Writer Andrew Goodman Rewatches Culture Shock / F.U.N.

Published Mar 24, 2022, 9:00 AM

Back in 2005, when these iconic episodes were rerunning on Nickelodeon constantly, Andrew Goodman was writing a 14-page thesis about The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie. Not only did the essay get him into film school, but it was not long before he landed a dream internship: working with his heroes on SpongeBob. Now, more than fifteen years later, Andrew is writing for all three SpongeBob shows. Andrew discusses his Nickelodeon career path with Hector and Frankie, showcases his character voice impressions, and brings his unique perspective as a long-time fan, student and now writer of SpongeBob.

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Hey, what kind am I going on? Going on? What the show? What am I going on? The show? I have a great act? What talent could you possibly possess? No one, not even your parents, would want to see that. Welcome to SpongeBob binge Pants, Nickelodeon's official podcast about all things SpongeBob. I'm Hector Navarro and I'm Frankie Granding. It's not just us on the show. Today, we have an incredibly special guest, the story editor for SpongeBob square Pants spinoff Camp Coral, SpongeBob's under years, and someone who has been working in the SpongeBob universe for fifteen years. We have writer Andrew Goodman on the show today. Hi, how's it gone fifteen years? Has you been working with the sponge Yeah? Yeah, since I got out of college. Having any job for fifteen years makes you think a person looks a certain way. But Andrew, you're a strapping young man, a good looking guy. You really have a really interesting origin story with SpongeBob. By the way, for you listeners, Andrew looks remarkably like Hector, which is complimenting him on his good, dashing, good looks. They have the same beard, the same glasses, the same adorable cherubic face. It is. It is awesome, exactly, thank you. I assume we have the same stylists. So Andrew interning in college on SpongeBob tell us about it. I was in college and I had written a fourteen page essay on the first SpongeBob movie to get into film school. And you got accepted into film school based on this fourteen page essay. Yeah, I was on genre hybridization and the SpongeBob SquarePants movie. The I thought they were going to think I was crazy or passionate, and I looked out and they let me in. A year or two later, I was looking at internships online. I saw Nickelodeon had an internship program, and I applied and I was lucky enough to get an interview. So of course I brought my paper and I was like, I like your show. I did this, I worked out, They hired me, and I spent the entire fall of two thousand six working as a pretchent intern on the show, and it was amazing. I loved everybody. I was already a huge fan of the show, if you couldn't guess, and all the people were just so amazing. It was a great time. I love being there. Back then, when you were shipping something, it was all physical shipments, so you'd be like running around the studio till ten at night trying to get everything copied and boxed into the couriers who were coming to pick everything up. And I love staying there. I did, I looked. I just it was. It was not a chore to be there till ten at night on a Friday, working with people you really like and on a show you love. So that's the hustle. Yeah, if you can try and briefly sum up your career from that point to now, I mean, now you are the story editor on Camp Coral. Is that their job title right now? I was a p A for a long time, uh, and then I moved up to coordinator, did that for a long time, and then we paused the show in the middle of season nine to go do the second SpongeBob movie, and I was a production supervisor on that. I ended up on that movie taking notes and all of the animatic meetings and all of the writing meetings and stuff like that. Then when we came back to finish season nine, we changed how the show was done from board driven to script driven. That worked out really well for me because suddenly they needed a script coordinator and I was able to stop that role. Andrew, in your path, you went from script coordinator to writer and started writing on the show and for our listeners. And he's written some awesome episodes. Lost in Couch from the Patrick Star show, I Gotta Men in Search of Camp Nudists from Camp Coral is really really fun. Also, a SpongeBob episode is from season twelve that Andrew wrote the Krusty Slammer, which was so funny and just pitch perfect. SpongeBob, what's fine to go on to hear Mr Crabs? I thought he was going to razy. He is the Krusty Krab. He's in prison now. Andrew, a little bird told me that you are the person who does the scratch vocals for a storyboard er animatic of SpongeBob and the various shows. Is that true? Yeah, I've done a bunch of episodes. Um, when we haven't been able to get everyone to come in and record and we still need the automatic to get done in time, you bring in someone to do the scratch. So for those listening that don't know what exactly. That means. It is a temporary audio track, a temporary vocal record where you are reading the lines in the character's voices to give everybody idea, an idea of the timing of what the finished episode will kind of be like, but before the voice actors can come in and do a more