Former Simpsons artist identifies his scenes

[Mark Colangelo]

I brought it up because the term "Zombie Simpsons" is quite popular around these parts. The biggest offender brought up is Marge's facial expression (or lack thereof) during the opening sequence in the grocery store. I find most of the animation now does lack the emotion of past seasons and the boundaries are pushed less.

Did you ever work with Mark Kirkland? After all of these years he's still on the show and I would assume he had to adjust his approach to animating with regards to what is being presented currently. If you did work with him, was he a proponent of the rigid style championed by Groening? Or did he like to add more flair to the animation?

I worked with Kirkland only twice. Once during the 4th season on Last Exit to Springfield, and then later during the 7th season I freelanced on Lisa the Vegetarian. On the latter cartoon, I remember I drew Homer in a hammock with a fly circling his head, while Flanders has a family reunion next door. Kirkland didn't push the animation too far as I remember. In fact, I think he may have pulled some drawings from my scenes to make the animation simpler. (I think I added some head bobbing to Ned's English relative, when he says "A googly a doogly," but they weren't there when I saw the finished episode. I can't be sure, though. Also, I don't even know if it was Kirkland's decision to remove them.) I think Kirkland focused more on composition, models, poses with clear silhouettes, clarity of action, etc. Not that he didn't want good animation, he just didn't go for pushing the boundaries of The Simpsons standards at the time. He was an easy going guy, who even when he wanted changes made, asked for it in a nice way.

Jeff Lynch, on the other hand, would sometimes add more poses to scenes I did in order to emphasis certain actions or words of dialog. I recall one scene in Marge Gets a Job where during a job interview at the nuclear plant Smithers was very impressed with her (padded) resume, and welcomes her to the job in Swahili. I just had one drawing for all of Smithers's Swahili dialog, but Lynch added several more poses to accentuate the accents of Smithers's dialog. (Such as leaning forward, tilting his head up and down, for example.) I learned a lot from Lynch's direction, including certain technical things about animation.

Carlos Baeza also pushed some of the character poses I drew much further than I thought the show would ever allow. I had a scene in Deep Space Homer, where Homer shakes his fist in the air and yells, "Inanimate?! I'll show you inanimate!" Carlos redrew the weaker pose I had done as something much bolder and stronger. I was impressed with his drawing abilities. Apparently he was a harsh taskmaster, though. He would make the layout crew redraw scenes again and again until they were to his liking. Some of the crew really hated this. (They would get behind in their quotas for the studio. We were supposed to turn in 15 finished layout scenes a week -- a very difficult task.) Some complained to management, I think, and eventually Baeza was let go.

When Silverman or Brad Bird needed a scene with better animation or acting they would do it themselves, as opposed to pushing the layout artists to try for that.

[Mark Colangelo]

It seems Groening was more fast and loose with the rules in Ullman days, but once he had a half-hour of animation to undertake he wanted to change it up. It had to be difficult to work on show that wanted to make the viewer think that they're not watching a cartoon.

Was Groening that difficult to deal with if the scene did require more lively animation? He seems more focused on the dramatic aspect of animation rather than the comedic value of more varied poses and more outlandish expressions.

The layout crew never saw Groening directly. We only got notes on changes he wanted. It was the directors and A.D.s that met with Groening, the writers and producers for animatic meetings. (Sometimes they would tell us what went on, whether good or bad.) Groening seemed to focus mainly on the models of the characters -- sometimes in a micromanaging way, like obsessing over the size of their pupils, or noses. Those things were going to change anyway once the layouts were animated by the Koreans. It's hard to keep up such little subtleties in the models when the characters are going to be drawn hundreds of times within a tight schedule. It's Groening's show and he can do as he pleases (and I realize I wouldn't have had a job if he hadn't created the show), but it would be nice if he knew what he was talking about.

[Matty]

Fun stories, Mark. In more recent seasons, animator Dane Romley got to do some fun animation. You know him? He has some samples on his site. http://www.notjustoons.com/animation.htm
I think he also did this Woody Woodpecker parody. He's not in the credits of this episode, but the posing looks like his style, so perhaps he didn't work on enough scenes to get a credit.



