Buffy Animated

You have already provided a lot of information about this project as the time it was still on tracks, but some areas are not totally clear for the fans. First, were you a buffy fan before Buffy the animated series ? Then, how did you become a part of Btas ?

I was totally a fan of Buffy before I came onboard. I was kind of a casual viewer during Season 1, but once things got rolling with Season 2 I was hooked for good. If I remember correctly, I drew my first Buffy art right around the time of Season 4, so I already had three seasons of watching the show under my belt.

My involvement with the show was purely a case of being in the right place at the right time. I was working at Film Roman developing a show for Howard Stern called Doomsday when my boss Eric Radomski was approached by Fox to develop Buffy. I believe there were a couple of places bidding on it at the time, so I went home that night and cranked out some drawings. Joss liked what I did, and we got the gig.

With very limited information released to the public about ’Buffy Animated’, many people have inquired about the technical details surrounding the 4-minute pilot episode - which was recently leaked online. First, we know you were involved with the project on some level. Were you part of the team that inked the pilot? If so, were any other fellow artists involved?... or was it exclusively your work used?

The pilot was directed by Eric Radomski and written by Joss and Jeph Loeb. I was very involved with the pre-production of pilot. I handled all of the storyboards, character and prop designs. The backgrounds were designed by me and Ted Blackman, and the color was by John Calmette. From there it was shipped over to Korea who did all of the animation.

After your departure from the project, you mentioned to USA Today how disappointed you were in ’Buffy Animated’ not proceeding. Now that several years have passed, and your attention has moved onto other projects, would you be interested in returning to work on this series if it somehow returned to the drawing board? Considering this, what do you think of our campaign to support the return of the show ?

I think we were all shocked more than anything. We had incredible scripts, the majority of the cast not only willing but excited to be a part of it. Not to mention the best fans in world, who continue to have our back even years after the show ended. Your support has been tremendous, and continues to inspire me.

A lot has changed for me professionally since I worked on the show. I’m finally coming into my own as both an artist and writer, so that dominates the majority of my time. But if and when stuff comes up like Buffy #20, I’d love to be a part of it as much as I can.

Although the pilot episode was only a short glimpse at what a cartoon version of ’Buffy’ might have been (or might be) like, it has a definite "lighter" feel to it than it’s live-action counterpart. In working with the writers and staff, do you feel, had the show been picked-up, that the series would have been close to what we see in the pilot – more kid-friendly?

I’d say it would have been more tween-friendly. It certainly wasn’t going to be for young kids. Joss made a comment early on that he didn’t want Buffy fighting Count Chocula (although who wouldn’t want to see that??). The action if anything was even more amped up than the live-action show because we didn’t have budgetary limits (re: the dragon). But we had to be careful with showing demons getting staked and stage a lot of stuff off-camera.

With animation, it’s a little easier to go broader with comedy. You almost have to because there is so little expression in the drawings. So I think this was also an opportunity for Joss and company to push the dialogue a little more comedic than they could on the show. Let’s not forget too that as dark as BTVS was, there were a lot of really funny moments too.

In your professional opinion, if we do someday see ’Buffy’ returning to Sunnydale (in cartoon form), do you believe a new animated series would look & feel similar to what we see in the pilot episode - targeting to a new crop of ’Buffy’ fans?... or possibly have a darker, more adult feel - targeting the existing (very devoted) fan-base?

This would be more of a question for Joss or Jeph, but I don’t see the stories changing all that much. Keep in mind too that you are making assumptions from a 4 minute promo that highlights some of the funniest moments from the 22 minute pilot. Having read all the scripts, they aren’t wall to wall zingers. They tonally compliment the original show very well.

Speaking of the fan-base, a lot of us are very interested in the canonical status of the show : the library for example is very different from the one of the TV series. Have you any clues about the place of the show in the buffyverse ?

