Disney Announces 'The Nightmare Before Christmas' Book

Image courtesy of Disney

After 30 years, discover the inspirations behind Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas and its legacy as a certified pop-culture experience.

What is it about Jack Skellington that is so compelling? Why does the love between Sally and Jack resonate with so many? The feature-length, stop-motion movie about the Pumpkin King of Halloween Town who becomes obsessed with celebrating Christmas is a fascinating musical and love story that has transcended the original film and captivated the world. From the improbable tale to the lovable characters, Tim Burton’s creation has turned into a lifestyle, branching into fashion, video games, card and board games, live-action concerts, themed celebrations at Disneyland, and even cameos in other movies.

Featuring an original foreword by Tim Burton himself, Disney Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas: Beyond Halloween Town celebrates the film and the culture that has grown around it with exclusive and original interviews from:

• Author and creator, Tim Burton

• Animators, sculptors, and other artists of the film

• Musical talent behind Jack Skellington, Danny Elfman

• The iconic voice of Sally, comic actress Catherine O’Hara

• Musicians on the Nightmare Revisited album

Delve into the magic of Halloween and Christmas in a story told through unlikely heroes that started 30 years ago. This beautifully designed coffee-table book is sure to captivate die-hard and casual fans alike.

Emily Zemler is a writer and journalist based in London. She is a frequent contributor to the Los Angeles Times and Rolling Stone, among other prestigious outlets. Emily is the co-author of A Sick Life, with TLC’s Tionne “T-Boz” Watkins, and the author of The Art and Making of Aladdin and Disney Princess: Beyond the Tiara.

Tim Burton, director and artist, is widely regarded as one of cinema’s most imaginative filmmakers. Both his live-action and animated films have earned Academy Awards, Golden Globes, BAFTAs, and many other industry accolades, cementing his status as one of the greatest filmmakers of our time.

He has a dedicated following, notably for classic features such as Beetlejuice (1988); Edward Scissorhands (1990); and Sweeny Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007); as well as blockbuster hits Batman (1989) and Batman Returns (1992); Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005); and Alice in Wonderland (2010). He helped to reinvigorate the stop-motion industry with his 1993 creation and cult classic Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas; followed by Corpse Bride (2005) and Frankenweenie (2012).

Long before becoming a director, Burton expressed himself through drawing, painting, poetry, and photography, all of which have been documented in books The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy & Other Stories, The Napkin Art of Tim Burton, and the 2009 release, The Art of Tim Burton, a 430-page volume comprising more than 40 years of his personal and professional artwork. Coinciding with the release of The Art of Tim Burton, the Museum of Modern Art opened an extensive exhibition of his work in New York, which went on to tour in Melbourne, Toronto, Los Angeles, Paris, and Seoul. A second exhibition of his artwork, The World of Tim Burton, continues to tour internationally. A third, immersive exhibition entitled Tim Burton’s Labyrinth, premiered in Madrid in 2022 and continues to tour internationally.

Available August 22, 2023, everywhere books are sold.

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