Either way, looks like the animator had fun with that one. I like the individual frames as eats the Taco

[cinco]

This thread... eye opening stuff.
Sad to hear how they confine the creativity of their animators. I can understand that there needs to be direction for the sake of consistency, but there is really no need for this degree of micromanagement.

[zartok-35]

I worked with Kirkland only twice. Once during the 4th season on Last Exit to Springfield, and then later during the 7th season I freelanced on Lisa the Vegetarian.

Didn't you also work with him on "Mountain of madness", where Homer and Burns get stranded in the cabin?

[The Thompsons]

I worked with Kirkland only twice. Once during the 4th season on Last Exit to Springfield, and then later during the 7th season I freelanced on Lisa the Vegetarian. On the latter cartoon, I remember I drew Homer in a hammock with a fly circling his head, while Flanders has a family reunion next door. Kirkland didn't push the animation too far as I remember. In fact, I think he may have pulled some drawings from my scenes to make the animation simpler. (I think I added some head bobbing to Ned's English relative, when he says "A googly a doogly," but they weren't there when I saw the finished episode. I can't be sure, though. Also, I don't even know if it was Kirkland's decision to remove them.) I think Kirkland focused more on composition, models, poses with clear silhouettes, clarity of action, etc. Not that he didn't want good animation, he just didn't go for pushing the boundaries of The Simpsons standards at the time. He was an easy going guy, who even when he wanted changes made, asked for it in a nice way.

Jeff Lynch, on the other hand, would sometimes add more poses to scenes I did in order to emphasis certain actions or words of dialog. I recall one scene in Marge Gets a Job where during a job interview at the nuclear plant Smithers was very impressed with her (padded) resume, and welcomes her to the job in Swahili. I just had one drawing for all of Smithers's Swahili dialog, but Lynch added several more poses to accentuate the accents of Smithers's dialog. (Such as leaning forward, tilting his head up and down, for example.) I learned a lot from Lynch's direction, including certain technical things about animation.

Carlos Baeza also pushed some of the character poses I drew much further than I thought the show would ever allow. I had a scene in Deep Space Homer, where Homer shakes his fist in the air and yells, "Inanimate?! I'll show you inanimate!" Carlos redrew the weaker pose I had done as something much bolder and stronger. I was impressed with his drawing abilities. Apparently he was a harsh taskmaster, though. He would make the layout crew redraw scenes again and again until they were to his liking. Some of the crew really hated this. (They would get behind in their quotas for the studio. We were supposed to turn in 15 finished layout scenes a week -- a very difficult task.) Some complained to management, I think, and eventually Baeza was let go.

When Silverman or Brad Bird needed a scene with better animation or acting they would do it themselves, as opposed to pushing the layout artists to try for that.

Nice perspective given on the different directors. I suppose this is why Baeza isn't acknowledged as much as his contemporaries such as Silverman, Archer, Moore, Bird etc. as one of the great directors of the series. He seems to be the forgotten one and when his episodes come up on commentary there is less mentioned of him.

[Mark Colangelo]

Didn't you also work with him on "Mountain of madness", where Homer and Burns get stranded in the cabin?

Yes, I did. I freelanced on that episode. I didn't remember that Kirkland had directed it. I guess my memories of working on Lisa the Vegetarian melded with those from Mountain of Madness. I can't even recall what scenes I worked on for the latter cartoon. The only thing I remember from it is that the original script wasn't very funny. Like $pringfield, I thought it was another dud. (It was always really surprising to read a poor script from that show. They were usually so funny.) I heard it was later heavily rewritten. When I was turning in my freelance scenes I ran into someone at the studio who was working on the episode with Poochy the dog. (Can't remember if it was Loudon, Irvin,or someone else, but whoever it was showed me the scenes they were working on.) Now, that particular show looked like it would be funny.

To tell you the truth, I thought The Simpsons had passed its peak by the 5th season, and I didn't think the show would last much longer. Most hit sitcoms used to end at around 5 or 6 seasons, and they were usually scraping the bottom of the barrel at that point. It's quite shocking how long The Simpsons has lasted.

