Breaking news – story developing: The World of Tim Burton is hitting London, UK for the first time, and Bored Panda received exclusive access to review the highly anticipated exhibition which will be open to the public on Friday (October 25). The major exhibition includes 600 items from Tim Burton’s 50 years of creative output, some of which have never been on public display in the UK before. The iconic filmmaker spoke about his process and technique during a Q&A on Wednesday, October 23.
In response to some burning questions, the filmmaker shared that he wasn’t very “verbal” early on and used drawing as a way to express himself. He described it as “therapeutic.”
He recalled that when he first drew his beloved character, Jack Skellington, he didn’t even know what it was at the time. It was simply an expression of his self-consciousness, evolving into something akin to a “puppet.”
When asked by Bored Panda about the recurring themes of “monsters” and characters who “don’t fit into conventional society” in his creative works, he spoke of certain “feelings” that are ingrained in one’s DNA.
“These kind of feelings are, you know, not just me … a lot of kids grow up feeling that way and this is just the way I felt. And once you feel that way, it never kind of leaves you,” he said.
“This is just characters identified with and no matter what you’re doing, those feelings stay with you,” the gothic visionary went on to say. “Even as you get older, you can have kids, you can have relationships, whatever. But it’s funny how those kind of things kind of remain in your DNA.”
The World of Tim Burton debuting in London and Bored Panda is there to ask the iconic filmmaker some burning questions
Image credits: The World of Tim Burton
While answering a question about his most “personal” work, the enigmatic filmmaker said during the Q&A that it’s “hard for [him]” to pick a favorite
Nevertheless, he mentioned Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, and The Nightmare Before Christmas.
“There’s things in everything and it’s hard for me to pick, but I think those are ones that come springing to mind,” he told the audience.
Tim also revealed that he never thought about the audience while developing a film because he simply didn’t know who the audience was.
“I never really knew who the audience was so I never really targeted anything. I was always surprised whether kids or adults or anybody liked it,” he said. “So I truly never thought about who the audience was.”
“I’m shocked if a film is a success,” he added. “I’m shocked if it’s a failure.”
While talking about the ever-expanding world of modern technology, Tim described himself as a “technophobe” even though he relies on it to make his critically-acclaimed movies.
“I found strangely that my soul and my body resists it … I get depressed. I get lost. I go down my own personal rabbit hole and so I avoid it. It doesn’t make me feel good,” he said about technology.
“Technology can be fun … maybe it’s just from a different era but I just get more disturbed by it but it doesn’t make me feel good as a person. So I don’t do it.”
Some of the items highlighted at the exhibition were 1992’s Batman Returns’ Catwoman’s suit and Wednesday Addams’ viral Rave’N dance dress.
Moreover, the display also features hundreds of Burton’s expressionistic sketches and drawings that he has created prolifically since childhood
The hundreds of emblematic items were loaned from Burton’s extensive personal archives, key film studio archives including Paramount, Amazon MGM Studios, and Warner Bros, and the private collections of Burton’s collaborators.
The World of Tim Burton will open on Friday (25 October), just in time for Halloween. It showcases Burton’s remarkable output, with over 18 of his films individually spotlighted in the exhibition.
The exhibition comes to London after a decade-long world tour in 14 cities in 11 different countries since 2014. Its London display marks the very final time the exhibition will be staged.
Image credits: The World of Tim Burton
Image credits: The World of Tim Burton
Image credits: The World of Tim Burton
