The number one show on Disney Channel, Big City Greens, is now in its 4th season, with a feature-length adventure just around the corner. At LightBox Expo, Co-Executive Producer Stephen Sandoval brought along a team of talented artists who are helping to shape the current season in addition to the upcoming feature film. While there wasn’t anything particularly newsworthy from the panel, and no art was shown, it still gave insight into what life is like at Disney Television Animation on this series. Keep reading to find out why Big City Greens is the best animated series to work on today.
A recurring theme at LightBox Expo is networking, which is how many of the artists on Big City Greens got hired. Director Kiana Khansmith went to California College of the Arts in Oakland, where she also made friends through her love of Pokémon. Having completed Pixar’s Summer Story Intensive, her name came across the desk of series creators Chris and Shane Houghton, who asked her to do a storyboard test that got her the job, ending her academic studies early. Gabi Rodea was a few years behind Kiana at CCA, but knew her through Pokémon. When he graduated in 2020, he packed up and moved back home to the Midwest and was struggling to find work in the industry. But when Kiana was promoted to director, Big City Greens needed a story artist to replace her. She recommended Gabi, who joined the team remotely on Season 3 before relocating to Southern California for Season 4. Gabi’s boarding partner, Carl Edward Mongan, was also at CCA and interviewed with the Houghtons in 2018 while at CCA, but didn’t get the job. But he was accepted into the 2021 Nickelodeon Artist Program, training on The Patrick Star Show and working on Kamp Koral: SpongeBob’s Under Years. His work caught the attention of the Houghton’s again, and he was asked to do another test for Big City Greens: The Movie, which he got, segueing from that production onto Season 4.
The most tenured members of the panel were Story Editor Nate Federman and director Nick Sumida. With writing credits on NBC’s The Office in addition to animated series like Wander Over Yonder, Star Vs. the Forces of Evil, and DuckTales, Nate was interviewed early in the development process of Big City Greens. He ended up being runner-up for the job, and he moved on when he didn’t get the job. But 3 months later, the creators called him to say that things didn’t work out with their first choice, and he’s been part of the Big City Greens team ever since. Like Kiana, Nick Sumida started as a story artist when the series began and was promoted to director. He first worked with the Houghtons in the story department on Nickelodeon’s Harvey Beaks and was sad when they left (because Big City Greens was picked up by Disney). But they soon called with an offer to join the production. Rounding out the panel was writer Laura Eichhorn, who came from a sketch comedy background. A friend of hers at Disney Animation was familiar with her work, and when Big City Greens had an opening for a writer in 2020, she submitted a test script and got the job.
“How can we make it dumber?”, Stephen Sandoval asked, one of the show’s mantras that keeps each episode of Big City Greens fun and surprising. When it comes to the stories for each episode, Big City Greens is a hybrid. Some episodes are boarded based on a complete script, while others are a simple outline that the storyboard artists get to flesh out. Directors Kiana and Nick are typically working on five episodes at a time, and since they are made for broadcast, each episode has to fit within a specific timeframe. For Nick, the editing process is part of the fun of his job, and he shared that it sometimes new jokes are born out of making cuts.
“Stephen is the nicest human being,” Nate Federman shared about the panel’s moderator and the show’s co-executive producer. But Stephen deflected the comment to the Houghtons, who he says set the tone for the atmosphere they all work in. Chris and Shane have fostered an open and inclusive environment behind the scenes of Big City Greens, one in which anyone in any department is encouraged to share ideas to help make the show better season after season. The team celebrates all victories, big and small, with rounds of applause when a member of the team accomplishes a goal. For example, Kiana really wanted to try her hand at character design and was allowed to do so for the episode
“Mages & Mazes,” which was ditting because she also loves Dungeons & Dragons.
New episodes of Big City Greens air on Saturdays at 8:00 am on Disney Channel and get added to Disney+ in batches. Click here for more coverage from LightBox Expo.