New "Alice" Character Pics

Planet Disney and /Film have provided more character images from Alice in Wonderland from Vanity Fair magazine. See Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, Mia Wasikowska as Alice, and Helena Bonham Carter as the Red Queen below:

Sheen on White Rabbit

Like Stephen Fry giving information on the Chesire Cat, Twitter has provided some details on Alice in Wonderland once again -- this time from Michael Sheen:


@michaelsheen Are you just the voice of the white Rabbit in Tim Burton's Alice? Or will you be it physically?about 5 hours ago from TweetDeck in reply to michaelsheen
nessdm
Venessa DM
Footer

# @nessdm Just voice. All the animal characters are cg or stop motion.9 minutes ago from web in reply to nessdm
#


Read Michael Sheen's Twitter here.

"Alice" Posters Arrive to Theaters

From IESB.net:

First "Alice" Poster

The first (and low-resolution) poster for Alice in Wonderland has made its debut. This one features Johnny Depp as the Mad Hatter, so perhaps other posters will come out shortly focusing on the other characters.

"Alice in Wonderland" UK Release Date

A couple of images from Empire Magazine, showing Mia Wasikowska as Alice and another little glimpse of Wonderland. The images reveal that Alice in Wonderland will be released in the UK on April 2nd, 2010.

High-Res "Alice" Pics and Logo

Want some high-resolution character and concept art images from Alice in Wonderland? Click on this /Film link.

Interesting how Disney is going for a sort of "auteur's touch" with the phrase "A Film By Tim Burton" in the official logo.

More to come!

"Alice in Wonderland" Official Website Opens

Disney has launched the official Alice in Wonderland website. Not much is there at the moment, except a ticking clock anticipating March 5th, 2010, and the option to register for future updates. But stay tuned...

Bits of "Wonderland" from Visual Effects Supervisor Lantieri

Michael Lantieri, long-time special effects expert and the visual effects supervisor on Alice in Wonderland, gave MTV News some information on the making of Burton's next film, and Lantieri's first collaboration with the director.

"Tim just has a take on it in his head that is unlike anybody that I know," Lantieri said.



A frame from Alice in Wonderland, with Mia Wasikowska as the title character.


There have been countless adaptions of Lewis Carroll's phantasmagorical tale, but Burton's new, ambitious vision proved to be a bit tricky to work out during production.

"There were discussions over everything, including, 'Is it OK for the caterpillar to smoke?'" said Lantieri. "You'd be surprised how big a discussion that was and how they solve it."

3D is also a recycled tool in film, and was almost doomed to become a faddy gimmick decades ago. But although Wonderland was not shot in stereo, this 3D film will attempt to be a new step forward in the recent boom of the 3D revolution in cinema, according to the visual effects supervisor. "I think that's really gonna be something to look at," Lantieri said, declining to go into further detail on the project. "His vision and his take on things — I never get tired of it. If you can only imagine."

Depp on "Wonderland," "Dark Shadows"

Steve "Frosty" Weintraub of Collider.com recently interview Johnny Depp (yes, THE Johnny Depp) and got some words out of the actor regarding his upcoming collaborations with friend Tim Burton: Alice in Wonderland and the big-screen adaptation of Dark Shadows. (Depp also discusses "Pirates 4" briefly in the interview.)

With enthusiasm, Depp confirmed that he will likely become Barnabas Collins. "Dark Shadows is happening," Depp said. "Tim is working on Alice in Wonderland which is obviously quite a large piece of work there. So when Tim is done with Alice and we get the script, which is very, very close, in order we'll probably attack it next year. It's exciting, very exciting. It's like a lifelong dream for me. I loved the show when I was a kid. I was obsessed with Barnabas Collins. I have photographs of me holding Barnabas Collins posters when I was five or six. I’m very excited to do it."



An image from the original television drama, "Dark Shadows." Depp hinted that tackling a feature-length adaptation of the show with Tim Burton might begin as soon as next year.

Johnny Depp also offered some information on Wonderland, just in time for the official debut of some of the film's characters and concept art:

Question: What kind of research did you for your role in Alice in Wonderland? Did you use the book or bring something outside of that to the character?

Depp: Well, certainly the book. The book is the basis for everything. There are little mysteries, little clues in the book that I found fascinating that were keys to at least my understanding of the Mad Hatter, like him saying, 'I'm investigating that begin with the letter M.' That was huge for me because when you do a little digging you realize you’re talking about a hatter, a man who made hats and if you go back and look at some of the historical hatters there’s that term that this guy or that guy is as mad as a hatter. There was a reason for that and the reason for that was mercury poisoning. So I found out what the M was and why they went nuts. So that became a huge thing. Then it was just kind of what I saw and what I thought the guy should look like. I made my little weird drawings and water colors and brought them to Tim [Burton] and he brought me his weird little drawings and water colors and they were not dissimilar [laughs]. You could've put them right together and they were pretty darn close. There’s a lot of color and brightness and then de-saturation in The Hatter. He’s like a mood ring I suppose.



Question: What's so special about your relationship with Tim? Is that he lets you do whatever you’d like as an actor?

Depp: Well, the most special thing is that he very luckily has given me about seven jobs. That's the most amazing thing. I’m looking forward to the eighth and ninth. There’s no real definition other than there is some kind of connection, some sort of understanding that Tim and I have that is at most times unspoken. Most people when they hear Tim give me direction or we’re talking about the character or something on the set, people are baffled. Completely befuddled and they don’t know what we’re talking about. A guy actually came to me one time after watching Tim and I talk for ten minutes and said, 'I didn't understand a word that you guys were saying.' So, yeah. I don't know. It's just one of those things that you don’t question, but I sure love him.

More "Alice" Photos!

Matt Lucas as Tweedledee and Tweedledum and Mia Wasikowska as Alice have made their official debuts. These and the previous Alice in Wonderland posters are supposed to be put up in cinemas shortly.

Burton's "Wonderland" Revealed!

Before its release to theaters on March 5th, 2010, some teaser posters and banners will be coming to cinema lobbies offering the first official glimpses of Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland.

Although the look of the film still retains some of the styles from the Lewis Carroll original book, Wonderland "has been Burtonized," producer Richard D. Zanuck confirms. Zanuck offered some more information. "We finished shooting in December after only 40 days," said the producer. Right now, the live-action is being merged with the CGI and other animated effects, which will eventually be transferred to 3D (the film was not shot in stereo). Alice will be released in regular theaters, as well as IMAX and Disney Digital 3D.



The old tale has been updated a bit as well by screenwriter Linda Woolverton. In Burton's film, Alice (played by Mia Waskiowska) is 17 years old. She attends a party at a Victorian estate. She is proposed to and surrounded by hoards of stuck-up aristocrats. In a desperate escape, Alice slips away, and, led by a white rabbit, but unexpectedly finds herself transported to a very curious world. Apparently, Alice had visited Wonderland 10 years before, but had forgotten. The residents of this strange new world have not been so forgetful, however...

Zanuck had some kind words for Wasikowska: "There is something real, honest and sincere about her," Zanuck says. "She's not a typical Hollywood starlet."



Zanuck gave more tidbits about the characters and the actors playing them. On Johnny Depp as the wild Mad Hatter: "This character is off his rocker."

"He is so much fun and so nutty, I can't imagine anyone else doing it," said the producer. Depp transforms into yet another bizarre character, adopting an accent that Zanuck said was indescribable.



Zanuck also provided some information about the social conflicts in Wonderland, and about its tyrant, the Red Queen, played by Helena Bonham Carter. "The creatures are ready to revolt and waiting for Alice to help them," said Zanuck.



The benevolent White Queen, played by Anne Hathaway, was overthrown by her malicious sister. Richard Zanuck said the White Queen."is beautiful but over the top. She doesn't walk. She floats. She's very eccentric."

Zanuck also revealed that film legend Christoper Lee will indeed play the role of the ferocious Jabberwock.



Matt Lucas will play Tweedledee and Tweedledum.

Click on the USA Today link to explore three detailed pieces of conceptual art and see more of the fantastical Wonderland concocted by Tim Burton and his crew, a world filled with gigantic fungi, mysterious topiary, and anthropomorphic flowers.

Photos courtesy of Disney Enterprises Inc.

Disney Fan Expo Gives Glimpse of "Wonderland"

For eager fans, the first ever Disney fan expo will show some samples of Alice in Wonderland, as well as other upcoming films such as Toy Story 3 and the remake of Tron.

The four-day D23 Expo will take place from September 10-13 at the Anaheim Convention Center in California.

More details can be found at this link.

New "Wonderland" Concept Art?

Is this more concept art from Alice in Wonderland? The Russian film website filmz.ru has posted up these images, mostly of a fungal forest.

The initials "JM" appear at the bottom of these illustrations. If it is for Wonderland, then these might have been drawn by either lead model maker Jason Mahakian or set designer Jeff Markwith, as slashfilm suggests.

However, this is just a guess. We can't confirm if these images are actually official concept art for the 2010 film. Still, they're intriguing.

Animation Galore in "Wonderland"

Jim Hill Media was said that Alice in Wonderland "will feature a spectacular sequence of Alice tumbling down the rabbit hole that mixes live action, CG, stop motion as well as hand-drawn animation."

That's all the news for now. More to come in the future!

Official Debut of Wasikowska as "Alice" Pic

Mia Wasikowska as Alice.

An old image, but now officially released, courtesy of Empire.

