The poster for the 14th edition of FANTAELX, scheduled from November 12th to 21st, has been designed by illustrator, animator, and professor in the Art Department at the Miguel Hernández University (UMH), Elisa Martínez. The artwork pays tribute to the early days of fantasy cinema, with The Adventures of Prince Achmed serving as its primary reference.
For its creation, Martínez employed the same artisanal technique as the 1926 film: hand-cutting black cardstock figures and arranging them in a three-dimensional composition against a translucent background. The central element features Achmed on his flying horse, accompanied by motifs inspired by the film, such as oriental architecture, clouds, and waves.
The design also incorporates references to other pioneering works in the fantasy genre, including The Fairy Doll by Alice Guy-Blaché, A Trip to the Moon by Georges Méliès, Dreams of Toyland by Arthur Melbourne, The Electric Hotel by Segundo de Chomón, Häxan by Benjamin Christensen, Nosferatu by F.W. Murnau, The Lost World by Willis H. O’Brien, and Un Chien Andalou by Luis Buñuel.
FANTAELX is organized by the Unicornio Negro Association for the Development and Dissemination of Fantastic Genre, the Research Center in Arts (CíA), and the MASSIVA Research Group of the UMH, with the collaboration of the University's Vice-Rectorate for Culture, Equality, and Diversity.
