“Dog Day Afternoon / Kyoichi Kaikan December Program” (京一会館 12月番組), Original Japanese Cinema Program Poster 1978, Poster Size (48 × 73 cm) P296

This is an original Japanese cinema program poster printed in 1978 for the December schedule of the legendary independent movie theatre Kyoichi Kaikan (京一会館) in Kyoto, Japan. Rather than promoting a single title, this poster advertises a month of repertory programming at one of Kyoto’s best-loved meigaza cinemas, with a striking central image of Al Pacino from Dog Day Afternoon used as the dominant visual motif. It is a wonderful and highly unusual piece of Japanese exhibition ephemera, documenting not just a film, but a whole culture of independent urban moviegoing.

Film / theatre background
Kyoichi Kaikan was a famous independent cinema in Kyoto’s Ichijōji area, admired by students and cinephiles for its double-feature programming and distinctive hand-designed promotional material before it closed in 1988. Posters of this kind are especially appealing because they preserve the character of Japanese repertory cinema culture: eclectic, local, and deeply tied to specific neighbourhood theatres.

This December 1976 programme reflects exactly that spirit. The schedule at the bottom lists a varied line-up typical of a serious repertory house, including Dog Day Afternoon (狼たちの午後), High School Panic (高校大パニック), and a range of other Japanese and international titles. The lower-right information box even preserves the period ticket prices—500 yen for adults, 400 yen for students, and 350 yen for children / seniors—which adds another wonderful layer of historical specificity.

Poster design
This is a superbly graphic design. The central image is a high-contrast black-and-white portrait of Al Pacino from Dog Day Afternoon, looking exhausted and tense with rifle in hand, while the title DOG DAY AFTERNOON repeats across the background in soft coloured text as a modern typographic pattern. The bold black theatre name 京一会館 at the top gives the poster strong institutional identity, and the bottom programme section grounds the whole design in the practical reality of a monthly cinema schedule. The result is both visually striking and historically rich: part movie poster, part local cultural document, and exactly the kind of material that rarely survives in this format.

Condition
Excellent. Please review the photos—they show the exact poster for sale.

It is over 48 years old!
It is not a reproduction or a reprint.
Certificate of Authenticity included.