Tim Burton

One man who constantly inspires me. His films are ingrained in my mind. They are my childhood mythology. Legitimately obsessed since a toddler. I will NOT miss his exhibit at the MoMa in NYC. Goal is to get there before the end of April!! 

Burton deals primarily with the isolation of being disconnected from the world at large and the search for true identity. Edward Scissorhands, Batman Returns (batman, catwoman and penguin battle not only with each other but the fact that they must maintain dual identities), Nightmare Before Xmas, Planet of the Apes, Big Fish...

His films unfold in visually complex ways. 

to his critics? "Candy doesn't have to have a point. That's why it's candy"

He invited audiences to sense them on an emotional level rather than rationally digest them. favoring instinct and intuition versus strictly following words on a page. 

The director values the immediacy and intimacy of working out scenes with actors on set, and in doing so, he has developed his own way of communicating with actors. 

" [about BATMAN] I don't believe in cinema verite. You should create your own reality. We ended up with this rather interesting idea of canyons, with structured cantilevered forward and bridges over them. We even took things like prison architecture and streched it into skyscrapers."

Sleepy Hallow  Burton suggests worlds of "otherness". dutch colonial setting of 1799 upstate NY and made their own expressionistic Sleepy Hallow in Lime Tree Valley, England-- a form of "stylized naturalism." the "tree of dead" = "agony captured in wood sculpture."

Atmospheric Dichotomy. Two distinct worlds exist simultaneously. Normal vs. Topsy-Turvy. Big Fish, Corpse Bride, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory

Duality of Childhood and Adulthood...unbridled imaginative possibilities of youth and the knowing, world-weary, and saturine attitudes that come with age, Burton's films operate on multiple layers. They appeal to children, but contain a sensibility only adults can truly grasp. Beetlejuice, Pee-Wee's Big Adventure

The presence of comedy amid the macabre. Mars Attacks!. Burton's playful humor counterbalances the shocking and frees the audience to revel in the grotesque. 

Burton's work is his embrace of character. Burton's projects are all intimate affairs, inhabited by elaborately developed characters who provide the emotional depth to the films. "I love extreme characters who totally believe themselves."

The flawed father and the misunderstood outcast. Ed Wood. And yet, armed with pure optimism in the face of humiliation and rejection, Burton's Ed Wood is not as naive or out of touch as he may appear. He is the embodiment of hope, Burton's nod to the merits of not compromising. Draw a parallel between Burton's own fortitude and Wood's brave attempts to pursue his own distinctive vision. 

Burton injects an aura of optimism in a film that documents Wood's relentless string of unquestionable failures. 

"Ed, visions are worth fighting for. Why spend your life making someone else's dreams?"

Burton has been able to maintain his uncompromised aesthetic by working often with the same creative team- Danny Elfman, Collen Atwood, Chris Lebenzon. Burton's rapport with the same actors and crew is integral to the unique texture of his films, allowing him to cultivate and develop the consistent look, sound and style of his films with the confidence and ease that comes from trust and connection with his collaborators. 

"I feel a strong connection with Tim and trust him completely. It's amazing to be invited into his world." - Johnny Depp