TOON FAN - The ultimate toon Magazine #19

TOONFAN MAGAZINE #19

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TOON FAN THE ULTIMATE TOON MAGAZINE # 19

INTERVIEW WITH

REBECCA SUGAR “Adventure Time” writer & “Steven Universe” creator

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Interview with Creative Group Senior Producer Leslie Kleine

SUMMER REFRESH!

#6 CHARACTER FACTS #13 OF THE WEEK INTERVIEW WITH #16 REBECCA SUGAR

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///////////// SUMMARY

TOONFAN MAGAZINE #19

I guess I’ve spent enough time designing this magazine as someone would spend watching all the shows it mentions, hahahah. I really hope everyone likes it, it IS a personal work after all, and I’ve put all of my cartoon love in this <3 Even though it just mentions Cartoon Network on this ~concept edition~, the true goal was to present different authors and enterprises that produce/ write/have some cartoon work. I guess next editions would show some Disney or Nickelodeon work. Well, it’s probably better for me to stay short with this text because you will read a lot from here, hahaha. Besos de fuego~

Whoa, that’s a real magazine, though!

TOONFAN MAGAZINE #19 - SEPT. 2014

COVER: Augusto Queiroz DISTRIBUTION: Augusto Queiroz

SELLING: Augusto Queiroz

GRAPHIC PROJECT: Augusto Queiroz

COLLABORATORS: Walter D. Neto

EDITOR: Augusto Queiroz

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TOONFAN MAGAZINE #19

CARTOON NETWORK’S NEW SUMMER REFRESH!

CARTOON NETWORK’S NEW

SUMMER REFRESH! Interview with Creative Group Senior Producer Leslie Kleine

What time is it? It’s ADVENTURE TIME! Or really – it’s time for Cartoon Network to get a Summer Refresh!

Earlier this month, I was contacted about this particular campaign and was super excited to see Cartoon Network’s latest makeover. If you’re an avid Cartoon Network fan, you’ve most likely already seen this, but just in case you haven’t (or you’re just tuning in now), I’ll explain it to you.

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CARTOON NETWORK’S NEW SUMMER REFRESH!

TOONFAN MAGAZINE #19

Nikki is an illustrator, designer, and geeky gamer living in the hill country of Austin, TX. Writer of “Snailbird”, wich is a blog about art, comics, design, gaming, life, nature, and a little bit of nonsense thrown in for good measure.

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CARTOON NETWORK’S NEW SUMMER REFRESH!

The Summer Refresh Project “Courtesy of its in-house creative agency Creative Group, Cartoon Network received a summer makeover, with a new set of brightly colored images and a video seamlessly blending the work of top animators around the globe. As part of the 2013 “Summer Refresh,” the new graphics feature popular Cartoon Network characters, such as the Annoying Orange and Finn and Jake from Adventure Time. Inspired by their cool new look, Creative Group took the daring step of stitching together a 60-second video comprising the work of six different animators and animation companies from around the world.”

An Exquisite Corpse of Animators!

As mentioned, six different animation studios were approached to submit 10 second pieces for this video. The only rules they were given were to stick to the color scheme, include characters from certain Cartoon Network shows (Adventure Time, Regular Show, MAD, Ben 10, Gumball, Looney Tunes, and Annoying Orange), and not show any nudity. What you see before you is an amazing and seamless work of moving art.

The animation studios that took part in the Summer Refresh project were Impactist (Portand, OR), Awesome Incorporated (Atlanta, GA), CRCR (France), Alex Grigg (UK), Eamonn O’Neill (UK), and Rubberhouse (Australia), with music created by Impactist.

Leslie Kleine, senior producer of the Creative Group in charge of this makeover, said of the project, “We referred to this as our science experiment, mainly because we weren’t totally convinced that it would work, [Creative Group and Adult Swim Creative Director] Jacob Escobedo had this vision of several animators of varying styles creating unique pieces that could then be stitched together into one interstitial. In the end, we reached out to animation teams from Australia, France, Portland Oregon, Atlanta Georgia, and two from the UK, and they were all enthusiastic, even though they wouldn’t know what the others were doing. …

This project was an incredible lesson in risk, but also one of the most rewarding that I’ve ever worked on. What we got exceeded our expectations.”

Leslie Kleine is a Senior Producer for Cartoon Network’s Creative Group with Turner Broadcasting in Atlanta, GA and has been with the company for 13 years. Prior to working at Cartoon Network, she spent a year stage managing at Playhouse on the Square in Memphis, TN. Leslie holds two degrees from the University of Alabama in Telecommunications & Film and Theatre.

I had a chance to interview Leslie a little more on Cartoon Network’s new look and the process of the whole thing. It’s a really cool inside look into how the design and branding process works for projects like these for big networks. So without further introduction, on with the interview!