finished version of it. And it's also done before any of the animation, because the animation is done off of the voice actors characters performance. But you doing the scratch, Does that mean that you have impressions of each of the characters in your back pocket? Yeah, some better than others. Okay, we gotta run through them. Let us hear your what's your plankton? Let's hear a little bit of Mr Lawrence Plankton. Well, Plankton tucks down here. You kind of got to go out of the side of your mouth like this. Okay, out of the side of your mouth. That's very piraty. How do you differentiate that between Mr Crabs Let's go Mr Crabs, Mr crab Deny with little more gravilly. As as the voice actors hear this, they're gonna but that's not how I sound. He's not doing That's not how I do it. That's not where it comes from. Give us a little taste of squid word. Hi, I'm squid word. You know what they sound like? They sound like when other characters do impressions of squid word on the show. It's Anny, Okay, the brilliant, genius, idiot savant, Patrick Starr. What's Patrick sound like? Oh? Patrick's coming to down here. I'm gonna go a little slower and a little back of the throat. And finally, the lead of the show, SpongeBob square Pants. Let's hear your SpongeBob. My SpongeBob's My SpongeBob is interesting. I guess all right. The voice I think is okay, it's the laugh because Tom Kenney does this like two fingers on the throat and he moves it up and down. He's he's got this whole technique. Or Hi, I ain't SpongeBob. Me me, me me, Andrew, that sounds like a laugh that you've been practicing since you were a kid. And look at you now you can Yeah, that's what that's finally paid off. Awesome, Andrew, Thank you for sharing that with us. Man, those were pretty good, tough but fair. Thank you. This is gonna be really fun. So let's just ahead and jump in. The episodes we're talking about today are Culture Shock and Fun, F You and Fun. Let's let's talk about Culture Shock first. In case people forgot, this is the premise the Krusty Crab is having an impossible time bringing in new customers, so Mr Crabs asks his employees for ideas. Squid Word proposes that they put on a talent show to draw in new customers, with grand ideas of his own glory. But will the citizens of Bikini Bottom appreciate the artistry that squid Word delivers? I know, how about mouthful of Clams Day? Everyone who shows up with a mouthful of clams streck their fred Well, I was thinking more along the lines of live entertainment of floor Shall no wait, talent shall with your host me? This is my moment. I I mean, we been dreaming of Andrew before we get into some specifics from this episode, like going back and rewatching this from season one, thinking about how old you were when you first saw it, your memories of the show versus where you are today, Like what's just your biggest takeaway from Culture Shock? Wow? I mean it's got so many great moments in it. I love there's like the little things that really draw me to it, like Mr crabss line when he's introducing himself to the parents. I know, I'm Mr Grabs and I like money. It's just it's like so simple, but you're just like funny. I also love how much time they spend in that episode doing the back and forth with Squidward and SpongeBob. At the end, Bunbob comes out on stage and everyone cheers, Sword comes out on stage. Everyone's just silent. I mean, it's a long joke, and it is. It just gets funnier and funnier as it goes. To me, at least it's genius. Do you think that that's kind of like one of the things that has continued to run throughout the SpongeBob universe is the long joke. Have you guys kind of like embrace that in perpetuity? You know? I would actually say today the pace is quickened a little bit in the show. Um, we do sometimes still do jokes like that, but I don't know, there's I find there's so many ideas and gags and funny drawings we want to get into stuff today it's hard to spend a long time on a gag like that. Let's talk about some bikini bottom mysteries I would love to try to figure out. Let's talk about how does Sandy understand Gary's poetry? When Gary was doing the beat Nick poetry. Think now he has such a way with words. Do you guys have any theories on this? Is it? Is it because she's a scien tiss like, how does she understand him? I think it's more of an emotional connection that she has that well said, well said, Yeah, she's hearing it, but she's also feeling it. Andrew, this is why you're writing on the show. Thank you. Okay, you've You've solved that one for me. Okay, Andrew, you're definitely the expert here between the three of us. If the Dance Now magazine has ever popped up again, have we seen that again? Oh? I'm sure. One of the things I did as a p A was you go through the storyboards and you find old props, characters and stuff that you can reuse in an episode, um from that have already been designed, so you can sort of cut down on the list that the designers actually have to work on every episode. So I'm sure dance now has showed up again. I know for a fact that Culture Shock was the episode I would always go to when we needed fancy incidentals wearing like tuxedos and evening gowns. That is so funny, But also like, are you the reason why the Mrs Puff boat boating theories and jail theories exists? Like is this just a p a who is literally