New Zealand's Corey Baker directs choreography for Tim Burton's latest film, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice
New Zealand star Corey Baker can add another impressive job to his increasingly awe-inspiring CV: choreographer and movement director for the new Hollywood hit, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, directed by Tim Burton.
A sequel to Burton’s beloved 1988 horror comedy, this 2024 motion picture for Warner Bros. reunites original cast members Michael Keaton, Catherine O’Hara and Winona Ryder, joined in the new movie by Jenna Ortega, Monica Bellucci, Willem Defoe and Justin Theroux.
'Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is such a brilliant movie and it was the joy of my life to work on it,' Baker said on social media. 'Choreographing a Tim Burton world and his eclectic characters is a true honour. All the amazing actors were so collaborative and fun and you can see that in the movie.'
In 2020, Baker received a "Culture in Quarantine" commission from the BBC and remotely directed and choreographed a 3-minute film titled Swan Lake Bath Ballet, filmed by 27 elite ballet dancers in their homes during COVID-19 lockdowns. The film was released in July 2020 and went viral, with over 4 million views by the following month. The film won the 2021 Prix Italia award for web fiction.
In 2021, Baker created two dance films focusing on climate justice: Blown for the BBC and Leaders of a New Regime, which uses Lorde's track of the same title. Dance Race, a commission for the BBC's Dance Passion season, was broadcast on BBC3 in March 2022. Baker was chief choreographer and movement director for the opening ceremony of the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Beetlejuice is out in UK cinemas from 6 September 2024.