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CARTOON NETWORK’S NEW SUMMER REFRESH!

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RAD LINK, DUDE!

... The video is pretty kick-ass.

Interview with Cartoon Network’s Leslie Kleine 01. Where did the original idea for the Summer Refresh project come from? Tell us a little about it and how the idea to use other animators came about.

The idea came from our VP of Design, Jacob Escobedo. He had been admiring a number of animators and was looking for an opportunity to work with them in a way that would allow them to maintain their own animation styles. He proposed the Equisite Corpse concept & we all agreed that we had to try it.

02. Considering that there were only three simple rules for the animators, were you worried about the outcome? What were the biggest risks of the project and how did you get around them?

Worry never crept in. We had no idea if the pieces would stitch together but we thought we’d at least end up with some really great :10 bumps! Regarding challenges, we knew it was critical that we have clear communication & collaboration but we were working in multiple time zones so we utilized Basecamp to post updates and share progress. It was a wonderful resource for us. The final posts were one big love fest with everyone gushing over each other’s work.

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CARTOON NETWORK’S NEW SUMMER REFRESH!

03. What did the process look like? Being that there were so many people involved, what was the timeline like?

The first stage was music. Michael Ouweleen, SVP of the Creative Group, had been listening to Impactist so we reached out to them about making some tracks for us. Right before the call, we discovered that Impactist is a powerhouse duo, Kelly & Daniel, who also direct and animate. They’re probably whipping up a cure for the common cold in their spare time. But seriously, they delivered the first pass of music and we chose our top two tracks – no notes.

We immediately invited them to take one of the :10 slots to animate.

We asked the animators to work simultaneously so the timeline was fairly straightforward with everyone hitting the same dates. The first delivery was each animator’s final frame of their allotted :10, which was the starting point for the next team.

04. I’m a big fan of the color scheme y’all chose. Where did the inspiration for that come from?

Our network design DNA is black and white checkerboard with an infusion of CMY. We wanted to update the look this year so our design team collectively made some adjustments which included brightening the CMY. 05. In my eyes, this project was a success! I love the new look and the video was really amazing (and seamless) to watch! Are there any plans to do this again in the future?

Thanks – we’re so proud of the work from every team. I don’t know if we’ll tackle another Exquisite Corpse but I can guarantee that we’ll dive into the unknown again.

06. What was your favorite part of working with all these people?

When we called to pitch the job, we hadn’t worked out the process yet so we were like, “Hey, we like you. Do you want to work with a bunch of animators from around the world? We’ll email you the details later.” The amazing thing was that everyone we spoke to jumped on board – and it wasn’t for the cash! They were all so gracious and collaborative… Now you have a taste of how our Basecamp posts read!

07. And finally… What’s your favorite color?

It’s a three-way tie between cyan, magenta and yellow. I’m subconsciously working them into every facet of my life though my two boys have drawn the line at magenta shoe laces.

Thank you to Leslie for taking time to answer my questions and for everyone from Creative Group and Cartoon Network for the awesome project!

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CHARACTER FACTS OF THE WEEK: MORDECAI

TOONFAN MAGAZINE #19

Character Facts of the Week:

mordecaI

Mordecai is one of the characters from Regular Show, along with Rigby and Pops. Here are ten facts about the character. Did you know all of them?

1. Mordecai’s white feathers differ throughout the cartoon. Most of the time they are pure white but sometimes tinged blue.

2. Mordecai drinks lots of coffee and soda.

3. Mordecai makes up excuses to go to the coffee shop to see his crush Margaret.

Wanna see more about your favorite character? Visit cartoonnetwork.com and vote for weekly #facts!

6. He filled out a job application for Rigby because Rigby claimed it was ‘boring’.

7. Mordecai once almost lost his life, to avoid being labelled a slacker at work.

8. Mordecai is an expert at video games.

9. Mordecai has a high school diploma.

4. Mordecai said the first line in the pilot episode of Regular Show.

10. Mordecai only has two toes instead of the usual four.

5. Mordecai is a 6’3” tall anthropomorphic blue jay.

CHECK OUT MORE OF MORDECAI, RIGBY, AND ALL OF THE REGULAR SHOW GANG, ONLY ON CARTOON NETWORK!

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By Eric Kohn, via IndieWire

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INTERVIEW WITH REBECCA SUGAR

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INTERVIEW WITH REBECCA SUGAR

Rebecca Sugar INTERVIEW WITH

‘Adventure Time’ writer Rebecca Sugar on ‘Steven Universe,’ being Cartoon Network’s first female show creator and why pop art is ‘offensive’

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R

ebecca Sugar might not be a household name, but with the rising popularity of Cartoon Network’s “Adventure Time,” she’s practically achieved the same degree of popularity.

