| HF Feature Interview with Chris Reccardi - Page 3 |
| Written by Matt Holdaway Monday, 06 October 2008 21:52 | ||||||||
Page 3 of 3
animation development screen shot MH- Are there cartoons you have worked on that you felt you were able to fully exhibit your personal style? CR- Yes, the few pilots Ive created but there really is no one style---its whatever the show demands. As far as the series Ive worked on, Ive tried foremost to realize the style of the show and its creator. Doing this for many years has not weakened my own Style, it has strengthened it by making me adapt to new styles and influences. Too many punks these days come into a trade and want to show everyone how great they are. They may have talent, but you cant beat the experience of doing something for years and absorbing new influences. I still believe in the old-school Zen approach: to have humility and apprentice under a master---then one day you will BE a master. MH-Which show gave you the most freedom? CR- Again, R&S. Firstly, In the form of content, since you cant really do some of that subject matter nowadays, and secondly we were able to have a lot of creative control---Me and Mike Kim, Tom McGrath, Lynne Naylor---we were able to storyboard, animate, do voices and even music. But Samurai Jack and Spongebob also gave a lot of freedom to write and come up with crazy shit. MH- Many of the cartoons you have worked on, while definitely modern, have a classic feel. Are there specific classic cartoons you pay homage to or styles you like to incorporate? CR- I dont know if its a conscious thing because if you love something you absorb it and it comes out in your own work. But the different types of shows Ive worked on naturally draw on many influences, such as Samurai Jack (Miyazaki, Anime), Powerpuff Girls (various U.P.A. cartoons, 60s Japan) Ren & Stimpy (Bob Clampett cartoons, Hanna Barbera), and the pilot Lynne Naylor and I did The Modifyers ( Hans Eidelman, Ronald Searle). MH- Are there specific writers you enjoy working with? CR- Youre opening up a can of worms, and Ill try to keep it brief. With the exception of a couple of guys who write outlines for Spongebob, I despise most animation writers. They are a big reason why most modern cartoons suck. TV bosses love writers because their shit is lame, generic, unfunny and unimaginative enough that a typical executive can understand it. The best writers Ive worked with are Cartoonists. Really talented ones, guys who are kind of fucked up and unordinary. Bob Camp, John Kricfalusi, Aaron Springer, Mike Mitchell, Dave Smith. Guys like us come up with a simple outline and add gags, character and even plot elements freely without the limitations of a script. If youre a talented and funny cartoonist you can write, you can draw what you write, and you can make it funny and you know the medium, so you write stuff that takes advantage of it rather than mimicking bad sitcoms. This requires a very talented cartoonist to do effectively, one with a directors vision and these are few. Obviously, the craft of writing has its importance, especially wording things effectively so that the reader, whether an executive or artist, will get the points clearly. And shows like the Simpsons and South park are obviously funny and well written, but they are different products than what Im talking about---stuff thats hilarious, visually sophisticated and unpredictable, like early Popeyes, a handful of Bob Clampett cartoons, and Ren & Stimpy. Most of these shows were written with a group of funny cartoonists, and then turned into an outline by a staff writer whose job is to organize and structuralize the story. Thats it. Fortunately Cartoon Network is attracting a whole new generation of funny/talented cartoonists with the new Cartoonstitute Shorts program. I hope that this new breed of cartoons will prove how much more entertaining Cartoonist-written shows will be. There, you asked. 
