Tim Burton pre-''Scissorhands''

Now that Tim Burton is one of Hollywood’s hottest properties, two of the director’s early short films may be resurrected for home video. Frankenweenie (1984), a 25-minute film about a young boy who brings his dead dog back to life, was shot during Burton’s stint as an animator at Disney from the early to mid-’80s and has never been released. The seven-minute Vincent (1982), about a young boy who idolizes Vincent Price, is narrated by the horrormeister himself. When Disney executives first screened the films, Burton’s dark fairy tales received mixed reviews. ”They didn’t quite know how to react to them,” admits Burton, 32. ”At the time, everyone was really concerned with what Walt would have thought.” The short films’ themes of youthful trauma recur in such mainstream Burton successes as Beetlejuice (1988), Batman (1989), and Edward Scissorhands. But Burton, preparing to direct the next Batman, concedes his early films will probably never have wide appeal. ”They’ll probably end up in the special-interest video section,” he speculates, ”next to Richard Simmons’ exercise videos.”