Exclusive Interview: Artist Graham Humphreys Discusses His PSYCHO GOREMAN Poster
With Psycho Goreman now available on Blu-ray in the US, we decided to interview artist Graham Humphreys about the brilliant poster he created for the film. His poster, which you can view below, was used as the reverse artwork for the ‘Hunky Boy Ultimate Edition’ Blu-ray and also as a variant cover for the limited edition VHS release.
Related Article: Exclusive Featurette: Go “Inside the Creature Shop” of PG: PSYCHO GOREMAN!
Synopsis:
Siblings Mimi and Luke unwittingly resurrect an ancient alien overlord who was entombed on Earth millions of years ago after a failed attempt to destroy the universe. They nickname the evil creature Psycho Goreman (or PG for short) and use the magical amulet they discovered to force him to obey their childish whims. It isn’t long before PG’s reappearance draws the attention of intergalactic friends and foes from across the cosmos and a rogues’ gallery of alien combatants converges in small-town suburbia to battle for the fate of the galaxy.
Humphreys has been illustrating horror posters for decades, and is well known for creating the UK posters for A Nightmare on Elm Street and the Evil Dead franchise, as well as the annual promotional artwork for the London FrightFest Film Festival. So horror fans will no doubt already be familiar with his work, and his poster Psycho Goreman is an impressive addition to his huge body of work.
Psycho Goreman was written and directed by Steven Kostanski, and stars Matthew Ninaber as the titular alien warlord (with Steven Vlahos providing the character’s voice), who finds himself awakened on Earth by two mischievous children who possess an amulet that allows them to control him. The film has been receiving great reviews from the horror community, and is probably destined to become a cult classic. It also stars Nita-Josee Hanna, Owen Myre, Adam Brooks, and Alexis Kara Hancey, and can be purchased both physically and from digital storefronts.
Dread Central: Can you talk about the visual design of the poster and how you created the image?
Graham Humphreys: Generally, any client will already have specific requirements for their poster, so there’s already a basic brief to follow.
However, with a film so rich in potential imagery, my job was to locate the additional elements that would create visual interest and maximise the impact of the poster. In this instance, I built my image around the monster and little girl… it’s a visual relationship that can be seen in films such as ‘The Monster Squad’ (1987), and in classic moments from James Whale’s ‘Frankenstein’ (1931) and Paul Wegener & Henrik Galeen’s ‘Der Golem’ (1915).
Then I introduced linking characters and props to create a cast driven, visual narrative. One image I thought was especially good fun, Adam Brook’s character leaping over the transmuted boy – here, a rubbery tentacled monster!
There were many alternative elements that never made the poster, but I was determined to introduce some horror, with the zombified policeman.
DC: Psycho Goreman himself is a visually unique character, so how was the experience of drawing him?
GH: Although Psycho Goreman is an alien, he is also demonic. I wanted to capture both sides of his nature. Aside from the very demonic face, using the space background above, I added the science fiction origin.
DC: Was it fun to create a poster for such an unashamedly crazy film?
GH: Naturally! There is a great tradition of comedic horror – much of it unintentional (it’s what made B-movies such good fun), it also allows for a greater freedom in representing incongruous elements, comedy and gore, for instance.
DC: Will horror fans love Psycho Goreman?
GH: Absolutely! There are some surprisingly horrific scenes – unexpected, alongside the cutesy child narrative! Although there are also hints that the little girl harbours a monstrous nature of her own, presumably intended as a comment on human nature vs ‘other’. Duality has been central to the horror tradition, most famously so in Robert Louis Stevenson’s ‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’. It’s a theme that keeps giving!
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