Animation Guild

Winter 2018

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WINTER 2018 19 O N T H E J O B in production—and I have a fantastic team that makes it a real pleasure. As a showrunner, I collaborate with our supervising director on episodes, oversee animatic edits, take an edit pass on writing distributions, discuss designs with the art director and artists, liaise with the Disney executives, plan with the production crew, meet with board artists and directors for script handouts/ questions, call animation notes, attend sound mixes and do music spots. Oh! And write! DO YOU OFTEN COLLABORATE WITH EDUCATIONAL CONSULTANTS ON THE SHOW? HOHLFELD: They weigh in a lot during development. They run the testing which is done in storybook form. JOHNSON: For some shows, it make sense to have a curriculum but for a show that's kind of a Disney Junior's superhero show like The Rocketeer there's a little bit more of a balance. DUBUC: Sometimes we'll get a prompt specifically from the educational consultant. Some shows actually have a cultural consultant if they have characters that are of a specific ethnicity they want make sure they get that right. Sometimes consultants can help you with pronunciation if you have a component of a different language. JOHNSON: We had a NASA consultant. WELLMAN: Dr. Randy Wesson of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He had all kinds of amazing insight for our space stories. HOW OFTEN DO YOU COLLABORATE WITH THE ARTISTS? JOHNSON: Every show is different but the most productive shows are ones that don't have walls put up between the departments. So we work closely and as often as we can with the designers. WHAT ARE THE BEST PARTS AND MOST CHALLENGING PARTS OF YOUR JOB? WELLMAN: How rewarding watching a first cut is, and seeing all the disparate parts pulled together—lines recorded in different places, rough designs, and seeing the story on its feet. And the "challenge" of being a small part of pulling it all together is what makes it so rewarding! HOHLFELD: The most challenging thing is coming up with new ideas. While every show has its tropes and usual stories to tell, our stories have to fit our very specific world, but still be kid-relatable, character-driven, and simply told. We make sure the stories don't get too complex, and yet still interesting. Another challenge is addressing and dealing with notes from different sources—studio execs, educational consultants, S&P. And, as always, the mere act of writing—of finishing a scene knowing it checked all the boxes story-wise and was funny and well-paced—is the most satisfying thing of all, and why we're all still in this profession. JOHNSON: The best part of my job is seeing stories materialize that are unique to our particular series. Meaning they wouldn't work for another show, but can only exist with our specific characters living in our specific world. The most challenging part is in the beginning of almost any series, where tone and humor and heart all need to find their rightful place until finally, the series finds its legs. Once that happens, we can then enjoy the best part of the job. HANEY: Best part is the people! My favorite days are when we have story breaks and/ or brainstorms and all get together to talk character and story. The most challenging, other than cutting down my scripts to only 19 pages, is finding creative, entertaining solutions to notes. Nothing sucks the fun out of a script like having to stop the flow of action to over explain something. It's a challenge, but I enjoy finding the most fun, streamlined way to get big ideas across to our young audience. SILVER: I love the people that I work with—it makes coming to work every day a pleasure. DUBUC: I'm surrounded by tremendously talented people, and it's inspiring to create this show with them. The most challenging part is getting a note that you don't agree with but aren't allowed to ignore. The best strategy (after a long walk and perhaps some growling) is to try to find a solution that addresses the note but still satisfies you and serves the story. THE ROCKETEER'S WRITING TEAM AT WILD CANARY: Nicole Dubuc ( 5) SHOWRUNNER Kendall Haney ( 3) STAFF WRITER Brian Hohlfeld (1) STAFF WRITER Greg Johnson (2) STORY EDITOR Claudia Silver (4) STAFF WRITER Kris Wellman (NOT PICTURED) SCRIPT COORDINATOR 1 2 3 4 5

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