Timothy (Tim) William Burton was born August 25, 1958 in Burbank, California.As indicated by the dark mood of many of his films, Burton was a bit of a loner and recluse as a child.He spent the majority of his time drawing and watching old movies, particularly anything with horror king Vincent Price.As early as the ninth grade, Burton received acknowledgment of his talent.He won an illustrated anti-litter campaign, and his artwork was displayed on the sides of garbage trucks for a year.
Burton graduated from his high school and went on to attend California Institute of the Arts.His first job, like so many animators before him, was at Disney.Despite a difference in creative outlook, Burton worked on The Fox and the Hound (1981) and The Black Cauldron (1985).Disney quickly realized the talent they had and gave the green light to Burton’s idea Vincent, an animated short released in 1982.The story followed a young boy who wanted to be just like Vincent Price, who incidentally provided the narration for the film.Winning several awards, Vincent marked Burton’s first critical success.Disney then gave their stamp of approval for the production of Burton’s first live-action film Frankenweenie.The thirty minutes long variation on the classic story of Frankenstein was ultimately deemed inappropriate for children and never released.
However, the film was watched and enjoyed by one very important viewer—Paul Reubens, best known as TV’s Pee-Wee Herman.Reubens knew Burton would be the perfect man to direct his first full-length feature film Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure (1985).With the surprise success of this film, Burton became somewhat of a household name.
Waiting for a promising script that would allow him to do something artistically different, Burton had to wait three years for Beatle Juice to come along.With Michael Keaton and Geena Davis, the film’s success caught the eye of Warner Bros. who then entrusted Burton with their new film Batman (1989).
Burton and Keaton (along with the antics of Jack Nicholson as the Joker) proved to be a winning combination.Batman was the top grossing movie of the year and Burton’s most successful film at the box office to date.Riding off this success, Burton was given free reign to do whatever kind of film he desired.The result of that creative freedom was Edward Scissorhands (1990), starring Winona Ryder and Johnny Depp.This was the first time Depp and Burton worked together, but certainly not the last.The two would continue to collaborate throughout the 90s and into the early millennium.
Burton followed up Batman with Batman Returns (1992), starring Michael Keaton, Michelle Pfeiffer and Danny DeVito.Much darker and quirkier than the first, it also didn’t do as well as the original and left some fans feeling disappointed.In 1994, Burton called again upon Johnny Depp to star in his biopic Ed Wood, a tribute to Edward D. Wood, Jr.—the worst director of all time.The film was met with much critical acclaim, even winning Martin Landau an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, but still failed to capture the public.
Burton’s next film was Mars Attacks! (1996), but not even the strong cast could save this flop.Jack Nicholson, Glenn Close, Michael J Fox and Pierce Brosnan all did their best but to no avail.In 1999, Sleepy Hollow reunited Burton and Depp, and the film was well-received by critics and fans alike.Unable to capture another hit, his 2001 remake of Planet of the Apes is only of note because he met Helena Bonham Carter on the set.The two are currently engaged and have a son together.
In 2003, Burton filmed Big Fish with Billy Crudup, Jessica Lange, Albert Finney, and Ewan McGregor.The film was a financial success and the critics loved it, but there was only one problem.Many of Burton’s fans felt the film was too conventional and not infused with enough of Burton’s trademark quirkiness.However, these fans were pleased in full when Burton took on the 2005 remake Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (another Depp film), which exuded his characteristic quirk.
As much success as live-action films have garnered Burton, he’s never abandoned his animated roots.In 1993, he wrote the story for The Nightmare Before ChristmasCorpse Bride.
Burton was married to Lena Gieseke in 1989 and divorced in 1991.He then became engaged to actress Lisa Marie from 1992 to 2001, but the two never made it to the altar.He has been engaged to Bonham Carter since 2001, and their son Billy Ray was born in 2003. and directed the 2005 film
| | Early Career |
In 1982, Burton made his first short, "Vincent", a six-minute stop-motion film about a young boy who fantasizes that he is his (and Burton's) screen idol Vincent Price, with Price himself providing narration. This was followed by the live-action short "Frankenweenie", starring Barret Oliver, Daniel Stern and Shelley Duvall (an early supporter of Burton's work). Shot in black and white and inspired by James Whale's "Frankenstein", "Frankenweenie" features a boy who reanimates his dog Sparky who was hit by a car. Although the film won praise at film festivals, Disney was concerned that the film was too scary for children and, not knowing what to do with it, shelved the film. ("Frankenweenie" later received a video release in 1992).
Although Burton's work had yet to see wide release, he began to attract the attention of the film industry. Actor/producer Griffin Dunne, approached Burton to direct "After Hours" (1985), a comedy about a bored word processor who survives a crazy night in SoHo that had already been passed over by Martin Scorsese. However, when financing for "The Last Temptation of Christ" fell through, Burton bowed out of the project out of respect for Scorsese.
Not long after, actor Paul Reubens saw "Frankenweenie" and chose Burton to direct the cinematic spinoff of his popular character Pee-wee Herman, who had gained popularity with a successful stage show at the Roxy, which had been turned into an HBO special. The film, "Pee-Wee's Big Adventure" (1985), was made on a budget of $7 million and grossed more than $40 million at the box office. Burton, a fan of the eccentric musical group Oingo Boingo, asked vocalist/songwriter Danny Elfman to provide the music
for the film. Since then, Elfman has provided the score for all but two Burton films, "Ed Wood" and "Sweeney Todd".