[Mark Colangelo]

Fun stories, Mark. In more recent seasons, animator Dane Romley got to do some fun animation. You know him? He has some samples on his site. http://www.notjustoons.com/animation.htm
I think he also did this Woody Woodpecker parody. He's not in the credits of this episode, but the posing looks like his style, so perhaps he didn't work on enough scenes to get a credit.

Either way, looks like the animator had fun with that one. I like the individual frames as eats the Taco

I had never seen that video before. (I have no idea what episode it's from.) That's definitely some good stuff. It looks like Dane Romley loves old cartoons, and better yet, understands and can draw them. I thought exaggerated animation like that would never be seen on The Simpsons again. Glad I was wrong.

[Zombies Rise from the Sea]

To tell you the truth, I thought The Simpsons had passed its peak by the 5th season, and I didn't think the show would last much longer. Most hit sitcoms used to end at around 5 or 6 seasons, and they were usually scraping the bottom of the barrel at that point. It's quite shocking how long The Simpsons has lasted.

Well what can we say; it's certainly has an unexpected lifespan. To be honest, nobody knows how long a show lasts or whether it hits it's peak, Seinfeld near the end of it's run was still at it's peak and hell, there could be other shows that have reached their peak after 6. But regardless, the peak for which the show hit has been around Seasons 8-9; after that it's just been all downhill. IMO there are some spots where it appears to reach that peak but it doesn't seem like the writers are inspired enough to reach that peak and the further the show went on (hint: don't watch the 23rd Season.) the more the inspiration went away until it became just another show on TV.

I love the wackiness of animation but I also love the different styles of it, the fact that Springfield is so beautifully animated, so detailed, so pleasently portrayed; I didn't mind if there were wacky animations or even gags (much of which are on the later seasons, which I dislike) because the animation of it was so good. I understand the culture screams for wacky but you guys managed to do sensible and realistic in such a wonderful way that it revolutionized animation; you guys proved that we didn't need wackiness or even out-of-placeness to make decent animation, all you need is the beauty. (especially television animation.) It's just a shame that they managed to eschew the craftfulness and charm of the past animation in exchange for perfected and robotic animation but I guess time goes on and we just have to deal with it.

And if you get the chance, make sure to see "Babar" (1989-1991), tons of brilliant animation there.

EDIT: Almost forgot, the little quirks that you added to the animation make it more human; it served as both an example of the wonders of hand-drawn animation and a peak into the culture within "The Simpsons".

[Mark Colangelo]

The next scene is from "Selma's choice"; in this scene, Homer is monologuing to himself about how funerals are boring, and there is nothin good to eat.

Just watched Selma's Choice. The only scenes I did were when Selma, Bart and Lisa are at Duff Gardens, riding through what looks like a parody of Disneyland's "It's a Small World" ride. I remember having to draw many mechanical children incessantly singing the same chorus over and over. I think I did up to the part where Lisa drinks the water. David Silverman laid out the scene of Selma as a Ralph Steadman/Gerald Scarfe type monster (influenced by Pink Floyd's The Wall), seen through Lisa's hallucinating eyes. (An amazing drawing -- I saw him at the xerox machine with it.) I only worked on that show because I had a bit of free time between episodes. Film Roman never let the layout artists relax during such down time, since there was always a show fighting to be completed on schedule. I have no idea who drew the Homer from the still you included, though.

[zartok-35]

Thanks for the ident. That small world scene is probably the best part of the episode; you did a good job!
I know Sarge Morton animates Bart flopping the dead hand around, maybe he did the rest of that funeral sequence too.

[zartok-35]

I hope nobody minds a double post.

Fun stories, Mark. In more recent seasons, animator Dane Romley got to do some fun animation. You know him? He has some samples on his site. http://www.notjustoons.com/animation.htm
I think he also did this Woody Woodpecker parody. He's not in the credits of this episode, but the posing looks like his style, so perhaps he didn't work on enough scenes to get a credit.

