Illuminated Touchscreen Poster Frame with Subliminal Message!

Step 4 Etch and Cut the Middle Sheet

This part takes a while. I chose a pretty complex pattern, you may want to use something simpler. Perhaps a simpler graphic, or a quotation from the movie. It's up to you!

I grabbed this fantastic image from the 'net. A Firefly fan, presumably as devoted as I am but possessing an entirely different set of skills, created a desktop image based on a scene from the Serenity movie. In the movie there is a short commercial that contains a subliminal message. When one of the characters (River Tam) sees the commercial, some government-embedded training is activated and she goes on a rampage inside an unsuspecting tavern. Unfortunately I was unable to find a link to this picture on Flickr; please let me know if you find the original!

I used the now-ubiquitous method of edge-lighting an image engraved into plastic, so that the engraved image illuminates but the rest of the plastic remains dark. The image shines through the poster when lit, but is nearly invisible when unlit.


I started by making the image I grabbed black and white, since engraving is a two-bit process - engraved, or not engraved! I also removed all of the background, leaving just the text, the octopus and the two girls. Printed on a sheet of 8.5x11 paper, it fit perfectly in the mostly empty yellow space of the poster.

If there is any, remove the film from the side that will be etched. Tape the image on one side of the plastic, being careful to align it with the empty yellow space on the poster. The printed side of the image should be against the plastic, so that it is visible when you look through the plastic. The image will be etched on the face that will eventually sit directly against the poster, for the sharpest resolution.

Now, with an engraver or Dremel tool, begin engraving the entire image into the surface of the plastic. You'll probably work with only one eye open for the whole thing, to get the right perspective. Work carefully and try to get nice smooth edges. Choose the right bit for the complexity of the particular section you're working on. Lastly, don't expect to finish everything all in one afternoon - your arm will be screaming for mercy! Break it up into a few smaller sessions.

This is where having a laser cutter would be nice. Simply set it to engrave mode, convert the graphic into compatible CAD data, and relax while it does the work. Have I mentioned that I really want a laser cutter?


Once the engraving is done, you will need to cut notches the same way as you did for the bottom sheet. Fortunately, you won't need to cut as many - 14 will do, 7 for each side.