Animation Guild | We are 839 Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1544997
For many people, the most memorable career influences come early on, when they're still figuring out exactly what they want to do and how to do it. Not so for Henrique Jardim. He already had a full slate of Revisionist and Storyboard Artist credits under his belt, including Archer, Turbo FAST, Breadwinners, and Rick and Morty, when he met Mike Roth. It was 2016 when Cartoon Network's shorts program accepted a pitch from Jardim. At the time, Roth—who had recently spent five years as a Writer and Supervising Pro- ducer on Regular Show—was overseeing the program. As the two worked together, "there were all these elements that the studio was initially interested in, way back from my initial pitch," says Jardim, "[and] we were trying to cram it all into these eight minutes." He recalls that while Roth had clever ideas for how to do this, "he never wanted to take over your idea. That's not what he was there for, and he understood that." Jardim found this collaboration inspiring, that someone who was in a position of power to call the shots could re- spect that an idea was not his creative baby. "He essential- ly guided us into what we wanted to do with our vision," says Jardim. While they were trying to address the network's notes, he and Roth found themselves working until midnight for several days in a row. Jardim says Roth finally told him, "This is your idea. Do what you think is best… At some point there [has] to be a line drawn. You can't please everybody." "So that's exactly what I did," Jardim says. "I went home, and I retooled everything." He ditched elements that weren't working or that he felt pressured to include, and when he brought the piece back to Roth, Roth loved it. He helped Jardim polish it a little and told him to write an email describing why he made the choices he did. "Because he gave me the confidence to do so, I explained every- thing, and lo and behold the network was like, 'You were right, this is way better,'" Jardim says. While producing his short, Cadette in Charge, Jardim landed his first directing job, a turning point in his career. He went on to direct on Ben 10, Big Mouth, and Human Resources before arriving at the new series Mating Season as an Episodic Director. He says that this role requires constant communication with Storyboard Artists and Revisionists to make sure every shot fits together to create a cohesive episode. As well, he's always talking with his fel- low Episodic Directors so that the episodes flow over the course of the season. This need for micro-management could lead to a tight rein, but Jardim has carried his time with Roth forward: "I think about those lessons and how it's not just about one person. Directing and helping all these board artists get their scenes out the door, they will have unique takes on things, unique ways of approaching a scene … I would like for them to have their fingerprints on what they created." Jardim says that while, at the end of the day, most ani- mators work for big corporations, "we're still making art at the same time. Every scene that we get, every file that we work on, it can be an opportunity to grow as an artist. I see the people on my team who are younger than me, they have these passions they need to get out. I can relate to that." Not only can he relate, he has a map for how to support them through his own formative experience with Roth. CREATIVE FREEDOM HENRIQUE JARDIM Episodic Director Mating Season, Netflix/Titmouse INSPIRATION MIKE ROTH "[Roth] never wanted to take over your idea... He essentially guided us into what we wanted to do with our vision." Mating Season images courtesy Netflix. Henrique Jardim portrait by Tim Sullens. F E AT U R E 32 KEYFRAME