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| A doll workshop attendee takes a photo with The Grudge Star Junko Bailey Photo: Haunt Hunters App by Tara Adams Writer, Haunt Hunters App SCRANTON, Pa. — As the scent of clear coat spray wafted away from pale, ghostly dolls outside the Radisson Lackawanna Station Hotel, the atmosphere inside smelled purely of the macabre. Inside, during the inaugural Underworld Culture Convention on Saturday, horror fans sat hunched over tables, meticulously applying dark smudges to the lifeless faces. They weren't just painting, they were summoning ghosts. The workshop was led by Mary Jo Chudley, the artist behind Twisted Dolls. Chudley travels the convention circuit turning playthings into the stuff of nightmares. Past classes have tackled icons like Pennywise, Michael Myers, and Jason Voorhees, but on Saturday, the focus was squarely on the pale-faced, bone-chilling spirit from The Grudge. Chudley spent hours preparing the blanks ahead of time, leaving the spine-tingling details to the class. "Start close to the eyes and work your way out," Chudley instructed the room, guiding students through the delicate shading around the nose, mouth, and eye sockets necessary to carve out that signature hollow stare. The trick, she explained, keeps the dark pigments from pooling too heavily, creating a stark, unsettling contrast against the doll's ghostly white skin. And then there was a crucial warning for later: "The eyes glow in the dark." She laughed, recalling past participants who weren't aware of this detail and became startled when a pair of luminous eyes blinked back at them from a darkened house. "I'm scared," one attendee joked, raising a brush as she sized up her canvas, terrified of ruining the piece.  Soon, the room fell into a quiet, focused rhythm, punctuated by occasional words of encouragement. "Yours looks so good," one creator whispered, leaning over to inspect a neighbor's progress. Once the shading was locked in, the class carried their creations outside to be sprayed with a clear coat, setting the stage for the finishing touch: blood. Using resin, participants painstakingly added glossy, wet-looking drips weeping from foreheads, corners of eyes, and lips, giving each doll its own custom splatter.  To complete the look, everyone dressed their creations in miniature white dresses, similar to the cinema ghost's wardrobe. The real test, however, waited upstairs. With their dolls finished, the class lined up to meet Junko Bailey, the actor who portrayed the Kayako ghost in the 2019 reboot of The Grudge. In full costume and makeup, Bailey lit up as she inspected each handmade terror. She struck a terrifying pose beside the creators, glaring at them alongside the mini-monsters. Pointing at the tiny figures, Bailey grinned and said, "Mini-me" after the photos. Underworld Culture Convention Marketing Director Michael Castro praised Chudley's knack for inspiring everyday fans. "She's so talented," Castro said in an interview on Friday. "She's done workshops at other cons that have sold out." For Chudley, the appeal is simple. The workshops let horror lovers reach out and touch the franchises they obsess over, forging a tangible connection to the characters they love, and giving them a gruesome new centerpiece for their display shelves at home.  Photo: Haunt Hunters App |
Sunday, September 20, 2026
Bringing the Terror to Life: Inside Scranton's Grudge Doll Workshop
