CREATION THEORY BY MIKE SCULLY

So how is each Simpsons episode created? Mike Scully explains the process of how a vague story idea is transformed into a broadcastable episode. Also including some rare producing photos bottom of the page, timing sheets and original animation from the show.

Executive Producer Mike Scully

“This show is far more complicated to produce than a live-action show because there are so many diverse aspects that go into one episode, “Scully begins. “The majority of the day is spent writing. We work as a group for the most part. There’s about 14 writers, and we all work in a room together. “It all starts off with one guy who has basic story idea. He then goes to the group who flesh everything out. Next, the writer goes back and comes up with fisrt draft. Then, the group takes the draft and rewrites it.” Surely that causes a few arguments? “Well, from time to time, but we all respect each other’s work. There are very few fist fights.” He pauses, before adding with a grin, “We don’t allow guns into the room. “After that, the script is recorded, then it goes to the artist and they produce a storyboard. A few months later, we get what’s called an animatronic – a very rough black-and-white version of the show: that’s kind of our rehearsal stage. We watch that, and then do another rewrite. Then, it’s at least another two months until we see a rough coloured version: that’s our dress rehearsal, and it’s our final chance to correct any mistakes. “once we’ve made any changes, it’s drawn properly, the music is added, and that’s that. The whole process takes six to nine months – usually nine. A typical episode has a budget of around $ 1.8 million. We record the shows here [in LA], and they are drawn at a studio about ten miles away. From there, they’re shipped to Korea where they’re animated and the music is added at another studio. “It’s a huge project to oversee, because the animation takes so long , there’s a lot of planning ahead. You tend to be working on the Halloween show in January, and the Xmas show in May.”