NICKELODEON CALLS UPON ITS 'GENIUS'.Byline: - Bob Strauss You may not have heard as much about ``Jimmy Neutron neutron, uncharged elementary particle of slightly greater mass than the proton. It was discovered by James Chadwick in 1932. The stable isotopes of all elements except hydrogen and helium contain a number of neutrons equal to or greater than the number of protons. : Boy Genius'' as you did about this year's slicker computer-animated attractions, ``Shrek'' and ``Monsters, Inc.'' But your kids sure have. Although he describes the relatively low-tech, digital cartoon feature's style as ``garage band animation,'' the film's executive producer, Albie Hecht, took advantage of all the cross-promotional possibilities the Nickelodeon children's cable network, which he also runs, had to offer, as well as the synergistic synergistic /syn·er·gis·tic/ (sin?er-jis´tik) 1. acting together. 2. enhancing the effect of another force or agent. syn·er·gis·tic adj. 1. advantages that Viacom, which is Nick's and releasing studio Paramount's parent conglomerate, could muster. ``Jimmy's a character that we just loved; he's half Bart Simpson and half Einstein, all rolled up in this mischievous mis·chie·vous adj. 1. Causing mischief. 2. Playful in a naughty or teasing way. 3. Troublesome; irritating: a mischievous prank. 4. , inventive 'tween-ager,'' Hecht explains. ``We just felt like he could be a strong enough character to be played out in movies, television, games and online.'' And in an unusual campaign, begun with a teaser teaser an animal used to sexually tease but not to impregnate the members of the opposite sex. Usually males and they may be surgically prepared to ensure that they cannot mate or are not fertile. trailer attached to Nick/Paramount's ``Rugrats in Paris'' theatrical feature last year, Hecht and company set out to introduce the younger set to the boy genius. Beginning in January, a new short film popped up on the cable channel every month, while Nick's Web site hosted a game related to the installment. Paramount got Jimmy's distinctively pompadoured hair imprinted im·print tr.v. im·print·ed, im·print·ing, im·prints 1. To produce (a mark or pattern) on a surface by pressure. 2. To produce a mark on (a surface) by pressure. 3. on movie theater popcorn boxes last summer. And beginning in the fall, Jimmy started invading in·vade v. in·vad·ed, in·vad·ing, in·vades v.tr. 1. To enter by force in order to conquer or pillage. 2. other popular Nick programs, changing their story lines and generally causing kid-delighting havoc that Hecht is confident also primed the audience to become good little consumers when movie tickets go on sale Dec. 21. For all the corporate muscle behind the project, though, Hecht still likes to consider Jimmy Neutron a subversive alternative to the monster inc.'s of digital animation, Disney/Pixar and DreamWorks. ``This is great-looking stuff that was made on a desktop computer that you and I could have, with off-the-shelf software,'' Hecht explains. ``It's almost an independent filmmaking film·mak·ing n. The making of movies. model, as opposed to a big studio, proprietary software, giant machine power point of view. ``Of course, there were second thoughts about doing it this way ... and third and fourth,'' he admits. ``But we were excited about it, too. The experimentation really pays off in an original and quirky quirk n. 1. A peculiarity of behavior; an idiosyncrasy: "Every man had his own quirks and twists" Harriet Beecher Stowe. 2. type of animation that's different from what people are used to seeing.'' CAPTION(S): 2 photos Photo: (1 -- 2 -- color) no caption (Jimmy Neutron) |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion