Chris Savino
Christopher Mason Savino (born October 2, 1971) is an American writer, comic book artist, and former animator. He is well-known as the creator of the animated series The Loud House. Savino has also worked on The Ren & Stimpy Show, Dexter's Laboratory, Cow and Chicken, I Am Weasel, The Powerpuff Girls, Samurai Jack, My Gym Partner's a Monkey, Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, Mickey Mouse and Johnny Test.
Chris Savino | |
|---|---|
| Born | Christopher Mason Savino October 2, 1971[1] Royal Oak, Michigan, U.S. |
| Occupation(s) | Comic book artist, writer, animator (formerly) |
| Years active |
|
| Known for | |
| Children | 3 |
| Website | chrissavinoauthor |
Savino has been nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards, two Annie Awards, and a Daytime Emmy Award.
Early life
Savino was born and raised in Royal Oak, Michigan, where he attended Dondero High School.[2] He is the ninth of ten children, having five sisters and four brothers.[3] His biggest influence in the animation world was Mighty Mouse: The New Adventures because of the way its animation style differed from that of the other 1980s animated series.[4]
Career
He began his career in the animation industry in 1991 and has worked for Spümcø, Joe Murray Studio, Nickelodeon Animation Studios, Hanna-Barbera, Cartoon Network Studios and Disney Television Animation. He was originally the showrunner for the last two seasons of Dexter's Laboratory, The Powerpuff Girls, and My Gym Partner's a Monkey.[5] He was also previously a writer for The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy, Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil, and Mickey Mouse. In June 2014, his short for Nickelodeon, The Loud House, was greenlit for a full series, and debuted on May 2, 2016.[6]
On November 1, 2019, Savino released his debut children's novel, Coal: A Cautionary Christmas Tale, through Amazon Publishing. Later on December of the same year he published the first installment of his graphic novel duology Bigfoot & Gray.
On March 3, 2020, he published his first non-fiction book, a guide to write cartoons entitled Writing Cartoons in 4 Acts (Or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Midpoint).
Since January 5, 2020, he also publishes the Sunday strip For Brothers.[7]
Personal life
Sexual harassment allegations
On October 17, 2017, Cartoon Brew reported that Nickelodeon had suspended Savino from their studio due to multiple allegations of sexual harassment against him; rumors of Savino's inappropriate behavior had existed for "at least a decade".[8][9] As many as a dozen women accused Savino of sexual harassment, unwanted sexual advances, and threats of blacklisting female colleagues who no longer agreed to consensual relationships with him.[8][10] On October 19, a Nickelodeon spokesperson confirmed that they fired Savino, and that The Loud House would continue production without him.[10][11] On October 23, Savino spoke for the first time since the allegations first appeared, saying he was "deeply sorry" for his actions.[12] On May 30, 2018, Savino was given a one-year suspension from The Animation Guild, IATSE Local 839. As part of his plea bargain with The Animation Guild, Savino was ordered to donate $4,000 to a charity chosen by the guild, complete 40 hours of community service, undergo counseling, and obtain a certificate of sexual harassment training.[13]
The allegations and his union suspension process were featured in a March 2019 segment on Full Frontal with Samantha Bee titled #Metoon that was produced and animated by a crew of all women, and featured interviews with a few of the female animators that were involved in his successful union suspension campaign along with one of his alleged victims.[14]
In a September 2019 interview, Savino mentioned his regret about his actions.[15]
In October 2019, Savino claimed to be a born-again Christian.[16]
Filmography
Television
| Year | Title | Director | Producer | Writer | Animator | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991–1996 | The Ren & Stimpy Show | No | No | No | Yes | layout artist |
| 1993–1996 | Rocko's Modern Life | No | No | No | Yes | storyboard clean-up/prop designer/character designer |
| 1995 | The Baby Huey Show | No | No | No | Yes | layout artist/character prop designer (Season 2) |
| 1995 | Hate | No | No | No | Yes | layout artist |
| 1996 | The Mouse and the Monster | No | No | No | Yes | character designer |
| 1996–1997 | Hey Arnold! | No | No | No | Yes | storyboard director/prop designer/character designer |
| 1997–2001 | The Angry Beavers | Yes | No | No | No | character designer 5 episodes only |
| 1997 | Space Goofs | No | No | No | Yes | storyboard artist Episode: "Time for a Change" |
| Duckman | No | No | No | Yes | storyboard artist | |
| 1997–2003 | Dexter's Laboratory | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | storyboard artist/animation director |
| 1998 | Cow and Chicken | No | No | No | Yes | storyboard artist Episode: "Cow Fly" |
| I Am Weasel | No | No | No | Yes | storyboard artist Episodes: "I.R. in Wrong Cartoon" and "Unsinkable I.R." | |
| 1998–2005 | The Powerpuff Girls | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | storyboard artist |
| 2000 | The Cartoon Cartoon Show | No | No | Yes | Yes | creator/storyboard director/model designer/animation layout "Foe Paws" animation layout "Jeffrey Cat: Claw and Odor" |
| 2002–2003 | Samurai Jack | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 2002 | Whatever Happened to... Robot Jones? | No | No | No | Yes | Character and Prop models |
| 2003 | The Grim Adventures of Billy & Mandy | No | No | No | Yes | storyboard artist Episode: "To Eris Human" |
