I went to film school and made a couple of animated films that were in tournees and in festivals, and so I started out as an independent filmmaker. I would make one film, it would show in a festival, and another company would pay me to make another film. Over time, I was asked by Sesame Street to submit some of my films. At the same time, I became an auditioning writer. One of the great things about having done standup was that at Sesame Street they didn’t want somebody who wrote for children; they wanted someone who was funny. They figured they could teach you how to write for children; they couldn’t teach you how to be funny. So, they asked me to hand in two adult sketches, and I had them. They were in my filing cabinet, and they were the two funniest things that I had written. It was much easier to become a writer. And once I was accepted, which took about a year, it was like going to school with these older writers who had a lot of experience. At the same time, I was able to make animated films, and every year I was basically given a certain number of films to do that they really wanted. I could take one film and experiment. I could do a different format, a different type of movie, and they were very open to that. It was a great way to be a young man.
