Simpsons animator explains show's enduring appeal
Director David Silverman on the animated sitcom's longevity
As the longest running scripted show in TV history, The Simpsons has influenced more than just animated programs, says David Silverman.
Silverman is best known for his work on the iconic sitcom. He animated all of The Simpsons cartoons that appeared on The Tracey Ullman Show and later became director of animation on The Simpsons for several years. He also helmed 2007's The Simpsons Movie.
While King of the Hill, Family Guy, South Park and Simpsons creator Matt Groening's follow-up Futurama all saw benefits from the success of The Simpsons, even the live-action sitcoms popular today draw inspiration from it, Silverman says.
"I even think Modern Family sort of benefited from the surrealism of The Simpsons … and even shows like How I Met Your Mother and things like that have all benefited from The Simpsons [jumping] around, cutting from one scenario to another and one different style to another," he told CBC News on Friday in Toronto.
Silverman is in town to deliver the keynote address for this weekend's Toronto Animation Arts Festival International and to participate in a "fireside chat."
In the attached video, he talks to CBC's Zulekha Nathoo about the show's longevity, staying fresh, his advice to young animators and just how much longer The Simpsons could stay on air.