"Alice in Wonderland" Story and Glossary

/film has provided some interesting information about Alice in Wonderland, based on the screenplay by Linda Woolverton:

"The big surprise for most people, I think, will be that this is at once an adaptation of and sequel to the Lewis Carroll books. This is thanks to a plot wrangle at least as clever as that in Abrams’ Star Trek. Essentially, Wonderland is both a real place and a recurring dream of Alice’s. In this film she’s dreaming of it at a somewhat later part of her life than in the books, so certain things are different. This is just one clever element of a truly charming and surprising screenplay that I’m now really very sure will become a true humdinger of a movie."

The article went on to say that to fully understand the script, you need to know a bit of Wonderland terminology. Thankfully, Woolverton provided a glossary. The glossary may contain some SPOILERS, so if you want to read it, click on this link.

New "Alice" Pic

A new bit of concept art from Alice in Wonderland -- in 3D!!

Fry on "Wonderland," Burton

RexFeatures

Stephen Fry announced on his official Twitter page that he feels "honoured" to be a part of Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland. Fry will be playing the part of the Chesire Cat.

Fry spoke with Digital Spy and gave a few more details in a video interview.

"I have to say I didn't know the project was happening," he said. "My agent rang up and said, 'Can you see Tim Burton and lay down some Cheshire Cat action.' I said I'd be honoured to do so." He then explained that he was very excited to meet Burton, a filmmaker he greatly admires and calls "original and extraordinary." He said he was "blown away" by the first film of Burton's that he saw, Edward Scissorhands, which he calls one of his favorite films because of the visual design and performances.

On lending his voice to his animated role, Fry said: "You're alone in a little glass booth with Tim on the other side making suggestions as to how he wants the voice to be, you're not all gathered together as a cast.

"My friend Michael Sheen is playing the White Rabbit, I know him jolly well. We don't have a 'scene' together. We do have dialogue together but he'll probably do his in America, in London or wherever he is, and they'll get mixed together in the end."

More is discussed in the video interview.

"9" Score Update

Collaborators Danny Elfman and Deborah Lurie
during a recording session for Deep Sea 3D IMAX (2006)

Previously, it was announced by Apple that Danny Elfman would do the score for the upcoming post-apocalyptic, Tim Burton-produced animated feature 9 on his own. It turns out that that information was partly accurate.

Deborah Lurie, a frequent collaborator of Elfman, just finished scoring and recording the music for the upcoming animated film. Elfman supplied some main themes for Lurie to expand upon.

Lurie and Elfman both composed the music for the nature documentary Deep Sea 3D IMAX in 2006. She also supplied additional music for 2008's Wanted, which was directed by 9-producer Timur Bekmambatov. Lurie has also worked on Elfman's orchestrations for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Charlotte's Web, and Hellboy II: The Golden Army.

Elfman is currently working on the scores for Terminator IV, The Wolfman, and, in the near future, Alice in Wonderland.

9, directed by Shane Acker, will be released on September 9th, 2009.

"Alice in Wonderland" Logo Revealed

Disney has unveiled the logo to the upcoming Alice in Wonderland while annoucing future 3D releases.

There is also a logo for Frankenweenie (the animated version set for release in 2011). But it looks very similar to the original font from the 1984 live-action short, and so may change in the future.

Photos courtesy of timburton.jp.

"Alice" in IMAX

Alice in Wonderland will officially be released in standard theaters as well as on IMAX in 3D on March 5th, 2010, Disney confirms. This is the third film confirmed out of the five-film agreement between IMAX and Disney, which was announced on November 19, 2008.

Mark Zoradi, president, Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Group, said, "If ever there was a film that cried out to be presented in Disney Digital 3D and the premium IMAX 3D format, Tim Burton's fantastic interpretation of Alice in Wonderland is that film. This is going to be an eye-popping cinematic experience as Tim takes moviegoers down the rabbit hole and into the dimensional world filled with incredible characters, sly humor, and wild adventures. Disney's partnership with IMAX is taking shape with two amazing films already on the schedule. We look forward to working with them in bringing exciting new experiences and quality entertainment to IMAX screens around the world."

"We think that Disney's new Alice in Wonderland is exactly the type of 3D story telling that will resonate with IMAX audiences," said IMAX Co-Chairmen and Co-CEOs Richard L. Gelfond and Bradley J. Wechsler. "We believe our worldwide commercial theatre network will be approximately 50 percent larger by the time this film is released, giving more and more people a chance to experience the magic of Disney in IMAX."

"Alice in Wonderland is a fantastic addition to our 2010 film slate," added Greg Foster, Chairman and President of IMAX Filmed Entertainment. "Combining a beloved Disney classic re-designed through the imagination of Tim Burton's creative vision with these incredibly outrageous characters and world class actors certainly makes for an event-status film, and we're pleased to add another level of excitement to this highly-anticipated movie."

Bonham Carter Wins Award, Burton Discusses "Alice"

The 2009 Jameson Empire Awards show was hosted this past Sunday in London's Grosvenor House. Tim Burton and Helena Bonham Carter attended.

Their film Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street was nominated for five awards: Best Horror, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Soundtrack. The musical-thriller didn't take most of its potential awards home (including Johnny Depp's nomination for Best Actor), except for Helena Bonham Carter, who was honored for her portrayal as Mrs. Lovett.


Here is Bonham Carter's acceptance speech (watch the video of her speech in this link):

"Thanks so much. This is a real compliment, I'm very chuffed. I did work actually incredibly hard for that role, but I loved every bit of it, and it was so many dreams come true. Because I always wanted to be in a musical, to sing, to be in something written by Steven Sondheim - he's a genius - and I always wanted a baby girl. I actually got all that, thanks to Tim Burton. And I know he always wanted to be Best Actress, so this is as much his as mine. Thank you!"



At the show, the actress mentioned how she would love to do more musicals in the future: "I'd love to do it but no-one's asked, I would be really up for it though."

She also talked about the singing abilities of her co-star, Johnny Depp, versus her own skills: "To be absolutely honest, people are born to sing, I wasn't born to sing but I could just do it and I only did it after about six months of training. If I'd known I was going to play that part I should have started training years ago, it's a muscle that needs to be exercised."

She added: "I would love to do more, given the chance, and I loved every second of doing it."

And she continued to say how thankful she has been to be a part of Tim Burton's world. "I feel really lucky to still feature in Tim's imagination. I know I've borne his illegitimate children and we're very happily together but it's really fantastic that I still seem to occur in his imagination," she said.

Helena Bonham Carter will be playing the role of the Red Queen in Alice in Wonderland.

Michael Sheen and Helena Bonham Carter

While on the subject, Burton talked a bit about Alice in Wonderland:

"Way down the rabbit hole" was Burton's status report. "There's a long way to go."

Empire asked Burton how much CGI would be involved in the film: "I'm not quite sure yet - doing a big budget movie is an organic process and gives the opportunity to experiment. It’s something that was presented to me and I’d never seen really a movie version of [the story] that I like, so I thought I’d just give it a shot."



The director also gave his feelings about working with 3D: "I like the 3-D aspect of it, I think it fits the material very well, and it doesn’t give me a headache like it used to."

"I think it’s good for anything. There are other uses than having spears stuck into your face - I think there are more visceral, emotional uses, especially if you use lots of textures."


Michael Sheen, who will be in Alice in Wonderland, also attended the awards show. The British actor presented Helena Bonham Carter her award.



You can see more photos from the celebration in this link:

Michael Sheen with Gerard Butler


Tim Burton with fellow director Paul Greengrass (The Bourne Ultimatum, United 93)



Photo credits: Gareth Gay, Jeff Spicer / Alpha

Disney Twenty-Three Magazine Scans

Here are some scans from the March 10th issue of the new quarterly Disney magazine, Disney Twenty-Three! Mark Salisbury (editor of the book Burton on Burton) wrote the article on Alice in Wonderland. Pictures include images from the film (like Mia Wasikowska in her Alice outfit), concept art, Tim Burton and Helena Bonham Carter, and a Burton/Disney timeline. Click on the images below for larger versions!

Thanks to SunakoLoli for the images!

Stephen Fry is the Chesire Cat

After much speculation online among fans, Stephen Fry has officially confirmed that he will be providing the voice of the Chesire Cat in Alice in Wonderland.

Fry directly said, "I'm about to play the Cheshire Cat for an animated version of Alice in Wonderland, which is probably pretty appropriate," in an interview with the BBC. (Watch the video interview here.)

A second phase of shooting is about to commence in Los Angeles, hence the "about to" comment from the multi-talent showman.

Who Influenced Hathaway?

(Jack Chuck / Corbis Outline)

In a lengthy interview (click here to read the entire article), Anne Hathaway mentioned one person who inspired her acting as the White Queen in Alice in Wonderland (among numerous other topics):

“...when I was getting ready for Alice in Wonderland I watched a lot of Greta Garbo’s silent movies. She’s insane.”


She also spoke about her co-star Johnny Depp and director Tim Burton:

“If Johnny Depp has a twin brother, send him over,” laughs Anne Hathaway. “I’ll marry that guy right away.”

“Honestly, Johnny’s everything you’d want him to be, and more, while Tim is one of my favourite filmmakers. He has been since I started watching his films as a child. Working with him on a fairy tale is like being invited into this sandbox to play around.”

Sheen: Not the Chesire Cat

Michael Sheen sets the record straight in this brief video interview: he will be in Alice in Wonderland, but he will not be playing the role of the Chesire Cat.

Hathaway Talks About "Wonderland"

In an interview in Italy for Bride Wars, Anne Hathaway had more enthusiastic remarks about the making of Alice in Wonderland:

“I play the White Queen – Hathaway said - I filmed this past fall. I worked for two weeks. I had an absolute ball. I was very lucky I had a couple of weeks to create this character. The thing about Tim is that whenever you are working with an auteur like that, your limits for the character are the limits for their imagination and in the case of Tim Burton there are no limits to his imagination. It was wonderful living in a very creative word everyday, it was odd I have never done full greenscreen before: there was a room four times the size of this room, with ceilings they go three times as high and it’s all green. You feel like you live in a kind of ant colony… a very green one. That was strange… but it was just new. I loved working with Johnny Depp . And Mia, the girl who plays Alice – people are gonna love her portrayal, she is a very exciting young actress… I loved it. I just loved playing my character”.

"Alice" to Feature Stop-Motion Animation

For those of you that were hoping that Tim Burton would use old-fashioned technology in his films, we have good news: Alan Rickman confirmed in an interview on MoviesOnline that Alice in Wonderland will feature stop-motion animation, along with live-action and computer-generated elements.

You can read the full interview here. Here's an excerpt:

MoviesOnline: What are you playing in Alice in Wonderland?

ALAN RICKMAN: The caterpillar.

MoviesOnline: A caterpillar? How do you get into something like that?

ALAN RICKMAN: Well, fortunately it’s animated.

MoviesOnline: Oh, okay.

ALAN RICKMAN: But it’s my face on an animated caterpillar. So, it’s a mixture. The movie is a mixture of live action, animation, and stop motion, so it’s very complicated and I don’t think all three have been put together ever before.

MoviesOnline: Oh, I don’t think so. No.

ALAN RICKMAN: So I’ll be with a live action Alice. I will be a construct.

MoviesOnline: Who is the Alice that you’re playing opposite?

ALAN RICKMAN: Mia [Wasikowska] is her name. I don’t know her surname. I met her yesterday because they’re shooting right here. If you make yourself into the invisible person, you can go in and have a look. She’s a young 19-year-old, apparently absolutely brilliant and certainly delightful person.

From Roger Rabbit to the March Hare

Ken Ralston, the visual effects supervisor on Alice in Wonderland, mentioned some technical aspects of the fantastical movie, during an interview commermorating the 20th anniversary of the multi-effects blockbuster, Who Framed Roger Rabbit.


BD: You're currently working on Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, which is a very ambitious hybrid of live action and CG. Are there some interesting parallels with Roger Rabbit?

Ken Ralston: Yes, Alice reminds me in a vague way of Roger. There's the March Hare: we have a two-scale rubber version of him for actor reference, not lighting reference because there are so many virtual environments. And we had to build Toonland from scratch, which is like Underland or Wonderland. Roger changed animation.

At the end of the interview, Ralston said how his experience with Roger prepared him for the daunting tasks demanded by such films as Alice.

BD: How has your Roger experience helped you on Alice?

KR: I couldn't have been on Alice without Roger. To be a part of Roger and how it touched people is cool. These tools are great, but, as I keep saying, it's how you use them. I can at least try to pre-empt issues that come up. It's a fast shoot, and I anticipate problems so they don't blow up in your face. The variables are endless -- technical and aesthetic.

Hathaway Talks About "Alice"

Anne Hathaway recently spoke about her contribution to Alice in Wonderland. Hathaway, who will be playing the role of the White Queen, stated that she will be wearing a practical costume, without computer-generated manipulation.

"I am actually an actor not affected by CGI in it," she said on December 5th. "I believe I'm one of the very few."

While character design is being kept hidden by the studio, Hathaway hinted at what she resembles. "If I was a bunny holding a knife, that's what my character would look like," she said. "I'm sorry, that's my impression."

Hathaway also spoke highly of director Tim Burton. "I don't know what it says about me but he always made absolute sense to me. I also think because I'm such a fan of Tim Burton's, I know his aesthetic so well, I kind of just have an idea for from years of being a fan about what he might want."

Hathaway compared Burton's style with other noteworthy collaborators. "I love working with directors," she said. "I think the director is the go-to person. It should be their vision that makes it up on screen, and so I love showing up and putting myself in someone else's hands. Jonathan [Demme] and I spoke in a shorthand as well, and I've worked with other directors before. Ang [Lee] gave me two directions on Brokeback [Mountain], which was 'she's a predator' and 'more subtle.' Obviously, I'm exaggerating. There was more than that, but I had worked with directors before who say meaningful things but don't say much. So there was just kind of a continuation of that."

Alice in Wonderland is scheduled to be released on March 5th, 2010.

Rickman Talks "Alice"

Alan Rickman recently talked about his contribution to the upcoming Alice in Wonderland. Rickman also discusses his work in the new "Harry Potter" movies, which can be read in the full article here:


Alan Rickman, who plays Caterpillar in Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland, told a group of reporters that he has recorded his voice role and awaits the completed animation. The caterpillar will have the face of Rickman to go along with his voice.

"I don't know what it looks like," Rickman said in a group interview on Dec. 2 in Culver City, Calif., where he was promoting the film Nobel Son. "I've only done the first stage of it, which is them recording me saying these lines, quite badly. Then somewhere down the line, they'll have animated it, and I'll redo it. I'm a voice, but I have been filmed, because it's my face which will be on the end of something that will be the caterpillar."

While Caterpillar is an animated character, some actors are performing motion capture and others will appear in live action. The lines blur as even some live actors will have CGI additions. Rickman observed some of his costars when he was on stage.

"I saw Helena [Bonham Carter] and Crispin Glover yesterday," Rickman said. "They're a mixture of the two, actually, because there's Helena in a costume and in makeup, but her head is going to be made three times bigger than it actually is on top of the costume. I think they're all just blinded by the color green. It must be quite something to be surrounded by that much violent green all day long, but the costumes, one or two I saw, are incredible. I'm sure it'll be visual genius again."

Sheen on "Wonderland"

Michael Sheen was recently interviewed Mr. Beaks on Ain't It Cool News. At the end of the talk, the actor discussed his working on Alice in Wonderland -- and stated that he will not be playing the role of the Chesire Cat, contrary to other reports. You can read the full interview here.

Beaks: Well, you're going to be a part of one of the most richly imagined fantasy worlds of all time in Tim Burton's ALICE IN WONDERLAND. As The Cheshire Cat--

Sheen: I'm not The Cheshire Cat.

Beaks: Oh. Damn IMDb. Who are you?

Sheen: I can't say. But it's not The Cheshire Cat.

Beaks: Okay.

Sheen: IMDb needs to get its facts straight. It's funny. People have come along and said, "Oh, you're playing this" And I'm like, "Really? Who's told you? The studio hasn't said."

Beaks: Well, I won't go fishing.

Sheen: Go fishing. I just won't say. The studio releases these things. It's not up to me to say. But I am in the film. And it's great to be in a film that my daughter can watch.

Beaks: Is it a traditional take?

Sheen: No, it's not traditional. I've always loved those classic children's stories like PETER PAN and ALICE IN WONDERLAND. There's a darkness at the heart that I guess you can trace back to Grimms' Fairy Tales. They're for children, but there's a harsh reality about life that seems unfit for children, and yet it's incredibly compelling. They get at something that is much harder to get at, something essential about our experience. I get very excited about those things. So to be in a classic like ALICE IN WONDERLAND... even though it's not a straight-ahead retelling, I find that really exciting.

Beaks: Actors are so good at engaging that childlike sense of play. Is there something about those works that brings out the child more easily?

Sheen: Not really. Like I said, my process is always the same. I have to find a way to be totally engaged in everything I'm doing - and that's physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually. And it's only through having a childlike sense of play that you can do work - even if you're doing the most tragic of stories. I just did a film [UNTHINKABLE] in which I was tortured every day for three weeks. You have to find a sense of play in that so that it comes alive. Even if you're doing the most awful things, there has to be a joy in it. It's that sort of child aspect of yourself. Hell, I see it in my daughter. She's with her friends, they're playing, and she says, "I'm the woman who works in the village selling bread, you're that, and let's go!" It's this childlike sense of engagement where you just believe what you're doing and you don't censor yourself. That's essential for an actor. When you start thinking of acting as being "grown-up", no one will want to watch you. And anyone who does ought to be shot.

So who will Sheen be playing? Well, now some are saying that he has provided his voice to the role of the White Rabbit... But it may be safe to wait and see what the studio says...

Zanuck Talks "Alice," "Dark Shadows"

Producer Richard D. Zanuck has recently talked about Tim Burton's current film, Alice in Wonderland, as well as a possible future project for the director: a big-screen adaptation of the TV series Dark Shadows.

In one interview, Zanuck discussed Burton's decision to shoot Alice in 2D and eventually convert it to 3D in post-production. Director James Cameron, who is also involved with the new 3D movement in cinema, criticized this decision, saying "It doesn't make sense to shoot in 2-D and convert to 3D."


Zanuck: I'm making a very interesting film now, called Alice in Wonderland with Tim Burton. And we're shooting it in Culver City, and we're almost through with our part of it, which is shooting the live actors but they'll be animated. It's the first picture that will combine motion capture, with live actors and animation, all in the same frame. It'll be quite amazing.

What can you say about Tim Burton's vision for that?

Zanuck: It's everything you could imagine. You put Tim Burton in a world where his vision can run wild and you'll get the result that we're getting. I mean, when she goes into the rabbit hole. It's a dream actually. Her dream. And if it's anything that comes from her mind, and we're very faithful to the Lewis Carrol book. But it's Tim Burton being able to really crank up his wild imagination. In kind of a dark way too, as the original material was dark and scary.

James Cameron said that he didn't understand why you would shoot it in 2-D and convert to 3-D. Why not shoot it in 3-D?