Either way, looks like the animator had fun with that one. I like the individual frames as eats the Taco

I sent a message to FunzoColeman, and according to him, this scene is the work of Istvan Majoros. From what I know of Istvan, he was great with wacky cartoony scenes, so its a good fit.
Mr Colangelo, did you have any interesting stories about Istvan Majoros? Again, it seems you worked on many of the same episodes, and he seems to have resorted to out of the house freelancing also.

[Mark Colangelo]

I sent a message to FunzoColeman, and according to him, this scene is the work of Istvan Majoros. From what I know of Istvan, he was great with wacky cartoony scenes, so its a good fit.
Mr Colangelo, did you have any interesting stories about Istvan Majoros? Again, it seems you worked on many of the same episodes, and he seems to have resorted to out of the house freelancing also.

I didn't see much of Istvan because he did his work at home. He would only occasionally drop by the studio to either pick up or drop off his work. (Ishtvan was also freelancing on Ren & Stimpy at the same time he was doing work for The Simpsons.) I think I met him only once. He was friendly, but had a very shy, quiet demeanor. Very soft spoken, and with a thick accent. He was older than the rest of the crew, which stuck out to me, since the majority of the people working on the Simpson were very young -- most in their twenties and thirties.

The original directors loved Ishtvan's work. There was a secondary model pack that was included with the main model pack. It contained examples on how to properly draw the characters, what formulas to use, etc. It looked like it was put together by David Silverman, as it included many of his drawings and notes. One section contained some Homer drawings Ishtvan had done, with Silverman noting how well the forms were indicated, and how solid the shapes were, etc. (Ishtvan would clearly draw the construction of the characters.)

The only problems with Ishtvan's work was when they had to be revised. He also drew using those thick, greasy prismacolor pencils, so the lines wouldn't take an eraser, and the drawing had to be redrawn completely.

[Mark Colangelo]

The last one is the scene is from Last exit to Springfield, where Homer is in with Burns in his office, and he thinks he's coming on to him.
I hope this helps. I would love to find out as much as I can! Your mentions of Sondra Roy are excellent!

I watched Last Exit to Springfield recently, and the only scenes that I remember from this show are the ones I already mentioned -- the union workers, at their second meeting, deciding to go on strike, then beating up a muscular looking man before the commercial break. I know these were the first scenes I'd worked on for that show because I remember Susie Dieter, Mark Kirkland's assistant director, going over the drawings and complaining about my deviations from the models. I can't recall working on any other scenes.

Thinking about Black Widower again, I think Steve Mealue might have laid out the scene of Bart with the puppets trying to explain Selma's situation to Homer. It would make sense in a way, since Steve was a puppeteer himself. Perhaps he drew that close up of Homer, too?

[zartok-35]

Thinking about Black Widower again, I think Steve Mealue might have laid out the scene of Bart with the puppets trying to explain Selma's situation to Homer. It would make sense in a way, since Steve was a puppeteer himself. Perhaps he drew that close up of Homer, too?

Now that you mention it, that does look like a Steve scene. Bart tends to have a shorter wider head in his scenes; Matt Nastuk does this too, sometimes. I had no idea he was a puppeteer, which is very interesting! Sort of like Paul Wee getting scenes of Lisa playing the guitar in 'Last exit' because Mark Kirkland knew about his hobbies.
That reminds me; Do you remember doing a scene where Homer teases a Dolphin with a hotdog? It was in the episode "Brother from the same planet", and I thought at first it was Steve Mealue, but it actually looks much more like your Flintstone scene in 'Marge vs. the monorail'

[Mark Colangelo]

Now that you mention it, that does look like a Steve scene. Bart tends to have a shorter wider head in his scenes; Matt Nastuk does this too, sometimes. I had no idea he was a puppeteer, which is very interesting! Sort of like Paul Wee getting scenes of Lisa playing the guitar in 'Last exit' because Mark Kirkland knew about his hobbies.
That reminds me; Do you remember doing a scene where Homer teases a Dolphin with a hotdog? It was in the episode "Brother from the same planet", and I thought at first it was Steve Mealue, but it actually looks much more like your Flintstone scene in 'Marge vs. the monorail'

