Pinball artist Christopher Franchi joins the show to talk about designing art for fast-moving, physical games where nothing stays still and everything has to read instantly. We get into how pinball’s mechanical constraints shape composition, how Spooky Pinball’s visual identity comes together, and why horror themes only work when restraint is part of the design. Franchi breaks down collaboration with designers and programmers, what gets lost between concept and production, and the small visual decisions most players never consciously notice—but always feel.

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00:00:00 - Cold open chaos, wrong screen, and welcoming Franchi to the podcast

00:01:10 - Running down Franchi’s pinball art history starting with Batman 66

00:02:20 - Working with Lyman Sheets and understanding his legacy in pinball

00:03:20 - Losing Lyman and what that meant to the pinball ecosystem

00:03:55 - Jumping into newer games and starting the conversation with Beetlejuice

00:04:35 - Color theory, restraint, and why Evil Dead’s palette actually works

00:05:45 - Trial and error in Photoshop and knowing when colors fail

00:06:40 - Widebody playfields and why they don’t feel bigger while designing

00:07:55 - Designing around lower playfields and broken-up real estate

00:08:45 - Viewer question about formal art training versus being self-taught

00:09:20 - High school awards, scholarships, and getting kicked out at seventeen

00:11:00 - Being forced to grow up fast and losing access to formal art education

00:12:55 - How that moment delayed his career but shaped his work ethic

00:13:45 - Finding satisfaction in independence and choosing projects carefully

00:14:05 - Touring the collectibles room and revealing the Toys R Us wall

00:15:30 - Adam West Batman obsession and meeting childhood heroes

00:16:50 - When meeting heroes goes wrong and awkward fan moments

00:18:10 - Pre-stream bonding and discovering the infamous fart audio library

00:19:30 - Playing fart recordings live and naming them with chat

00:21:15 - Why dumb humor still matters in creative spaces

00:22:10 - Respecting sound design and physical audio performance

00:23:50 - Returning to Beetlejuice and Tim Burton’s built-in color language

00:24:45 - How Beetlejuice almost happened years earlier and finally landed at Spooky

00:26:10 - Easter eggs, hidden jokes, and designing for obsessive fans

00:27:05 - Accidental leaks, loose lips, and pinball rumor fallout

00:28:40 - Comparing reactions to Beetlejuice colors versus King Kong backlash

00:30:00 - Lighting challenges on Evil Dead and visibility concerns

00:31:20 - Fighting for GI placement so the art can actually be seen

00:32:15 - Playfield art as visual marketing for how the game should be played

00:33:20 - Designing for players who ignore callouts and play visually

00:34:40 - Walking through Beetlejuice shots and explaining visual guidance

00:36:10 - Balancing theme clarity with visual density on modern games

00:38:05 - How collaboration with Spooky evolved into a long-term relationship

00:40:35 - Transitioning from contractor work into full Spooky projects

00:41:45 - Why the people at Spooky mattered as much as the projects

00:43:20 - Talking pay, jokes aside, and making pinball a sustainable career

00:45:10 - Looking ahead at future work without leaking anything

00:47:30 - Humor, reputation, and learning when to shut up publicly

00:50:10 - What makes a playfield succeed beyond looking cool

00:53:00 - Art as instruction, immersion, and subconscious guidance

00:56:20 - Reflecting on where pinball art still has room to grow

00:59:40 - Wrapping up, final thoughts, and mutual appreciation

01:02:10 - BRB gag, frozen poses, and botched timing

01:03:05 - Final sign-off, pyramid praise, and raid send-off

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