like it would be really fun to put this picture of Mrs Puff in this magazine. I believe that Mrs Puff's nefarious, not often mentioned past comes from Mr Lawrence. I believe he ended your character if I remember correctly. I think so. I think when we talked to him, we talked about that a little bit, and like that that it will probably never be revealed. Maybe probably, Yeah, I think it's easier to we just never know. Yeah, like, oh gosh, what was she into? And some guy miles away from here he's giving you all the answers. Also, Andrew, was that like your dream job to have to go back through older SpongeBob episodes and storyboards to like find designs that have already been implemented so that you can re implement, Because that sounds like a dream job for me. I thought it was incredible. This show was one of the last shows to stop doing pencil and paper um. Everyone had shifted over to cintiques, and for a long time we were still doing boards by hand. So we had just filing cabinets all over the office filled with every board that had ever been done for SpongeBob Um. So I remember flipping through the original storyboard, you know, hand drawn and posted and taped down to the paper for the opening. Oh my god, I felt like I was handling the Constitution or something. I was like, oh my gosh, historical artifact in my hands. Sir. Her funniest moment, Frankie, did you have a favorite funniest moment? I certainly did. It is when my darling Pearl comes out to do her talent and she starts the cheers just you know, and it just every time she jumps, the whole audience goes flying. I thought that gag was so hysterical because you know, like it's often in bikini bottom, we we like, everyone is kind of scaled the same, so you don't remember that she's actually the largest creature in the ocean. She's like a gigantic whale. And that just was so funny to me, the way that they slightly reminded us when you're talking about the citizens of Bikini Bottom being like lifted up with every one of pearls things. The way that they're drawn is so funny. They have such great poses, and they're all in their fancy attire, like Andrew pointed out earlier, these fancy incidentals. Their little butts are pronounced and little things like that just so such great drawings. I thought the funniest thing was when Patrick was laughing at everything that's squid word said, but everything that he said, not even at the end of a bad joke, but also like so put your put thank you, what's your fans together? Hilarious? I mean maybe maybe because we just Frank and I just met Bill. We just talked to Bill, and talking to him about the level of commitment and the basic like shouting that he has to do sometimes for a Patrick laugh made me like appreciate it more so going forward, I'm going to appreciate all the Patrick laughs even more than I did before. So, so thank you, thank you Bill most hard. Do you have a favorite heartfelt moment? Really a moment that pulled on your heart strings. In this episode, I love how when SpongeBob comes out on stage at the end to mop for the first time, he just starts doing it like he's just there to do the job, and then when he notices the crowd reacts, he gets this look on his face like, oh, oh, you like this and starts doing it a little more vigorously. All right. For me, that moment, it's so emblematic of SpongeBob and how he loves making people happy, and also the fact that he had an incredibly impressive talent ready to go. He could blow a human bubble creature and tap dance with it in Unison. I thought that was a pretty good talent. But he's settled to be the mop boy at the end of this show and did it with such um commitment and excitement and such joy just to be a part of the show in any way he could. When you do something with heart, people notice moment. Hey, I know that mean that's a meme moment. I think there's a couple in this one. I know that squid words interpretive dance. I've seen that gift. I've used that gift. Andrew, You're you're nodding your head. Oh yeah, I'm sure all the writers share that one all the time amongst yourselves on the dance community, because I'm a dancer, you know. So we used to send that around to the Broadway kids all the time because it's fun. It is. That's great. What why do you want to It's great. Those drawings are so great. Yeah, absolutely, it's It's one of those great moments where you where you are reminded, Oh yeah, squid Word doesn't have just two legs, he's got four and two arms and the whole you know, all six of his appendages are coming out, and it's awesome. Uh. And then I think there's also I didn't know about this one, but there's a meme format where squid Word peaks behind the curtains, nobody cares, and then pushes SpongeBob out and everybody cares. I've seen people now use that as like a set up punchline kind of a format, or like people don't care about this thing, but they care about this thing. It's one of those. It's a little more complicated. It's more like, you know, specific, it's not it's not as universal, I think as it's just a gift. It's one of those two part memes that they have where it's like me got you, you know, like me SpongeBob. You know, they're gonna really clever these days with these memes, so pretty soon there to be comic strips or dissertations. That's what you right to get into college now, is you're gonna