Dark Sky Films and Fathom Entertainment are keeping their annual Texas Chain Saw Day tradition alive with the return of Tobe Hooper‘s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre 4K restoration in theaters for one-night-only on August 18, and as we recently learned, the screenings will feature a first look at a unique upcoming reimagining of the horror classic.
In addition to experiencing Tobe Hooper’s groundbreaking 1974 classic on the big screen, audiences on August 18 will also enjoy an exclusive behind-the-scenes featurette exploring the painstaking art of rotoscoping, the century-old animation technique.
The featurette includes an exclusive preview of newly created rotoscoped footage from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, giving fans a first look at the striking visual style while highlighting the craftsmanship behind the process, created entirely by artists without the use of AI.
Today, Dark Sky and Exurbia Films have released the first still from the hand-animated rotoscoped version of the landmark horror film, currently in production for a planned 2027 debut.
Check out the first-look still above and expect more soon.
The rotoscoped version transforms Tobe Hooper’s 1974 masterpiece through the painstaking art of rotoscoping, with artists tracing the original live-action footage frame by frame entirely by hand and without the use of artificial intelligence. Designed to preserve the performances, atmosphere and intensity of the original while creating an entirely new visual experience, the project is led by Animation Director and Art Director Paul Beck, an Austin-based multimedia artist and longtime Richard Linklater collaborator whose credits include Waking Life, A Scanner Darkly and Apollo 10½: A Space Age Childhood, alongside Lead Animator Max Peake, Lead Animator and Special FX artist Nate Bayless and Background Artist Jeremy Martinez.
Tickets are now on sale for Texas Chain Saw Day, as The Texas Chain Saw Massacre returns to theatres nationwide on August 18 from Dark Sky Films and Fathom Entertainment.
