Timothy "Tim" William Burton is a prolific American film director/writer, best known for the dark imagery and quirky nature of his popular films. He is also the author and illustrator of the poetry collection "The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy & Other Stories."
At the end of Beetlejuice , Beetlejuice metamorphoses into a bizarre creature with a merry-go-round on his head. On the top of this merry-go-round is a smiling skull which became Jack Skellington in The Nightmare Before Christmas . The latter movie had been a pet project of Burtons since his days as an animator at Disney.
He has an interest in clowns, and his films will often include them or make reference to them.
Credits his former fiance, Lisa Marie , as his muse. She is often in his projects ( Ed Wood , Mars Attacks! , Sleepy Hollow , "The World of Stainboy" , Planet of the Apes ) or is paid homage in them (she was the inspiration for The Nightmare Before Christmas s Sally).
Engaged to Lisa Marie from 1992-2001.
Used the song "Its Not Unusual", performed by Tom Jones , in Edward Scissorhands and then in Mars Attacks! .
Lives in Ojai (California) and New York.
Is a "Bollywood" fan.
Nearly everywhere he goes, he carries a pocket-size sketchbook and a small watercolor kit.
Usually dresses in black, because he doesnt like spending too much time matching colors.
Younger brother Daniel Burton is also an artist.
Was voted the 49th Greatest Director of all time by Entertainment Weekly, being the youngest director on this list of 50.
He was hired as the director of the failed Superman movie.
Among his cinematic influences are Mario Bava , Vincent Price , Roger Corman and Barbara Steele whom he homaged in Sleepy Hollow .
Is a big fan of "nudie" director Russ Meyer.
He once said he never remembers his dreams, apart from five recurring dreams, one of them involving the girl he was in love with when he was a teenager and another involving his parents bedroom.
Played water polo and swam for Burbank High School in California.
Has made eight films with Johnny Depp : Edward Scissorhands , Ed Wood , Sleepy Hollow , Charlie and the Chocolate Factory , Corpse Bride , Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street , Alice in Wonderland , and Dark Shadows .
Ranked #6 on Tropopkins Top 25 Most Intriguing People [Issue #100].
Is a big fan of Italian director Mario Bava. He once said he would like to remake Bavas classic La maschera del demonio with his former partner Lisa Marie. He also appeared in two documentaries about Bava.
Member of the Official Competition jury at the 50th Cannes International Film Festival in 1997.
Grew up in Burbank on Evergreen Street, and his family lived in the 2000 block, near Valhalla Cemetary. Attended Providencia Elementary School in Burbank, California.
Was working on a documentary about Vincent Price , called "Conversations with Vincent". After Prices death in 1993 he shelved the project and it has never been completed.
Was slated to direct The Fly with Michael Keaton in the lead role, but he backed out and David Cronenberg took over.
Was originally set to do a re-make of Das Cabinet des Dr. Caligari in the early 1980s.
There were conversations of directing the Broadway musical version of his film Batman in 2002. The opening night would have been after 2005 but the project was abandoned.
Bought the rights to a Topps trading card series with the intention of turning it into a film, but couldnt decide between calling it "Dinosaurs Attack!" and "Mars Attacks!". Jurassic Park then came out, and to avoid comparison, he made it as Mars Attacks! instead, but then it faced comparison to Independence Day .
While at WDFA, he shared an office with Andreas Deja.
In October 2001, he began his relationship with actress Helena Bonham Carter , whom he met while filming Planet of the Apes , and she has appeared in all of his subsequent films. They live in adjoining houses with a hallway that connects the two homes, they have a son, Billy-Ray Burton, born on October 4, 2003, and a girl, Nell Burton, born on December 15, 2007.
Johnny Depp is a godfather of his son Billy Ray Burton.
After seeing his performance as Big Boy Caprice in Dick Tracy , he always kept Al Pacino in mind to cast as a villain in a future "Batman" installment. However, after Batman Returns , Burton moved on from the franchise.
Engaged to Helena Bonham Carter [2001-2014] 2 children.
As of 2009, every feature film he has directed has been nominated for some sort of Academy Award, with the exceptions of Pee-wees Big Adventure , Mars Attacks! and Planet of the Apes .
Has his look-alike puppet in the French show "Les guignols de linfo" .
His favorite films are Dracula A.D. 1972 , The Wicker Man , The Golden Voyage of Sinbad , Furankenshutain no kaij: Sanda tai Gaira , and The Omega Man .
Has directed 2 actors in Oscar-nominated performances: Martin Landau (Best Supporting Actor, Ed Wood ) and Johnny Depp (Best Actor, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street ). Landau won the Oscar for his performance.
He has a phobia of chimpanzees.
Was at one point going to direct the movie After Hours , but then he graciously walked off the project after he was told by the producers that Martin Scorsese wanted to direct the film instead.
His childhood dream was to be in a monster costume wrecking Tokyo but since he couldnt be Godzilla he decided to be an animator.
(September 2008) Cornwall/Devon filming Alice in Wonderland .
Received a lifelong ban from any and all Comic Con events after the release of his Batman film, due to it having some fundamental deviations from the canon. He reveals this on a DVD commentary track for the film.
Was originally set to direct Spawn.
Was attached to direct the now cancelled Superman Lives film written by Kevin Smith.
Was considered to direct X-Men.
Was at one point attached to direct Lemony Snickets A Series of Unfortunate Events.
Was interested in directing Watchmen.
Often works with Johnny Depp and Helena Bonham Carter.
Member of the Short Films and Cinfondation Jury at the 59th Cannes International Film Festival in 2006.
President of the Official Competition jury at the 63rd Cannes International Film Festival in 2010.
He owns some "Big Eyes" paintings by Margaret Keane. One of them depicts Helena Bonham Carter with their son Billy Burton and as a surprise Margaret drew Tims face in the clouds, according to the book "Big Eyes: The Film, The Art".
Four of his films won an Academy Award for Best Art Direction,them being Batman ,Sleepy Hollow , Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street , and Alice in Wonderland.
He is of English, Scottish, German, Norwegian, Swedish, Croatian, and remote Dutch and French, ancestry.
He was thirty-one when Batman was released, making him the youngest person ever to direct a Batman film.
He has a very strong dislike of cats.
Friends with Joel Schumacher.
I always liked strange characters.
You try to work out problems as you go along. Same thing as an adult.
Some people get therapy, some people get to make movies.
After being asked what Batman Returns will be about.
Havent you heard? There is no plot.
Maybe it’s just in America, but it seems that if you’re passionate about something, it freaks people out. You’re considered bizarre or eccentric. To me, it just means you know who you are.
A lot of things you see as a child remain with you. . . you spend a lot of your life trying to recapture the experience.
When I was growing up, Dr. Seuss was really my favorite. There was something about the lyrical nature and the simplicity of his work that really hit me.
Movies are like an expensive form of therapy for me.
I never really got nightmares from movies. In fact, I recall my father saying when I was three years old that I would be scared, but I never was.
I think a lot of kids feel alone and slightly isolated and in their own world. .
