Where Burbank was sunny and benign, Burton was moody, interested in the dark and the macabre.

7M圆L4OIFJ- Nicky Locklear March 12, 2018īorn in 1958 in Burbank, California, Burton grew up with an inverse relationship to his surroundings. Tim Burton in his Halloween costume made by his mother. Burton grew up identifying with moody iconoclasts - and developing an art style to match

Before that, he grew up absorbing a range of pop art styles and cinematic influences that later led to his becoming something of an alienated gothic hero - which still makes itself felt in his work today. Burton got his start in the industry working as an animator for Walt Disney Studios, where he began to develop his staple brand of quirkiness. The answers to these queries are more concrete than you might expect. Even in his new live-action Disney film Dumbo, which is something of a departure from Burton’s previous work - it’s a remake that doubles as a careful critique of its predecessor - it can still easily be called “ Burton-esque,” like all of his movies.īut what does it mean to be “Burton-esque?” Is there a way to catalog the visual ingredients of a Burton film? And how did Burton develop such a distinct visual style that continues to resonate so strongly with audiences?

It’s hard to find a recent director whose distinct visual aesthetic has become so universally, immediately recognizable. Tim Burton is one of modern filmmaking’s best-known directors - largely because his films all look like Tim Burton films.

Scenery made of geometrical shapes