Director Analysis: Tim Burton; An Imaginative Director, Producer and Writer

Analysis:

Elements that make Burton's film successful are his choice of script, his cast, the dark essence he likes to add to his films especially those that never had it e.g. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Alice in Wonderland, and his way of bringing imagination to life. Tim Burton has been successful in providing entertainment along with good stories and technically good films.

The reason behind the success of Tim Burton's films is that the scripts that really captivate him tend to make him imagine and from there onwards, he makes the most of his imagination. He tries to make amends in the film's script where he believes is necessary.

The dark tones that are reflected in his films are basically due to the mise en scene, costumes and make up. For this, his films have won a few awards as well e.g. Sweeney Todd and Sleepy Hollow.

Along is journey as a director, Burton has made friends who have been with him and helped in most of his films such as Danny Elfman, who has done the music score for 5 of his films and Johnny Depp who has starred in almost every film after they first worked together in 1990. This enabled Burton to have a good team who are with him and give him what he wants for his film. This also shows Burton's reliability on these people and his willingness to work with people he knows rather than those he has never worked with.

Throughout his career, Burton has always been impressed by horror film directors and actors and has either casted them or has portrayed them in some of his films.

Burton has also worked as an animator with Disney in his early years and has made some projects in stop motion animation. His most latest "The Corpses Bride" was a film which came out in an era which is now more into digital animation, but he made the film due to his specialty in stop motion clay animation.

Sex and violence are rarely seen in his films. His films are mostly meant for families and this is good as it captivates a wide audience and families are probably the largest audience for the cinema. However due to the dark tones in his films, there is an age restriction for small children.

Application of Tim Burton’s Work  in My Short Film

Tim Burton uses dark themes in his films and my film requires a bit of that to portray the main character’s dream as a nightmare to bring the essence of melodrama. I will use the type of melodrama he arouses in films to add to the story. The way he also imagines his characters and brings them to life through defining their character as misunderstood people is also good as it helps the character to discover him/herself along the film.

Burton also uses unique set-design and an attractive mise en scene that supports his story and adds to the creative the perfect imaginative character. I need to make my mise en scene as natural as it can be. The lighting in his films is also low and this inspires me to make my film with low lighting and an attractive mise en scene.

The soundtracks for Burton have mostly been done by Danny Elfman, who makes the typical music that enhances the quality of Burton’s films. The music is mostly melodramatic and has the essence that I also want in my film.

Color correction is also used in Burton’s films and I will also use color correction in my film.

Burton also tends to create disturbing and juxtaposed scenes by increasing the contrast in his films such as those in Alice In Wonderland and Charlie And The Chocolate and I want to add that in my film especially the parts where the main character will face the height of the climax.

His Importance

Burton also has a great imagination and he does not let anything limit his imagination. This is the reason why he does fantasy and fictional films more than those relating to real life.

He also uses a strong cast to support his film. Johnny Depp is one of the finest actors in this era, and he never refuses Burton’s films. One of the reasons is that Burton helped him rise when he was depressed with the films that he was being offered at that time.

The way Burton adds darkness to his films is phenomenal and makes the film more interesting.

His interest and desire to make stop motion clay animation is also something very commendable for a person in the era of 3D digital animation.