A conversation between friends regarding a simple poster design became an elaborate partnership to brand a movie and expand its narrative elements. Kevin Ignatius, one of the developers of The Long Dark Trail, contacted R.L. Black to do a one-off poster design that would be included in a series. Kevin described the concept for the film, and R.L. was hooked.

The IMDB Description is as follows:
After two impoverished teenage brothers manage to escape their abusive father, they embark on a treacherous and haunted journey in the hope of finding their estranged mother, who has joined a sadistic cult deep in the woods of Northwest Pennsylvania.

R.L. Black wanted to do an homage to The Goonies and Raiders of the Lost Arc, as well as old Hammer Horror Film posters of the 1970s, and visualized a pair of kids riding their bikes on a backwoods trail into the mouth of a skull. He quickly sketched it out and texted the image to Kevin. Kevin’s response was, “That’s it!”

What followed was an iconic poster design but also the development of a pitch packet that included multiple illustrations by R.L., the creation of a 12-page minicomic based on the film’s opening sequence, a vinyl album cover design, a VHS case design, and much more.

This project essentially pushed R.L. Black into working professionally as an illustrator after decades of working as a graphic and web designer. The results speak for themselves and quickly became Mr. Black's lead portfolio piece.

Do you have a movie poster or another commission project you’d like R.L. Black to develop? Then just visit the Contact page and send us a request or email info(at)rlblack.ink and we’ll get in contact with you as soon as possible.