It’s sort of a Catch-22. The question becomes do we limit ourselves by what they could afford to do in the past, or do we try and better capture Joss’ vision without budgetary constraints. The library I designed was based on Joss’ description on how he originally saw it if there hadn’t been any budgetary limitations. Is the animated series exact canon of the show like a Season 1.5 or is it an interpretation of the mythos, just like there have been many takes on Batman. Ultimately, if the show ever does happen it will be Joss’ call.

Little information has been made public about the efforts (and failures) of the show being picked-up by any studio. Can you share any positive or negative feedback you witnessed from production crews, studio execs, and other artists involved with ’Buffy Animated’?

The response was very positive, but I think networks were having a hard time figuring out what to do with it or how they would split the pie. Remember too, that when we were doing this it was before the DTV and webisode markets had really taken off, so there may be opportunities now that weren’t feasible 4 or 5 years ago.

It has been reported that you’ve sold some of your drawings/sketches of various projects on ebay. One more famous sale was to ’The O.C.’ writer Allan Heinberg. I, for one, can’t imagine a better way to get art into a fan’s hands than directly from the artist. With the lack of any solid ’Buffy Animated’ merchandise, have you considered selling any of your artwork (old or new) to fans of the show? Have you already done so?

Since I don’t own the copyright, you have to be careful about that sort of thing. I’ve done a few commissions in the past, but as anyone who has had to wait the years it takes me to get around to drawing them, I no longer do that. I get pulled in so many directions every day that after working 12-15 hours on my full-time jobs it’s hard to find the time or energy to do anything on the side. And if I still owe you a drawing, don’t be afraid to give me a poke!

You have worked on a wide variety of TV shows & movies in your career - ranging from ’Beavis & Butt-Head Do America’ to ’Batman Beyond’ to drawings used on-screen for FOX’s ’The O.C.’ What was your favorite project to work on and why?

They all hold a special place in my heart. Beavis was my first professional gig. I learned more working on Batman Beyond than 4 years of college. Buffy was the first project I got to run with. The O.C. is in its own special category. Being an artist working on a live-action show is a ton of fun. Unlike animation where your designs are reinterpreted by animators overseas, what you saw on the O.C. was my actual work — often times I got to not only create the drawing but the prop itself.

What current or future projects would you LIKE to become involved with that you haven’t already pursued?

After 10 years of working other people’s creations, I’m focused on my own properties now. My first book MY DEAD GIRLFRIEND (www.mydeadgirlfriend.net) came out through Tokyopop last year, and I have two new series coming out through Simon & Schuster next year. One is a chapter book for elementary school kids called FRANKIE PICKLE, and the other is a middle grade fantasy adventure called KOOKLEBERRY AND THE SWORD OF FOOLS. Both books are a hybrid of comics and prose. In addition to that I also have several films and TV series that I’m developing with some of the top producers in Hollywood.

Musicians often mention getting inspiration from the bands they grew-up listening to. Growing-up, did you become inspired by any particular cartoon shows, movies, or other media?

Absolutely. I’ve been a lifelong comic reader. As a kid I was very much a DC boy, but as I got older I started getting more into Marvel. I’m definitely into the old school stuff. Kirby, Toth, Romita, Kubert, Caniff. My bookcases are filled with Silver Age reprints. These days I’m more into the Indie comic scene. The cartoons I loved as a kid that made me want to be an animator were the Warner and MGM shorts. I was a freshman in college when I saw the first Timm Batman episode, and fueled my determination to work with those guys. I’ve always loved going to the movies. Film school got me hooked on Hitchcock, Akira Kurosawa, Billy Wilder, Preston Sturges. My dream was to follow Tim Burton’s path: start off as an animator and work my way into live-action. The transition was a little windier than I expected, but it’s finally starting to happen.

Last, if he WASN’T an artist, what profession would Eric Wight likely be in today?

That’s a tough one. I’m a creative spirit to my core. I wish I had pursued music more as a kid, and hope to someday find the time to do that. I could also see myself as a carpenter.