I'm So Sorry Madelaine H. MH - Are there specific Cartoonists you enjoy working with? CR- (deep breath) Aaron Springer, Craig Kellman, Charlie Bean, Don Shank, Genddy Tartakovsky, Craig McCracken, Paul Rudish, Lynne Naylor, Justin Thompson, Carey Yost Im sure I left some out. Bob Camp was one of my favorites one of the funniest and most intelligent guys I ever knew. Of course, by the end of Ren & Stimpy we couldnt stand each other. All of these people are brilliant in many ways and each have a unique style. MH- If a young artist would like to become a storyboard artist, what preparations could they make? CR- The truth is, from my experience, they either got it or they dont. The guys who kick ass at it are natural storytellers, and theyve usually been drawing some kind of funny shit since childhood. My grade-school art includes lots of comics which were just dirty or violent little pieces to escape the horrors---and mediocrity of reality. If you're a youngster and you HAVE got it, you can benefit greatly by acquiring copies of great storyboards, and work by great cartoonists (I was told to study Harvey Kurtzman early on) and then doing a storyboard of your own---make some shit up--- then seek out a talented professional (see above names) to show your stuff to. If they tell you youre good, or have potential, then ask for some kind of job, if they havent already offered it. If they tell you youre NOT good, do yourself a favor and believe them. Theres plenty of other jobs in life to excel at---some are even more rewarding, like being a Porn Producer, or feeding the poor. For storyboard, I wouldnt waste a single dime on Art School. Unless you just want to go there to party and get laid, which again you should be able to achieve without actually enrolling. Believe me, the guys that SHOULD be teaching storyboard are too busy making funny cartoons to take a teaching job at a fraction of their animation industry salary, so seek them out instead. MH -The timing of your work is amazing. Does it come naturally for you to think in such terms or are there tools you use to help yourself achieve this? CR- Its just a case of knowing what you want you know, timing a specific joke or action to achieve the emotional impact to want on an audience. The drawings play a large part. You can have the slickest timing in the world, and if the drawings dont support it either by not being broad (or subtle) enough, it wont work. MH- Is there an animation project you worked on that surprised you with its popularity? Is there one that didnt do as well as you thought it would? CR- Well R&S again, because I was on it from the start of the series, and I honestly thought we would all be fired and no one would get it. It first struck me when John and the crew were invited to do a signing at Golden Apple (in Hollywood) and when I showed up, the line stretched for about 3 blocks. Later, that year my sister calls me up and tells me her and her Wall Street cronies stay up after partying all night just to watch R&S on Saturday morning stoned. I heard Samurai Jack didnt do as well as expected, which surprised me because of the talent on the show, and its originality. But perhaps it appealed to mostly boys which is only half the demographic. Its a shame because aside from being a beautiful show, there were some truly funny episodes, especially ones I wrote and boarded with Aaron Springer. 
Ravenswood MH- Many of your works are with characters and settings that were originally exclusive to cartoons. Are there any characters or stories you would like to see imported into the cartoon medium? CR- Well yes, except it never seems to turn out as well as the original medium no matter how well done. If it could be done right, anything by Roald Dahl, and Edgar Allen Poe. The best adaptation Ive ever seen is U.P.As a The Telltale Heart. (For those of you whove never seen it, its included in the special features portion of the Hellboy DVD, for some reason.) MH-Do you watch cartoons for fun? CR- Yes, CNN news. Very silly stuff on there. My favorite is The Iraq War. Except its not funny, and Smurfs is written so much more believably. MH-If you are able, would you like to talk about your upcoming animations? CR-Id love to, but I guess I cant give details until its in the can. Ive been brought in house at Cartoon Network as part of a new artist-driven development program called The Cartoonstitute. Ill be creating and producing three original pilots over the next 18 months, with the intention of picking one to go to series. The first pilot is in preproduction and will be going to Animation soon. Its called Meddlen Meddows and started out as nothing more than two weird character drawings 12 years ago. I hope it attracts the stoner demographic, which whether any one in TV wants to admit or not is a huge part of the ratings. Cartoonstitute is a very unique program, and unprecedented. I owe a lot of thanks to Craig McCracken (Powerpuff Girls, Fosters creator) and Rob Renzetti who spearheaded the whole idea and brought it to Rob Sorcher, the new Chief of Content at Cartoon Network, who totally made it happen. MH-Which cartoon did you work on push you past your boundaries? What did you learn? CR- Well, these pilots Ive done are excruciating because you have to conceive, draw and produce something that has no always yet to fall back on, so your ass is on the line. Its harder to be funny with my own characters, because I dont really know them well yet. I scored and performed all of the music on The Modifyers(Nickelodeon), which was about the hardest job Ive ever done. Of course most other composers are quicker and more experienced at it than me. MH-Which Background Painters work do you admire? CR-Joe Holt, who is designing and painting the BGs for my current pilot is blowing my mind. He is a fantastic fine art painter as well. If he gets into galleries, his stuff will kill. MH- Samurai Jack is almost infamous for no black lines around every character. Did you have an influence on that decision? Did you enjoy working in that style? CR-Im assuming you mean no outlines, or as we say self-color line. That was Genndys idea, who was wisely utilizing one of the advantages of digital ink & paint---the old school method required an inker to hand ink all of the outlines in the same color as the character, then paint in the character color on the opposite side of the cel. It was a lot of work and only looked good on Disney features. With digital ink and paint its half the work. I was not involved in the initial design for that show, and was working on a pilot Imp, Inc during that period. 
