Imagine being able to work for someone famous, especially a person whom one has admired for several years. This is the reality for former IPFW student, Lyndy Bazile.
“About a year and a half ago I had the inkling to contact Jonathan Katz,” she said.
What began as a fan letter soon led to a new career for Bazile.
“I sent him some of my artwork, and he liked it. Then we started working together on creating a new style for this online podcast that he called ‘Hey, We’re Back.’”
Katz is best known for his hit animated series on Comedy Central, “Dr. Katz: Professional Therapist.”
“Hey, We’re Back,” which currently airs online, is like “Dr. Katz” in that the main character is played by Katz but the style and premise differs slightly.
“’Hey, We’re Back’ looks similar to ‘Dr. Katz’ because it’s black and white … very deadpan. But it’s a lot smoother. It doesn’t really squiggle,” said Bazile.
Squiggle-vision was a signature style utilized by animators of “Dr. Katz” in which the lines visibly waved or squiggled.
The television program, “had different comedians come on each episode. They’d come in the therapist office as patients and they’d do their comedy skit,” explained Bazile of “Dr. Katz.”
“Hey, We’re Back” plays like a radio show in which the DJ, voiced by Katz, tells humorous, anecdotal stories. Bazile animates the stories.
Teaching herself the rudiments of various animation programs, Bazile began working on animating the audio skits that Katz would send her.
“It’s kind of depressing to look at, but it complements his dry sense of humor,” she said.
Katz’s comedy is also very subtle in its delivery. Often characters being interviewed find it difficult to discern when he is actually being serious.
“It’s not like ‘Family Guy’ where it’s just like ‘oh my God that’s hilarious and I can’t stop laughing because someone got punched.’ It’s not like that. It’s more thoughtful,” said Bazile.
What is perhaps the most remarkable part of this story is that Bazile does not take herself too seriously as an artist.
“I wouldn’t call myself an artist. I never made money off of it … I’m a huge fan and I just wanted to tell him how much I loved him,” she said.
Bazile also did not anticipate being taken seriously by Katz.
“I expected him to be like: ‘Thanks for liking the show … like everybody else.’”
But as fate would have it, Katz did not brush her off as “everybody else.”
“She showed up one day as a fan and now I am her fan. Together, we have turned my audio podcast into beautifully conceived and drawn, animated shorts. Her talent continues to overwhelm me,” remarked Katz himself.
The podcast “Hey We’re Back” can be viewed online at JonathanKatzComedy. Bazile has animated eight episodes and plans to continue working as a professional animator.