have to write a really good meme and professors will look at it and go, oh, this smart. Get it. They like SpongeBob, they don't like squid word. Okay, I just love the face SpongeBob makes when he comes out to sweep the tomato that's squid we just got hit with, and he's like, m I love the weird little drawings that get put into every episode. It just makes me laugh so much when I see that. From your perspective writing episodes, do you ever write those little moments into the script or do you leave it up to the amazing artists at work on the show that they that they know what kind of faces that they want to attribute to the to the words that you're writing. It's a bit of a mix. Sometimes if we it's an important story point, we'll describe what the face looks like or what you're doing right there, But a lot of the times we leave that up to our many different incredible board artists. I can't draw as funny as them, So I'm very very glad we have We're all very glad that you guys have them too. Yeah, they're great, Franky, Should we talk about fun I think we need to because it is a very fun episode and one that I know has stood the test of time because we hear that song all the time. This morning that we're gonna be talking about fun and immediately he went, um F is for fire, you know, use for uranium bombs, Like everyone remembers prank Plankton's verse, So let's dive into it. This is the episode fun Fu n When Plankton takes off with a crabby Patty, SpongeBob chases him down and the villain gives up. That's when SpongeBob realizes all Plankton might need is a friend to teach him how to have fun. Surprisingly, Plankton begins to enjoy their new friendship. But will he go back to his old evil ways? Yes, yes he will, so spoiler earlier and I'm sorry, And then he told us, if you believe in yourself and with a any pangion magic. Ah, your dreams can come true. I can't take it. And after all these years, it was such a lovely moment. This episode I thought was very filled with heart filled with optimism about the fact that, you know, like this evil person, maybe he just needs a friend and then we can change him and change the world. And SpongeBob is so optimistic. Yes, were there any other heartfelt moments that stood out to you, Andrew or what was your favorite part about this episode? The song? Probably, but there's so many great moments in it. Yeah, heartfelt moment I love is when SpongeBob's chasing Plankton and the patty and Plankton flies off with the little helicopter on top of the patty and to follow him along, SpongeBob takes the twirling baton of the police officer next to him and flies on and the officer's reaction is oh, and hearts are starting to bubble out SpongeBob for this amazing act. Hey, I just it's so funny and like the opposite of what you think might be coming. And there's literal hearts on the screen, So that's heartfelt. It's tricky because the entire town really rallies behind SpongeBob in this episode, and they love him because he's so lovable, but it also comes with them like just hating on Plankton, and that makes me feel bad. But it is nice to see the town really love SpongeBob. And if there is a continuity to these episodes, it's almost like this episode could take place the day after the talent show and the whole town is still buzzing on how much they love SpongeBob from the night before. Then now here comes SpongeBob and he saves the Crabby Patty from Plankton, and then so they love him and they put that little donut on him, and they celebrate SpongeBob and everything. You could look at it like that, but just the whole premise is so heartfelt and so sweet and and I even love at the end, even though we learned that it's fake, maybe fake probably even when playing didn't starts emotionally losing it and crying at the betrayal that he enacts, and SpongeBob is crying, and the movie music that's playing in the movie theater that they're sitting in is just so dramatic. I don't see anything. I get you, not say it. Okay, Okay, I see it. It's a crabby patty, Okay. I couldn't help it. That I love is a great heartfelt moment, even though it ends in a joke, which is no, being evil is too much fun, and he goes back to being evil. But I'm like, I'm still convinced. I think Plankton did feel it. I think I think that he did start to feel the friendship a little bit and had to be reminded by Karen about the plan because he was so into it. He put on little square pants himself, like, I think so too. Yeah, funniest moment, Andrew, do you have a favorite funniest moment something else that you thought was so funny? I mean, there's probably a few to choose from, but I love Plankton's line. I think it's in the middle of the fun song where he tells SpongeBob, I feel out tingly inside. Should we stop? He doesn't even know what it's supposed to feel like. He's like, oh, they should call a doctor. Wait, I don't understand this. I feel tingly inside? Should we stop? No, that's how you're supposed to feel well, I like it. Let's do it again. I crack up laughing every time I hear that line. I think, other than the uranium bombs line, I think one of the funniest moments is SpongeBob picking up where he left off when he goes to see Plankton and he's telling him something. He's like, we could do this, we could do this, we could do and then Plankton closes the door on him. And then when