I have an idea of making an A5 booklet that you can unfold to a A0 poster.

How can I achieve this in InDesign? Or is there a program for it?

Also I would need a recto verso A0 printer I suppose?

  • This is basically the same as a map, only without a map. Check out map-folding techniques. The big problem you will have is that maps assume a single orientation, but it sounds like you want the panels to be right-reading in brochure and map mode. – Yorik May 27 '15 at 20:22

Per papersizes your A0 and A5 are not a perfect fit so you will need to trim a little below the A0 to make it work:

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You should take the guides and mark where you want your A5. I would consult with your printer and your client how you want the design to unfold because that would determine how the document is setup in InDesign. Ideally you could set up a master document or if your printer wants you to you could setup for each A5.

Finding a printer is not the scope of GD but you can do a search for local printers in your area.

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It is possible. However, this is a more complex issue than it may seem.

When paper folds it creates bulk. The more bulk the more you have to compensate for it. The amount of compensation would be in direct proportion the weight of stock you print on. Some A5 panels would need to be smaller than A5 and some larger so that when things folded, the piece would lie flat.

Many fail to realize this even for simple tri-fold brochures. Even panels almost never work out well in a piece with multiple folds. The more folds, the more complex things get.

It's a simple matter to set up an A0 document in InDesign and then use guides to indicate where each A5 panel is. However, you'll need to calculate variances in the A5 panels to compensate for bulk. The fact that a series of A5 sheets doesn't evenly work up to an A0 may not be a big issue with the variances in mind. Variances won't be huge in most cases, a few points give or take. Just enough to allow panels to fold inward and lie flat.

I would talk to a print provider about this and ask what they feel is an optimum configuration. They may even have a template you can use in many cases.

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