Why is Hollywood counting down to 9? Because it's the first new creation from the mad-genius film director and producer Tim Burton since his Oscar-winning Sweeney Todd, and now Buzznet has the exclusive first look at 9's darkly beautiful artwork.

Burton and director Shane Acker have been quietly toiling on 9 for months, and as these sketches make clear, they'll be applying their twisted perspective to the world of technology. The movie is slated for Sept. 9 of this year (that's 9-9-09 for you numerologists), and it tells the story of a living rag doll (voiced by Elijah Wood), who joins in a futuristic battle for Earth against a scientist's outlandish mechanized creations. 

Joining Elijah Wood in the cast is well-respected actor Christopher Plummer, who voices the character 1.  1 is the scientist's first and eldest creation and as such, he is the self-proclaimed leader of the group.  Clever and sly, but also domineering and quick-tempered, 1 is threatened by the arrival of the newest member, 9, whose higher intellect leads him to question 1's authority.

Straight from Burton's art department, these sketches reveal the CatBeast, the most primitive machine in the movie.  It's a hunter with retractable razor claws and night vision make it technologically advanced, but it's cat skull head, raw power, and agility bring it back to the primitive animal it was modeled after.

If that's not catnip enough for Burton fans, there's a trailer and a smattering of details on the movie's official site. The scientist's laboratory contains details about how the earth came to be in such a state of peril along with sketches of "the brain," one of the scientist's inventions, the scientist's diary, and other bits of background information (narrated by Elijah Wood, voice of 9).  The laboratory reveals just enough to pique the viewer's interest without giving away too much.

It seems to be a cautionary tale about technology, with the bad guys as sharp, inhuman robots, while the 9 creations are human-like soft-looking dolls.  It's a battle of good versus evil, few versus many.  But this much is clear, it's sure to be amazing.

Are you excited for 9?