I have no recollection of drawing Homer teasing a dolphin in that show. I should note that most of the expressions you see in the series are based on the model pack. There were photocopied layouts by Rich Moore of Homer screaming included in one of the model packs, as an example of one of Homer's expressions. That is what you are probably seeing in both frame grabs. It wouldn't really matter which layout artist drew which scenes, as most of Homer's expressions are dictated from the model pack. (Even him choking Bart is included.) Only on rare occasions do any of the characters break free of the model sheet, and those were usually drawn by the directors. (Such as Silverman's scene of Homer having a heart attack in Homer's Triple Bypass, or Brad Bird's animation of Krusty having a heart attack in Krusty Gets Busted. I guess heart attacks bring out the best in the show.) For the most part, there wasn't too much creative freedom for the layout artists.

[zartok-35]

Ugh, stock model-sheet material; I feel so dirty now! Reminds me of all thoes horror stories John Kricfalusi tells when he talks about working at Filmation! It must have been really nice going to Ren and Stimpy after all that conservativism!

[Mark Colangelo]

Ugh, stock model-sheet material; I feel so dirty now! Reminds me of all thoes horror stories John Kricfalusi tells when he talks about working at Filmation! It must have been really nice going to Ren and Stimpy after all that conservativism!

Yes it was, but it was also a bit overwhelming, as I couldn't draw as well as the directors working on Ren & Stimpy. So I felt I had a lot to learn. Before I went to Ren & Stimpy, though, I was transferred from The Simpsons in the middle of the 5th season to The Critic, which was also being produced at Film Roman. The Critic was even more restrictive that The Simpsons. After that experience I decided to leave for greener pastures, so to speak.

I just watched Brother From Another Planet, and the only scenes I can recall are some of the ones with the child Pepe, such as when Homer lifts the orphan on his shoulders and Pepe hits his head on a pipe. I also did the scene where the garage door doesn't fully open, and I think where Tom and Pepe are sitting on the curb each lamenting their fate. Maybe I did the scene where Homer gets punched and bends over the hydrant, or maybe I just wish I did that scene. (EDIT: You know, I'll bet either Jeff Lynch or Paul Wee did that scene.) I know I must have done others, but they are a blank right now. I know for sure now that I didn't draw Homer taunting the dolphin, since when he laughs he goes off model like in the old Tracy Ullman shorts. I would have definitely remembered drawing something like that. I think Andres "Tommy" Tejedo did the scene of Homer's head melting when he asks, "Now how 'bout a hug?"

[Handsome B. Wonderful]

Yeah, I do not particularly remember the Critic having very colorful animation. Pretty boring, really.

[zartok-35]

Before I went to Ren & Stimpy, though, I was transferred from The Simpsons in the middle of the 5th season to The Critic, which was also being produced at Film Roman. The Critic was even more restrictive that The Simpsons.

It's amazing to think that they got so many wacky "Animaniacs" and "Tiny toon" animators to work on there as well; atleast Kirk Tingblad and Mike Milo, anyway. I see you worked on the "Eyes on the Prize" episode, with that Orson Welles pea commercial.

I just watched Brother From Another Planet, and the only scenes I can recall are some of the ones with the child Pepe, such as when Homer lifts the orphan on his shoulders and Pepe hits his head on a pipe. I also did the scene where the garage door doesn't fully open, and I think where Tom and Pepe are sitting on the curb each lamenting their fate. Maybe I did the scene where Homer gets punched and bends over the hydrant, or maybe I just wish I did that scene. I know I must have done ?others, but they are a blank right now. I know for sure now that I didn't draw Homer taunting the dolphin, since when he laughs he goes off model like in the old Tracy Ullman shorts. I would have definitely remembered drawing something like that. I think Andres "Tommy" Tejedo did the scene of Homer's head melting when he asks, "Now how 'bout a hug?"

Excellent information! Thank you! That melting scene is particularly remembered around here.

[Mark Colangelo]

It's amazing to think that they got so many wacky "Animaniacs" and "Tiny toon" animators to work on there as well; atleast Kirk Tingblad and Mike Milo, anyway. I see you worked on the "Eyes on the Prize" episode, with that Orson Welles pea commercial.


