—Basically when I started, you were drawing on pieces of paper. People were using computers to scan but they colored in ink and paint. Before my time, it was about the big ol’ Oxberry cameras… but it pretty quickly got taken over by computers. Now, hardly anybody uses pieces of paper. Sometimes overseas studios do, but anything we do starts on Cintiqs that are basically big computer screens you can draw on. 

So, it hasn’t changed as much as other industries. The main thing is the artistic skill you have to develop—whether it’s on a piece of paper or computer screen—which has stayed pretty similar.

—There’s no shortcuts for the skill part—for becoming a better writer or better artist. But, the tools are a lot cheaper. It used to cost tens of thousands to get the gear you need to make a cartoon; now you can probably use your cell phone or a tablet for everything. You can spend $500 or maybe a little more if you want to be fancy. 

—[Narrator] Is now the best time to be in the animation business?

[Chris] Definitely, these streaming services are crazy. I think we’re in production for 12 series right now, six are for Netflix and two are for Amazon. And others, they might end up on those platforms, too. Who knows?

So I really like this—we actually did the first animated show that was on Netflix, this kids’ show called Turbo, that launched in 2013. That was the infancy of the streaming process; now we do a show Big Mouth and Netflix is a well-oiled machine. It’s a great experience and they really let you do almost anything you want, it’s crazy. 

[Narrator] Those two really speak to the range of shows that are on Netflix now.

[Chris] Totally, it’s a real broad range.