The 26-year-old School of Visual Arts grad played a crucial role in writing several episodes of the show that brought a new level of acclaim, particularly with regard to many of its melancholic songs, demos for which have been uploaded to YouTube by her father, Rob. All good things must come to an end, but in Sugar’s case, that means a new beginning: She left “Adventure Time” earlier this year to launch her own original series, “Steven Universe,” which premieres on Cartoon Network tonight at 8pm. The program has made Sugar the first female show creator in the history of the network, which is a fitting occasion for a series that’s potentially groundbreaking in other ways: Building on the cross-over appeal of “Adventure Time,” the new program has been designed to appeal to kids and adults alike.

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INTERVIEW WITH REBECCA SUGAR

Sugar’s protagonist is adolescent Steven (voiced by Zach Callison), a character based on her real-life brother (now grown) who lives in a mansion with “the Crystal Gems” -- a group of super-powered women who possess gems that give them their special abilities. The chubby, hyperactive Steven has a gem, too, right in his bellybutton, though he has yet to discover his own power. In the first two 10-minute episodes, Steven faces a giant bug monster using his wits alone, and joins forces with his curiously single musician father (who lives a nomadic life out of the back of his van) to save the planet. With musical interludes, irreverent asides and surprisingly moments of depth, “Steven Universe” is poised to build on the appeal of “Adventure Time” while unfurling an entirely unique mythology. Sugar sat down with Indiewire at New York Comic Con (and followed up a few weeks later by phone) to discuss her vision for the show, how “Adventure Time” prepared her for it, and why she doesn’t think any story should solely address audiences of a certain age.

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INTERVIEW WITH REBECCA SUGAR

How did working on “Adventure Time” prepare you for writing your own show?

I think I really got a better understanding of how a show needs to be universal. You can make it for this younger audience, or you could make it for a younger audience and other people who enjoy it. You can build those layers into it. I got to a place where I was trying to tie every joke to something meaningful so you almost couldn’t separate them -- not to sneak anything in, but to make it so interconnected that you could enjoy it on different levels simultaneously and not just shift around, which I think “Adventure Time” does incredibly well. I learned a lot from the way they worked.

it does have. With “Steven,” I’m hoping that the internal logic will be so visible that maybe it can even work backwards, where people will realize that it’s also in “Adventure Time.” But I hope that the people who enjoy that aspect of “Adventure Time” will also recognize it in my show, because that was my favorite thing about “Adventure Time.”

“You can make it for this younger audience, or you could make it for a younger How long did you spend audience and other people making your decision to leave the show? who enjoy it.”

Did you realize when you were pitching the show that if it happened, you’d be the first female show creator in the history of the network?

I knew, but tried actively not to think about it. There are a lot of ways in which I feel different from other creators at the network, but I think the biggest one is that I’m not from California, and that’s always made me feel different from the other people I was working with who went to CalArts. So I feel that in an abstract way. In my life I feel the East Coast-West Coast difference more. I’m always trying to psych myself up and say, “I can do this!” because it’s a very stressful thing.

Do you want to carry the “Adventure Time” audience for this show or start from scratch?

I think it’ll be different, because there are people that would love “Adventure Time” but maybe don’t watch it because they think that it doesn’t have the internal logic

Well, it was happening at the same time. I was working on both simultaneously for a while. I pretty much did that until it became impossible to do, which was during the “Simon and Marcy” episode [of “Adventure Time”], my last episode.

But by the “Fiona and Cake” episode, I was starting to not be able to do both at once.

You said you wanted it to be about your brother and deepen the back story of this character without making it too heavy. It feels like you’re going somewhere unique with the story you’re trying to tell, but also allowing it to be accessible. Can you talk a little bit about how you formulated that balance in a show like this, especially considering the limitations of the format?

I feel like lately really great cable TV has had a lot of layers to it. Things can be rewatched and rewatched. So you have to figure out two different of shows: one for the people who deeply care and one for the people who want to watch fun shows. I like that as a puzzle, and am trying to do that with this.

Everything’s from the perspective of Steven, and so I hope that allows that to happen.

He’s experiencing everything for the first time, and so are you. Hopefully, you’ll even get to pick up on things he doesn’t notice.

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In terms of making the jump from working on “Adventure Time” to something like this, where you controlled the overall aesthetic? Did it seem like a very different experience going through the first couple episodes?

Yeah. It was important to me to make it about things that were really personal to me, because I couldn’t find any other foothold into my own thing except to make it about my brother. Trying to take everything I ever loved about cartoons and put them all together was tough. So I did really have to hope that it all made sense, and I wasn’t sure that it would, but I think it did. I had a lot of help from people who felt the same way, who felt really strongly about what they wanted to see, and, from other cartoons, what they hadn’t seen before.

