 One scene involved a burning head , which was created by taking a cast of the actor 's face , head and body with a plaster , then placing soft rubber over the cast to simulate human flesh . It was also treated so it did not release black smoke like a rubber tire when it burned . For burn effects placed on the body after the fire , the crew made a sculpture of the wounds , then mounted them onto rubber appliances , which were glued to the actor . For Harriet 's death scene , in which she is scalped and her brain is visible , makeup artist Cindy Jordan put a cap over actress V. Joy Lee 's head and covered it with mortician 's wax to make it look bumpy . Another special effect involved a spirit that appears in the form of ectoplasm during a séance . It was created from cellulose , water and green food coloring . It proved difficult to make , and several attempts were made before the right consistency was achieved . To create the appearance of it coming out of actress V. Joy Lee 's mouth , an eight @-@ foot long hose was attached to the side of her face . Project manager Mark Seibert had to suck the fake ectoplasm through the hose to get it in , then during filming he spit it out . It took several shots before the take was successful , and it looked so funny during filming that the crew kept laughing during takes . 
