fixation value. Posters with positive moods received more overall attention during the viewing process, which have higher Total Fixation Duration and Fixation Counts. However, the analysis of color temperature showed that there was no significant difference between cool and warm toned posters in any of the eye-tracking metrics, suggesting that the impact of color temperature on the effectiveness of posters was not significant. This study advances the understanding of the mechanisms by which emotional-driven visual attention operates and offers insights and guidance for poster designers in film and theater industries.