Jim Keeshen's Biography and Resume

Here is Jim Keeshen's two-page biography and resume which he gave me last year and which was contained in his "Day of the Dead" promotional packet.

----------------------------- BEGIN JIM KEESHEN BIOGRAPHY --------------------

JIM KEESHEN

Jim Keeshen decided that animation was his chosen file by the age of 5. This epiphany occurred when his father took him to see his first movie in California shortly after moving from his native country of South America. That movie was "Fantasia." Keeshen has now completed over 25 years in the animation industry.

Jim Keeshen is the president and founder of Studio Animatics, and Jim Keeshen Productions. Studio Animatics specialized in designing and producing test commercials for clients such as Disney, Proctor & Gamble, Levi's, Lexus, Toyota, Mazda, Mattel and others. Jim Keeshen Productions specializes in TV and feature stories.

As a conceptual designer and visual storyteller, Jim Keeshen has worked on animated and live action productions incorporating traditional cel animation, animatics, multimedia, 2D and 3D computer animation, rotoscoping and motion-control camera work.

Keeshen started his animation career during his studies at UCLA by animating a few scenes for "Sesame Street." Eventually he went on to produce more than 30 animated vignettes for "Sesame Street."

His first studio job in the 1970's was as production assistant and cameraman on the Oscar-winning short, "Is It Right to be Right," and the Oscar nominated short "John Henry" at Bosustow Films under the legendary UPA animator, Steven Bosustow.

Before founding Jim Keeshen Productions in 1982, Keeshen worked as a freelance animator and art director on such TV series as "Captain Caveman," "Superman," "Batman," "Yogi & Friends," "Superwoman" and "Pink Panther."

Jim Keeshen's most recent independent film, a five-minute, 2-D animated short called "Monkey Love" (1997) has aired repeatedly on Cartoon Network (U.S.) and Locomotion (Latin America). The film also won 9 awards including Worldfest Charleston, the Chicago International Film Festival, the Annecy International Animation Festival in Annecy, France, and shortlisted in that year's Academy Award nominations.

Other notable productions include the development of 3D characters in Colgate's Toothpaste TV commercials for Rhythm and Hughes, and the "Dancing Skeleton", an animated ID for Nickelodeon, which won a Creative Associate Award.

Keeshen also produced more than 15 Spanish-language public service announcements (PSAs) for the Century Council featuring actors Rita Moreno, Ricardo Montalban and Vicki Carr.

In 1998, Jim Keeshen Productions completed an original 14-minute pilot for "Family Guy," which sold the show as a new prime-time animated comedy to the Fox Network.

On the internet, Jim Keeshen Productions designed and produced the first animated character, The Peppered Leopard, for America On Line. Keeshen also designed and animated the first avatars for Microsoft's MSN 3D chat rooms.

Keeshen has just recently finished the production of a interactive language CD-ROM program for Santa Monica College's new International Business School Studies. Using current computer programs, including Flash animation, the CD teaches students 7 different foreign languages.

In addition to his production work, Keeshen has never lost sight of the importance of education. He has taught animation and design at Santa Monica College, as well as character animation at Sony Image Works. He currently teaches at the Academy of Entertainment and Technology in Santa Monica, an industry-supported and California state-funded program established in 1997. At the Academy Keeshen developed the curriculum and advised on the buying of the software and hardware for the computer animation and interactive departments.

In 1999 Keeshen was awarded the Outstanding Teacher Certificate by the Mary Pickford Foundation for his classes in storytelling, animation and storyboards.

Keeshen holds degrees from UCLA in Animation, Art and Psychology and is fluent in both Spanish and English.

----------------------------- END JIM KEESHEN BIOGRAPHY ---------------------

Notice that Jim Keeshen claims to be the "president and founder of Studio Animatics," the company which does not appear in the Norwalk registry of businesses nor on the California Secretary of State's Business Portal for corporations and limited partnerships despite his use of a California tax identification number. Why has Santa Monica College failed to produce the 2000 consultant contract for $10,000 that Keeshen obtained through Studio Animatics?

Keeshen also credits himself with the Colgate Toothpaste TV commercials for Rhythm and Hughes, which we discussed in our blog article "Jim Keeshen's 'Great Big Show'." He also takes credit, through Jim Keeshen Productions, for the Family Guy pilot. Wasn't the "Family Guy" pilot based on Seth MacFarlane's animated student film, "The Life of Larry"? I've watched Seth's student film and it has some of the scenes used in the pilot. So, why didn't Keeshen give credit where credit is due and mention that he produced this pilot with Seth MacFarlane? Ultimately, Keeshen ended up in a legal battle with Fox and Seth MacFarlane when they decided not to use his services once the show aired. As we mentioned previously, the clip of the pilot on the "Family Guy" DVD doesn't even bother to list any credits for anyone who worked with Jim Keeshen Productions.

Keeshen mentions that he produced the "interactive language CD-ROM program" for Santa Monica College, for which he received approximately $33,000 in federal funds through the Title VI-A grant. This was the project in which he signed a consultant contract under the name Animatics, later amended to read "Studio Animatics." Why didn't Keeshen use his own name and social security number for this project? Why did he place his copyrights for Studio Animatics (2001) on this CD-ROM and not Santa Monica College's copyrights? Didn't the federal government and SMC pay for this project? And why is Keeshen taking claim for the Flash animation when his name doesn't even appear in the animation, design, or programming of this CD-ROM? Keeshen only takes credit as "Animation Director" and in part for the "screen play."

Despite the above, Keeshen claims that he "has never lost sight of the importance of education." He claims to have taught at Santa Monica College as well as Sony Image Works. Wasn't Sony an AET industry partner, along with Rhythm & Hughes, and Klasky Csupo? At the Academy of Entertainment and Technology, Keeshen claims to have developed the curriculum and "advised on the buying of the software and hardware for the computer animation and interactive departments." So, if that is true, then why does Santa Monica College repeatedly fail to provide us with public records for their curriculum as well their hardware and software purchases?

The next interesting piece of information is that "Keeshen was awarded the Outstanding Teacher Certificate by the Mary Pickford Foundation for his classes in storytelling, animation and storyboards" in 1999. Not to harp on the same issues, but where is that $200,000 scholarship endowment by the Mary Pickford Foundation? Santa Monica College still fails to produce it.

Also, although "Dancing Skeleton", the animated ID for Nickelodeon, won a Creative Associate Award, Keeshen takes all the credit despite the fact that it was animated by Dave Fontana. And wasn't it Fontana who secured the job with Klasky Csupo while Keeshen only managed to obtain a rather questionable sabbatical with them? And why does Keeshen fail to credit Joddy Nicola and all the other talented animators who created "Monkey Love"? In fact, Keeshen isn't even listed in the animation credits for this film.


Peppered Leopard (c) 1995-1999 Jim Keeshen Productions, Inc.

Lastly, Keeshen claims to hold "degrees from UCLA in Animation, Art and Psychology." Yet, Keeshen only received one degree from UCLA, a Bachelor of Arts. This is the only college degree that he allegedly has obtained. Is Keeshen's biography and resume nothing more than a Potemkin village that sounds elaborate and impressive, but in actuality lacks factual substance? Again, I will leave that to you, dear readers, to decide. But as Jim Keeshen states, through his avatar, the Peppered Leopard, "For what is a Leopard without his spots?"

-- Des Manttari,
Editor-in-Chief,
Phoenix Genesis

(c) 2005: Phoenix Genesis/MBS LP

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