publicity stills

Marketing film images

Publicity stills are photographs taken on a film or television set, used to promote the production.

Unlike frame captures from the actual footage, stills are posed shots—actors in costume and character, but positioned specifically for the camera of a still photographer.

Studios distribute them to newspapers, magazines, and other media: The publicity stills showed the two leads in an embrace that never appears in the film.

Related

movie · Hollywood · silver screen · golden age · portraits · studio portrait · glossy · 8x10 · press · photo shoot · behind-the-scenes · studio · lighting · posed · black-and-white · celebrity · film · actress

Opposites
purpose and staging

publicity stillscandid shots

Unposed, natural photographs

documentary footage · raw footage · B-roll · surveillance footage · outtakes

staging and intent

publicity stillscandid shots

Unposed, natural photographs

paparazzi photos · documentary photography · street photography · photojournalism · action shots

public vs. private documentation

publicity stillscontact sheets

Unenlarged prints from negatives

archival footage · rushes · outtakes

Family

publicity, stills, public, publicly, publicize, publicist, publication, still, stilled

Familiarity
Top 500,000
Profile
Used worldwide · Timeless · Concrete · Rated G