A Minute With: Director Tim Burton Showcases Drawings, Calls Movies His ‘Troubled Children’

US filmmaker Tim Burton poses at the Mole Antonelliana landmark building in Turin, Italy, 10 October 2023, on occasion of the exhibition 'The World of Tim Burton'. Tim Burton will receive the Stella della Mole Award. (EPA)
US filmmaker Tim Burton poses at the Mole Antonelliana landmark building in Turin, Italy, 10 October 2023, on occasion of the exhibition 'The World of Tim Burton'. Tim Burton will receive the Stella della Mole Award. (EPA)
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A Minute With: Director Tim Burton Showcases Drawings, Calls Movies His ‘Troubled Children’

US filmmaker Tim Burton poses at the Mole Antonelliana landmark building in Turin, Italy, 10 October 2023, on occasion of the exhibition 'The World of Tim Burton'. Tim Burton will receive the Stella della Mole Award. (EPA)
US filmmaker Tim Burton poses at the Mole Antonelliana landmark building in Turin, Italy, 10 October 2023, on occasion of the exhibition 'The World of Tim Burton'. Tim Burton will receive the Stella della Mole Award. (EPA)

Oscar-nominated director Tim Burton says he has no favorites when it comes to his movies, describing them all as "troubled children".

Known for films including "Edward Scissorhands", "Frankenweenie" and "Corpse Bride", Burton has also been showcasing his drawings and models in exhibitions.

In an interview, Burton reflected on the show's latest incarnation, the "The World of Tim Burton", which opened on Wednesday at the Mole Antonelliana in Turin, Italy.

Below are excerpts edited for length and clarity.

Q: How involved have you been with the exhibition?

Burton: "It started with the MoMA (Museum of Modern Art) show (in 2009) which took a couple of years to curate. This (show in Italy) is sort of an offshoot of that."

Q: What is it like seeing your work?

Burton: "When I first saw it (the show in New York), it did feel like laundry hanging on the wall. I felt quite exposed. I feel that way with films, I like making them but then I get sort of terrified of showing them."

Q: How important are your drawings to your movie making process?

Burton: "When I first started out I didn't really communicate very well, some people say it remains to this day, but I always felt drawings were a way for me to get ideas out. (For example) I'd just draw like a Jack Skellington character (from 1993 film "The Nightmare Before Christmas") and I didn't even know what it was for. Drawing brought out my subconscious."

Q: How did the strikes in Hollywood affect production on "Beetlejuice 2"?

Burton: "I've got two days of shooting left. I know exactly what we need to do, as soon as the strikes are over, take off the pause button and go do it."

Q: Do you have a favorite of your own films?

Burton: "I have no favorites. They're all your troubled children."



Japan’s Toho Buys Ghibli Animation Distributor GKIDS to Further Overseas Growth

People take a picture of Godzilla's head at Shinjyuku Toho building at the Kabukicho district in Tokyo, July 30, 2016. (AP)
People take a picture of Godzilla's head at Shinjyuku Toho building at the Kabukicho district in Tokyo, July 30, 2016. (AP)
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Japan’s Toho Buys Ghibli Animation Distributor GKIDS to Further Overseas Growth

People take a picture of Godzilla's head at Shinjyuku Toho building at the Kabukicho district in Tokyo, July 30, 2016. (AP)
People take a picture of Godzilla's head at Shinjyuku Toho building at the Kabukicho district in Tokyo, July 30, 2016. (AP)

Toho Co, the Japanese creator of the "Godzilla" movie franchise, will acquire the US distributor of Studio Ghibli's famed animated films, it said on Wednesday, to help drive overseas expansion.

The acquisition comes amid a surge in global popularity for Japanese entertainment, and fits with Toho's multi-year growth strategy centered on animation and overseas markets.

New York-based GKIDS, which distributed Ghibli's Oscar-winning "The Boy and the Heron", will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Toho after the deal, whose terms were not disclosed in statements from both companies.

"We are truly thrilled to be joining forces with the esteemed and storied Toho," GKIDS, which has distributed 13 animated films nominated for Oscars, said in a statement, citing founder Eric Beckman and President Dave Jesteadt.

Toho's own "Godzilla Minus One", a hit in overseas markets, took home an Oscar for visual effects in March, while "Shogun", a historical epic filmed mostly in Japanese, won a record number of Emmy Awards last month for a single season of drama.

Japan set up a committee last month to promote its entertainment industry, which was worth 12.9 trillion yen ($86.43 billion) in 2021, ranking third globally after the United States and China, the cabinet office said.

GKIDS manages the film catalogue of Ghibli, the studio of renowned Japanese director Hayao Miyazaki, in North America.

In March, it inked a deal with Warner Bros. Discovery to extend the US streaming rights to Ghibli films.