Tim Burton is an artistic genius, and I would imagine he’s probably kind of awful on a personal level. Not abusive, but just so self-centered (in an “artistic way”) that he ends up saying and doing offensive sh-t all the time. I’m thinking about his comments in 2016 about how inclusive casting offends him more than a lack of diversity. Anyway, Burton was almost wrapped on Beetlejuice 2 when the strike was called and his actors left him. So he’s keeping busy by allowing a gallery in Turin, Italy to exhibit his paintings, drawings, sketches, storyboards, puppets and more. That’s the main reason why he’s speaking to the Independent, although I found his most interesting comments were about his childhood in Burbank and his early years as a cog in the Disney machine. Some highlights:

On the late Paul Reubens: “I worked with him. I had him in Batman Returns and he did some voices in The Nightmare Before Christmas. I’d always send him a Christmas card. And I did speak to him a few months ago. I talked to him for about 45 minutes… but I had no idea what his situation was.”

On cancel culture: “Here’s the thing. When I was a child, I always had an image of the angry villagers in Frankenstein… I always used to think about society that way, as the angry village. You see it more and more. It’s a very, very strange human dynamic, a human trait that I don’t quite like or understand.”

He’s Benjamin Button: “When I was a child, I felt like Roderick Usher from [Edgar Allan Poe’s] The Fall of the House of Usher. I always felt old. I feel like I am kind of reversing in a way. When I was 10 years old, I felt like I was old and dying. In my mental state, I am reversing my process.”

On artificial intelligence: “They had AI do my versions of Disney characters! I can’t describe the feeling it gives you. It reminded me of when other cultures say, ‘Don’t take my picture because it is taking away your soul.’” Burton acknowledges that some of them were “very good”. But that didn’t mean he enjoyed the experience of seeing his own artistry cloned and imitated. “What it does is it sucks something from you. It takes something from your soul or psyche; that is very disturbing, especially if it has to do with you. It’s like a robot taking your humanity, your soul.”

Growing up in Burbank, CA: He referred to Burbank as “the pit of hell” to another journalist. Nonetheless, later this month he will be returning there. The Burbank city council has declared that Sunday 24 September will be “Tim Burton Day”, and he’ll be back in his home town to accept a new “Visionary” award. “Everything I’ve said I’ve meant. But at the same time, it’s where you’re from. Those experiences, living there and growing up there, shaped who I am. When I talked negatively, it was only from one side of my psyche. The other side is that I am from there, and if I hadn’t been from Burbank, I don’t think I would have been who I am. It definitely is a part of me, even though I don’t live there any more. It’s like anything. Nothing is only positive in your life.” Burton sounds wary about the reception he’ll be given back in his home town. “Will they give me the key to the city? I don’t know… I went to my 10-year reunion in high school only because I didn’t really know anybody in high school. That was many years ago. I don’t think I know anybody in Burbank, I am not sure… we will see.”

Looking back on working for Disney: “I guess it’s like Burbank, only worse… it’s like a family. I can look back and recognise the many, many positives of working there, and all the opportunities I’ve had. I can acknowledge each and every one of those very deeply, and very positively. Equally, on the other side, I can identify the negative, soul-destroying side. As in life, it’s a mixed bag.”

Life as an American ex-pat in England: “Where I came from, I felt like a foreigner. Growing up, I always felt like a foreigner. When I went to London… it was very strange. I felt it was foreign but I felt comfortable there. People were more eccentric. I don’t know, there was something about it,” Burton muses. He says that he now feels “very much at home” in England.

[From The Independent]

“I guess it’s like Burbank, only worse… it’s like a family.” If I was in charge of Disney’s PR, I would be thrilled and I would use this in every corporate seminar and group email from here on out. Disney: Like Burbank, Only Worse, It’s Like a Family. I believe that some people simply don’t “fit” with the culture in which they were born and raised and they often find other cultures to be a better fit. Tim seems at home at the UK, it feels like he just enjoys the vibe there. America traded Tim Burton and we grabbed their most charismatic prince. A good trade, honestly.

Photos courtesy of Avalon Red.