Zanuck: The 3-D cameras are very clumsy quite frankly, compared to 2-D cameras. And it would have cost a lot more, we would have had more crew involved. I didn't see what Cameron said but, I was convinced, and so is Tim, seeing test after test of pictures that have been released in 3-D, shot in 2-D and you can't tell the difference. I would defy Jim Cameron to see the tests I saw and point out which was 2-D and which was 3-D.


In a second article, Zanuck talked about an upcoming project of his: Dark Shadows, which may be another Tim Burton-Johnny Depp collaboration.

In a brief video interview (click this link to view it), Zanuck states that filming may begin as soon as next summer in London. He also discusses Depp's obsession with the soap opera when he was a schoolboy.

Depp as Mad Hatter!

A truly mad looking Johnny Depp cuddles a rabbit in this leaked image from Alice in Wonderland.

He's definitely got that silent movie actor-type look going on.

Photo courtesy of Johnny-Depp.org.

Hathaway Eager for "Alice"

A brief video clip from an interview with Anne Hathaway is online. Hathaway, who will be playing the White Queen, seems eager to begin filming with Tim Burton in Alice in Wonderland.

Lee, Rickman Enter "Wonderland" Set

Christopher Lee has been officially signed on to be in Alice in Wonderland. However, we do not know which role he will play yet.

But we do know who will play the hookah-smoking Caterpillar: Alan Rickman. The British actor worked with Tim Burton in Sweeney Todd, and now seems to have joined the Burton corral of regulars.


Filming has also begun in Culver City, California. Zack Roth (son of Joe Roth, who is producing the film) spoke of the soundstage: "The set itself was insane - the whole soundstage was draped in green-screen material, and there were dozens of motion capture cameras hanging overhead - it seemed like half the crew was there just to figure out how to make all the technologies work together."

Roth also mentioned screenwriter Linda Woolverton's adaptation of the original book and Johnny Depp's appearance:

"Luckily Johnny Depp was working that day, and I got to see him in character. He looked startlingly crazy - Burton’s take on the Mad Hatter was pretty wild. Linda Woolverton adapted the screenplay and I am told added some socio-political context to the film’s narrative."

Roth also reported that Michael Sheen will be playing the grinning Chesire Cat.

Glover in "Wonderland"

Crispin Glover has signed on for Alice in Wonderland. He will be playing the role of the Knave of Hearts.

This is the first time Tim Burton and Crispin Glover have collaborated (though Glover did a parody of Johnny Depp's performance as Willy Wonka in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory for the spoof flick Epic Movie).

Glover is no stranger to the performance capture technology which will be used in the film. The actor previously worked in the medium in Robert Zemeckis' Beowulf in 2007.

Elfman To Do "Wonderland"

Danny Elfman confirmed in Hollywood on October 17th that he will be working on Alice in Wonderland.

No official word on him composing the score for Frankenweenie yet, though.

Video courtesy of dlfreak (here's the original page).

Johnny Depp Eats His Hat

Tim Burton talks about his working with Johnny Depp, including their forthcoming collaboration in Alice in Wonderland:

"Nobody plays oddballs better than Johnny and he's loving playing this one.

"He doesn't like to be the same way twice. That's good. It always keeps it fresh and all. He likes the material we have here and he gets it.

"It's nice to have people involved that are fans of the material.

"He actually ate his hat the other day. No word of a lie. He just bit into the brim and chewed."

Depp will, appropriately, be playing the Mad Hatter.

Christopher Lee in "Alice in Wonderland"?

Film legend Christopher Lee is just one of many actors who are getting talked about at least a little bit among circles of fans regarding Tim Burton's forthcoming Alice in Wonderland. But a reliable source is hinting that Lee will indeed be in the film.

On the forum of the official website of Christopher Lee, the administrator (Lee's son-in-law), said this:

Mr. Lee will be in this movie but confidentiality agreements prevent me from disclosing his character. I guess we will have to all wait for an official announcement from Disney but I think you all know what the character will be anyway.


Lee has worked with Tim Burton three times before, originally on Sleepy Hollow in 1999, and then Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Corpse Bride in 2005.

He narrated the original poem of The Nightmare Before Christmas written by Burton on the recent DVD release of the film.

Lee was also set to be in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, until his sequence and thus his character was cut while planning in pre-production due to time constraints.

Fans of this deep-voiced thespian will likely rejoice if word of Lee's participation in Alice is true. Until then, we'll have to wait for Disney's official statement.

Tim Burton on "Alice in Wonderland," "Dark Shadows," and More!

Tim Burton took some time from shooting Alice in Wonderland to chat on the phone with Geoff Boucher of the Los Angeles Times. In the detailed and lengthy interview, Burton talks about Alice in Wonderland, the possibility of making a cinematic version of Dark Shadows, Johnny Depp, the latest addition to the "Batman" series, The Dark Knight, his upcoming Spike TV award, and much more.

Here is much of the interview (you can read the full article in its original context here):

I got Tim Burton on the phone the other day while he was on the set of Alice in Wonderland and I had to admit right off the bat that I was surprised that, with the filming just underway, he was taking the time to chat. "Yeah, well, me too," he said in his droll deadpan, and I wasn't sure whether to laugh or apologize and hang up. Then he let me off the hook. "Actually," he said in a sunnier voice, "we're just about to get going so we'll see how things go. Good, I hope."

I'm guessing things will go quite well for the 50-year-old filmmaker, who seems like the ideal auteur to bring Lewis Carroll's surreal 1865 classic "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" to the screen for a 21st century audience.

Young Aussie Mia Wasikowska will be Burton's Alice, while Johnny Depp is the inspired choice to play the Mad Hatter.

I told Burton that it seems as if Depp (who has other upcoming roles as an Old West hero, a pirate and a vampire) approaches his acting choices the same way a gleeful kid rummages through a trunk of dress-up clothes. The filmmaker let out a loud laugh. "It's true. Yeah we have a big dress-up clothes trunk here. We take it with us wherever we go."

More on a Depp and "Alice" in a moment, but first: This Saturday night Burton will be at the Scream 2008 Awards at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, an event that in just its third year has become a signature event in sci-fi, comics, fantasy and, yes, horror, which was is its original mandate but is now just part of its genre cocktail. Burton is getting something called the Immortal Award and the Scream people boldly say that Burton has "contributed more to the genres of fantasy, sci-fi and horror than any other filmmaker of his generation," and there's certainly an argument to made that they are completely right. Burton's film visuals -- a sort of cemetery cabaret ethos -- have put him on an short list (Alfred Hitchcock, Martin Scorsese, Quentin Tarantino and Woody Allen spring to mind) of filmmakers who have such distinctive on-screen traits that they become evocative brand names to even casual filmgoers.

Burton will be making quite the dramatic entrance on Saturday (which you can see yourself when the show airs on Spike TV on Oct. 21) but he has a reputation as a fairly shy fellow. I asked him if he was looking forward to the trophy night or dreading it.

"I haven't been to the event but I've seen a bit on TV and it looks quite fun, you know, which in itself is different from most of these kind of shows. It looks like a nice big Halloween party, which is always good. It seems like all the type of people that nobody liked in school all getting together for a nice big party. A prom for the kids that didn't go to prom."

I told Burton that, for the night, the venue should change its sign to read 'The Geek Theatre' and he laughed again. "That's very good! I like that. I can't use, that, I can't take credit for that." He said he had a better way to sum up the geek and Goth crowd that will attend: "We're all the people on the yearbook pages devoted to "the most likely to disappear before the semester ends and no one will notice..."

Burton was making "Batman" films when the cape genre was still viewed as a campy ghetto by serious Hollywood creators, so it must be interesting for him to watch the fringe entertainment move so squarely to the center of mainstream film and to finally do so with respectable reviews. "It is a different time now, yes. It's strange to me. At the time back in school when everybody tortured you, it didn't seem quite the same. It wasn't fashionable then. It didn't seem viable and vibrant and accepted at the time. But sometimes those things take a while."

With "Alice in Wonderland," the defining pop-culture version of the story for modern American audiences is the 1954 Disney animated adaptation with its little blond Alice in her blue dress with white pinafore. That film was met with acidic reviews by the literary world (especially in England) for its bland and blunted vision of the Carroll classic. Burton is not a fan of the film, either, and, as with "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory," it appears his mission is to reclaim a children's classic, resharpen its edges and remind everyone that sapping the weirdness out of a tale often renders it flat and forgettable.

"It's a funny project. The story is obviously a classic with iconic images and ideas and thoughts. But with all the movie versions, well, I've just never seen one that really had any impact to me. It's always just a series of weird events. Every character is strange and she's just kind of wandering through all of the encounters as just a sort of observer. The goal is to try to make it an engaging movie where you get some of the psychology and kind of bring a freshness but also keep the classic nature of 'Alice.' And, you know, getting to do it in 3-D fits the material quite well. So I'm excited about making it a new version but also have the elements that people expect when they think of the material."

I told Burton he's right, the Disney movie is a meandering tour of a funhouse without any gripping story arc. "Yeah, I know, it's just, 'Oh, this character's weird' and 'Oh, that character's weird.' I can't really recall a version where I felt really engaged by it. So that's the goal, just to try to give it a gravity that most film versions haven't had."

How easy was it to persuade Depp to conjure up yet another enigmatic oddball? "He loves doing that. That's never a problem. He doesn't like to be the same way twice. That's good, it always keeps it fresh and all. And he likes the material we have here and he gets it. It's nice to have people involved that are fans of the material and all."

