Tim Burton's 'Frankenweenie' to get IMAX boost

It's the first stop-motion title and first black and white film to use format

By Dave LewisTuesday, Mar 6, 2012 3:19 PM

'Frankenweenie'

Credit: Disney/Pixar

Tim Burton’s new animated film "Frankenweenie" is finding a profitable way to mix old and new technologies.

The stop-motion, black and white film will be digitally re-mastered into the IMAX 3D format and released in IMAX digital theatres worldwide day-and-date on October 5.

Unsurprisingly, it's the first black and white studio feature and first stop-motion animated movie to be shown in the giant format.

Burton's last stop-motion film, "Corpse Bride," made a small profit at the domestic box office by scooping up around $53 million, so "Frankenweenie's" IMAX stint should help the film easily top that number by appealing to the Burton faithful. They've helped turn "A Nightmare Before Christmas" into a substantial cult hit with limited annual holiday screenings.

In 2012, Burton's 3D "Alice in Wonderland" found great success at IMAX theaters, even in the wake of "Avatar" juggernaut.

"Frankenweenie," which is a remake of Burton's own 1984 live-action short, features the voices of Catherine O’Hara, Martin Short and Winona Ryder.

“IMAX has a long-standing relationship with Tim Burton, whose unique artistic vision and brilliant storytelling has captured the imagination of audiences around the world,” said IMAX's Greg Foster in a release. “We’re excited to add Frankenweenie as the second Tim Burton feature in our 2012 film slate, providing IMAX audiences a distinctive new way to experience animation.”

Dave Lewis
Producer

Dave Lewis has been a Los Angeles-based entertainment writer and editor for nearly ten years. Originally hailing from Minneapolis, he moved to L.A. in 1996 to attend USC, before working for various periodicals and web sites including a lengthy stint at Variety.com. He joined the HitFix staff in 2011.