Halloween Work

Born at Midnight on Devil’s night from a mother with a jack-o-lantern painted on her belly and with an obstetrician wearing werewolf feet, it’s easier to understand my favorite holiday. I’ve always had a love for a specific variety of Halloween aesthetic. More spooky or eerie, never gory or gross, and ideally more refined. Here’s a collection of some of my work related specifically to the Halloween tradition.

Halloween at Sheridan Gardens

Some of the ghoulishness created for a courtyard in the Uptown neighborhood of Chicago in 2017 included ghost holograms, singing jack-o-lanterns, an old cemetery a lot of lighting effects and more. 

Retro-Sci-fi "B Movie" Halloween Theme

For this elaborate Halloween weekend at Crobar nightclub, we created an environment themed on the fun genre of Retro Sci-Fi B Movie’s. The outside of the nightclub was transformed into a Drive-in theatre complete with retro horror movie trailers. Inside a multitude of original special effects enhanced the installation including a floating mad scientist ghost, and a shrunken woman hologram illusion. It was also my golden birthday, turning 30.

2009 Nightclub Halloween Installations

A quick run through of V Live and Crobar nightclubs Halloween installations featuring a variety brand new effects and other custom creations.

Haunted Castle Theme: V Live nightclub

I created a Haunted Castle theme for V Live that featured an elaborate entrance with a custom loop of lighting and sound effects. As with many dark environments, there’s lost details in this video, but this gives you the basic idea.

Attack of the Killer Pumpkins trailer

As part of the 2004 Halloween weekend at Crobar nightclub, The VIP suite was overtaken by angry jack-o-lanterns and featured this silly film loop.

Singing Pumpkins Illusion

In 2001, Disneyland introduced the Nightmare Before Christmas elaborate holiday overlay to their Haunted Mansion attraction. In the section normally featuring the beloved bust statues singing “Grim Grinning Ghosts“, they are replaced with singing, animated jack-o-lanterns covering them. In 2009 I first replicated this effect in my courtyard for Halloween. I think that viewing this sort of high-end special effect in an every day environment is extra surprising and entertaining.

Moving Bust Illusion

This is an effect borrowed from Disney’s Haunted Mansion and originally replicated by me in 2002 with a Bust of Beethoven and David lip-syncing to the Beastie Boys “you gotta fight for your right to party”. Here is my 2012 version utilizing new technology and a brand new content.  Many thanks to Jay Fechtman for reprising his role. I love the results! Twice as fun in person!

Spooky Face in the Mirror Effect

Originated for an installation at Crobar nightclub, I’ve obtained a lot of mileage out of complete and component aspects of this effect.  Part of it’s effectiveness is the black light effect on the green frame, which creates a glow that is replicated by the specially processed video, which makes the video of the face appear less like video. I have also had a great deal of fun using the face content with portable pico projectors, making the eerie face appear in museums, theme parks blowing the minds of many perplexed people.

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