Days of Thunder
Design Studio
Dazu
Creative Director
Dawn Baillie
Client
Paramount Pictures
Date1990
MediumSilkscreen
Dimensions40 1/4 x 27 in. (102.2 x 68.6 cm)
ClassificationsPoster
Credit LineGift of Dawn Baillie, Poster House Permanent Collection
Object numberPH.8148
DescriptionThis is one of two complementary teaser posters created to promote the NASCAR movie Days of Thunder, starring Tom Cruise. As teaser posters are intended to create excitement around an upcoming film without revealing too much information, designer Dawn Baillie made the announcement look like a concert poster. The Day-Glo, ombré lettering was created using silkscreen—an unusual and expensive printing choice that would not be used today for a film poster. As with her previous designs, however, Dawn was drawn to the possibilities of printing, always eager to experiment. From the early 1990s, Dawn frequently began to incorporate tall, thin typography into her posters, particularly OPTI Binderstyle that she had first seen in Rolling Stone magazine. Such a tall lowercase font felt incredibly modern, allowing the designer to visually “shout” and “whisper” at the same time. This is perhaps the largest size in which Tom Cruise’s name has ever appeared on a movie poster.On View
On view
