28
Sep
Custom Display of a Sam Trick ‘r Treat Mask
Conservation and custom display of a screen used Sam mask from Trick ‘r Treat!
Don’t let that cute face fool you, Sam from Trick ‘r Treat has very specific rules for Halloween, and if you don’t follow those rules, you won’t live to see tomorrow! As long as you stay on his good side, this innocent looking oversized burlap mask is all you’ll see of Sam.
Overall, this film-used mask was in great shape, but on its own, wouldn’t hold the classic spherical shape of the character’s head. The client was looking for a way to display this Trick ‘r Treat mask that would not only help preserve the mask, but also be give it a bit more sense of the character. He asked us to add little context and some fun.
Although there was a bit of an under skull built into this mask to help maintain its spherical shape, there were several areas inside that did not have any internal support. This was likely to accommodate the actor and allow them to see and breathe in the mask. When we create this sort of custom insert, we build them to properly support the costumes over time, this doesn’t necessarily mean they are built to the same shape or size as the original actor. We carefully craft inserts made to fit the piece itself and fill any negative space without stressing the original prop, costume or mask. To give the burlap areas where the actor would see a more opaque look we added a tan fabric to the insert. This minimized distractions in case anything showed through.
Ricky Vitus was our lead artist on this conservation and display. For the body section of the display form, he carved a custom chest and shoulder area, which also gave another layer of support to the backer we created to support the bib fabric. Using an orange fleece we recreated the look of Sam’s iconic movie costume. To better match the film, a hand-stitched patch was added and the entire thing was distressed and aged with layers of paint. The final piece was and aged bit of rope added to the neck area to complete this movie accurate display from the now classic 2007 Halloween film!
Do you have an original movie or television prop that is in need of restoration or display? Email or call today and let’s discuss your project!
When did you last watch this modern classic for the Halloween season?
