Step 51

After you give it a Motion Blur, you’ll notice that the top edges are pretty harsh. Soften them up a bit by adding a smaller blur on the vertical axis.

Step 52

Then just set the layer’s Blending Mode to Pin Light and play around with the Opacity.

Step 53

A typical appearnce of text on movie posters is very large tracking, or spaces between the letters of each word. You know how poster sometimes have the phrase: from the creator of this-and-that movie? Well I gave this design a humorous slant on that.

Step 54

Another common phrase is based on actual events, or something like that. Below is this true tale.

Step 55

And finally, a few other details like the movie website, release date (in this case the day I finished the poster – wouldn’t it have been cool for me to do this on the date of 09.09.09?) and movie producer logo.

Step 56

On the top layer, add one last (I promise) Adjustment Layer: a Channel Mixer where you slightly change the Blue values.

Step 57

To create the branches, we’ll use a very cool brush set that you can find here. Paint a few branches on a layer that’s underneath the Channel Mixer.

Step 58

Erase portions that you want to appear hidden behind the letters.

Step 59

Now use a 2 px white brush again to add the reflections. I think the branches are a lovely touch of detail, without compromising the message. After all, it would be strange for him to be hold the only thin branch in the forest, right?

Step 60

A final effect is a partial Motion Blur on the edges that is just right for giving a sense of urgency and motion. Press Q and with a large Black & White gradient, drag a radial gradient from the center to just a bit past one of the lower corners of the canvas.

Step 61

Make sure you have the background layer active and go to Filter > Blur > Motion Blur. Once you’ve done this, do the same for the branches, but add a bit more distance.

Step 62

And as a final touch, paint a few shadows for those branches over the letters. You can do that by painting with black in a new blank layer, making it a clipping mask for the letters and changing their Opacity to a low 15%.