Was there any particular inspiration for nasty burlap pumpkin mask-wearing trick or treater Sam?
When I started digging into the history of the holiday I realized that unlike Christmas, Valentine’s Day, or Easter, Halloween didn’t have a singular mascot character. It had a lot of familiar characters like witches, ghosts, or vampires, but not a main icon who really represented the holiday properly. Michael Myers was around, but as much as I loved Halloween, he didn’t capture the fun, mischievous side of the holiday. He was just terrifying. I wanted a character that was both cute and creepy, and that lead me to Sam. Sam first popped up in an animated short I did while at NYU called “Season’s Greetings”. I figured that if Halloween really did have a guardian, he probably wouldn’t be some giant hulking demon with fiery eyes and bat wings, he’d just look like a kid – a slightly offbeat kid in dirty pyjamas and mask. Something innocent yet intimidating. It’s a disguise that easily lets him roam door to door, making sure we’re obeying all the customs and traditions of Halloween. Sam even
