In this lesson, instructor Mike Butkus introduces the process of developing a movie poster illustration from story idea to finished drawing. You will learn how a movie poster communicates genre, mood, and dramatic visual narrative through a single image. Mike shares his background as an entertainment illustrator, introduces the fictional action-horror brief for the course, and explains how early planning, sketching, reference gathering, and material selection establish a strong foundation for a professional poster illustration.

This lesson belongs to the course Entertainment Poster Design Part I: Concept to Drawing. In this 7-week course, instructor Mike Butkus teaches you how to develop a movie poster from concept to final drawing. Working from a fictional action-horror brief, Mike demonstrates how story, composition, reference, character design, projection, and light-and-shadow organization come together to create a paint-ready poster illustration. This course focuses on the drawing and design stages of the poster process, laying the groundwork for Entertainment Poster Design Part II: Final Painting (coming soon).

Throughout this course, you’ll have access to the NMA community for feedback and critiques to improve your work as you progress.