Hazbin Hotel - Hell is getting interest in your animated pilot

[Jman]

Fresh from Patreon and looking for someone to option the series is a show about a princess in hell trying to rehabilitate demons and being mocked as a complete idiot.

Oh, and there’s singing because that’s popular (no it isn’t).

The animation is beautiful but there’s about 10 reasons I can think of no one will ever option this to series.  Give it a watch and tell me if you agree or disagree.

[Rogue_Alphonse]

From what I've seen, it's getting pretty popular. I enjoyed it myself.

[The1gairon]

TOtally lovin iiiiiiit.

FYI,

1. It's a musical because musicals are one of Viv's strong inspirations in general. Alastor was created as an alagram of that radio host in Annie who sings "You're Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile". Viv even lived in Manhattan for a good long while.

2. Singing IS popular, what you damn kidding me?! It's one of the most profitable forms of entertainment.

Edited November 5, 2019 by elfie

[GuyBeardmane]

It's a beautiful pilot, the animation is stunning, the writing and voice acting are superb, and the characters are fantastic.

It'll never be picked up because animation costs a lot and no company is going to be willing to throw their money into this series because it won't pass their S&P guidelines.  Plus it'll be difficult for them to market and as much as this is a creation of love, no company will put their money in without a major stake in control.

It's a damn shame.  I can see this as maybe becoming a series on Amazon Prime or Hulu if Jeff Bezos or all the networks that make up Hulu decide to throw their chips in.

[PokeNirvash]

6 hours ago, GuyBeardmane said:

It'll never be picked up because... no company is going to be willing to throw their money into this series because it won't pass their S&P guidelines.

That's a pretty bold assumption to make, especially considering TV stations are the ones with S&P departments, not production studios themselves.

I don't have any desire to watch this, though I read somewhere that Charlie's voiced by the same girl who did Noelle in Black Clover, so that may get me to check it out at a way later date.

[Jman]

You nailed it when you mentioned the money.  It’s Korgoth.  Member Korgoth?  Member how everyone liked it but it never aired?

It never aired because the budget would have been equivalent to 1/3 of the entire Adult Swim budget, and that was with Aaron Springer on board, (Spongebob’s head storyboarder and one of the key writers) and Genndy Tartovoskty as a timing director.

This project began crowdfunding in 2014.  It will probably need another year to gather funds, and then probably a year at most to come up with another final product (At least initially character designs are done so that’s less of an issue).  So the only way to get a consistent product is have a network pick it up.  And while S&P isn’t a big deal for on demand channels, Netflix is gonna take one look at this, at the budget, at the songs, and ask one simple question -

“Uh yeah, why would we spend all this money on this show when we can get three seasons of an adult cartoon from a popular comedian with connections at Hollywood instead?  You’re not Bill Burr, you’re not John Mulaney, you’re some weirdo Tumblr spawn that gets into arguments with furries on Twitter.  And we have better things to spend our money on.  Unless you can slash the budget by 40% and are willing to cede creative control to our executives, we’re going to pass.”

[viperxmns]

Really solid pilot, I kinda feel like the door is more open nowadays for animated projects like this to get made

The adult nature may be a limiting factor for expensive animation like this but if it seems to be gaining enough traction maybe one service or another will feel confident enough to invest in it, at least as a limited series

[The1gairon]

12 hours ago, GuyBeardmane said:

It's a beautiful pilot, the animation is stunning, the writing and voice acting are superb, and the characters are fantastic.

It'll never be picked up because animation costs a lot and no company is going to be willing to throw their money into this series because it won't pass their S&P guidelines.  Plus it'll be difficult for them to market and as much as this is a creation of love, no company will put their money in without a major stake in control.

It's a damn shame.  I can see this as maybe becoming a series on Amazon Prime or Hulu if Jeff Bezos or all the networks that make up Hulu decide to throw their chips in.

Animation costs a lot. Yeah, shown clearly in how Adult Swim never ever greenlights any original animation.

[GuyBeardmane]

2 minutes ago, elfie said:

Animation costs a lot. Yeah, shown clearly in how Adult Swim never ever greenlights any original animation.

This vvvvvv

4 hours ago, Jman said:

You nailed it when you mentioned the money.  It’s Korgoth.  Member Korgoth?  Member how everyone liked it but it never aired?

