Dark Sky Films and Fathom Entertainment are gearing up for another Texas Chain Saw Day. On August 18th, a 4K restoration of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre will hit participating theaters for one night only. The companies just announced that these screenings will include a sneak peek at a new animated version of the iconic film.

After the film, there will be a featurette laying out the rotoscoping process used to translate the movie into animation. Showing how the artists are painstakingly recreating the 1974 film without the use of any form of AI technology. 

Rotoscoping 

Accordingly to the press release; “every frame will be illustrated by hand using the labor-intensive animation technique in which artists meticulously trace live-action footage frame by frame. Employing no artificial intelligence, the production relies exclusively on the craftsmanship and decades of experience of veteran artists to preserve the performances, atmosphere, and intensity of the original film while presenting audiences with a striking new visual experience.”

“The original Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a masterpiece that changed cinema forever,” says Paul Beck (A Scanner Darkly), Animation & Art Director. “Our goal is to honor its legacy by reimagining it through the timeless art of hand-drawn rotoscoping, giving audiences a completely new way to experience a film they thought they already knew.”

Directed by Tobe Hooper (Poltergeist), from a script he co-wrote with Kim Henkel (Eaten Alive). The film tells the story of five youths traveling through rural Texas. After their van breaks down, they begin to be stalked and killed off by a family of cannibals. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Allen Danziger, William Vail, Teri McMinn, Gunnar Hansen, Edwin Neal, and Jim Siedow.

This animated version of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre will come out some time next year. We’ll keep you posted on updates about the project as it develops.  You can grab tickets for Texas Chain Saw Day here.