The Pier

Well, I haven't been that great at updating this blog recently, so here's a new post to get things back into gear.  Another shot from the VFX stage: our two main characters (Charlie and Danny) sitting on a pier of a woodsy, fog-covered lake.

(Click image for higher resolution)

And now, in the spirit of my last post, another VFX breakdown for you to check out (a composite of approximately 9 separate images):

I'll try to post more frequently from here on out, as we continue through the VFX, music, and sound editing stages.  But otherwise, enjoy!

- Erik (Director)

The Final Poster (And Chronicling Its History)

We are well into the post-production phase now, and as such I finally have enough graphical elements to create the final poster.  So now… without further ado…

The official poster for "Down the Road"!

(Click image for higher resolution)

I'm really pleased with how it all turned out.  I wasn't entirely sure how well my Photoshop skills would stand up when it finally came to it, but I'm incredibly proud of the final result.  An odd balance of real and surreal... serious, yet not entirely dark… a fun adventure, yet still very mysterious.  I've had this poster in my head for many years now and I truly think I captured what I wanted quite well.

And now for those interested… a look back at the history of how this image came to be.  (Click each image for higher resolution)

To start, an old sketch I did circa 2008.  I think this might have actually been done before the first draft of the script was even completed:

And some simple designs for the title itself:

Skip ahead to the end of 2009, and the first digital concept is complete (now in full color).  However, the "branchy" text wasn't added until sometime in the summer of 2010.

Until today, this was the single main image used for various website backgrounds, profiles, and other promotional purposes.  It was even used as the background to this blog, as well as the cover for the main physical script during production:

Now, skip to November of 2011, when this blog itself was started, and you'll find the first appearance of a real photo in preparation for the poster (man, has it really been that long…).  Here's the link to the actual post itself: http://dtrfilm.blogspot.com/2011/11/real-poster-base-image.html

This image was ultimately scrapped alongside an entire previous unfinished version of the film (shot throughout 2009 and 2010 if I'm not mistaken).

Jump ahead, all the way to July of 2015 (yeah, seriously, almost 4 years later) and you get this, the base image for what would eventually become the final poster:

And at the end of March 2016, after scouring through tons of woodsy production photos (and of course the magic of Photoshop!), the final poster is composited together:

Then all that was left was to design the title:

And voila, the final poster!

As always, looking forward to posting more as we finally finish this thing!

- Erik (Director)