This is an old revision of the document!
Table of Contents
Tim Burton
Birth
Timothy Walter “Tim” Burton was born in Burbank, California on August 25, 1958.1)
Parents
He is the son of Jean Burton, a cat-themed gift store owner, and Bill Burton, a former minor league baseball player who eventually worked for the Burbank Park and Recreation Department.2)
Short Films As A Teen
Burton used to produce short films in his backyard on Evergreen Street as a teen, utilizing basic stop motion animation techniques or shooting them on 8 mm film without sound. One of his oldest known juvenile films is The Island of Doctor Agor.3)
High School
Burton attended Burbank High School, although he was not a particularly bright student.4)
Character
He was a highly contemplative guy who enjoyed painting, sketching, and watching movies.5)
Inspiration
His subsequent work would be significantly influenced by Dr. Seuss and Roald Dahl, two of his boyhood heroes.6)
University
Burton attended the California Institute of the Arts in Valencia, California, after graduating from Burbank High School alongside Jeff Riekenberg.7)
Stalk Of A Cemetary Monster
Burton created the short films Stalk of the Celery Monster and King and Octopus while studying at CalArts. The animation section of Walt Disney Productions took notice of Stalk of the Celery Monster and offered Burton an animator's apprenticeship at the company.8)
First Films He Worked On
He worked on films such as The Fox and the Hound (1981), The Black Cauldron, and Tron as an animator, storyboard artist, and concept artist. His concept work was never used in the completed films.9)
Vincent
In 1982, while working at Disney, Burton created his debut short film, Vincent, a six-minute black-and-white stop motion picture based on a poem written by the filmmaker and featuring a young kid who fantasizes about being his hero Vincent Price, with Price himself narrating.10)