Movies like Edward Scissorhands, Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Alice in Wonderland, have come to be known as trademark movies of Johnny Depp. But other than the Pirates of the Caribbean actor, they also have another fact in common, and that is, they are some of the best works of the ace director, Tim Burton, a filmmaker, who is known for several weird, eccentric and dark fantasy films.
Tim Burton has built a reputation of his movies and productions, recording a great deal of success to become one of the top ten highest-grossing directors in Hollywood history. Not only is he a director, but he is also a writer, producer, and artist. There is so much to know about Tim Burton and in the article, we compiled everything you need to know. Read on to learn more.
Who is Tim Burton and How Old is He?
Tim Burton was born Timothy Walter Burton on the 25th of August, 1958 to parents Jean Burton and William Burton in Burbank, California. He was born into a middle-class family and he fell in love with the process of filmmaking as a child, when he began making short films using stop motion animation techniques.
For his education, he attended Providencia Elementary School and Burbank High School. At high school, he was a member of the school’s water polo team. At the end of his basic education, he enrolled at the California Institute of the Arts where he studied character animation.
During his time at California Institute of the Arts, Tim Burton made one of his early projects, a short movie, Stalk of the Celery Monster, which drew the attention of Walt Disney Studios. He soon began an animator apprenticeship with the studio and worked in different roles in the production process for films like The Fox and the Hound, The Black Cauldron, and Tron.
During his time with Disney, he grew his experience and his career, making his first short animated movie, Vincent, for the studio, and also his first live-action short film, Frankenweenie. His first full-length project, Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, was released in 1985. Since then, Tim Burton has gone on to direct several movies, many of which have become classic Hollywood projects, such as Batman and Batman Returns. Others include Corpse Bride, Planet of the Apes and Beetlejuice.
Other than directing movies, Tim Burton is also a known writer, production designer, and animator. Also an author, Tim has written and published a couple of books, including The Art of Tim Burton and The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy & Other Stories.
Personal Life
Throughout his life, Tim Burton has been married to only one woman, Lena Gieseke. They were married for a short period between 1987 and 1991. During their time together, they never had any children. Following the end of his first marriage, he has been reluctant to head back to the altar but has been in two major relationships. The first was with Lisa Marie Smith, a model, and actress between 1993 and 2001. During their time together, she appeared in a number of his movies.
After their relationship ended, in the same year, he began a relationship with Helena Bonham Carter, an English actress who also appeared in several of his works, especially major ones like Alice in Wonderland and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
During their time together, Tim Burton and Helena had two children, Billy Raymond, a son and Nell, a daughter. They were both born in 2003 and 2007 respectively. They eventually got separated in December 2014.
Net Worth
When your movies have earned over $4 billion in the global box office, you are bound to be worth a significant amount and that is exactly the financial story of Tim Burton, who has a net worth of $140 million.
He has made significant income through movies, books and his artworks, which include his drawings, paintings, and photographs.
Other Facts About Tim Burton
His movies have earned him multiple awards and nominations, including over 20 Oscar Award nominations, and wins for movies like Alice in Wonderland, Beetlejuice and Sleepy Hollow.
His artworks have been exhibited in museums across the world in MoMa, New York, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Seoul Museum of Art and a couple more others.
Tim Burton is known to regularly work with a few actors like Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, and Christopher Lee. He also works regularly with the composer, Danny Elfman.