Is there a plan yet on Dark Shadows, based on the vampire soap opera, also set to star Depp? "Oh I don't know. Take one at time, you know? It's something I'm interested in of course. Definitely. But I'm going to start shooting this one first!"

I asked Burton if it's more than a coincidence that over the past decade his live-action films have often revisited and reimagined existing works, be they literature (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory), musicals (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street), movies (Planet of the Apes) or television shows (Dark Shadows).

"Hmm. That's interesting. I don't know. I think we're all a product of our upbringing, you know, in a sense. I wasn't a very literary person. I loved movies. What you grow up with is what influences you. Whether you were a reader and there's a lot of books that you sort of want to translate to film or if it's other things that took in. I was definitely of a generation where the things I grew up watching still have impact on me. There's something about exercising that aspect of your personality or working with something that's meant a lot to you. It's just another way of processing ideas and all. So it's not really a conscious decision. I don't open up old 'TV Guides' and sit there and think, 'Hmmmm, 'Sanford & Son', that's the the movie I want to do. I watched that when I was a child...' "

Burton said he is ramping up his bravery for the Saturday night event with its hot spotlight and crowd. "I don't do it very often so it's not something I'm very used to. I'm not comfortable in big public situations, but at the same time it's a very nice thing. It's a very nice thing to do. But while it is nice, it's not the thing you think about a lot. For me, it's the people that come up to you on the streets, the people that say something to you in person, something nice and thoughtful, that's so much more interesting than connecting with a sort of staged event. you know? The types of people you grew up with, the people that enjoy certain kinds of movies, there's a connection with people like that. I certainly feel that. I mean, when someone comes up to me on the street and they have one of my drawings as a tattoo on their body, a real tattoo... I mean, that's pretty amazing. That's happened to me a few times."

Then there was a question I had to ask: What did Burton think of The Dark Knight? After a bit of fumbling around for words, Burton said: "I haven't seen it yet. I'm just, you know, busy. I do want to see it. I've heard it's very good. And I'm sure it is very good. Mostly everybody that I know that has seen it has said that it's very good and I take their word for it."

I thought it would be good to change the subject. There was a recent anniversary DVD of Beetlejuice, so I asked Burton how he frames that film in his mind when he looks back on it as both a career and creative moment.

"With that movie, I just remember that back then it was the second film I did and I felt very strange making it because everyone was thinking, 'This movie really has no story and it doesn't move along like a Hollywood movie.' It just felt very funny and strange having the opportunity to make that. I just remember that feeling every day: 'Wow, they're letting me make this, which is really weird.' And it continues to this day, that dynamic. It's still weird."

Seemed like a good place to stop. I thanked for Burton for his time and mentioned that I'm hoping to visit the Alice set soon. "That's great, I'll see you out here! I'll be on the green screen. Just look for a load of green. Take care."

-- Geoff Boucher

CREDITS:

Johnny Depp and Tim Burton in a November 2007 photograph by Liz O. Baylen/Los Angeles Times.

Illustration by John Tenniel from "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland."

Michael Keaton as Batman from the 1989 Tim Burton film, image courtesy of Warner Bros.

Tim Burton in 2006 at Hollywood Forever Cemetery, photographed by Ricardo DeAratanha\Los Angeles Times.

Tim Burton in 2006 at the Hollwyood Wax museum, with a waxen Johnny Depp in the background, photographed by Ricardo DeAratanha\Los Angeles Times

Photo of Johnny Depp and Tim Burton on the set of "Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street" by Peter Mountain/Dreamworks-Warner Bros.

image from "The Nightmare Before Christmas" courtesy of Disney

Bonham Carter and Hathaway in "Wonderland"

Helena Bonham Carter and Anne Hathaway will both be in Alice in Wonderland.

Bonham Carter will play the role of the belligerent Red Queen, and Hathaway will play the more placid and kindhearted of the royal sisters, the White Queen. The distinction of having both of these characters suggests that the film will indeed follow the original Lewis Carroll book instead of simply emulating previous cinematic adaptations.

This is the first time Anne Hathaway has collaborated with Tim Burton (though there was talk that she was considered for a role in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street as well).




Helena Bonham Carter has been in each of Burton's films since Planet of the Apes in 2001.

Plenty More "Alice" Set Pics

If you want to see more photos of the set of Alice in Wonderland, click here.

Pictures courtesy of xPirate-Fanx, seen above with Tim Burton.

Michael Sheen in "Wonderland"

Variety has said that British actor Michael Sheen will be in Alice in Wonderland. No word on who he will play, though.

Sheen will also be in the Samuel L. Jackson thriller Unthinkable, and has a role in the forthcoming Ron Howard political drama Frost/Nixon. Sheen was previously in The Queen and The Deal, both of which had him playing former Prime Minister Tony Blair and both of which were directed by Stephen Frears.

Couple More Set Photos

A couple more Alice in Wonderland set photos are online: one of Mia Wasikowska, and a second of Billy Ray Burton, also in period garb.

"Alice in Wonderland" Set Photos!

Tim Burton and Mia Wasikowska on the set of Alice in Wonderland

INF Daily has posted some excellent set photos of the shoot in Cornwall, England.

Mia Wasikowska (playing Alice) and Tim Burton are prominent. Helena Bonham Carter is also on the set with baby Nell. Nell looks like she's in period costume, too... might she make a cameo appearance as an extra like first-born Billy Ray in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory?

Click on the following images for larger versions!

OFFICIAL: Depp in "Wonderland"

After months of speculation, it has been made official: Johnny Depp will play the Mad Hatter in Alice in Wonderland.

Dick Cook, chairman of the Walt Disney Studios, has confirmed this on Wednesday.

In addition to Alice, Depp will also be in two other upcoming Disney films: he will return as Captain Jack Sparrow in the fourth installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and as the Lone Ranger's sidekick, Tonto, in a new cinematic adaption of the western serial (Depp is part Cherokee in addition to his German and Irish ancestry).

It has also been declared that Oscar-winning VFX supervisor Ken Ralston (who won awards for Robert Zemeckis' films Forrest Gump and Who Framed Roger Rabbit) is on set in London as the senior visual effects supervisor, working with Sony Pictures Imageworks on the animation. David Schaub is the animation supervisor and Sean Phillips and Carey Villegas are visual effects supervisors for Imageworks.


But after all of this talk about Alice in Wonderland, some of us are still wondering about Tim Burton's other film in his two-flick agreement with Walt Disney Studios: a feature-length, stop-motion animated version of Frankenweenie.

The fact is, no big recent news has come up, but it is still in the works (Burton confirmed this on the new DVD release of The Nightmare Before Christmas). Production will commence on the stop-motion adaptation as soon as shooting for Alice is completed (right now, pre-production is going underway). Both Frankenweenie and Alice in Wonderland will be released in theaters presented in Disney Digital 3-D (as will many of the studio's other future projects).

No word on whether Depp will provide his voice for Frankenweenie yet, though.

And Helena Bonham Carter?...

We all know that Johnny Depp is a frequent Tim Burton collaborator, and word of mouth indicates that he will be in Alice in Wonderland.

But what about Helena Bonham Carter, Burton's equally abundant actress and the mother of his two children? Perhaps it's a given, but some intriguing information has come up.

Jonathan Lynn, director of the forthcoming film Wild Target, stated that Helena Bonham Carter will not be in his next film, as the shooting schedule clashed with Alice in Wonderland.

So Bonham Carter will most likely be in Alice. Now the question is: Who will she play?

Eleanor Tomlinson to be in "Alice"

Sixteen-year-old actress Eleanor Tomlinson has stated that she will play the role of the spiteful Fiona Chataway in Alice in Wonderland.

Tomlinson, a Beverly native, has recently appeared in the teen comedy Angus, Thongs and Perfect Snogging.

The young actress commented on how enjoyable it has been to work on the film:

"I think it's amazing. I can't get over it.

"Everyone has been so nice to me on set.

"It's a small part, but it's well worth it. It's brilliant."

She began filming her scenes last week in Plymouth, and will continue to do so for the next three weeks. After that, she's returning back to school.

The article also focused on Tomlinson talking about Johnny Depp, who is supposed to play the role of the Mad Hatter in the computer-generated realm of Wonderland.

"Unfortunately, Johnny Depp is filming the animation scenes in the US so I won't meet him on set.

"But, hopefully, I'll get the chance during the premier.

"I'll be thrilled when I meet him, but also probably a little star-struck.

"I just have to act normal. Everyone says he is a really lovely guy."

Matt Lucas, who will play the roles of Tweedledee and Tweedledum, very recently also said that Depp would be in Los Angeles for his scenes. So unless both he and Tomlinson are misled, Depp will most likely be in the film (although it's not clear whether all of Wonderland will be computer animated with the motion-capture technology or just certain elements or characters in it).

Matt Lucas Confirms Role

British comedic actor Matt Lucas has confirmed that he will be playing the roles of Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum in Alice in Wonderland, and he is "very excited."

"I go out in early October to Los Angeles to film," he said.

"I think a lot of the work is going to be green screen but I've seen some set designs and what the characters are going to look like and they look absolutely extraordinary.

"I pinch myself when I think I'm going to be playing a part in a Disney movie directed by Tim Burton starring Johnny Depp - I can't quite believe it's going to be happening."

Technically, Depp has not been confirmed yet (rumors suggest that he will play the Mad Hatter). But Lucas' enthusiasm is indeed infectious.

You can read more about Lucas' forthcoming projects in this BBC article.

More info to come!

"Alice" Begins Filming

A few of the local extras on the set of
Alice in Wonderland in period attire.

