Elegant Celebrities Blog

I recently interviewed Kevan Peterson and Darrel Bowen, who were so gracious to share with me about their background, entertainment industry experience and insights, and future projects. Our two hour conversation was a tremendous learning experience for me, and I think they should teach their own entertainment industry course!

Kevan C. Peterson is an award-winning screenwriter/producer and is the president of Fromage Pictures, a production company focusing on family-friendly television shows, films and web series. Kevan has been a Disney Fellowship finalist, and has written horror, comedies, animated and feature films.

Darrel Bowen is the president of Darrel Bowen Media, a company specializing in pre-production animation and design for television, video, internet, and publishing and licensing. He has more than 20 years of experience working as an animator and designer for The Simpsons, Rugrats, EA Games, as well as many independent films, animations, theme rides, model designs, and visual development projects. Darrel is also the president of Rocket Fist Inc., a designer toy manufacturer.

Kevan and Darrel formed Code Name Entertainment as a joint venture. Their upcoming animated television pilot is called The Super Holidays. This is part I of our interview, where we discuss their background, experience, inspirations and advice for future Hollywood professionals.

How they met:

They met last year, when Kevan, who had no animation background, advertised on Craigslist and Darrel responded. They two met and they clicked. Darrel calls it a complimentary partnership. “We’re not competing. We produce a superior product, working as a team.”

Their roles on the team:

Kevan handles writing, voicecasting, dubbing, distribution, corporate and partnership matters. Darrel is in charge of design and animation, as well as domestic and overseas production.

Personal favorites:

Kevan loves Steve Martin (Father of the Bride, old Saturday Night Live episodes) and Philip Seymour Hoffman. His favorite animated movies hail from Pixar, including Toy Story. Favorite feature films and TV series include Back to the Future (a favorite since he was a teen—he knew all of the lines), American Beauty, and Six Feet Under.

Darrel admires Martin Scorsese, Stanley Kubrick, and Akira Kurosawa. Movie favorites include Goodfellas, Hellboy 2 and X-Men 2. Recently, he saw W and liked it. Favorite television series include Mad Men, The Sopranos, and the Japanese fantasy series, Ultraman.

Where they get ideas and how they work it:

Kevan believes that he always returns to recurring themes in his writing. He tends to explore mistaken identities in his work. He works sporadically and multitasks a lot at once. It doesn’t matter where the idea comes from; once he gets an idea, he will map out 30-40 scenes and start developing themes and characters.

“Writing the beginning of a screenplay is easy, but the hard work begins on page 30.”

When he hits a wall, Kevan continues writing. It is normal for him to have missing information in his first drafts, which are usually shorter in length than a standard screenplay. Once he “powers through” a draft, he goes back to explore and rework the missing areas, often tying together themes and characters. Writer’s block? No problem. Kevan simply switches to working on another project. He is currently also writing a horror script, a comedy and a book, all simultaneously. “You end up with what you know when you write. You always go back to the things you know.”

Darrel has admitted that focus is very important when he is on a project. Like most working parents, he has the added challenge of concentrating while dealing with family distractions. He draws inspiration from international cultures and their stories, frequently borrowing ideas from them. On a trip to Kazakhstan, he was inspired after meeting with local animators. He travels to animation studios around the world, having recently visited 14 studios in China, and studios in India as well.

Both men cite the importance of delivering projects on time. Late delivery of animated episodes results in a heavy penalty of $250,000 or more, due to the havoc it wreaks with a network’s pre-planned advertising schedule.

Advice for aspiring screenwriters/filmmakers/animators:

Kevan has read many scripts as well as judged several screenplay competitions. The most common screenwriting error he has noticed is that many writers do not write about their passion. Instead, they write what they think will be a hit. Also, not enough writers read what they write. “It’s better to get some bad screenplays and read them, to learn what the writer did wrong,” he advises.

Darrel remembers being 10 years old and asking C.C. Beck, famed animator of the Shazam! comic book series, for advice. Beck tried to dash young Darrel’s hopes by telling him, “Don’t get into this business, kid.” Undeterred, Darrel, like Kevan, believes that you should do something you are passionate about. He stresses that patience, persistence and not giving up are important, because many Hollywood hopefuls expect and demand quick success. “Know your market and research it,” he said, “including your target audience and their age group. Get funding for projects in order to maintain as much creative and financial freedom and control as possible.”

In Part 2 of this fantastic interview, Kevan and Darrel share their insights about Hollywood and the animation industry, and little known secrets about how things really work in Tinseltown. We also chat about their upcoming television pilot, The Super Holidays. Stay tuned!