Halloween Special Effects: Do-it-Yourself Tricks to Treat

Each year, special effects are utilized to scare people half to death. People pay good money to go to haunted houses to see some of the fantastic presentations local special effects artists create. These special effects do not have to be limited to the haunted house. You can bring them into your home for fun and fright during a Halloween party that will be talked about until Christmas.

One of the easiest special effects to re-create is the butchered body on the table. The concept begins with a table that has a center leaf. Take out the leaf. A dark sheet or black piece of material is then laid on the table. A hole is cut where a person can stand in the middle of the table with the sheet laying on the table around them. This special effect can be done one of two ways. The first way is for the victim to be seated on a high chair which allows the small of his back to be just above the table top. This will allow the victim to lay backwards or sit up as people file through to see him. The table is strewn with old mop heads dipped in corn syrup and red food coloring, (blue can be added a drop at a time for the right color). You can add other things like peeled oranges and cooked spaghetti. The light must be dim or strobing. The idea is to have someone at the table with a chopping axe or butcher knife made of stiff cardboard, stabbing the victim. The victim can grab the "intestines" and organs while screaming for help. As long as the items are covered with the corn syrup and food coloring, this can be very realistic.

The other variation of this butcher scene is to have the victim stand in the middle and lay his upper torso, face down, on the table. This version could have a butcher, the victim, and the assistant all grabbing the "guts." One note: Depending on the size of the victim, you may need a small board to lay across him to make the table sturdy in the middle to support the mop heads and other items. I have been known to use stiff cardboard for the "insert."