The light-hearted thriller series, ‘Stranger Things’, has taken over Netflix. With its stunning scenes, retro music, eerie plot, jovial humour, and charming characters, there’s good reason it achieves a 91% rating on Rotton Tomatoes. In this blog I outline some of the core designs used, particularly in the logo, and share with you a free Stranger Things inspired PowerPoint template with ready-made simple slides for you to use.
“Mornings are for coffee and contemplation.” – Hopper, Stranger Things
Here’s my recent YouTube video where I go through the features of this template for you, sharing some thoughts and MS PowerPoint tips along the way. Skip to the end of this blog if you just want the slide deck!
How to Recreate Stranger Things Fonts
The ominous intro to Stranger Things is pretty awesome in itself. With an 80’s style retro synth, using arpeggios overlaid onto a heartbeat-like base, sets the scene for the thrilling watch to come. Though what caught my eye was the intriguing font in the Stranger Things logo, once all is revealed.
As I explain in my video, this font used is a slightly modified version of a called ITC Benguiat Bold Condensed. This eye-catching typeface was designed by Ed Benguiat in 1977, for the International Typeface Corporation. There are places online you can download free fonts should you desire, just google ‘free font ITC Benguiat’ for example. But to save the technical hassle and to avoid risking downloading zip files from relatively unknown sources, Microsoft Office has what I think is a ‘close enough’ alternative.
In my free Stranger Things PowerPoint template, I found and used Bookman Old Style font. When using in bold and capital letters, I think the resemblance is pretty decent for a simple, no-hassle, PowerPoint slidedeck.
This font reminded me of the old Stephen King novels. Having researched I discovered that they too used the impactive Benguiat font. I guess it’s all these details, along with the retro music and other designs, which adds to an authentically-1980s nostalgic feel to the series.
Running Up That Hill…
If you’ve not watched Stranger Things, you may be wondering,
“Why am I hearing Kate Bush everywhere, all of a sudden?”
This 1985 hit has resurfaced as a hit once again, 37 (!) years later, thanks to Netflix. You have to wait a while in Season 4 before it features, but it’s worth the wait and will send shivers down your spine! Anyway, it would be remiss of me in this blog to not include the ‘Running Up That Hill’ Kate Bush song in this blog (spoiler alert: key scene included below!). I also feature and incorporate some of the lyrics in the Stranger Things PowerPoint template!
Some Stranger Things Facts
While browsing online about Stranger Things and trying to find matches to fonts, I came across some interesting facts about the series:
- The character Hopper was inspired by Indiana Jones. Fortune and glory, kid. Fortune and glory.
- The core plot of the show took inspiration from something called The Montauk Project. This was an alleged US Military programme experimenting on children relating to mind control, mind reading, and even time travel! This reminded me of another US Military operation, expertly (and humorously) described by Jon Ronson in his fascinating book: The Men Who Stare at Goats.
- Continuing the inspiration theme, classic sci-fi creators, like Steven Spielberg and Stephen King, were also major inspiration sources for the Duffer brothers (Matt, Ross), who created Stranger Things.
- Robert Englund, the actor who played Freddie Kruger, features in Season 4. One two, the guy with no eyes is coming for you…
- Over 1,200 people auditioned for the roles of the kids.
- $6 million was the budget to produce each episode of Season 1!
Here’s 44 more Stranger Things facts to keep you amused!
A Stranger Things Template…
A preview of the slides I provide are shown in the image above. If you like the look of this presentation, feel free to download your own copy of this ‘Stranger Template’, then adjust the slides to your own preference. Or create your own, using either the ITC Benguiat or the already built-in Bookman Old Style fonts as the basis. Let me know how you get on, or indeed if you find a better built-in ‘stranger’ font!
I hope you’ve found this guidance, template and video on PowerPoint presentations helpful. Subscribe to my EATO YouTube channel for more MS Office how-to videos and presentations. Liking the content? Please like and share with friends and colleagues who may also find it useful. If so inclined, supporting my work helps keep free content flowing. Want fantastic, time-saving templates just for you and your business? Then please get in touch to arrange a bespoke quote. Finally, please feel free to leave your feedback below, including what tutorials or templates you’d like created.
Kind Regards, Adrian