Filming for Alice in Wonderland has reportedly commenced in Torpoint, specifically at the famous Antony House.

Production is reportedly already immense: Between 600 and 700 people, ranging from actors, extras, cameramen and production staff, are said to be operating at the site. Hundreds of cars park in a field converted to a make-shift car park. Adjacent to them are large trailers presumably used for wardrobe fittings and catering and hospitality. Countless taxis and catering companies are present at the site, and all the actors and production staff involved are presumably staying and dining locally.

Over the next few weeks 250 extras, most of which are from Plymouth and its general area, will attend shoots, dressed in Victorian-era clothing.

And what of Mr. Johnny Depp, who rumor-hungry fans online have been clamoring about playing the Mad Hatter? A spokeswoman for the production has said that the actor won’t be filming at Antony, in Plymouth, or indeed anywhere in the UK. She added that Disney had not even confirmed he would be appearing in the film at all.

We will have to wait and see who is in the film officially from a Disney press release. But for now, the meager scraps of information on Depp's supposed presence point to the contrary.

The Herald has a photo slide show of some of the extras for the film in this link, as well as a video.

We'll keep you posted on further filming updates!

Matt Lucas in "Wonderland"?

Variety has stated that British comic actor Matt Lucas will be playing the twins Tweedledee and Tweedledum in Alice in Wonderland, much like Deep Roy playing all of the Oompa Loompas in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Lucas is best known for being in BBC's "Little Britain," and the coming HBO series "Little Britain USA," premiering on September 28th.

No other sources or details were provided to confirm this, so it's not official yet. But he certainly looks the part.

Francesca Jaynes: Choreographer for "Alice in Wonderland"

In an interview discussing her past, current, and future works, choreographer Francesca Jaynes revealed that she will be working on Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland. In the lengthy interview, Jaynes talked about her collaborations with Tim Burton -- starting with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and then Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street -- how she communicates with him, and what she sees as his vision for the film and how she executes it.

Jaynes begins with discussing the challenge of choreographing Deep Roy -- one man who had to interact with hundreds of Oompa Loompa versions of himself -- in Charlie:

"The filming of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory was so complicated that some days we were really pleased just to get a couple of seconds of finished footage in the can - thankfully not all the film was that slow."


She then went on to compare working with director Mike Leigh (on the Gilbert and Sullivan story Topsy Turvy) and Tim Burton:

"The differences between Mike and Tim are huge. With Mike you can talk and talk and talk about a subject but Tim, he has got to see it. I can start to talk to Tim about a dance and I can see his eyes start to glaze over. Then he'll go: 'Get some dancers, show me.' As soon as he sees it, then he can talk about it.

"I can understand why Tim always has the same team around him because you have got to have that understanding. He's quite shy but very perceptive. He's a very visual person."


On getting to know Burton:

"I went for an interview for Charlie with the producers and I didn't think it had gone very well at all. It was one of those interviews where I couldn't remember anything and I thought it all sounded a bit vague. The problem was that I had had a terrible time on De-Lovely, the Cole Porter musical, and I was a bit wary of working with Americans but then they invited me back to meet Tim.

"My rather stumbling interview worked in my favour because the producers knew you can't have someone who talks at Tim, you have to listen because Tim sometimes finds it hard to articulate what he's after which is why he'll often grab a pen and do you a drawing."


Jaynes recalled that Burton was interested in working with her because of her work on A.I.: Artificial Intelligence, Steven Spielberg's science-fiction tribute to the late master director Stanley Kubrick:

"The first thing that Tim said to me was 'I like the movement you did with Jude Law', referring to the work I had done on AI, and he was the only person, outside family and friends, who had noticed the work that went into that and that's because of the way that he animates his stop- motion work."


Jaynes work in the movie suggests that dance will be in Alice in Wonderland, if only briefly (maybe one scene or two). But in what context? In Lewis Carroll's original book, there are a couple of songs. Perhaps these will be adapted in Burton's cinematic version of the story? Or perhaps it'll be for character motion in general, for the weird assortment of Wonderland denizens.

You can read the full article to learn plenty more about Francesca Jaynes' various work in film and theater alike.

Mia Wasikowska Set for "Alice"

After being in talks with Disney, it appears that 18-year-old Mia Wasikowska is officially set to play Alice in the upcoming Alice in Wonderland.

"I'm so so excited. The book's really intrigued me when I was little and I've always loved the story," she said.

The young actress also expressed enthusiasm for being able to work with director Tim Burton. She stated that she admired his films. "I really love Edward Scissorhands and Big Fish," she said.

Rumors are still abound online claiming that Johnny Depp will be the Mad Hatter. But Wasikowska said that, at the moment, she is the only person who has officially been cast.

Filming begins next month.

Historic House to Be Set in "Wonderland"

Antony House

The historic Antony House is reported to be one of the shooting locations for Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland.

The National Trust property, situated in Torpoint, Cornwall, will be closed to the public from September 1st until October 14th to allow filming to take place. The Antony House, an early 18th-century mansion, features a garden and a Woodland Garden.

Rebecca Miller, National Trust house and visitor services manager for Antony said: "We are absolutely over the moon that Antony has been chosen as a location for Tim Burton's new film Alice in Wonderland.

"One of the reasons it was chosen was because it's a hidden gem – it's one of the Trust's lesser known properties and they felt this fitted in very well with the feel of the film."

Harvey Edgington, the National Trust's broadcast media liaison officer added: "The National Trust happily provides locations when possible, to a variety of films, TV dramas, documentaries and commercials.

"Clearly there is a direct financial benefit to the Trust, a charity where four out of five properties run at a loss every year due to conservation demands.

"Alice in Wonderland will not only help raise funds for the ongoing conservation work needed at Antony, but will also contribute to the local economy by having the crew on location."

A spokesman for the casting agents, Mad Dog Casting Ltd, said the other filming locations were being kept "top secret".

"The extras will not be told where they are filming until the night before the shoot," the spokesman added.

About 3,000 people came to the New Continental Hotel in Plymouth to audition for the film as extras. Males were told via text message whether they we accepted on this past Thursday and Friday. Female hopefuls will be informed on a later date.

Ultimately, 250 extras will be chosen for the Victorian era look of the film, along with three dogs (a common theme in Tim Burton's films).

Hundreds Gather for Big-Screen Debut in "Wonderland"

Casting director Ilenka Jelowicki and her crew are looking for 250 extras for the forthcoming Tim Burton film Alice in Wonderland. Not surprisingly, hundreds of hopefuls gathered on Wednesday, August 6th, and endured hours in a long line and the pouring rain in Plymouth, England, long before Ms. Jelowicki and the casting agents began looking at potential cast members at 10:00 am at the New Continental Hotel.

25-year-old musician and actor Andrew Lessiter, a citizen of Plymouth, was the first to arrive for auditions -- at 2:00 am.

"I'm a real film buff and just to be involved in any way in a Tim Burton film would be a huge honor," said Lessiter.

Claire Trigger: "I'd make a good card, but I'd even lay on the floor
and play a dead rabbit if they asked me."

Hopeful people ranged from age 16 to well past 70, and ranged from school teachers, drama students, engineers, decorators, shop assistants, phlebotomists, and grandmothers, to name a few.

But despite their star-struck enthusiasm, Ilenka Jelowicki warned that it isn't all fun and games on a movie set. "When you get local people involved, they really give a lot of effort to the picture and their enthusiasm really counts," she said. "But it can be a long day being on set for 12 to 14 hours a day."

Nik Brookson arrived in Victorian era costume.

Plenty more hopefuls will arrive tomorrow for a chance to be in the phantasmagorical movie.

Filming begins in Plymouth next month.

Casting and Location Scouts in Plymouth Next Week

While the film's title was not officially announced, it appears that a certain Disney cinematic adaptation of a certain Lewis Carroll novel will be at least partially filmed in a certain South West England city called Plymouth, a certain news agency called the BBC News stated. In addition to looking for prime Victorian era shooting locations, the casting director of Alice in Wonderland (crap!--wasn't meant to say that!), Ilenka Jelowicki, said that casting agents are looking for people to be extras in the fantasy film, which will apparently be directed by a certain Tim Burton.

Auditions will take place at the New Continental Hotel in Plymouth, on Wednesday, August 6th and Thursday, August 7th, between 10 am and 6 pm. Eventually, the casting agents will select 250 extras, who will be paid.


Ms. Jelowicki went into more detail: "We are looking for people above the age of 16 who have naturally coloured hair.

"We would prefer girls with long hair and men with natural styles. Extras will get to dress up in Victorian period costume, corsets and wigs and will have their make-up done.

"We would also like people whose work allows the flexibility of two weeks' worth of filming."

Locations for filming are being tightly kept under-wraps, but Plymouth clearly drew appeal to the filmmakers for its notable Victorian era look and aesthetics. Shooting will take place in the city in September for two weeks.

IMDb.com has announced that Alice will be released in theaters on March 5th, 2010.


In related news, websites across the Internet still can't stop yammering about a rumor that Johnny Depp will be playing the Mad Hatter, despite the fact that there is no official or credible source to take account for this claim. We will have to wait to see if this is true or not. However, we do know that Mia Wasikowska is in talks with Disney to play the lead role of Alice.

Tim Burton's Alice Revealed

Rumors have been floating around for months regarding who would play the lead in Tim Burton's upcoming Alice in Wonderland.
But at long last, the Hollywood Reporter has announced that Burton and Disney have found their Alice: 18-year-old Australian actress Mia Wasikowska. The young actress is reportedly in final negotiations for her part in the Lewis Carroll adaptation.

