Ozomah Franklin: Crafting Stories Through Striking Movie Posters

Often underestimated, movie posters play a crucial role in the filmmaking process—serving as both promotional tools and storytelling devices. As the first visual encounter audiences have with a movie, a well-crafted poster can spark curiosity, set the tone, and leave a lasting impression. Behind these impactful images is the creative vision of a graphic designer, quietly shaping the narrative long before the opening scene.

Born Ozomah Franklin, but professionally known as RexPosters, the Delta State native is one of Nollywood’s most sought-after graphic designers—known for crafting stories within the walls of his graphic design canvas.

Driven by a passion for design and a love for storytelling, Franklin’s journey in the industry started on the premise of solving the “film poster problem” in Nollywood, and he certainly took the bull by the horns.

“I love what I do to an extent,” he said, sharing the passion, joy, failure, hard work, intentionality, and unpredictability of his work. “It is hard,” he describes it, but notes how much he enjoys it.

His passion for movie posters was sparked after his experience with Nollywood DVDs his brother bought years ago. He was displeased by the “clumsy” and “meaningless” posters Nollywood churned out at the time.

This led him to identify a “story problem” as the missing element. Ever since, storytelling has been the foundation on which all his posters are built. Notably, in 2024, Franklin’s storytelling skills won him Best Movie Poster for Moses Inwang’s “The Devil is a Liar” at the Toronto International Nollywood Film Festival (TINFF)—a recognition that market yet another milestone in a growing list of accolades.

Edging towards a decade in Nollywood with credits on blockbusters like “Everybody Loves Jenifa,” “Seven Doors,” “Reel Love,” and “Rattlesnake: The Ahanna Story,” Franklin opens up about what it’s really like to be a film poster designer in Nollywood.

In this exclusive interview with The Nollywood Reporter, RexPosters  talks about his creative process, his journey to redefining poster design in the industry, and the most defining moment of his career.

How did you get into film poster design as a niche?

There is a book called “Gifted Hands” by Ben Carson, and the statement was to find a problem and solve it. That was what it was for me. I was a normal graphic designer. People were making different designs, and for me, I wanted to specialise because I could do a lot of things. I could do photography, After Effects, and a lot of things, but I wanted to specialise in just one. It was the next best thing for me to do. I wanted to solve the problem of bad movie posters.

When I was younger, my elder brother bought a lot of film DVDs. When I saw Nigerian film poster designs, I knew they weren’t good enough. My vision was to make movie posters in Nollywood better. From having a crowd on one poster to being clumsy, I wanted to make it better. That was where my inspiration came from. I tried to adapt the American movie poster style to our style. I wanted to solve a problem — and I still want to. As much as I am getting better, I want to make sure that the consistency in our poster designs is also there.

Can you share your thoughts on film posters as a visual representation of a film beyond being promotional materials?

I think it’s more about the story. The reason I would make a poster is because I want to tell a story. I will tell a story and keep marketing in mind. For me, like I said, I want to solve a problem. I want to make sure that the people who put money into making the film get their money back.

To achieve this, I’m thinking beyond just the story and marketing to ensure that every piece I create fits into different demographics. I am actually a storyteller in my own form, where I tell what the meaning of the project is. Beyond that, I also put a marketing approach to it, but I make sure the story is very vital on the poster.

How critical do you consider your role in Nollywood?

I think it’s the first thing that people get to see before the movie itself. So, it is very vital. There’s a lot of treading carefully because I am very precise about taking my pictures myself and building a concept from scratch. The problem is, if it’s not good, people will not be invested in watching it.

My role is very important because, as I would say, it is the first line of defense. It is the first thing you see before you watch the movie. So, I am very cautious about the kind of posters I create for different projects.

What makes you stand out in your job in Nollywood?

I don’t know if I stand out, but I think what makes me different is that I am a storyteller. I am not a designer who would put a lot of images on a poster without meaning. I’m someone who, as much as I’m putting pictures, ensures there are meanings and expressions.

It’s about finding a sweet spot between the story and the marketing approach. What makes me different, I feel, is maybe because I’ve been doing it for quite a number of years and I understand it. My understanding helps me bring it out more distinctly than anybody else currently.

Being behind many blockbuster film posters, how do you balance artistic expression with marketing demands?

I think this is a very valid question because I tell you, it is the hardest job I do. There are a lot of expectations on every big project — like, “Oh, if Rex is on it, he has to deliver.”

There are a lot of expectations. I sit a lot in solitude, and I do a lot of mental checks before any project. I must make sure I am mentally stable before I do any project.

This is because I am looking at the project from different people’s perspectives and making sure I make myself, the client, and the audience happy. If I don’t like it, I would not want people to see it. It is very hard because there are expectations from different angles.

Yes, I fail — but the truth is, it is about knowing you’ve failed and understanding why you failed. The failure is at the back of my mind, but I want to make sure that I win.

Can you share a poster design project that had the most significant impact on your career?

I would say “Rattlesnake: The Ahanna Story” because, at the time, I was paired with two other designers to work on it. For “Rattlesnake,” I wanted to show up. I’ve always felt good in my own shell and didn’t have people to compete with me on projects. But for this one, I was put beside two other designers who were good.

I had to show why I was better. But aside from proving that I was better, it helped me take a leap of faith in my ideas and mental capacity. It’s like you’ve been practicing at home or at night, and it was an opportunity to show people what you have been practicing.

So, “Rattlesnake” was a very crucial design for me — maybe not for my career, but for me as a person.

For my career, I would say all of Funke Akindele’s projects. I had to make sure that every time I worked, I showed up better than the last time. For me, her projects were the landmark that helped me move to the next level.

What are some film poster design trends you’ve noticed, and what do you think is the future of poster designs in Nollywood?

When I first came into Nollywood, I was seeing a lot of posters that had many people not properly arranged. At some point, I moved on to pitching fewer people to clients. We started the trend of “let’s take pictures for projects.”

Currently, there is the YouTube trend. Personally, I frown at it because there is no expression. You have someone on a poster, and there is no emotion or less emotion. There is no directive towards more. I believe in trends and in improvement, but I hope with time we get to a place where we recognize that we can do way better than we are currently doing.

What is the one thing you wish people understood about film poster designs in Nollywood?

That it is more than just having people stand. It’s more about telling a story, and I think currently we lack that as a body. We might have done a good project, but in the poster, there are no extra thoughts.

For a director, you put extra thought into the location and how actors should deliver their performance — but hardly into how the film poster should look. There is no attention paid to making a good poster. Yes, we’ve gotten better over the years, but there is no story or meaning. It’s usually blank, which is a problem.

What are the challenges you face while working with directors or filmmakers in Nollywood?

Back then, it was bad because there was a lot of explaining and trying to accommodate the fact that people might not want to move forward or do better. So, I was in a place where I wanted to work with only people who wanted to work with me.

That’s why, for me, if I don’t shoot the pictures, I don’t work on the project. I want to make sure I give the producers their money’s worth and deliver material strong enough to sell their movie.

Sincerely, it was hard back in the day, but now it has gotten better. People are now open to working with your ideas or seeing the vision that we need to shoot for this project.