Jackson Animation HQ – Burbank, California
August 1st, 2001
The air in the conference room, with its all-glass walls, felt laden with frustration. The happy conversation about producing a new children's animated series had erupted into full-fledged argument.
Seated at the table, Harry Jackson made himself comfortable with his arms crossed and well into an expression of frustration. To his right were his trusted writers and a brother-sister writing team, Bob Wilson and Sky Wilson, who worked with him during his JTV revival, and were the creators of the quirky-but-lovable nautical comedy SpongeBob SquarePants—a series Harry believed would launch Jackson Animation into its next chapter.
Unfortunately, not everyone seated at the table thought the same way.
Across from Harry, Paul Levesque, the annoyingly smug Creative Head, sat with his arms crossed and pointedly brushed additional imaginary dust off his suit jacket's lapel. Next to him, and clearly getting uncomfortable, was Wade Rhys, the company's Animation Head. At the head of the table—presumably to keep order—was the company's manager, Santos Escobar.
"I said, "We did what we thought was the right thing to do."
Bob shot back, "We didn't want you to have an influence. The tone was deliberate—playful, bizarre and meant for children."
Paul leaned back and said, "Your story was incredibly flat. Come on, you have a sponge flipping hamburgers under the sea, working for a crab. Where's the depth?"
Sky replied, "It's not for you to understand, Paul. The kids love this kind of nonsense. We didn't want action. No secret missions, no high-tech spy gadgets. Just comedy. Pure, stupid, beautiful comedy."
Harry slammed the file in front of him shut and said, "What the fuck have you done? Why is everything in 3D?"
Wade hesitated for a moment, but spoke, "It was a decision made by the creative team."
Paul nodded, "It fits with the modern look we were going for. Kids eat up everything in 3D these days."
Harry stared at him; incredulity was dripping from his voice as he said, "Pixar can do 3D. You can't. We never asked for it. You took a charming cartoon and turned it into some cheap spy thriller."
Santos raised a hand. "Mr. Jackson, I think we should—"
Harry interrupted. "I've seen your 'best quality' Santos, and frankly, no offense, it explains a lot about why this studio hasn't had a hit in half a decade."
Bob added, "Rumor has it, the Board is already thinking of selling Jackson Animation just to cover the loss of money."
Santos's mouth went tight. "That's an internal matter, and not what you believe,"
Sky shook her head. "You destroyed everything we wanted to make."
Paul shrugged. "We expanded it."
Harry stood. "You butchered it. Cancel the order. You're not covering this project again."
Wade leaned forward, and said, "Please Mr. Jackson—"
Harry waved him off. "We're finished here. Good luck pitching spy sponges to kindergarten kids."
Santos rushed out with, "Mr. Jackson, I really think—"
But Harry and his team were already out the door.
_____
The air was just as tense in the elevator.
Bob ran his hand through his hair and said, "What's next? Six months of work down the drain."
Harry sighed then said, "We find another partner studio. One that listens. I'm not letting SpongeBob die before he ever gets out of the gate."
He opened his Motorola and dialed.
Mason answered, sounding groggy. "You're calling me at three in the morning, Harry. Is the sponge on fire?"
Harry dry chuckled and responded, "Worse. He's a 3D secret agent. I just walked out of a train wreck. Jackson Animation is dead. I need a new partner studio. Someone sharp, fast. Not run by clowns."
After taking a sip of water, Mason said, "Okay, slow down. Are we talking about a partnership? An acquisition? Or just one-off outsourcing?"
Mason took a breath. "Okay. Disney's not an option if you don't want to play politics. DreamWorks is busy with Spirit and Shrek 2. Pixar is dying with Finding Nemo. So we're left with smaller companies."
Mason paused for a moment and said, "Rough Draft Studios. They're in Glendale."
Harry sat up straight. "Great. Set up a meeting. I want to get a sense of what they can do."
Mason continued, "You might also want to look at Nelvana in Canada. They're not state of the art, but they're dependable."
Harry shook his head. "I need to be bold. I want bright colors, gags, surreal characters. I want Saturday morning craziness."
Mason chuckled. "Sounds to me like you're trying to make art that sells cereal and toys."
Harry smiled and said, "Exactly. I'll do the writing. The design and the animation? We'll defer to people that understand that. No 3D, no guns. Just jellyfish and crazy."
Mason said, "I will get you the studio list and set up a meeting with Rough Draft by tomorrow. But don't be surprised if they quote high."
Harry said, "I'll pay. I'm not wasting any more time."