Mia Wasikowska (Getty Images photo)

Burton kept his word by casting a relative "unknown" actress in the business, but simultaneously one that has experience. Wasikowska, originally born in Canberra, began her career in the Australian TV series "All Saints" and is currently a regular on HBO's "In Treatment." Her other upcoming cinematic projects include "Defiance," a war drama which will also star Daniel Craig and be directed by Ed Zwick, and she plays a supporting role in a forthcoming biographical movie on Amelia Earhart, "Amelia," starring Hilary Swank and directed by Mira Nair.

While the rest of the cast of Alice hasn't been announced (or found?), we do already know of principle players in the making of the film. Long-time Disney scribe Linda Woolverton has written the screenplay; frequent Burton collaborator Richard D. Zanuck is producing the film, along with former Disney chairman Joe Roth and Jennifer and Suzanne Todd. Disney creative executive Jason Reed will oversee the project.

Alice in Wonderland will be a combination of live-action and performance-capture computer-generated animation. It will be released in theaters in Disney Digital 3-D in March 2010. Principal photography is said to commence this November, several months later than previously anticipated.

Hopefully, more news (and more accurate news) will come shortly!

Burton v. Marie: Legal Battle

Director Tim Burton has been ordered to stand trial in a lawsuit by his ex-girlfriend Lisa Marie, who claims she's owed millions of dollars.

Los Angeles Superior Court Justice Teresa Sanchez-Gordon ruled on the morning of Friday, July 18th, 2008, that a trial is the best means to determine whether Burton verbally agreed to bankroll Marie for life in return for her acting in his films (which include Ed Wood, Mars Attacks!, Sleepy Hollow, and Planet of the Apes) and serving as his personal manager, as her suit contends, before allegedly duping her into a much smaller payout.

Burton had fought to have his lawsuit tossed. There has been no immediate comment from neither his publicist nor his lawyer.

While Marie turned up for the proceedings in California, Burton participated on the phone, since he is in London, busy working on his upcoming Alice in Wonderland.


The article by Josh Grossberg continues as follows:

In his motion seeking dismissal, attorney Joseph Mannis argued that any sort of oral agreement was not applicable in this case, because Lisa Marie signed off on a $5.5 million settlement. Per the terms of that deal, Mannis argued, Lisa Marie relinquished all claims to Burton's assets and promised not to file a palimony suit.

But the model and actress, who appeared in small roles in many of Burton's films and whose real name is Lisa Marie Smith, claims she only received $2.7 million and was victimized by a conspiracy. She claims that Burton worked with her own advisers to shortchange her.

Burton filed a countersuit last September seeking a court declaration affirming she was obligated to live up to the prior deal.

One of the plaintiff's lawyers lashed out at the director's camp for a bullying tactic in which they threatened to take futher legal action against her if she fought Burton's petition to dismiss the case.

"They said that if we had the temerity to file papers in opposition to their motion for some reason that they would file a malicious prosecution action not only against Lisa Marie but also against me," cocounsel Judd Burstein told E! News. "It's going to be very interesting what the jury thinks of that kind of hubris."

Burstein added his camp was "very pleased" by the judge's ruling.

"It's not unexpected to us. Nice to know that just because you're a big celebrity you can't get your way by cheating and bullying."

The attorney also said that a chance for an amicable agreement was past.

"We've had some [settlement] talks, but it's not going anywhere," Burstein said. "We want our day in court, and it will be a very bad day for Tim Burton."

That day is now scheduled for August 11th.

Casting Rumors for "Alice in Wonderland"

As always, it is wise to be dubious of rumors online. But I couldn't help but point out these small tidbits of information regarding Tim Burton's upcoming Alice in Wonderland...

Cinematical has stated that there is talk that Burton has finally cast his Alice.

On an "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" forum, a guest named Lexie stated the following:

"My brother is working on the movie and he said Alice has been cast. He is a music supervisor for the movie and said there will be a press release about it on July 9th. The role was originally supposed to be Evan Rachel Woods but she backed out. Alice won't be played by a child but a 23 year old. From what I was told it's her first Burton movie, and her first big role in a film that will be released world wide. Tim wanted to cast someone who could portray a child but could also capture the odities of the story. My brother told me that the girl playing Alice is wonderful and Tim picked her very quickly. Filming is supposed to start in July with a press release with the entire cast on July 9th! I do know the actresses name but I don't want to type it here incase there is some kind of rights against that until the press release."


On the same forum, another guest named Ian B made these remarks:

"i came across this thread being that im a huge fan of alice in wonderland. my best friends aunt is ryan nikole parkers manager and she is definitely alice. she signed on to the movie a few days ago. my bff said she just turned 24. you can find her myspace on some of the threads and her imdb."


There was talk that Burton was more interested in casting an unknown actress (which thankfully excludes Lindsay Lohan). So Evan Rachel Woods is likely not Alice, either. Ryan Nikole Parker, on the other hand, is barely known beyond Broadway, fitting the description of a relative "unknown" in the movie business.

Ryan Nikole Parker: Alice?

There is also talk on IMDb.com that there is already conceptual drawings for the look of the film (no production designer or art director has been announced yet).

However, there is reason to be cautious: while it is possible that the music of the upcoming film is being considered, already having a music supervisor on the team so early in pre-production seems unusual (the film is not even set for release until March 2010).

Nothing is official in Hollywood until the press release is made. But if the mention of an official press release on July 9th is the only truthful statement, then we only have a few days to look forward to finding out who will play the part of Alice, in addition to the rest of the crazy menagerie of characters in Wonderland.

Stay tuned, folks...

Burton + Depp + August = "Dark Shadows"?

IESB.net has stated that director Peter Segal recently said that John August has written a screenplay adaptation for the TV series Dark Shadows -- and that Tim Burton is attached to direct it and Johnny Depp is (supposedly) to star in it.

Dark Shadows was a television series which ran from 1966 to 1971. It was a popular gothic soap opera, featuring vampires, werewolves, and other ghoulish creatures.

An image from the original series Dark Shadows.

This could be the secret project that John August wrote on his website late last year.

John August wrote the screenplays of Tim Burton's Big Fish, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, and Corpse Bride.

Rumors of Burton and Depp teaming up for a big-screen version of Shadows came up on the Internet months ago. And this more official claim seems to encourage those beliefs. But just because Burton is attached to direct the film, it doesn't mean that he necessarily will. Months ago, Warner Bros. had Burton attached to helm an adaptation of the fantasy novel The Spook's Apprentice. But eventually, Burton moved to other projects (his upcoming Frankenweenie and Alice and Wonderland at Disney), and Kevin Lima is now currently signed on to direct Apprentice.

We'll have to wait and see what the future holds for Burton, Depp, and this planned Dark Shadows movie.

Zanuck on "Alice"

No big news at the moment, but producer Richard D. Zanuck has confirmed that Tim Burton's upcoming Alice in Wonderland will begin shooting in London this May. Burton is currently involved in pre-production of the fanciful film.

The producer, who has collaborated with Burton on each of his live-action films since Planet of the Apes in 2001, also promised that there will be "a lot of animation" in the movie.

Alice, which is being made with Walt Disney Pictures, will use a combination of computer-generated animation and live-action.

No casting decisions have been declared at the moment, but since filming is due to begin very shortly, we may find out who will be in the movie soon enough.

Stay tuned for more information!

"Alice in Wonderland" Release Date Announced

With the writers' strike now officially over, Walt Disney Pictures has announced release dates for several films for 2009 and 2010. Among them is Tim Burton's upcoming adaptation of the fantasy Alice in Wonderland. The film, which will be a combination of performance capture animation and live-action, is set to be released on March 19, 2010.

The release date for Burton's other Disney project, Frankenweenie, was not mentioned in the article. But this is likely because it will be an animated film, and the article covered information on live-action (or mostly live-action) features. Frankenweenie is said to be released sometime in 2009.

"Sweeney Todd" Honored for Editing

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street was honored with the award for Best Editing (Comedy or Musical) at the 58th annual ACE Eddie Awards. Editor Chris Lebenzon received the award for his work on Burton's horror-musical.

Lebenzon first worked with Tim Burton on Batman Returns in 1992. Since then, he has held the position of editor on all of Burton's film, from Ed Wood to Corpse Bride, as well as consulting editor on The Nightmare Before Christmas. Lebenzon is likely going to be editor for Burton's two upcoming feature films: Frankenweenie (2009) and Alice in Wonderland (2010).

Lebenzon was last nominated for an Eddie Award for his work on Burton's Charlie in the Chocolate Factory.

Read more about the winners and nominees of the Eddie Awards (in film and television alike) in this link.

Lohan Wants to be Alice

A disturbing statement has been made regarding Tim Burton's upcoming Alice in Wonderland: Lindsay Lohan wants to be Alice.

Sounding more like Veruca Salt than Alice, Lohan told Harper’s Bazaar: "I hope they don't give it to an unknown. I'm ideal. I could really do it justice. I've been down the role."

Though only Lohan has said anything about this, we will have to wait and see whether Burton's version of the Lewis Carroll story will be a fantasy/adventure film, horror flick, or disaster movie.

John August: Hinting at Unknown Future Burton Films?

On his official website, screenwriter and Burton collaborator John August wrote in his blog that, contrary to claims made on such websites as IMDb.com (which have now been changed), he will not be writing the screenplay for Burton's upcoming stop-motion adaptation of the director's short film, Frankenweenie. August wrote the following on his blog:


"I had a meeting with Disney Animation about a year ago, in which they pitched the idea of doing a feature version of Tim’s Frankenweenie short film. They even had production art for it. Then, separately, I had a conversation with Tim about doing another stop-motion animation project like Corpse Bride.

