Meet the creator of âJohnny Bravoâ
Fil-Am Van Partible, creator of the popular American animated series âJohnny Bravoâ on Cartoon Network, said he dreams of seeing more Filipino content in international animation.
âI honestly havenât seen very much so I get excited when I see Filipinos working in the animation industry,â Van told Inquirer Entertainment in a recent phone interview. âLike Alex NiĂąo (artist for Marvel and DC Comics) ⌠I met him and told him I grew up seeing his work.â
On season five of âJohnny Bravo,â Van said he hired as many Filipinos as he could. âThere were four of them (including singer-actress and Inquirer Entertainment columnist Lea Salonga) ⌠â
Van was born Efrem Giovanni Bravo Partible in Manila, but traces his roots to Bacnotan, La Union. He is currently based in Salinas, California.
He has not yet returned to the country since he left for the United States when he was 9. âMy work schedule hasnât allowed me to do that,â said Van, now married and a father of two. âUsually, when I fly out to Asia, itâs through Cartoon Network. My work hasnât taken me to the Philippines yet. It would be fun.â
Growing up in the States, Van said he was more into âassimilating to American culture than to holding on to my roots.â This meant he never got to learn to speak Filipino.
âThatâs what you do when youâre in a new placeâyou try to fit in,â he explained. âThe only thing that rolls off my mouth is âSalamat. Walang anuman.ââ
âI wasnât much in touch with my Filipino roots when I first developed Johnny Bravo,â Van admitted. Â
That changed after watching the movie The Debut, directed by Fil-Am filmmaker Gene Cajayon about a talented high school senior who enrolls in an elite arts institute to realize his dreams of becoming an artist, but in the process, struggles for acceptance in America and thereby, rejecting his heritage.
Because the story struck close to home, Van said, âIt really got me thinking about my roots. So on the fifth season of Johnny Bravo, I thought I wanna hire more Filipinos. I hired voice actresses that are Filipinos like Tia Carere, Lea Salonga and Dante Basco. Thereâs also one episode that had a caricature of me, saying some things in Tagalog.â Â
Van said he grew up with an avid love for drawing: âI went to a high school reunion recently and my friend, who I went to kindergarten with, said, âI remember when you drew a picture that was better than the teacherâs. It was a squirrel.ââ
But Van pointed out that he doesnât try to push his interests on his kids. âThey both draw well at a young age. I only try to see where their natural inclinations are. My 9-year-old has taken an interest in writing. The other one is into drawing a whole bunch of things. Itâs kind of fun watching them.â
Was it hard breaking into the industry as an Asian, and specifically as a Filipino? âI never gave that a lot of thought. At the beginning of (Johnny Bravo), I was so far removed from considering myself to be Filipino; I was just trying to get into the industry based on talent,â Van shared. âI felt like, okay, either Iâm going to get in or not.â
He said that whatever struggles he had to hurdle were not due to being Filipino but due to a âlack of experience or lack of talent.â He cited the design problems that cropped up during Johnny Bravoâs first season because âmy design vocabulary wasnât the greatest.â
âThose were setbacks, but I just got better with what I did (because) I always challenge myself to do better, and thatâs pretty much what I keep on doing,â he said.
âJohnny Bravoâ features a hunk with a pompadour and a voice like Elvis Presleyâs. The series usually revolves around him trying to get a woman to fall in love with him, but is often ditched in the end.
The series has its roots from Vanâs senior thesis project at the Loyola Marymount University titled âMess Oâ Blues,â about an Elvis impersonator. Vanâs animation professor showed his work to a friend working for Hanna-Barbera at that time. The studio loved it and asked him to develop it into a pitch for a seven-minute short. He sold the project to Hanna-Barbera shortly after.
âJohnny Bravoâ first aired as part of a series of shorts on Cartoon Networkâs âWorld Premiere Toonsâ in March 1995. It was so well-received that the network commissioned a full series for it, which premiered in July 1997. The program was renewed for two seasons and had its final run in August 2004.
âIâm a huge fan of Elvis,â he said. âWe didnât have many records when I was growing up. (But) the first one my parents bought for us was an Elvis record. Weâd go between listening to Elvis and Nora Aunor.â
Van was convinced that the key to the success of âJohnny Bravoâ was the characterâs appeal. âPeople know this character because they have uncles, cousins, friends who act like Johnny Bravo,â he explained. âItâs fun to watch, even though heâs kind of a narcissist.â
In 2009, Van wrote the 11-minute short âJohnny Bravo Goes to Bollywoodâ that aired in India. âIt was well received,â he said, adding that it even earned a nomination at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival that year. âJohnny Bravo has been around for quite a while, but it was the first time for it to receive a nomination; That was kind of exciting.â
Van, currently the executive producer for Cartoon Network Asiaâs original programming, said that the movie was created because the network wanted to launch a short program in Asia with a known character.
The 74-minute made-for-TV musical version of âJohnny Bravo Goes to Bollywoodâ premiered in Asia on Cartoon Network on Nov. 27.
Van also conducts animation workshops at Loyola Marymount University. He tells his students and budding artists to âkeep on drawing ⌠I think the more you draw, the better you get,â he pointed out. âI was already drawing pretty well when I first developed Johnny Bravo. But when I started doing it full time as a job and drawing everyday, I saw the progress that I made. Itâs amazing how much better you get just sitting there drawing on a piece of paper. Itâs all about the time you put into it.â
snowghoul
kianamaiart
s-u-f-j-a-n-s-t-e-v-e-n-s
gracieabrams
