Mummies are invading the Sapphire Cineplex

By Brooke Curley

brooke@gilavalleycentral.net

SAFFORD- The mummies have invaded the Safford Cineplex just in time for the “The Mummy” starring Tom Cruise.

Many moviegoers thought the intricately wrapped mummy in his shiny sarcophagus was just a mannequin, but they were wrong.

The Safford Cineplex mummy is actually one of two employees wrapped from head to two in convincing fabric strips. While one mummy wanders the halls the other greets customers as they pay for their tickets.

Brooke Curley Photo/Gila Valley Central: Looks can be deceiving. While many think that Alex Gonzales is simply a Halloween prop, when people aren’t looking he moves in for the scare.

The impressive sarcophagus was created by Sapphire Cineplex employees and Eastern Arizona College graphic design students Mario Marquez and Kristin Flattt. The project took roughly 35 to 40 hours to complete and is loosely based on King Tutankhamun’s sarcophagus. The sarcophagus is made out of cardboard, paper mache and spray paint, mixed with acrylic paint. Although many might suspect the hieroglyphics on the front of the sarcophagus to simply be scattered doodles, the ancient Egyptian form of writing actually spells out a word.

“It says sapphire on the very front,” Flatt said. “We didn’t know what to put on there, so we figured we’d put sapphire on there.”

The next big project Marquez and Flatt have in mind is a Cars 3 display. They also hope to put white tape on the floor to make it look like a road while adding stop signs and caution cones.