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Your brother’s older now, in a different stage of life, and presumably doesn’t live with a group of superheroes. To what extent does this character align with the real Steven?

I think I was going more for the feeling of growing up together. It’s funny because he’s working on the show, he’s a background artist, and he’s still the emotional support for me as he was when I was going through tough times in high school. He’s here backing me up, and it’s bizarre to be making a show about that as it’s happening in real time. It’s him in the way that he’s there for [the Crystal Gems], and wants to be a good role model, but the rest is fantasy. I wanted it to be a sort of reverse escapism style show, where fantasy is having this interest in real life. I want the real life to feel really real. So the feeling has to come from a real place.

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The three Crystal Gems: Amethyst, Garnet & Pearl

How about the music? In the first episode there’s a rap, in the second it’s a cheesy pop song. You’re not being held down by a specific genre. Are we going to see one new song per episode?

There isn’t always a song. I’ve tried to do it where it always feels right. The rap was written by my storyboarder Jeff Liu and my writers collaborated on the lyrics, and he programmed it into his Gameboy, which I have no idea how to do. My animation director turned it into the prog rock song I hoped it could be, but I don’t really know how to write a prog rock song. There are a bunch of amazing musicians on the crew who are writing stuff. So every couple episodes there will be one, and they’re always a little different. Also my composers are brilliant -- the score has been so interesting to me, they’re really melodic.

So you said that everything you’ve ever loved in cartoons is the energy you’re trying to funnel into the show. Are there specific shows you’re thinking about

that were very influential to you? Or just specific moments?

I’m really inspired by the show “Future Boy Conan” from the ‘70s. It’s a really beautiful show, and I love shonen anime and shojo anime, and I like the thought of mixing them together. But also American cartoons.

Just everything. Everyone on the crew, we don’t really have the same set of influences -- it’s sort of a melting pot of fandom. I’m also interested in the feeling of when you really love something, you see something in it that wasn’t there, and I’m trying to put that into this. That thing that you wanted, but you really just invented -- I’m trying to make that present in this. A sort of intense fan energy.

During your Comic Con panel, these two girls came up to the mic and sang a song they wrote for you. How do you feel about the contrast between young fans you’ve developed and older viewers interested as well? Which means more to you?

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I would really love for both. I loved cartoons growing up too much, so I love the people who love them too much. I want to make things for them, because when you feel that way and you see something that addresses that, it means everything. You worry because you like cartoons too much, but there’s something about the fact that these cartoons are for everyone, and you find yourself attached to them in a way that other people aren’t.

That doesn’t mean that it’s not for everyone, either. It’s so accessible. That’s why I love this art form. I find pop art really offensive because it’s taking a piece of popular culture and putting it somewhere where people can’t see it. So I want this to be both. I want it to be incredibly accessible and fully of secrets for people that want to find them.

When you say “pop art”...

I mean fine art that addresses popular art but sort of segregates it from everyone.

It’s the idea that there’s a vapidness of popular culture that should be addressed and appreciated by a select few who can understand that that is interesting.

Really, it’s always interesting. The stuff on television, and the way that people can love it, is a lot more beautiful to me than the emptiness.

You had a close-up view of the rise of “Adventure Time” but weren’t directly in the spotlight with the fandom associated with that show. Did you learn anything from that that would impact how you want “Steven Universe” to get out there and build its own fanbase?

Sure. I admire “Adventure Time” for being a piece of art in the way that I think art should be. If you want to see it is poetry you can, and if you don’t, you can watch a

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“I want it to be incredibly accessible and fully of secrets for people that want to find them.” fun cartoon. I think that’s amazing. I used to feel that people around me were incredible and storyboarding and writing and drawing, just doing incredibly sophisticated things for “Adventure Time,” and I was making this cartoon that I wanted, that had depth, in a really sink-your-teeth-into-it kind of way, which I would have wanted as a fan. But which is maybe a little bit shallower.

The profundity of “Adventure Time” was what, for me, made it feel like a real discovery -- it was reaching for something nobody expected it to reach for. I detected a little bit of that towards the end of “Steven Universe.” Do you plan to build the mythology of the show in similar fashion?

Oh yes. A lot happened before Steven existed. And he doesn’t know much about it. That’s what the show is really about.

Every facet of it, fully learning why he exists, has been really fun to think about.

All the characters have very particular relationships to what he is. That’s been the most fun thing for me going forward into the show, really going into that. It’s complicated for them; they all feel that they have an inner life that Steven doesn’t always get to see, but is a huge part of.

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is it... over?

SEE YOU NEXT EDITION!