Raquel enlists Alice’s help in a pod chase.

Game Over creator and exec producer David Goestch says, “Getting so much emotion out of these characters, and working directly with DKP’s designers and animators at the same time they are actually animating, has made producing Game Over more like a live-action sitcom than an animated cartoon.”

Because Game Over is set in a videogame world, there are lots of explosions and other unusual effects to create. “We generally don’t touch the effects until the animation is approved,” comments DKP vp Dale.

However, the beauty of working on an animated series is that once an effect has been achieved, it can be reused. “Yes, we have a library of ‘canned effects’ that can be customized if they need to be bigger, faster or brighter,” Dale says.

Raquel shows off her trophy — a villain’s head.

Artful Technology
DKP has some 80 computer animators working on site — and on theGRID — to make Game Over a reality. The show’s supervising director, John Rice, also worked in-house to help get the project underway.

“As an artist, you may think that automation may hinder the creativity, but we’ve found it hasn’t,” says Warren Lawtey, head of visual effects for DKP. “It’s huge fun working on the show, and our animators love it.”

One way DKP has found to keep things fresh is to give animators different characters (and creatures!) to work on. “This show has men and women and monsters and aliens and all kinds of things,” Lawtey says. “Every animator gets a chance to work on everything. We try to mix it up on purpose... it makes us better animators.”

Game Over Vital Stats What: Game Over When: March 10, 8:00 pm Where: UPN Produced by: Carsey-Werner-Mandabach Created by: David Sacks (The Simpsons, The Tick) Developed by: David Goetsch (3rd Rock From the Sun), David Sacks, Jason Venokur (3rd Rock From the Sun) and Ross Venokur (The Tick) Executive producers: David Goetsch, David Sacks, Jason Venokur, Ross Venokur, Marcy Carsey, Tom Werner, Caryn Mandabach (That 70s Show, Grounded for Life, Whoopi, The Tracy Morgan Show). Supervising director: John Rice (King of the Hill) 3D animation production: DKP Effects (and the GRID)

Still, DKP animators have already grown attached to certain Game Over characters, and have even added to their personalities. “It’s been exciting to see the show develop,” says DKP vp Terry Dale. “By the third or fourth or fifth show, there are certain character traits that reappear, like a gesture or the way a character will move his hand.”

“There are some pretty smart guys working on this show. It’s really funny, and the Carsey-Werner-Mandabach people are really into videogames,” Dale says. “In the end, it’s all about the acting and story, and not the technology,” agrees Morch.

Still, it’s theGRID that has made Game Over a 3D possibility. Currently, theGRID is a DKP proprietary process. Is the company willing to share?

“Everyone asks us that,” laughs DKP vp Terry Dale. “It’s an in-house productivity tool and it reflects the philosophy of our company. Right now, we don’t have any plans for selling [theGRID] outside.”

Janet Hetherington is a graduate of Carleton University’s School of Journalism. She has covered the Canadian animation industry extensively, and writes short fiction and comic book scripts as well as non-fiction. In 1999, Hetherington received a Canadian Aurora award for excellence in science fiction and fantasy. She resides in Ottawa, Canada, with her partner, artist Ronn Sutton.