Buckle Hero
Poster
Overview
This poster serves as a public service announcement (PSA) promoting seatbelt awareness.
Goal: The goal of this project was to create a public safety poster that communicates the importance of wearing a seatbelt to young adults and children in a heroic, comic-themed way.
Role: Branding & Graphic Designer (solo project).
Project type: Branding & Graphic Design.
Tools: Illustrator, Photoshop, InDesign, Adobe Express, and
After Effects.
Challenge
The challenge of this poster was to design something that would capture the interest of both young adults and children, especially males, since statistics show that this demographic is less likely to wear a seatbelt. The poster also needed to communicate its message clearly without losing its bold, illustrative, comic-inspired aesthetic, while also incorporating some physical components into the design.
Strategy
My approach to this project was straightforward. I began with research, then developed concepts and ideas for the poster, selected the strongest direction, and refined it further.
Process
I created a mood board featuring darker tones and more mature illustrations to better align with the preferences of the target audience, particularly males aged 18–24, while still appealing to younger viewers. Initially, my mood board consisted of more vibrant colours.
I created sketches of different concepts and approaches for my poster, all of which explored a comic book theme and encouraged viewers to wear their seatbelts.
After selecting the ideal layout I wanted I sketched an image of the hero on a piece of paper. Afterward, I took a picture of my drawing and redid the colours digitally using Procreate. Once I finished recolouring in Procreate, I removed the white background using Photoshop.
Next was gathering the materials for my background. For a digital component, I incorporated a page from DC's Supergirl comic. DC has produced numerous seatbelt PSAs, so I thought it would be great to include this in my poster background subtly. all of elements were combined and further enhanced with Photoshop
I then developed a digital version of my chosen poster direction and experimented with different Iterations.
Process
I made further refinements and created the final mockup
Key Takeaways
This was a fun but challenging project. One of the biggest difficulties was determining the most effective medium to use. I constantly questioned whether I could achieve my vision using the materials available to me. Overall, once I re-evaluated what I wanted to do and who I was designing for, the poster started to come together.
I learned how to be more strategic when balancing hierarchy between typography and illustrative elements so that the message remains clear. I also learned that experimenting with different layout styles is okay, and is helpful in narrowing down the best location for elements that provides better readability and communicates my goal.