| 2004–2007 | Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends | Yes | No | Yes | No | animation director |
| 2005–2006 | Johnny Test | Yes | Yes | No | Yes | storyboard artist; season 1 |
| 2005–2008 | My Life as a Teenage Robot | Yes | No | No | No | |
| 2007–2008 | My Gym Partner's a Monkey | No | No | No | Yes | storyboard artist/sheet timer |
| 2008 | Ni Hao, Kai-Lan | No | No | No | Yes | storyboard artist/storybook artist |
| 2010–2012 | Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | executive producer |
| 2010–2011 | My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic | No | No | Yes | No | writer Episodes: "Boast Busters" and "Stare Master" |
| 2013 | Mickey Mouse | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | storyboard artist Episode: "Bad Ear Day" |
| 2015 | Get Blake! | No | No | Yes | No | writer Episodes: "Get Snatched" and "Get Western" |
| 2016–2018 | The Loud House | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | creator/executive producer/storyboard artist |
| 2016 | All in with Cam Newton | No | No | No | No | Himself Episode: "All In with Josh" |
Film
| Year | Title | Director | Producer | Writer | Animator | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1999 | Dexter's Laboratory: Ego Trip | No | No | Story | Yes | storyboard artist |
| 2001 | The Flintstones: On the Rocks | Yes | No | Yes | Yes | storyboard artist/art director |
Internet
| Year | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Cartoons VS Cancer[17] | Episode 9: "The One with Chris Savino" | Podcast |
| 2016–2017 | Nickelodeon Animation Podcast | Episodes (2 & 40): "Chris Savino", "Inside the Loud House Writers' Room" | Podcast |
Awards and nominations
| Date | Award | Category | Work | Shared with | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Annie Awards | Outstanding Individual Achievement for Writing in an Animated Television Production | The Powerpuff Girls (for "Dream Scheme")[18] | — | Nominated |
| 2004 | Primetime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming One Hour or More) | The Powerpuff Girls: 'Twas the Fight Before Christmas[19][20] | Craig McCracken, Brian A. Miller, Lauren Faust, Craig Lewis, Amy Keating Rogers, Robert Alvarez, John McIntyre, Randy Myers, James T. Walker, and Juli Murphy | Nominated |
| 2006 | Outstanding Animated Program (For Programming One Hour or More) | Escape from Cluster Prime | Rob Renzetti, Fred Seibert, Scott D. Peterson, Alex Kirwan, Brandon Kruse, Heather Martinez, Chris Reccardi, Bryan Andrews, and Robert Alvarez | Nominated | |
| 2010 | Outstanding Short-Format Animated Program | Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil | Sandro Corsaro and Janelle Momary | Nominated | |
| 2011 | Daytime Emmy Awards | Outstanding Directing in an Animated Program | Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil | Sherm Cohen | Nominated |
| 2012 | Annie Awards | Directing in a Television Production | Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil[21] | Clayton Morrow | Nominated |
References
- The Loud House #1: There Will Be Chaos. Papercutz. 2017. ISBN 9781629919515. Retrieved 23 October 2020.
- Mekeisha Madden Toby (March 1, 2010). "Small Talk with Chris Savino". The Detroit News. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
- Liew, Sarah (August 10, 2016). "The Loud House creator grew up with 9 siblings". The star. Retrieved June 2, 2021.
- Hector Navarro (May 20, 2016). "Episode 2: Chris Savino – Nick Animation Podcast". YouTube. Retrieved June 3, 2016.
- The Powerpuff Girls: Who, What, Where, How, Why... Who Cares?. 2009.
- Laura Prudom (March 28, 2016). "Nickelodeon Animated Comedy 'The Loud House' Sets Premiere Date – Get a First Look". Variety. Retrieved March 28, 2016.
- For Brothers Comic | by Chris Savino
- Amidi, Amid (October 17, 2017). "UPDATED: Nickelodeon Suspends 'Loud House' Creator Chris Savino After Numerous Harassment Claims (EXCLUSIVE)". Cartoon Brew.
- "Full Frontal Rewind: Oops, All Women Edition". YouTube.
- Lesley Goldberg (October 19, 2017). "Nickelodeon Fires 'Loud House' Creator After Sexual Harassment Allegations". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 21, 2017.
- Nellie Andreeva (October 19, 2017). "'The Loud House' Creator Chris Savino Fired By Nickelodeon Following Sexual Harassment Allegations". Deadline Hollywood.
- Denise Petski (October 23, 2017). "Fired 'The Loud House' Creator Chris Savino Says He's "Deeply Sorry" Over Sexual Harassment Allegations". Deadline Hollywood.
- Amidi, Amid (May 30, 2018). "The Animation Guild Has Suspended 'The Loud House' Creator Chris Savino". Cartoon Brew.
- "#MeToon: How Courageous Feminists United to Reshape the Animation Community - Ms. Magazine". msmagazine.com. 8 September 2020. Retrieved 2022-04-22.
- Chris Savino (September 30, 2019). "From Nickelodeon Cartoonist to Redemption in Jesus: An Interview with Chris Savino". Daily Renegade (Interview). Interviewed by Josh Peck.
- Amidi, Amid (October 1, 2019). "With Jesus By His Side, Fired 'Loud House' Creator Chris Savino Wants To Make A Comeback". Cartoon Brew. Retrieved October 1, 2019.
- Cartoons VS Cancer - Ep. 9 (The One with Chris Savino)
- "28th Annual Annie Award Nominees and Winners (2000)". AnnieAwards.org. ASIFA-Hollywood. Archived from the original on April 25, 2017. Retrieved May 27, 2011.
- "Complete list of primetime Emmy nominations". USA Today. July 15, 2004. Archived from the original on October 23, 2012. Retrieved May 27, 2011.
- "The Powerpuff Girls: Twas The Fight Before Christmas". Emmys.com. Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Archived from the original on October 13, 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2013.
- "39th Annie Awards". AnnieAwards.org. Retrieved 2022-10-25.