His new-world trance is broken when a cone (Shapes!
They are the future!)
So, it works funny in both ways."
Credit: The Simpsons
AddsSimpsonsdirector and producer David Silverman: “It hadn’t really been donecertainly not for TV.
It’s very hard to explain it to people.
Clay doh!
Bob Anderson
“We were like, ‘What can we really do besides paper cutouts?'”
“We could do claymation, but that was third dimension [too].
Also, it dilutes the conceptual purity of going from second to third dimension.
Bob Anderson
InThe Twilight Zone, a little girl goes into the fourth dimension.
So we said, ‘Let’s dispose of all that other crud.'”
(Cohen boasts a physics degree from Harvard and a computer science degree from UC Berkeley.)
Courtesy Tim Johnson
“And that’s where I came in.
So it was up to me to write it.”
(More on that nerdiness in a bit.)
The Simpsons
So when theSimpsonsproducers contacted the company about producing the segment, there was elation… followed by hesitation.
Carl just got up out of his chair and paced the roomhe was so excited.
So Carl sat back down and ran the numbers.
Bob Anderson
The grid was even more detailed than can be seen in the photo here.
“Within each square of the grid is another smaller grid.
Indeed, Johnson took advantage of the models and simulations that PDI had been creating over the years.
Bob Anderson
Take, for example, Homer’s “Mmmm, unprocessed fish sticks” line.
That was our big production-value-add to their fish sticks joke.”
Like Anderson, Johnson recalls pouring long hours into the segment.
The Simpsons
“Those nights and weekends spent on the show were done with absolute glee.”
His piece de resistance, however, involved Fermat’s Last Theorem.
My goal was to outsmart people who had an eight-digit calculator, which was the standard at that time…. And that was really one of those career highlights where I was like, ‘Yes!
I screwed with three nerds’ heads!'”
Originally, though, there was a third character in the scene who was attempting the rescue.
Alas, PDI had the time and resources to render only two characters.
“Numerous plans went out the window at that point.”
And in Bart’s case, it was some key in of atomic Brillo pad on top.
But if we had to do Ned’s mustache, I think it would’ve killed us."
“This is a perfect example of ignorance being bliss,” says Johnson.
This is actually going to be very, very challenging on the creative and the technical side.'"
“We were saved from our complex characters by our comically simple backgrounds.”
“It was fine for what it was, but we wanted something more swirling and more dynamic.”
He was especially pleased, though, with the shot of Homer running from 2-D into 3-D animation.
“That was a shot I was really looking forward to,” he says.
“I’m not sure we were ever thrilled with the result of that,” he says.
Why, you little!"
Recalls Cohen: “Then Bart was going to start screaming and say, ‘Ow, Dad!
In here that really hurts for some reason!'”
“It was like, ‘Aw, geez, you know how expensive that’s going to be?
But this still surprised me.
It was actually quite hilarious.”
“I don’t think we were aware that that could be done.
They were like, ‘Oh, yeah, we could do that too.’
That was when we decided, ‘Forget the costume.'”
“Julie was to shudder in revulsion when Homer thought he recognized her,” he says.
and Kavner responding, “Stay away from me.”
(Another abandoned meta-joke featured a second storefront that would catch Homer’s eye.
The animators at PDI were very concerned about Homer’s harsh entrance into the human realm.
‘Nope,’ I said.
It took three tries to get the animators to really crunch Homer into the trash.
Turns out, they just simply liked him so much, they ‘didn’t want to hurt him.’
I started to worry it would be too much for ourSimpsonsshow folk.
But David Silverman saw it and laughed himself silly.
After several takes, he suggested that he walk alongside the passers-by off-camera, guiding them with his voice.
This was the take that the producers used.
“We didn’t have to remove any wire,” continues Johnson.
He had to gosomewhere.
It just required a neon sign and a couple of cakes.
We had to get him off the street somehow."
and they said, ‘No, it looks fine.’
But to me, it’s a comedy in itself."
I don’t think it really works.
If we plugged it in, we would all die in a fire."
