special effects

After a few years in limbo, my webstore Instant Monsters is back! It's a soft relaunch with a limited stock this year, then back to full operations next year. Please drop by to have a look at some of the new items! www.instantmonsters.com

Hello. I am Noah Boyd, and I am creating a Dark Ride Myself. So, Let's get to where it all started: Special thanks to Don O'Neil and The Sedgewick Hotel Dark Ride for inspiring me to do this, but with a Twist, We will be applying the SAME Principles that Technifex Used to create Dark Castle At...

Here is my Animated Levitating Teapot prop ... a real crowd pleaser. Complete step-by-step instructions in the video.

No Haunted House is complete without a floating candle ... or two. Here is my Floating Candle Prop with complete instructions on how to build it all on my YouTube channel.

Even though the "Virtual Santa in a window" has spread worldwide and is known by many, most do not realize that Halloween Special Effects Videos came into play first and there are many out there. Jon Hyers is one of the most acclaimed in the industry, being featured on the "Great Christmas...

Ok, so I want to make a quick "cheap" severed arm, hand and leg prop using liquid latex. I've watched a couple videos on it and it seems simple enough. I'm a guy and I have arm and leg hair. I'm very well aware that it'll hurt to remove the latex if it comes in contact with hair. Should I shave...

I'm putting up a small haunt in my garage this year. I only plan 4-5 props/scares, but I worry that the sounds from each area will compete with one another. Last year, I set up everything on our front porch. It was pretty obvious that the sound effects from the animatronics made it so you...

Hi there I help a restaurant with their Halloween event and every year the same loyal guests book tickets - consequently we have to reinvent our event every year and 'up the ante'! This year my character will be less like a monster and more like a brutal, unhinged human - I'd like to douse...

In a pro audio / video / DJ products catalog--or perhaps the distributor catalog someone posted to the thread about the new Gemmy Lightshow Projection units thread--I saw a listing for a Continuous fog machine. Forget the price, but it was a shocker--can't justify the cost, as my show is a home...

Thought I'd start a separate thread for tests of the Ghostly Apparitions projection effects DVD using my Mitsubishi XD500U projector. The only two "usable" projections for me--since I aim for mild and spooky vs. startle / scary--are the "Head of the House" (may complement Rona the Ghost Maid...

Wondered if anyone had thought about recreating the Disney's Haunted Mansion special effect where the shadow of a hand passes over the grandfather clock. Especially using the 2014 Dollar Tree "Skeleton" hands being sold this season. When I saw them, I instantly bought four "just in case" I want...

Over the holiday weekend, I visited the Magic Kingdom. In addition to riding the Haunted Mansion five times and enjoying details of various effects, I visited the semi-new Be Our Guest restaurant in New Fantasyland. Ate in the "Beast" room and found it somewhat Haunted Mansion-esque with its...

Hello everyone!! I wanted to shoot out a quick introduction and say hello to everyone on halloweenforum.com! :D:D My name is Mel, and I'm a 20-something living in NYC that has a passion for halloween/special fx makeup! I have been on YouTube for almost 5 years, and love showcasing halloween...

Hey everyone, I just wanted to share my latest creation - a propane powered flame shooter. It can shoot either a stream of fire, or a giant fireball up to 35' in the air. Pretty fun to play with! I will be using it on top of our pirate ship in our outdoor decor in our front yard this year :)...

I'm looking for an easy way to build a Haunted Mansion style traveling light effect for next Halloween--preferably using parts I already have or can easily acquire. As far as a build goes, easy (to me personally) means no soldering or circuit assembly. I'd rather use off-the-shelf components...

Hello there! Just wanted to introduce myself! I'm Ashley and I'm a special effects makeup artist from Los Angeles. My nickname is the BloodChef because I developed a non-sticky, non-staining makeup blood. If your curious, check out www.BloodChef.com. Look out for my posts in the merchant...

Hey everyone! We've had a crazy summer with lots of fun new prosthetics in the works. Here are a few of them: "Goblin / Witch" is an unpainted prosthetic (painted version available) that comes with full application instructions. It can be painted with fantasy flesh tones to create a goblin...

Hello, fellow Halloween lovers! I've discovered the joy of DIY zombie costumes two years ago and have since been looking for improvements each year. My first costume I got the feel of making open wounds with paint and the many uses of liquid latex. Last year I was able to make it appear my eye...

Recently we were given a challenge: create an original character (a 200 year-old cowboy) using pieces of Instant Monsters prosthetics with a working time of only 2 hours. We accepted. This is the tale.