Amsterdam to Honor Tim Burton

Tim Burton will receive a career achievement award at this year's 24th annual Amsterdam Fantastic Film Festival.

Director of the film festival director Phil van Tongeren is delighted to welcome Burton. "I consider him as one of the most remarkable, recognizable and innovative directors of our time," he said. During his stay in Amsterdam, Burton will give a public interview on his career and a selection of his films will be presented (which ones have not been officially announced yet).

The AFFF starts on April 9th and ends on April 20th.

Read more about the festival and previous honorees in this link.

Batman Costume Set to Sell For $80k

Michael Keaton as the Dark Knight in Batman Returns (1992).

The Batman costume that Michael Keaton wore in Tim Burton's Batman Returns is set to sell for over $80,000 (roughly £40,000) at an auction.

The classic costume also comes with the signature cape and cowl.

A spokesman for auctioneers Profiles In History said: "This is a complete costume, from head-to-toe, with the zipper in the back to allow entry for Keaton.

"It's mounted on a custom display, with a lifecast face of Michael Keaton, and stands over six feet tall.

"It's a very rare and highly desirable costume from this film, which is now considered a classic in the superhero genre."

The two-day auction will occur on Thursday and Friday, in Calbasas, near Los Angeles.

You can read more about the item and more Batman related artifacts at the auction in this article.

"Sweeney Todd" DVD Preview!

To keep you Burtonites even more hungry for the North American release on Tuesday, April 1st, Shocktillyoudrop.com has a video preview of the upcoming DVD of Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. Featured in the video interview are producers Laurie MacDonald and Richard D. Zanuck, Tim Burton, Helena Bonham Carter, and Johnny Depp. This video snippet is just one of many bonus features to be included on the special 2-disc DVD.

Rare "Ed Wood" Promo Found

A rare promotional video from 1994 advertising Tim Burton's Ed Wood was recently found and posted on YouTube.com by John Erik Taylor. The short video (a little under seven minutes long) was shown at sci-fi conventions before the film's release, and features behind-the-scenes footage and unseen interviews with the cast and crew. This promo wasn't on the Ed Wood DVD, so fans of the film and Tim Burton will find this to be a rare treat.

The promo features interviews with Tim Burton, Johnny Depp, Martin Landau (in a highly memorable and moving performance as an aging Bela Lugosi), Sarah Jessica Parker (as Dolores Fuller, Wood's girlfriend and actress), screenwriters Scott Alexander and Larry Karaszewski, and make-up artist Ve Neill (a frequent Burton collaborator who first worked with the director on Beetlejuice).

Here's the link to the video on YouTube.com (you can also watch it below).

Picture of --- uh, what's the baby's name, again?

Okay, so we've all been wondering: is Tim Burton and Helena Bonham Carter's daughter named Indiana Rose, or is it a rumor?

Apparently, Bonham Carter stated in an interview on a Dublin radio station in February the following:

Tim [Burton] and I haven’t decided on a baby name yet, because Tim has been out of the country promoting Sweeney [Todd]. I want to get a chance for him to spend time with her and see what name feels right.

Apparently on the internet she’s called Indiana Rose! [laughs] I don’t know where it’s come from but it can be that till she’s been named properly [laughs].

So what's their daughter's actual name?! She was born this past December.

In the mean time, here's a photo of her with her mother:

Photo from Helena-World

Interview with Timothy Spall

The Times of India have interviewed Timothy Spall, who played the twisted Beadle Bamford in Tim Burton's Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. In the interview, Spall explains his love of playing despicable characters, working with Johnny Depp and Burton, and more:

Your role in Sweeney Todd... has been much-appreciated. Congrats!
Thank you. I’m very happy with the kind of response the film has garnered. Roles like these are quite interesting and it’s not everyday that one gets to work with such a fabulous team — a superb director and such brilliant co-actors.

You are playing quite a wicked man in Sweeney Todd...
Oh yes. You’d love to hate me. I play a lonely parish, who thinks he’s the most irresistible sexual object, and in an amusing way thinks he’s very beautiful. Whereas, the truth is that he’s a despicable person. He’s a bully and a sexual pervert.

How was it being directed by Tim Burton?
I have been a huge fan of Burton’s work and hoped to be directed by him someday. It’s a pleasure working with him and working with Johnny is yet another thing I was looking forward to.

And how was it finally working with Depp?
It was a fantastic experience. He really enjoys what he’s brought to do. He’s a delightful and pleasant man and I have been a huge admirer. Every woman is in love with Depp, but he’s a very down-to-earth guy.

What was the most challenging thing about doing a musical?
Musicals by terms of their sheer design and magnitude are altogether a different world to be explored. They tend to transform the world and that is a huge challenge. But the way Tim has handled it, he’s using the music and songs to take the action forward. He’s got some great screen actors, but he doesn’t over do it. It’s a fascinating melange of ‘Singlish’ that’s singing in English. And acting while dancing and singing doesn’t come easy.

Timothy Spall and Johnny Depp in Sweeney Todd

How do you manage to be so convincingly despicable on screen?
Now that’s a trade secret I can’t share (laughs).

What do you look for in a role?
I look for roles that stimulate my appetite for good work and stir the actor within. But more than anything else, I absolutely love playing evil and disgusting characters. They evoke a stronger reaction than good characters and to bring about a certain meanness is more challenging for an actor. I love being hated and look forward to people coming up to me and telling me what an evil man I am (laughs).

Like your character Peter Pettigrew in the Harry Potter series?
Yes, very much like that. That was again one role I’m going to cherish forever. Though my grandchildren hoped that I’d not betrayed the Potters (laughs). But I am proud of that role and my grandchildren are proud that their grand-dad’s a part of the Potter family.

But what is Timothy Spall like off the screen?
Oh, I’m a very easy-going person. A normal guy, living a very normal life. I have kids and grand kids. Life’s been good to me and I am enjoy everything it has to offer me.

You’ve watched quite a few Bollywood films...
Yes and I loved the experience. I mean they are so much fun. And they are all so good at singing and dancing. Wow! I have even tried Indian cuisine and simply loved it.

So any plans of coming to India?
I would love to. In fact, I have been to Pakistan, but missed India. That’s high on my list of hot travel destinations. And once there, I’d certainly look forward to meeting all you guys.

"Sweeney Todd" HD DVD Cancelled

Paramount has announced that it will cancel the release of its upcoming HD DVD releases, including Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. This resulted from Blu-Ray DVDs eventually becoming the victor in the Blu-Ray vs. HD showdown, when Toshiba declared that it would cancel the production of HD DVDs in favor of Blu-Ray. Paramount has yet to announce when it will begin making Blu-Ray DVDs, so it's unlikely that Sweeney Todd will be released on Blu-Ray, at this point.

The HD DVD of Todd was supposed to be released in North America on April 1st, 2008. Luckily, the HD version was not supposed to have any more extra features than the 2-Disc DVD version. Both the region 1 standard single-disc and 2-Disc editions of the horror-musical will still be available to purchase on April 1st.

You can find out more information about the DVDs of Sweeney Todd on this news blog, or by checking out these two links on Amazon.com:

Single-Disc Edition

Two-Disc Edition



P.S. On a bit of unrelated news, this news blog is now officially and exactly three years old!