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Johnny Depp talks about his role in The Corpse Bride during a news conference for the movie during the International Film Festival in Toronto, Saturday. (CP/Adrian Wyld)

Actor Johnny Depp pauses during a photo session June 21, 2003, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

TORONTO (CP) - The walking dead, dancing skeletons, murderous plots, arranged marriage and assorted talking creepy-crawlies - those are just some of the players in Tim Burton's Corpse Bride. The film has its North American premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and the stars and creators were on hand for a news conference Saturday.

The stop-action feature was a painstaking process for the filmmakers, with a week of work often producing as little as six seconds of finished film. But Burton, who produced and co-directed the film with Mike Johnson, said the method was the only choice for this story.

"This medium felt right for this story," said Burton. "There's something very emotional about the medium itself."

Corpse Bride follows the misadventures of Victor, voiced by Burton film veteran Johnny Depp. Victor is about to reluctantly embark on a marriage arranged by his parents when he finds himself accidentally married to the corpse of a jilted young bride. The voice of the corpse bride Emily is supplied by Burton's film muse and real-life romantic partner Helena Bonham Carter.

No one should assume that all animation is just for kids, and Burton's latest feature may be a bit dark for the very young, but fans of The Nightmare Before Christmas will rejoice for this not-so-blushing Bride.

"One of the things we were trying to do was show the complexities of relationship and love," said Burton of the film's themes. "There's both passion and longing and a bittersweet quality to it that's part of life."

Despite the stop-action technique, the animation process on Corpse Bride was more advanced than on Nightmare. "The process is moving the puppet one frame at a time. The technique is as old as cinema itself," said Johnson. "Sophisticated puppets and digital cameras, that's what helped us move it forward."

Victor, who bears a resemblance to the character Vincent from Burton's 1982 short of the same name, does evoke an animated Depp. Bonham Carter's haunting eyes and bewitching smile appear to have inspired Emily's features. But Burton said those appearances are merely coincidence.

"We designed these characters long before we asked any of the people to be in it," said Burton "We felt it was such good karma... We felt very lucky that we just got the right voices for the right character designs."

Mainstream actors providing voices for animated films has become increasingly common in the past few years. It's a practice Bonham Carter welcomes.

"If I had the choice, I wish I could just play puppets for the rest of my career, because you don't have to worry about what you look like," quipped the actress.

This creative team has worked together in various forms numerous times. Co-director Johnson was an animator on Nightmare Before Christmas and James and The Giant Peach.

Depp starred in Burton's Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood and this summer's Charlie and The Chocolate Factory. Bonham Carter worked with Burton on Planet of the Apes, Big Fish and Charlie while composer Danny Elfman has scored several of Burton's films, including Nightmare and Charlie.

"All of us were doing double duty, because we were all working on Charlie and The Chocolate Factory and Corpse Bride," points out Elfman.

Depp said he loves working with Burton. "Each time out of the gate, it's an education," said Depp.

"What's most inspiring is his drive, but also his inability to compromise his vision," said the actor.

Burton likewise sings Depp's praises. "Ever since Edward Scissorhands, Johnny just loves to change," said Burton. "That's just a very exciting creative process. You're always surprised each time gets better that way."

Will the team unite yet again? Burton, who directed the 1989 Batman starring Michael Keaton but none of the succeeding Batman entries, said he's found it's a mistake to do sequels.

"I think I've proven that a few times," he said. "For me, even if the movie's not great, there's something about a spark that's hard to capture again."

But Elfman said jokingly he's already finished the score for Edward Scissorhands 2, just in case Burton ever changes his mind.

Tim Burton's Corpse Bride opens in theatres later this month.