Introducing Ken Pontac

We’re excited to announce the return of guest blogging here at Cartoon Brew. It’s a fairly straightforward concept. Jerry and I don’t want this site to become purely an outlet for our own thoughts and opinions, so we’re asking friends from around the animation biz to join us on the Brew and share their unique perspectives on cartoons and the industry. There’s some terrific folks who’ve agreed to contribute over the course of the next few months, including artists, historians and critics. Our first contributor this month is animation director Ken Pontac. Ken is the co-creator of the highly inventive and entertaining stop motion TV series BUMP IN THE NIGHT, among numerous other achievements. He will be treating us to a journal he kept from a couple months ago while working on a show in that hub of animation production known as Reykjavik, Iceland. Here’s a bit more about him:

Ken Pontac has over twenty years experience in the animation industry, creating content for television, video games, and computer applications. A few of the cultural icons he has been involved with include the enduring green clayboy Gumby, the irascible green monster Mr. Bumpy, and the transmogrifying green gladiator the Blob from the hit videogame CLAYFIGHTER. Pontac has written scripts for animated television episodes that have been translated into a dozen languages and shown around the world. He directed the UPN prime time animated program GARY & MIKE, for which his episode “Phish Phry” won an Emmy for Best Art Direction. Pontac lives in Sausalito, California with a beautiful redheaded nurse and five adorable rats.