Before becoming an animator, I was trained in live action. It's always nice whenever I get a chance to go
back to that world and play in it a little. This summer, just such an opportunity presented itself with
Just Shut Up!, a web series produced by the guys behind
Smosh. (For those who don't know, as of January 2013, Smosh had become the most subscribed-to channel in YouTube history!)
The concept for the show is simple; Andy runs a local Saturday morning kids show in the vein of
Bozo the Clown or
Captain Kangaroo (or my childhood favorite,
Captain Chesapeake). With him are his co-hosts, Miss Wendy and Mr. Squirrel. Poor judgement and not-so-kid-friendly hijinks ensue.
Photos courtesy of Dan Levy
The dry wit of head writers Steve Murphy and Peter Meadows along with the natural reactions from the "kiddos" made for a really fun show. The show also features clips of cartoons from Smosh's successful
Shut Up! Cartoons lineup.
Three-camera studio shoots present challenges that are very different from those in single-camera shoots and it was a great opportunity to explore this way of putting a show together. I feel lucky to have gotten a chance to work with a cast and crew who had such a strong enthusiasm to work together and commitment to get these made. Did I mention we shot all 20 episodes over the course of 3 days?
Here are two of my favorites Episodes,
Death and
Religion:
