You must have quite a good working relationship with Tim Burton by now.

Ive worked with Tim onCorpse Brideand this one, and before that I worked onNightmare Before Christmas.

I was awestruck at the time.

Has his approach to this kind of filmmaking changed much in that time?

Im not sure his approach has changed.

Certainly, the way that hes been involved has changed.

Frankenweeniestarted out as a short film, obviously.

Did you have lots of conversations in pre-production about how it could be expanded into a feature?

It was on the table from the beginning.

And I really feel that the studio never tried to convince us or cajole us into making the change.

Thats the price you pay, but its a small one to pay to have the creative freedom.

He surrounds himself with people he respects and likes, and so he fosters that back and forth.

In that sense, hes unique.

This films in 3D as well, which works with the 50s monster-movie vibe.

Things really pop more.

The textures are picked out more, I thought.

The textures and the details you feel like youre really being pulled into the scene.

Do you think theres something about stop-motion animation that makes it perfect for macabre themes?

Im not just talking about recent features, but shorts from Czechoslovakia, the Quay Brothers…

I would say that stop-motion is appealing to individuals and auteurs, basically.

But theyre not all spooky.Fantastic Mr Foxwasnt spooky, and Aardmans features arent spooky at all.

Like Laika, who set the tone with SelicksCoraline, and evenParaNorman, which started development under Henry.

Stop-motion involves traditional techniques, of course, but how has new technology helped the animation process?

The technology really has improved for us over the years.

Theres the ability for our animators to see what theyre working on as they go.

They have frame grabbers and playback thats instantaneous with these digital cameras.

Thats improved a lot sinceCorpse Bride,even.

Then having small cameras allows us to have more motion control.

Those are the kinds of technical advancements that affect life on the floor.

You couldnt do that onNightmare Before Christmas,obviously.

There were no effects at all until the snow at the end.

Stop-motion movies tend to be smaller and feel like more confined spaces.

What would you say was the most technically difficult part of the film?

Was there one scene that was a big challenge, or maybe one particular character?

Dutch Day was very difficult for all parties.

Id say that sequence, on all levels, was tough.

You still pretty much have to start again.

I dont like that.

So you’re able to roll back and get that frame youre looking for and fix it.

This is very much like, that guy goes back into the room and starts again.

One of the other films you worked on wasThe Iron Giant.Have you heard anything about that films Blu-ray release?

I think it is coming out on Blu-ray.

I dont really know what the situation is, but I have heard about that.

I mean, I dont even know whenFrankenweenies coming out on DVD!

It was such an amazing movie,The Iron Giant.

It was appreciated, but it was under-seen, really, in movie theatres.

I think it depends on what youre selling.

The appeal of those movies is that theyre bright, theyre colourful, theyre funny.

So much of marketing is really, its here, its fun, its worth seeing.

So they command a bigger piece of the market because they spend more money on it, quite frankly.

Youre working another stop-motion movie next,Pinocchio?

Yes, Guillermo del TorosPinocchio.

Its still very early days, but he has an amazing vision, and amazingly charismatic visual style.

I think itll be interesting.

Itll also go more deeply into the part of Gepetto.

Id read somewhere that Gepetto might be voiced by Tom Waits…

I dont know if thats true.

I know Tom Waits is going to be a part of it, but its not clear what part.

Im sure it will be.

Hes a filmmaker who loves those kinds of movies and themes, and that kind of imagery.

So the two of them together will make for an interesting combination.

Do you think its important that you have a visual stylist at the helm of an animated film?

Should a stop-motion director be able to draw?

Time for one final question, then.

Given how well receivedFrankenweeniesbeen, do you think Tim Burton will be encouraged to make more stop-motion movies?

Allison Abbate, thank you very much.

Frankenweenieis out in UK cinemas on the 17th October.

You canread our review here.