Do some research for your project. Determine what genre the film is. Look at the work of directors for that genre and posters related to their films. This will give you an idea of how imagery is used for a film poster.
Watch the film. As you watch it, ideas should emerge in terms of the theme and the imagery that conveys that theme. Take notes. You’ll use them when you begin sketching out ideas for the poster.
Think about the film’s theme and make some concept sketches. Ask yourself what one image conveys a strong visual message and tells the audience right away what the film is about. A good example of this is the movie poster for “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring.” The image of Frodo staring obsessively at the ring conveys the movie’s theme perfectly.
Have photos taken of the cast or sets if you need them. You’ll base these photos on the concept sketches you made. The concept sketches tell the photographer what kinds of shots the director wants and these shots are worked out ahead of time in the sketches. They might include having the cast posing in a certain way or interacting with one another or the set. These images support the theme of the movie visually.
Make illustrations for your film poster if the film’s style calls for it.
Create a file folder on your computer to store all the images for your film.
Open up your graphic design program and make a file with your film’s name on it. Save it in your folder. Use the graphics program with which you have the most familiarity. If you do this, you won’t have to spend time learning the software and can instead focus on making the poster.
Start importing the imagery for your movie poster. If you’ve taken digital photos, then import them using the accessories that came with the camera. For hand-drawn illustrations, scan them into your computer. Follow the instructions that came with the camera or the scanner to ensure the best upload results.
Layout your movie poster according to the concept sketches you made. Select fonts and styles that support the movie’s theme and genre.
Save the graphics file as a PDF and burn it onto a disc to take to the printers.