Excellent information! Thank you! That melting scene is particularly remembered around here.

Sadly The Critic was a case of what might have been. Originally I had heard that Rich Moore might be designing the show. It would have looked great if that were the case. Moore's personal drawing style was similar to that of Ronald Searle, mixed with early '50s UPA. (Moore designed the wolf character for Bill Kroyer cartoon Technological Threat, for instance. But there he's parodying Tex Avery.) Moore also has a great sense of comedic timing. He student films at CalArts were great. (I think one was called The Really Big Heist. Others were a series involving a sad sack character named Ed.) Unfortunately, several great character designs for the Critic were rejected by James L. Brooks, ultimately settling on the ugly designs the show eventually got saddled with. When I worked there someone had shown me a drawer full of beautiful drawings and designs of the main characters -- all of them rejected. Some were by David Cutler, a former Disney animator.

I remember talking with Mike Milo, and hearing his complaints about the show. He told me about the brief history regarding the designs.

[Homer I Am]

Some interesting stuff here, you created The Flintstones intro ?

[Mark Colangelo]

Some interesting stuff here, you created The Flintstones intro ?

Well, I did the character layouts for that scene. The scene itself was created by whoever wrote the script. I watched a videotape of actual The Flintstones intro frame by frame to get the poses right. The song Homer sang was originally longer too, but was revised after the animatic meeting with the writers.

[zach]

who's got a good question? i want to hear more.

[The Thompsons]

I was going to ask him about the flashback scenes in LETS with all of the muted colours and the character designs (especially young Montgomery and his father) but it looks like he didn't work on those. @zartok-35 would probably know who did, but perhaps @Mark Colangelo does have some recollections on what went into those scenes.

[Mark Colangelo]

I was going to ask him about the flashback scenes in LETS with all of the muted colours and the character designs (especially young Montgomery and his father) but it looks like he didn't work on those. @zartok-35 would probably know who did, but perhaps @Mark Colangelo does have some recollections on what went into those scenes.

You're right. I didn't work on those scenes, and I don't know which artist was responsible for it. The only time I knew what someone was working on is when I would pass by their desk and chat with them. For example, I saw Sue Bielenberg working on a scene that involved a parody of the game show "Studs", from the episode New Kid on the Block. http://simpsonswiki.net/wiki/Hunks One of the characters said something along the lines of "I was going to sleep with both of them." Another time I saw Steve Mealue drawing a wrist cramping crowd shot of hundreds of snakes trying to escape the townspeople of Springfield, in the episode Whacking Day.

[zartok-35]

I saw Sue Bielenberg working on a scene that involved a parody of the game show "Studs", from the episode New Kid on the Block. http://simpsonswiki.net/wiki/Hunks One of the characters said something along the lines of "I was going to sleep with both of them." Another time I saw Steve Mealue drawing a wrist cramping crowd shot of hundreds of snakes trying to escape the townspeople of Springfield, in the episode Whacking Day.

Deffinatley cool information! Jeff Lynch sure liked using Steve Mealue, about as much as he liked using you, Mark. Did they have anything in common or something?

I was going to ask him about the flashback scenes in LETS with all of the muted colours and the character designs (especially young Montgomery and his father) but it looks like he didn't work on those. @zartok-35 would probably know who did, but perhaps @Mark Colangelo does have some recollections on what went into those scenes.

I'll certainly look into it for you!

[Sideshow Ben]

Thanks so much! This is highly appreciated by all of us. If you have any old pals who would like to stop by similarly, please encourage them.

[zartok-35]

If you have any old pals who would like to stop by similarly, please encourage them.

Many years ago, Sarge Morton and Jen Kamerman came to the board to talk about working on The Simpsons, and that thread is almost as enlightening as this one.
http://www.nohomers.net/showthread.p...mator-Director

[The Thompsons]

Memory lane with those user names: Sloppy Jimbo, Rowdy Roddy Peeper, George Cauldron, Magnum etc. Interesting read! Nice insight from Sarge and Jen.