You’ve seen samurai movies, you’ve seen puppet movies, and you’ve seen ghost stories. What happens when you mash the three together? You get The Haunted Swordsman, and we’ve got some super cool concept art from the project.
All Images: Kevin McTurk
The Haunted Swordsman is “a live action samurai tale set in a world of demons and ghosts that will utilise 91cm tall bunraku puppets, traditional in-camera effects, and good old-fashioned smoke and mirrors trickery.” It’s being directed by creature effects artist and model maker Kevin McTurk, and he was kind enough to share with us some concept art done by Guy Davis, who has worked on the Guillermo del Toro films Pacific Rim, Crimson Peak, and the upcoming The Shape of Water.
Here are two looks at a “crawling Onibaba witch. She is the gatekeeper to the chamber of the Spirit Council.”
This is “The Kurobozu (The Black Monk), the elder judge of the Spirit Council that the Samurai must face.”
And here are some “sunken temple ruins.”
Now, all of this is eventually going to be brought to life with puppets, and here’s an image of what one of those looks like, with its puppeteers beside it.
Obviously, this isn’t some small undertaking, which is why the project is on Kickstarter. So head to this link for more information on what looks to be a unique, badass production.