We Sent Fun World a Gen 1 Mold

Since the cat's out of the bag in RJ Torbert's official statement on Nate Ragon and the Ghostface.co.uk livestreams, I think it's time I can share details on a fun project I've kept secret for 5 years now.

EDIT: While the petition and our collaboration did influence the 30th Anniversary Ghost Face Mask project, Fun World will not be using our mold. Read RJ Torbert's full statement below.

In 2021, I started a petition to BRING BACK A FANTASTIC MASK!, a plea to Fun World to reissue the original classic and beloved 'Weeping' ghost mask. How far we got and how close we are is now being seen.

Once the petition hit 1,000 signatures, I wrote a detailed business proposal with drafts and mock ups to pitch Fun World, and volunteered to provide a mold and consultation they could use to develop the product. After years of Fun World hearing fan interest through angry tweets and cynical Facebook comments, I thought it was time to do the unthinkable: simply approach them with integrity and make a proper case. And sure enough— they were interested!

I exchanged emails back and forth on what we could provide and some ideas of what the product could be. We decided the best thing to start with was a proper mold taken off an original Gen 1 mask.

Jo Nobile (Artist, Co-Admin, and my brother) volunteered to make a mold we could use. The idea was to provide a critical asset taken off an original mask that could serve as the clay base for whatever sculptural alterations they needed to make to prepare for production. We had many masks to chose from and deliberated over the needs of the project before committing. The care package we ended up sending Fun World included:

• Silicone mold off an original Gen 1

• Resin "demonstration" copy painted and shrouded

• Replica tag for aesthetic consideration

This is not how the final product would look by any stretch. Though it looks peculiar in solid resin form, we felt confident once in translucent vinyl it would lead to exactly what fans want. We hoped they'd pour a clay casting from our mold to tool as needed into the finished sculpt. The demo prototype we sent Fun World included a high quality cotton replica shroud templated off an original to exact specs.

Once we shipped it off, we closed our eyes and hoped for the best. E-mail exchanges slowly tapered, and all went quiet again on the hopeful reissue project. Until now!

Fun World announced a new 30th Anniversary Ghost Face Mask project. Though the image in the catalog is an actual vintage copy, the intention is clear: homage the original mask. Details are still unclear on what that will exactly be, though fan excitement is stirring far and wide.

In his statement, RJ thanked me and Jo by name but made clear they did not use our mold and opted for another approach they invested a lot into. I was surprised he mentioned it publicly since it's been a well kept secret for some time. We're all curious to see what their approach will be. Some speculate a ground up resculpt, others are hopeful for a 3D scan of sorts. Only time will tell.

We made a distinct effort to try to get this project done right and advocate for the fans interests in the original sculpt. While we're grateful to hear we served as a large catalyst and inspiration for the new product, our role in this is now over. It's time to sit back, be patient, and hope for the best for all collectors in the community. Thank you all for your interest. It's an exiting time to be a fan, and I hope we're all pleased with what's to come.

“Wade and Jo brought the interest of the Gen 1 Fantastic Faces to my attention a couple years ago and deserves credit for being passionate about it and bringing the need to my attention. With that said, we did not use the mold cast that was provided. What we did was use an original Gen 1 Fantastic Faces mask and invested heavily in having something else performed to capture all the imperfections— which I will reveal at an other time. This took some time, but it was accomplished. Without the persistence of people like you [and Wade and Jo] this might have happened much later on.” - RJ Torbert