May 2019 - Tim Burton Collective

Blogs

BRIEF HISTORY OF TIM BURTON

fiermanpearman May 20, 2019

Tim Burton has been working with The Walt Disney Company since the late sixties, and he’s been doing an incredible job. Cranking out hits like “Corpse Bride,” “9”, “James and the Giant Peach,” Tim Burton has been on a forty-year-long roll.

Now that we understand what he is today let’s explore where he came from and how he became the man we all know him as today.

Growin’ Up

Timothy Walter Burton was born in Burbank, California on August 25th, 1958 into a family of surprisingly normal people. Other than his mother owning a cat-themed gift shop, his family was quite average. Little Timmy started making his own short films in his backyard by using toys to create stop-motion animation – the same method he has used in almost all of his major hits.

He attended Burbank Highschool as a young man where he discovered that he’s not a particularly gifted student. He dabbled in a little water polo while he was there, but he really enjoyed painting and arts of any kind – including film.

I think it’s incredible that Tim knew he had a passion for such a young age. Hell, when I was a kid, I’m pretty sure I wanted to be a homeless man, hopping from cart to cart without a penny of debt, but that’s not a future. I’m sure his mother noticed his special gifts for storytelling and animation at a young age – otherwise he would have never attended college.

College

Tim Burton attended the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, California – where he spent a large amount of his time studying character animation. Eventually, he created a short film of his own. Created entirely in pencil, Tim Burton released “Stalk of the Celery Monster” – a story of a mad doctor who conducts bloody experiments on unfortunate victims.

Don’t worry; it’s not a gruesome as you might think. It has the same sort of ‘Tim Burton’ feel that we all know and love. It was cute! You should actually look up the film for yourselves – it’s a great watch! It’s insanely impressive that this short film is the piece that got Tim noticed by Disney.

I mean, have you ever seen a student film before? They’re terrible. I’ve made about 5 of them and tossed each SD card in the river after each class.

Disney

After viewing “Stalk of the Celery Monster,” Disney stepped in and asked Tim Burton if he wanted to be an apprentice to a real Disney animator. Of course, Tim couldn’t pass this offer up, so off he went.

Tim trained for a while before working as an animator, storyboard artist, graphic designer, art director, and concept artist. That’s impressive for a number of reasons, but I think the craziest title up there is “concept artist.”

Creating content for someone that knows what they want, but don’t know how to use words to describe it, is easily the most frustrating process imaginable. That’s why it’s so impressive to hear that he did work under all of those titles for movies like Tron, The Fox and the Hound, and Corpse Bride.

If you should take anything away from Tims story, I think it should be this; never give up on what you want to do. Getting paid to do a task is one thing, but creating something beautiful and getting lost in your work is something else entirely – so, take a real interest in the things you’re interested in – it just might pay off someday.

Blogs

TOP 10 THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW ABOUT TIM BURTON

fiermanpearman May 16, 2019

Tim Burton is responsible for some of the best movies ever made. His creative mind and genius brought to life some incredible stories that continue to resonate with people years after they were released. Many people know the movies, but not many know who Tim Burton was.

If you want to learn more about the director behind some of your favorite movies, here are some things about Tim Burton that might surprise you.

He was fired from Disney

If you’ve ever seen a Tim Burton movie, then you know that his style is dark and gothic-like. It’s true in his animated and live action films, and if you were to see one of his movies being played, you’d know it was a Tim Burton movie based off his recognizable style. This style, however, didn’t match up with what Disney was looking for. Maybe you know or you don’t, but Burton worked with Disney shortly after graduating the California Institue of the Arts as an animator for films like The Fox and the Hound and The Black Cauldron. After seeing his talent and Burton expressing his boredom with those type of films, Disney gave him a chance at directing his own short film after his previous first one called Vincent. The film would be known as Frankenweenie, but Disney refused to show it and eventually booted the director being “too dark.”

Of course, we all know now that Burton would get his revenge and pull one over on Disney by becoming the renowned director he is today, and getting the chance to have Frankenweenie become a feature-length film, as well as working with Disney on several other films that were his own vision.

He doesn’t know what that ending of Planet of the Apes was about either

Arguably, the worst movie of Tim Burton’s career is the 2001 Planet of the Apes. Burton admits in an interview with the New York Times that he thinks of the film as a professional low for him. Those not in the film industry might assume that a bigger budget and an open-ended script could make for a better movie, but they usually end up being worse off. In regards to its bizarre ending, Tim Burton remarked that he “had it all figured out,” and that it was private to him, but that he might share it over some LSD.

He helped Obama throw a Halloween Party

Controversy arose around the 2009 Alice in Wonderland-themed Halloween party Tim Burton helped put on for the Obamas at the White House, alongside Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter and Mia Wasikowska as Alice. The administration kept the party under wraps for as long as they could because of the recession and fearing it would be seen in poor taste to throw an extravagant party when many Americans had lost jobs and were going through financial troubles. Tim Burton decorated the party for the Obamas and even made an appearance in his own Alice-themed costume.

