The Directors Take Podcast

E217 - Demystifying VFX with BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE’s Angus Bickerton

The Directors Take Podcast

Show Notes

This is episode 17 in the second season of The Directors Take Podcast. In this week’s episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined by legendary VFX Supervisor Angus Bickerton, whose career has stretched over 40 years and landed him jobs on films such as Lost in Space, Tim Burton’s - Dark Shadows & Batman (1989), Kingsman Gold Circle, Rocketman, HBO’s House of the Dragon and most recently on Tim Burtons sequel to his 80s hit BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE starring Michael Keaton.

This chat includes: How does a VFX supervisor collaborate with the director to bring a vision to life on film and TV? The role of pre-vis in VFX workflows on projects? How can a VFX supervisor balance creative freedom with tight budget constraints? Working with different creative approaches - Tim Burton, Matthew Vaughn, Miguel Sapochnik. What makes the volume and blue screen techniques different for actors and crew? How do VFX artists adapt to changes on set and in post production? Crafting iconic sequences like the Batwing shot in Batman (1989) and dragon chases in House of the Dragon. The VFX of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice. How can directors be better equipped for VFX on their projects? Our wonderful sponsor for this episode is THE NATIONAL FILM and TELEVISION SCHOOL. We’ve also partnered with SCRIPTATION to offer our listeners an EXCLUSIVE DISCOUNT on their software, which you can find on the link below… http://scriptation.com/thedirectorstake

Nuggets of the week

Marcus: Jim Cummings The Beta Test documentary https://x.com/jimmycthatsme/status/1797659509172654512?s=46

Oz: https://merlin.allaboutbirds.org/

Angus: Mach Loop in Wales - Military Aircraft fly low through the valleys, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fyszRvOOVmg

Credits Music by Oliver Wegmüller

Socials The Directors' Take: Twitter (X) & Instagram Marcus: Twitter (X) & Instagram Oz:Instagram If you have any questions relating to the episode or have topics you would like covering in future releases, reach out to us at [email protected]

More from The Directors Take Podcast

Oct 4, 2026

PODBEAN COPY This is episode 9 in the third season of The Directors Take Podcast. Your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are back, having both largely finished their longform projects, Marcus with his debut feature film CAST ME! and Oz with a couple of TV directing jobs now under his belt, they both break down their journey across this year and discuss the key differences they experienced in transitioning from directing shorts-to-longform. Credits Graphic Design by Ria Nightingale Music by Oliver Wegmüller

Jun 7, 2026

This is episode 8 in the third season of The Directors Take Podcast. In this week’s episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined in conversation by Manchester based Writer/Director and 2025 Screen Daily Star of Tomorrow Liam White. Liam built traction through his short film work which includes Doughnut (2020), Tick Tick Tick (2020), Punch-Drunk an exceptional thriller set in a cafe in Marseille which was longlisted for a BAFTA in 2022 and his most recent short film Housewarming won Best UK Short at Raindance Film Festival and earnt a BIFA nomination, firmly securing him as one of the UKs most exciting filmmaking talents. Liam now has several features in active development, two with Anna Keeley at Escape Plan and another with Heyday films. In this episode which was recorded live in 2025, with a catch up on the end, we break down his journey so far as he ascends the industry. As ever, it’s a must listen! Credits Graphic Design by Ria Nightingale Music by Oliver Wegmüller

Apr 19, 2026

This is episode 7 in the third season of The Directors Take Podcast. In this week’s episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined in conversation by some of the creative team behind SURVIVING EARTH, the BFI & FILM4 backed debut feature film from Writer/Director Thea Gajic. Producer Sophie Reynolds also joins us to talk through the film’s life cycle, as it successfully navigated the UK development system to eventually earn a Premiere at SXSW2025 and a UK theatrical release from 24th April. As ever… This is an in-depth episode about the pathway and process!

Apr 5, 2026

This is episode 6 in the third season of The Directors Take Podcast. In this week’s episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad are joined in conversation by Producer Hollie Bryan and Writer/Director Jack King, the BAFTA nominated team behind The Ceremony, the indie feature film that won the Sean Connery Prize at Edinburgh International Film Festival before going on to earn two BIFA nominations and a BAFTA one too for good measure. We caught up with them the morning after the BAFTAs to talk through their experience of making the film on limited resources and the journey which came after… It’s a must listen!

Feb 22, 2026

This is episode 5 in the third season of The Directors Take Podcast. In this week’s special episode your hosts Marcus Anthony Thomas and Oz Arshad were joined for a LIVE conversation at the wonderful venue of MetFilm School Manchester by acclaimed actor Corin Silva. Corin is a rising star in the Film & TV industry with roles in SAS Rogue Heroes, Masters of the Air, All the Light We Cannot See and the upcoming release of the BAFTA nominated Wasteman. He is also a big advocate of short filmmaking and has featured in over 100 short films. As ever, this conversation breaks down his pathway into acting, his process and we uncover his thoughts on the Actor/Director relationship.

See all episodes →