Plankton comes back after going to talk to Karen, he opens the door and SpongeBob just finishes the line, you know how to induce thermo nuclear fusion. No, but I'd like to go jelly that naive cue, How long must I suffer this? You're not letting them leave? Are you? Can't you see this is the perfect opportunity for revenge. Brand the spongeback. Then when the training is just right, take the grammy panty crabby, P'm moving genius. Don't let him get away fishing with my friends and jelly fish fields all right, SpongeBob. So it took me a second watching the episode, but I was like, oh, he was just standing there outside the door, stopped talking as soon as the door closed, which is really sad but very funny, and just knew in his heart that Plankton would come back or was waiting for him to be nice. He gets jelly out and then you have to wait a minute until you can say fishing. Yeah for friends who do that together, you is for you and me, and it's for anywhere in any time at all. The fire that burns down the whole town used for your radium bombs and those things aren't what fun is all about. Now, do it like this? Friends who do that? We briefly touched on the amazing lasting legacy of the fun song, but let's really get into this because not only have we heard it in a Thanksgiving Day parade at Paramount Parks Products Video Games, it was in the SpongeBob episode Chums c h U M S where it's played in SpongeBob's headphones like it has comeback. I mean, let's talk about the influence of that song. And then, Andrew, we've been told that you are a brilliant songwriter in your own right, and you got to talk to us about like what it's like to write songs for SpongeBob. How does everybody feel about the fun song, and then how do you write songs today? Oh? Everybody loves the fun song. I mean, not only is it catchy, right, it's a bit of an earworm, but it's just it's so emblematic of SpongeBob himself and the whole show and just the way he sees the world. It's perfect. Yeah, I love that one. Is it intimidating to write a SpongeBob song? Man? How do you do it? That's a great question. I don't know if I have a good answer for that. Do you write the lyrics of someone who's come up with the melody first? Like? How does it? How's the process? Like? I tend to do both. I wouldn't say I'm a talented musician and I can like plunk away on a guitar, mandolin, or I have a couple of things lying around. I guess I do basic stuff I do like chords, and then I come up with the lyrics and stuff. And then we have a number of incredible musicians that we go out to and they make it sound like we know exactly what we're doing and make it sounds so good. It makes sense that the writer would be the person that can actually craft the song because they do feel very much a part of the story and the plot. I feel like if somebody else did it, it may it might not go hand in hand. Andrew, just if you could, what sort of thing would you say to anybody listening now who was also a massive fan of SpongeBob who one day hopes and dreams of maybe working on the show, because you had such an amazing journey from fan to professional two story editor. Probably took me about nine years working production before I moved over to our writing side of things. I did freelance a couple of outlines before that, but I just knew it was where I wanted to be, and I just kept working with these people who I just knew were the best in the business. I mean, I love the show so much I always have, and the people creating it are just geniuses. So I was just happy to be around and absorb as much as I could and learn as much as I could, and and figure out how I could be a part of that as well. So stick with that, stick with I love how you stuck in the word absorbed as well. That's very SpongeBob appropriate. You. You are a good writer, You're a genius in your own right, Andrew. That's a really great thank you. Definitely planned. Definitely, guys, this was so much fun. It's talking about these fantastic episodes and getting to get some behind the scenes insight from Andrew was a delight. Man. I'm so so happy that you're working on the shows today, Andrew, because Frankie and I have been talking to everybody who's, you know, been working on the show, and every person we've talked to has been awesome and super nice and they love the show above everything else. So it makes Frankie and I as fans, so happy to have that confirmed that, like the people who love the show are making the show and shows. So thank you Andrew for hanging out with us. This has been a blast, man, This has been great. Thanks so much, guys. Don't forget to check in every Thursday for new episodes of SpongeBob Binge Pants wherever you get your podcast, and if you like what we're cooking up over here, spread the word, write a review, and most importantly, keep watching cartoons. Thanks, we'll see you next week. Bye, Thank you so much. Now, for your listeners at home, we're gonna play our number one requested song this is fun from SpongeBob SquarePants. All right, take it away, SpongeBob. Here we go. Let me spell it for you. That is for friends who do stop together. You is for you and me, and is for anywhere, in any time at all the guys. For fire that burns down the whole town used for your radium bombs, And it's for no servi

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