Rue Des Mensonges MH-I have heard that it is very difficult to make a cartoon in America. Networks are nervous to fund anything they don't believe will lead to affiliated sales, executives are more concerned with counting beans than exploring creativity, many of the artists and writers end up being dictated to by creating via committee and the end result is often far different and much more homogenized than where things started. Is there truth to this? What could you tell us about the nature of the American animation industry? CR- Gee Is that a question or a statement? Well said. But it's like any other big business in the corporate world today; it's controlled by markets and market analysis, and the need to get the most advertising dollars from advertisers for new programming. The sad irony is, if Im not mistaken, that SpongeBob is like the most successful cartoon on TV, and it is an outline-written, storyboard artist -driven show about an idiot who is a sponge and his retard friend who is a starfish. Its smart and funny as hell, and yet you could never sell a show like that to the other networks. Another untold truth is that there are some very UNtalented cartoonist/creators that have sold shows that stink and have damaged the networks faith in the Creator-Driven system. But every few years, trends change, regimes are overthrown. We will see. 
Chris Reccardi in the studio MH- Which shows did you create the musical scores for? CR- I scored the entire "Modifyers" pilot, used live drums and everything. I played upright bass on the Ren & Stimpy themes, and scored parts of Hard Times for Haggis, Hermit Ren, A hard days Luck and Rens Brain as well as the aforementioned "Imp, Inc.". I will probably score at least one of my new shorts. I played guitar and backing vox on The Happy Happy Joy Joy song which got used in a cake commercial last year. Thats where the real money is. Im in the wrong business. 
Sunshower MH- Any upcoming musical projects we should know about? Ive been working on a solo album forever, but most recently have put together a new group Cosmopollus which started as a fun commitment to play live at Lynne (Naylors) recent solo show, Arlices Odyssey at M Modern in September. But since, a string of gigs have come up, so were rehearsing a lot, and building up a good live show. MH- I really like your song Sigma Five. Did you compose and perform that work? Is that you singing? CR- Yes, all the instruments and vocals. All vintage keyboards I might add---a Fender Rhodes, ARP Odyssey, Arp Solina String Ensemble. We are falling over instruments at home. Its ridiculous. MH- I downloaded the tracks on your website. They are awesome. Is an album going to come out anytime soon? CR- I plan on taking time off at the end of 09 and finishing it. Thats my dream. That, and having a normal non-working weekend. 
Reccardi? Yes. In all his psycho-pop glory MH- Is there somewhere I can hear more audio tracks of yours? CR- Call me up! Ill be posting on my website and myspace over the next few months here. MH-Are you going to make animations for your music? CR- That is another dream of mine---to be used as part of a live performance. I have one storyboarded. I just need to figure out how to not sleep at night. MH- When doing musical scoring for cartoons, do you have to think in the same way as when storyboarding? CR- Usually yes. I mean, at times you want to lay low and not step on the action or mood, and other times you want to enhance it. The general rules of pacing apply but there are exceptions to any rule. You can have a waltz over a violent beating if its funny and done right. It should be the directors call, not the composers . but if youre both, you can anticipate these things up front. MH-Cartoons, music, and painting are all what you do for real. They are like the coolest things ever. How can you top it? What do you do for a hobby? Juggle chain saws? Build robot monkeys? CR- One should know that its all very hard work and not always fun. But Ive had all of the shit jobs, so I still appreciate it. To answer your question: Snowboarding, Beer. 
Sixty-Six a just released print by Reccardi       
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