After directing episodes for the revitalized TV series "Alfred Hitchcock Presents" and Shelley Duvall's "Faerie Tale Theatre", Burton received his next big project. "Beetlejuice" (1988), a supernatural comedy about a young couple forced to cope with life after death, as well as a family of pretentious yuppies invading their treasured New England home. Starring Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis, and featuring Michael Keaton as the famously repulsive demon Beetlejuice, the film grossed about $80 million on a relatively low budget. The film also snagged a Best Makeup Design Oscar.
"Batman"
Burton's ability to produce hits with low budgets impressed studio executives and he received his first big budget film "Batman" (1989). The mega-budget production, based in London, was plagued with problems. Burton repeatedly clashed with the film's producers, Jon Peters and Peter Guber, but the most notable debacle involved casting. Burton wanted to cast Michael Keaton from his previous role as Beetlejuice, despite Keaton's average physique, inexperience with action films, and reputation as a comic actor. Although Burton won out in the end, the furor over the casting provoked enormous fan animosity, to the extent that Warner Brothers' share price slumped. Burton had considered it ridiculous to cast a bulked-up he-man as Batman, insisting that the Caped Crusader should be an ordinary (albeit fabulously wealthy) man who dressed up in an elaborate bat costume to frighten criminals. Burton cast Jack Nicholson as the Joker (Tim Curry being his second choice) in a move that helped assuage fans' fears, as well as attracting older audiences not as interested in a superhero film. When the film opened in June 1989, it was backed by the biggest marketing and merchandising campaign in film history at the time, and became one of the biggest box office hits of all time, grossing well over $400 million worldwide and $250 million in the U.S. alone (numbers not adjusted for inflation). The film proved to be a huge influence on future superhero films, which eschewed the bright, all-American heroism of Superman for a grimmer look and characters with more psychological depth. The stylized gothic look of Gotham City ended up being adopted as the look of the city in the comic books. |
| Trademark |
Worked into the designs of many things seen on screen are elegant curls. The ends of lines often taper off into thin spirals at the ends. The most famous of these curls is the hill in "The Nightmare Before Christmas".
Frequently uses the name 'Edward'. Examples include "Edward Scissorhands", "Ed Wood", and Ed Bloom (Ewan McGregor and Albert Finney) in "Big Fish",
Distinctive skeleton motif seems to show influences from artist Edward Burra
Frequently works with actor Johnny Depp. The two collaborated in the films "Edward Scissorhands", "Ed Wood", "Sleepy Hollow", "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", "Corpse Bride", and the upcoming "Sweeney Todd". Burton wanted to cast Depp in his movie "Mars Attacks!" (in the role that eventually went to Michael J Fox).
Frequently shows dead dogs, clowns, falling snow, black and white checkered floors, twisted trees, jack-o'-lanterns, scarecrows, striped snakes, butterflies, and redheads in his films.
Several films, such as "Batman Returns", "The Nightmare Before Christmas", "Corpse Bride" and "Edward Scissorhands" are set at Christmas or during winter and feature the giving of presents.
When presenting the film 'House of Wax' with Vincent Price, he said his favorite scene was watching the wax figures melt and their eyeballs fall out in such a manner. He got to express that excitement when he directed "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory". He also got to work with Vincent Price by casting him in "Edward Scissorhands".
His films frequently have dinner table scenes. See "Beetlejuice", "Batman", "Edward Scissorhands", and "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory".
His films often have gothic subtexts. See "Beetlejuice", "Batman", "Batman Returns", "Edward Scissorhands", "Sleepy Hollow", "The Nightmare Before Christmas", and "Corpse Bride".
Personalizes the production logo in the beginning of his films.
Opening credits usually utilize a tracking shot. They also tend to go either on, through, or into something.
His long standing collaboration with Danny Elfman, who scored all his films since "Pee-wee's Big Adventure", except "Ed Wood", which featured the noted composer Howard Shore and Tim's new film "Sweeney Todd", based on a musical with already existing music and lyrics by renowned Broadway composer Stephen Sondheim. "See also List of noted film producer and composer collaborations".
His main characters tend to be outsiders, and are usually shy, with a pale complexion and unruly black hair, similar to his own.
A caricature of Burton appeared on the "Plucky Duck Show" episode 'Return of Batduck'. In the episode, the titular character hunts down Burton and attempts to score a role in "Batman Returns". Burton did not provide his voice for the episode; Maurice LaMarche (who, incidentally, provided the voice-over for Vincent D'Onofrio's portrayal of Orson Welles in "Ed Wood") took the role.
Many of his characters are given a back story regarding their relationships with their fathers, often as a means of explaining erratic behavior. "Sleepy Hollow", "Big Fish", "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory", and "Edward Scissorhands" are some prominent examples. Ironically, he has received some criticism for not delving enough into Bruce Wayne's origins regarding his parents in "Batman (1989 film)".
Many of his stop-motion film main characters have long legs and small feet
Many of his films are released around the holiday season.
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