"But they’re not the same thing. And as far as I know, I won’t be working on either one. (That said, I didn’t think I was working on Corpse Bride until I was halfway on a plane to London, so never say never.)"

John August first worked with Tim Burton when he wrote the screenplay for 2003's Big Fish. Directly after that fanciful odyssey, August wrote the screenplay for Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and the final draft for Corpse Bride, both released in 2005. August also helped composer Danny Elfman adapt and write the whimsical lyrics for both Charlie and Corpse Bride.

August's blog entry is made even more interesting in the following excerpt:

"To further confuse matters, there’s a different and as-yet-unannounced Tim Burton project (live action) which I almost certainly will be writing post-strike. And yes, I’d love to tell you what it is. But I can’t."

This project can't be Burton's upcoming Alice's Adventures in Wonderland, which will also be made at Walt Disney Pictures. Linda Woolverton already has the credit of writing the screenplay for that future literary adaptation. So John August seems to be hinting at possibly two unknown future Tim Burton films, one live-action, the other in stop-motion animation. What could these films be? We'll have to wait for future articles to appear...

Two New Pee-wee Movies?

In 1985, Paul Reubens brought his original character, the zany man-child Pee-wee Herman, to the big screen. This same film, Pee-wee's Big Adventure, was also Tim Burton's directorial debut in the world of feature-length motion pictures.

It's been over twenty years since that widely acclaimed, box-office winning, and quotable cult classic came into popular culture. Now, Mr. Reubens, though a bit older (but still plenty Pee-wee) is considering making two more films featuring his infamous alter ego.

"I feel like the time is really ripe right now," Reubens said on why he's interested in making more Pee-wee movies at this point in time. "A lot of the kids who grew up with the show are young adults. The college kids are middle-aged adults. I feel like I have enough of a built-in audience to make back an investment."

Reubens reported that he has two scripts ready to go. The first concerns an extension of his multi-Emmy Award winning children's series, Pee-wee's Playhouse. This feature-length adaptation will bring the characters into a whole new realm. "We never really went out into what we call puppet land," Reubens recalled of the show. "And this [film] takes place out of the playhouse. I think there are one or two scenes in the playhouse in the beginning. Basically it's all in a fantasy land," he said. "It's like a 'Wizard of Oz,' H.R. Pufnstuf epic adventure story." The whole assemblage of characters will hopefully be there, in their live-action human and puppet forms alike.

Paul Reubens as Pee-wee Herman

Photo: Frazer Harrison/ Getty Images

The second storyline is one that Reubens called "the dark Pee Wee movie," is "not really very dark" and certainly not intended to be an R-rated film. "It's basically the story of Pee-wee Herman becoming famous as a singer," he explained. "He has a hit single and gets brought out to Hollywood to make musical movies, kind of like they did with Elvis. It all kind of goes downhill from there for Pee-wee. He turns into a monster. He does everything wrong and becomes a big jerk." Though he described it as a movie "about fame," Reubens insisted, "It's not autobiographical."

But will audiences buy a 55-year-old man-child, even if it is Pee-wee? People have noted that Reubens still has the energy, humor, and essence of his character from over two decades ago. But if that isn't enough, Reubens has a plan: "My second option is to have Johnny Depp play Pee-wee," he said. Reubens insisted that he's even spoken to Depp about it, saying that the actor told him, "Let me think about it."

Will Tim Burton and Paul Reubens collaborate again? After Pee-wee's Big Adventure, Reubens and Burton collaborated again on Batman Returns (1992) and The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993). Reubens admitted that he talked to Burton about the possibility of bringing these new Pee-wee projects to the big screen in the future, but acknowledged his old collaborator's own busy schedule. "I have talked to Tim about one of them about a year ago. But Tim is booked. I think he would be interested in it, but he's really busy." Indeed, Burton will soon be working on a feature-length version of Frankenweenie (the original short film from 1984 was what made Reubens decide that Burton was perfect for directing the first Pee-wee Herman movie) and Alice's Adventures in Wonderland.

Reubens is still searching, but remains optimistic. "I think it's really just a question of the right person coming along. I've had opportunities to do [the films] with people who didn't feel like the right people. It just takes one person."

Burton on "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland"

Scifi.com reports that, in an interview, Burton wanted to maintain the essence of Lewis Carroll's original with his upcoming adaptation of Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. "It's just such a classic, and the imagery is so surreal," said the director. "I don't know; I've never seen a version where I feel like they got it all. It's a series of weird adventures, and to try to do it where it works as a movie will be interesting."

Burton will also produce the film, which will be released by the Walt Disney Co. It will reportedly be a hybrid of live-action and performance-capture animation.

"The stories are like drugs for children, you know?" Burton said. "It's like, 'Whoa, man.' The imagery, they've never quite nailed making it compelling as a full story. So I think it's an interesting challenge to direct.

Filming on Alice's Adventures in Wonderland will commence in early 2008.

Manson Denies Burton Movie Rumors

Shock rocker Marilyn Manson has denied Internet rumors of him collaborating with Tim Burton on a biopic on Lewis Carroll. Manson will soon be shooting his own movie on the novelist, entitled Phantasmagoria: The Visions of Lewis Carroll, and stated that people likely became confused with Burton's separate film, his upcoming adaptation of Carroll's novel, Alice in Wonderland.

Manson said: "I've read that he's making Alice in Wonderland, but my film isn't Alice in Wonderland. It's about the period in which Lewis Carroll was writing it. I've based it all around his diaries."

This is not the first time that rumors of a Manson-Burton collaboration have come up. Back in 2004, rumors developed on the Internet that Manson would play Willy Wonka or even the villainous Slugworth in Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Slugworth was not even featured in the film. (He was mentioned briefly, as he was in Roald Dahl's original book). Manson, however, did do a cover of the song "This is Halloween" for the special-edition soundtrack from Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas last year.

Burton's Alice in Wonderland is being produced by the Walt Disney Co. It is likely to be released in 2010 (but no official word has come up yet).

Burton "Devastated" by "Ripley's" Problems

The Los Angeles Times reported that Tim Burton felt "pretty devastated" by the failure of the development of a film he was going to work on last year, Ripley's Believe It or Not!. Burton had already begun planning locations for shooting the film in China, when Paramount Pictures shut down pre-production due to budget issues. Ripley's was to be a biographical movie ("bio-pic") on Robert Ripley, a cartoonist and filmmaker who traveled the world looking for bizarre oddities and curiosities. The film was to star Jim Carrey in the title role, and reportedly Gong Li, as well. "I know it's a business," Burton said of Ripley's with a frustrated tone of voice. "But for those of us working on the film, you get excited, and it's an art form. They should feel lucky that you treat it like an art form." Shortly after, however, a new project from Paramount came up for Mr. Burton: Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Ripley's may still happen someday, but likely not with Burton (since he will be working on Alice in Wonderland and a feature-length, stop-motion animated version of Frankenweenie with Disney in the next couple of years).

The article goes on to talk about Sweeney Todd, but beware of SPOILERS! Approach with caution!: Article.

Update: The Producers of Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland" Announced

Playbill News has stated that Richard D. Zanuck, Joe Roth with Suzanne and Jennifer Todd will produce Tim Burton's upcoming Alice in Wonderland at Disney. Roth and the two Todds are first-time Burton collaborators, but Richard D. Zanuck has produced every live-action film by Tim Burton since 2001's Planet of the Apes. The article also stated that production for Alice will commence in January 2008. Burton will not be working on Alice and his stop-motion remake of Frankenweenie simultaneously. Instead, production on the upcoming animated film about a boy and his resurrected dog will begin after Alice. Walt Disney Pictures is expecting production on Alice to be finished by the end of May 2008.

Updates on the New Films

A new article has stated that Linda Woolverton, who wrote the screenplays for the Disney animated features Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King, will be penning the script for Tim Burton's Alice in Wonderland movie. In addition, both Alice and the stop-motion, feature-length version of Frankenweenie will be shown in theaters in the Disney Digital 3D format. The 3D format has received a reborn interest among many film studios in Hollywood. Several new films and old classics will be released or re-released in the 3D format in the coming years. This year, Tim Burton's brain-child from 1993, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and his 1982 stop-motion short Vincent (in participating theaters), were shown in 3D.

Shooting for Alice will commence early in 2008 and is set to end production by the end of May that year. Burton will then go on to work on Frankenweenie, also with the Walt Disney Co.

NEW PROJECTS?!

Reuters and the Hollywood Reporter have announced that Tim Burton has signed on with the Walt Disney Co. to make two new film projects: Alice in Wonderland and a full-length, stop-motion version of Frankenweenie.

Alice in Wonderland, based on the original Lewis Carroll tale, will be shot with a combination of live-action and motion-capture technology. Shooting will begin early 2008. Rumors about Burton adapting the story have been circulating on the Internet for years, but this is certainly the closest thing to an official announcement that has appeared thus far.

The second project announced in the article, also in collaboration with the Walt Disney Co., Frankenweenie, is an adaptation of Burton's very own live-action short film he made while at Disney in 1984. This was the film that made Paul Reubens discover the young director and asked him to make his first feature-length film, Pee-wee's Big Adventure, in 1985. Dick Cook, chairman of Walt Disney Pictures, hinted that a prominent filmmaker in recent stop-motion features would be working with Disney in the near future. This is likely that film. In the book Burton on Burton, director Tim Burton said that he felt that Frankenweenie could have been a full-length feature film.

More details to come in the near future! Stay tuned!