Burton transformed the room the party was held in into the Mad Hatter’s tea party from the film, with a long table decorated with antique linens and huge stuffed animals in the chairs. The party was a success, and the movie released a few after the party took place.

Johnny Depp is the Godfather of his son

Tim Burton and his ex-partner Helena Bonham Carter, whom he met on the set of Planet of the Apes, had two children; Billy Ray and Nell. What most people don’t know about this simple fact is that Depp was actually too shy to ask Depp himself to be his son Billy Ray’s Godfather, so Helena Bonham Carter had to call the actor up herself and do the asking, to which he clearly accepted.

He didn’t actually direct Nightmare Before Christmas

What most people would state is their favorite Tim Burton movie isn’t technically his movie. Burton was busy with another project around the time that Nightmare was being made, so he couldn’t fulfill director duties, and instead, Henry Selick, director of Coraline, took over. Tim Burton is a credited producer, however.

He has a good luck charm

Almost everyone has something they consider to be their good luck charm, and Mr. Burton himself also has one. You might’ve noticed from photos of him at various events, premieres, and other appearances, but Tim Burton always wears a pair of black-and-white pinstriped socks for good luck whenever he makes an appearance at something important.

He and his previous partner Helena Bonham Crater did live together, despite rumors

Burton and Carter’s relationship was a media favorite, and they were always in the public eye with wacky stories about their relationship being made. One of the most notable ones was the rumor that they never lived together in the same home. In an interview some time after the couple split, Carter took it upon herself to clear up those rumors and say that they did live together.

He may be on the autistic spectrum

Helena also diagnosed and claimed that Tim Burton had Asperger’s syndrome while she was researching it for a film she was working on. She realized that her partner shared many of the Asperger’s symptoms and traits, and while the two were watching a documentary about Asperger’s, Burton said that was how he felt as a child.

He’s directed music videos for one band only

We all know Tim Burton is a film director, but he’s also directed a couple of videos for the songs for the songs “Bones” and “Here with Me” by the Killers.

They would be the only two msuic videos he’s ever directed.

He hates how the media perceives him

Tim Burton has built up a reputation of being Hollywood’s weird and dark director, but he actually feels upset that so many people view him to be this gothic, dark weirdo. He’s said to have mentioned in an interview that he could put on a clown outfit and laugh with people, and they’d still call him these things.

Blogs

JOHNNY DEPP TIMELINE – FROM BLOW TO BREAKUP

fiermanpearman May 15, 2019

When it comes to Johnny Depp, he always seems to be in the news. The guy is constantly threatening paparazzi, dating a high profile woman, sexting girls outside of his marriage, or doing something else particularly newsworthy.

From his iconic start in a Wes Craven flick to starring in a Harry Potter film, here are some important events along this quirky actor’s timeline.

1984 – Ballpoint Pens, Nick Cage, and Nightmare on Elm Street

Before Depp became the household name that he’s become today, he was selling ballpoint pens while trying to make it in a boy band. While baby-faced Depp could have fit well in a one-direction-style band, I think we’re all thankful he met Nick Cage who hooked him up with an agent who got him his iconic role in Nightmare on Elm Street.

1990 – Winona Forever

The early nineties were a great time for Depp-heads as he filmed some of his most iconic movies and – who could forget – dated Winona Ryder. This year he filmed the famous John Waters’ film “Cry Baby” and starred in “Edward Scissorhands” alongside his boo.

The relationship didn’t last, but they’ll always be an iconic ’90s couple.

1993 – The Viper Room

Instead of just focusing on the movie biz, Depp decided that owning a club would be a great idea. This further allowed him to be surrounded by paps and celebs alike.

However, scandal struck when River Pheonix overdosed outside The Viper Room while his brother watched him die as he called 911.

1994 – Armadillo?

Depp has been known to be a difficult artist type. However, no one expected Edward Scissorhands to go crazy on a hotel room (at least intentionally).

After destroying a hotel room he claimed that an Armadillo was at fault and not him… however, that armadillo was never found.

1999 – PLANK!

This is a man who values his privacy, however being one of the hottest stars of the past decade the paps didn’t see a reason to leave him alone… untill he thereatened them with a plank of wood.

2007 – Great Ormond Street Hospital

Depp’s daughter Lily-Rose ended up in the hospital after being infected with E. Coli. The infection could have killed her if not for the staff at the Great Ormond Street Hospital. However, the staff saved her life.

To thank the hospital, Depp donated two million dollars and showed up as the infamous Captain Jack Sparrow to entertain the patients in the hospital.

2013 – The Trouble with Amber Heard

After his split with the mother of his children – which was very amicable and they remain friendly – Depp started dating Amber Heard whom he then married.

2016 – Divorce and restraining orders

Their relationship was tumultulous and ended in a divorce and some serious accusations. Heard claimed that Depp beat her and was a violent spouse!

Now – More Lawsuits and Defamation

Now that the divorce is finalized, Depp, as well as his representation, are coming out and accusing Heard of being the violent one in the relationship. They’re also taking legal action against a publication for calling Depp a “wife-beater.”

While nothing has been finalized in court, Depp and his representation have put forth some pretty convincing information. We’ll have to wait and see how this unfolds!