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Phantasm Remastered poster artist Aaron Lea shares his inspiration and process for the new piece that reportedly floored JJ Abrams.

Taxus from Starships, Sabers and Scoundrels was able to learn a bit out the new Phantasm Remastered poster. Read on for the story of how it came together.

Phantasm Remastered–The Rebirth of a Legend for Phantasm Fans

There are some icons of cinema that hold a firm place in the hearts of many. Some penetrate so deeply into the psyche of the fans that it becomes part of their DNA. Phantasm is just such a film. So it is with great excitement that one of their own–JJ Abrams–is collaborating with original director, producer and writer Don Coscarelli for a special theatrical re-release of the movie in brilliant 4k definition on “Art House Movie Day,” September 24, that’s sure to delight Phantasm Fans everywhere.

Fans across the spectrum of genres should by now know to trust anything Abrams handles. Of course, he has prove to use respect and reverence for what’s important to die-hard fans. Just look at his work with Star Wars and Star Trek. In fact, in an article from Entertainment Weekly’s Anthony Breznican on March 17, 2016, JJ admits that the name for Captain Phasma was a derivative of the title Phantasm after her armor reminded him of the deadly, silver orb in the movie.

Coscarelli decided to hire artist Aaron Lea to design a completely new poster for the release. Although this is his first work for a Bad Robot production, his previous work has been used by MGM, Magnolia Pictures and the Vincent Price Estate. So, he feels very comfortable capturing the minute elements of the horror genre presented with a modern feel. He has worked with Coscarelli in the past with designs for the Bruce Campbell depiction of Elvis in Bubba Ho-Tep and John Dies at the End.

The Right Person for the Job

Given his history with Coscarelli, Lea was a natural pick for the project. I caught up him, and Lea told me how it all came together.

“Don and I were talking about how to roll out the remaster of Phantasm to the public, and if we should do a poster for the release. I had been playing around with the idea of doing a sort of remaster of the original poster by paying homage to all the elements used by the original artist, Joe Smith, from the 1979 poster. I mean, the 70s was a hell of a decade for not just horror, but cinema in general. Why stray?”

One can imagine that reworking such a monumental image would on one level be nerve-wracking; only compounded by such close association with the original director who might impose careful restrictions on the vision. This, however, was not the case for Lea.

“I would say my own requests were the only specific ones. I set a rule that I could only use the same elements that showed up in the original one sheet. Half way through the project, I started getting these other ideas to pull in other characters. But, I forced myself to stay on target.

Don [Coscarelli] is a perfectionist and has a unique vision to everything he approaches, so he was involved in every step of the process. He fell in love with the original composition I did. So, during the entire project, he kept saying, ‘Looks great. But man, that pencil [version] is still the best.’ His persistence though pushed me to deliver something neither of us anticipated. And he and I are both happy with the results.”

And they aren’t the only ones. Not only do the Phantasm Fans like it, the big man himself at Bad Robot weighed in. Lea reports, “The fans seem to dig it and word from within Bad Robot is that JJ really liked it.”

The Master Remasters Phantasm Remastered

Just as the rest of the movie has received a makeover of visual effects and correction of the small foibles that (according to an interview with Jacob Knight of Birth, Movies, Death) have driven Coscarelli nuts for years. The poster is reminiscent of the classic styling and colors of movie bills from the late 1970s or early 1980s. But, it has a modern definition to it. Even with bringing it up to date, it evokes a feeling of a powerful, lurking evil with its cult-like imagery.

This can be a tricky detail to accomplish per Lea. “I really wanted to return to a time when poster art was more than just Photoshop and floating heads. Honestly, I think that one element is what really completes it, and he nailed it.”

He relied on another fan favorite surprisingly from a different genre as inspiration. “Honestly? A Star Trek: The Motion Picture trash can. I no longer have that trashcan, but it was in my room throughout elementary and middle school. The art was by the legendary Bob Peak, and to me, it’s the quintessential key art for film. I used to stare at that thing for hours in awe of it. So when the opportunity came about to revisit a classic 70s poster, I returned to the artist that inspired me as a child. The influence is super subtle, but it’s there if you know where to look, or are familiar with Peak’s style.”

In an era of modern convenience, Lea sought to leverage the gritty nature of the 1970s. “It’s funny, but even though the artwork was for a 4k remaster, I used a fuzzy standard definition copy of Phantasm to study the actor’s faces. The film is dark to begin with, and it didn’t help that the Lady in Lavender stood around in the shadows for most of the film.”

Lea was meticulous in his approach. “I did the initial pencils in Photoshop using a Cintiq tablet, then I laid the inks down in Clip Studio Paint, which used to be called Manga Studio here in the States. When I tell people I use which is essentially Manga Studio, they always act surprised, but man, the brush system is superior to Photoshop’s. When I finished with the inks, I decided two weeks before the deadline to paint this sucker, and the finished product was completed once again in Photoshop using Kyle T Webster Brushes.”

The Phantasm Remastered poster will be used for more than advertising. Attendees at certain theaters will be able to purchase their own copy as a special memento.

For a list of the theaters showing Phantasm Remastered and to order a copy of the poster, visit http://phantasm.com/.

See Lea’s work at www.aaronlea.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @aaronlea.