A 'Sweeney' soiree for Burton

By Borys Kit

DreamWorks/Paramount and Warner Bros. International threw the first awards-related event of 2008 on Friday night with a cocktail reception for Tim Burton in honor of his contender "Sweeney Todd."

Despite the very heavy rain, quite a few people turned out for the event, held at the S Bar near Hollywood and Vine, for a chance to say a few words to Burton. Burton actually showed up a bit late, because of the weather, and looked quite relaxed for a guy who has been constantly go-go-go. He finished the movie in the nick of time, did press for it in North America, then went back to London to be with his wife, Helena Bonham Carter, for the birth of their child. At 10 o'clock Friday night he was going to a Q&A at the Arclight that was put together just three days before (and sold out in 24 hours), then was immediately going to Japan to promote the movie there.

Burton said that because he's been so busy he hadn't had time to catch the season's other movies like "There Will Be Blood" and had no intention of seeing them in screener form. It's theatrical or bust for the man.

Speaking of Japan, the country is a neat case for the movie, which with its many angles has presented many marketing challenges for DreamWorks and Warners. In Japan, audiences actually love musicals unabashedly, so there is no need to hide the musical elements of the film in trailers and TV spots, like Paramount did here. So Warners, which is handling international distribution, is playing up that part of it. Still, there are no guarantees.

When told that the night's event kicked off the year in terms of awards events, Burton jovially exclaimed, "Excellent! I like kicking things off. Get me a champagne bottle, and I'll smash it against the wall!"

(Getty Images photo)