MrBallen

Strange, Dark & Mysterious

Cinematic illustration of a mysterious figure in a trench coat walking down a foggy path.

Brand Refresh & Design System

A Style System for
Atmospheric Storytelling.

MrBallen is a giant in the true crime space. My goal was to evolve the channel from a YouTube personality into a major entertainment studio. I moved away from cheap horror clichés and built a visual language rooted in suspense. Using editorial typography and cinematic lighting, I created a system where the story remains the main character.

The visual world of MrBallen is defined by what you can't see. I curated a library of imagery that focuses on silhouettes, heavy fog, and organic grit. This imagery sets the baseline tone for all design assets. The result is a brand that feels cold and isolated.

A character in a raincoat standing in a dark forest, emphasizing texture and cinematic lighting

Moody silhouette of a man standing by a window with autumn leaves.

Silhouette standing in a cornfield under moonlight.

Scarecrow with glowing eyes in a green lit field, showcasing the horror inspired art direction

Visual Foundations

Controlled Tension.

High contrast is the foundation. I selected Sentient for its sharp, aggressive geometry, balanced by Switzer's neutrality. The 12 column grid anchors the layout, ensuring the atmospheric imagery remains grounded and precise.

Visual overview of the primary serif font 'Sentient', showing large headline typography and a description of its usage for titles.

Visual overview of the secondary sans-serif font 'Switzer', displaying the full alphabet, numbers, and available font weights

Technical diagram of the responsive grid system, showing a 12-column layout for desktop (991px-1440px) and a 4-column layout for mobile (320px-480px)

Cover Art

Vertical Storytelling.

Designed to stop the scroll. These vertical covers strip away the UI clutter, treating every episode drop like a cinema release. Bold titles and atmospheric lighting do the heavy lifting

Vertical movie poster design for MrBallen Episode 17, featuring a dark, ominous house seen through a window frame with winter snow

Key art poster for MrBallen Episode 42, showing a mysterious silhouette walking down a wet road in a foggy forest

Sci-fi horror poster design for MrBallen Episode 37, featuring a vintage car under a glowing UFO ring in the night sky

Cinematic Wide Format.

Video is the core product. I developed a system that treats every upload like a cinema release. The layout prioritizes mood and clarity.

Cinematic YouTube thumbnail design for MrBallen Episode 42, featuring a close-up portrait of a character in the rain

Cracked white porcelain mask lying on a mossy forest floor, designed for the 'Strange, Dark & Mysterious' series

Wide format digital thumbnail art showing a silhouette of a man standing by a window

Social Media Posts.

For social updates, I wanted the feed to look like a case file, not a marketing page. I used the Polaroid frame to turn every episode drop into a piece of evidence. It’s a simple format that keeps the branding consistent while making the artwork feel grounded and real

Polaroid style social media post design featuring the 'Hollow Mask' episode artwork, designed to look like forensic evidence

Instagram feed graphic featuring a sinister scarecrow silhouette on a Polaroid frame

Digital social media asset designed as a Polaroid photo of a snowy forest road.

Web Experience

Immersion at Scale.

By using a dark theme and simple navigation, the site feels premium and immersive. It is designed to look great on any screen, making it easy for fans to dig through the archives.

MacBook Pro mockup displaying the MrBallen website redesign, featuring a dark mode streaming interface with a cinematic video player

Dual iPhone mockups showing the responsive mobile design for the MrBallen platform, highlighting the dark UI and episode discovery features.

Email Campaign

The goal was to make the email look as good as the site. I built a modular layout that prioritizes the episode artwork over text. It’s a clean, simple system that works well on mobile and keeps the branding intact.