It never aired because the budget would have been equivalent to 1/3 of the entire Adult Swim budget, and that was with Aaron Springer on board, (Spongebob’s head storyboarder and one of the key writers) and Genndy Tartovoskty as a timing director.

This project began crowdfunding in 2014.  It will probably need another year to gather funds, and then probably a year at most to come up with another final product (At least initially character designs are done so that’s less of an issue).  So the only way to get a consistent product is have a network pick it up.  And while S&P isn’t a big deal for on demand channels, Netflix is gonna take one look at this, at the budget, at the songs, and ask one simple question -

“Uh yeah, why would we spend all this money on this show when we can get three seasons of an adult cartoon from a popular comedian with connections at Hollywood instead?  You’re not Bill Burr, you’re not John Mulaney, you’re some weirdo Tumblr spawn that gets into arguments with furries on Twitter.  And we have better things to spend our money on.  Unless you can slash the budget by 40% and are willing to cede creative control to our executives, we’re going to pass.”

^^^^^^

It's a sad situation, because this pilot is phenomenal and I totally down with Radio Demon, and I'd love to see where these characters go.

Edited November 5, 2019 by GuyBeardmane

[PokeNirvash]

What you said:

47 minutes ago, elfie said:

Animation costs a lot. Yeah, shown clearly in how Adult Swim never ever greenlights any original animation.

How I read it:

47 minutes ago, elfie said:

Adult Swim has no original content, and they never will.

And that's just untrue.

[HardcoreHunter]

4 hours ago, viperxmns said:

I kinda feel like the door is more open nowadays for animated projects like this to get made

 

I think impatiences of fandoms and how short their attention spans are is another issue. Animation takes time and even for everyone if the industry and networks are behind you, it'll still take at least 3 years to get something off of the ground, realistically closer to 6 if you're talking about Network TV.  So then networks have to think about if a show like this will still be relevant years from now or is it going to be an expensive flash in the pan. Shows like Over the Garden Wall, Regular Show, and Adventure Time started out a decade or more before they were ever picked up by a network, and those were series that were aimed at kids and teens. Then there would be network conditions to meet which can hold up or halt production. In animation and sitcoms they want as few people to deal with as possible.  If you aren't essential and can be replaced they will fight tooth and nail to not have you as a part of development. So most likely artists, voice actors, writers, music and sound would all be replaced for sag union, and animation shipped overseas to be done on the cheap.   It's almost always more complicated than here's some money and a studio make us a show.  

[The1gairon]

2 hours ago, PokeNirvash said:

What you said:

How I read it:

And that's just untrue.

This is how I read it:

I can't tell when someone is being sarcastic online.

[PokeNirvash]

Well when there's just words and no hint that it is sarcasm, be it an emoji or blue text, it's really fucking hard to tell the difference.

[Jman]

43 minutes ago, elfie said:

This is how I read it:

I can't tell when someone is being sarcastic online.

Calm down Elfie.

Someone on another forum pointed out the reality subtext to the story.  A naive, optimistic woman wants to do something outside the accepted system and is completely ridiculed for it, with even her benefactor saying there’s no way it will work.  Now we have we a naive, optimistic creator wanting to make a show with all her naysayers ridiculing her for it, pointing out the legions of drama around her, with everyone saying there’s no way it will work.

Everyone wants a piece of that streaming pie, but the fact is budgets are tight and unless you have someone to vouch for you, you probably won’t get to series.  Hell, even Tim and Eric’s big “in” at Turner was “Hey, Bob Odenkirk vouches for these guys!” and that was BEFORE Breaking Bad.

[Jman]

Update video says she wants to make a full series out of her pilot.  That would involve crowdfunding (LOLNO) or the dreaded trying to get the show greenlit (and she apparently has a very bad reputation in professional circles so that’s out) so she’s fucked.  
 

To add to the cluster, she apparently wants to launch a spinoff called Helluva Boss for double the non-greenlighting.

[HardcoreHunter]

20 minutes ago, Jman said:

she apparently has a very bad reputation in professional circles

I don't know about her rep with actual studios, just tumblr and DA nobodies like myself. People were sperging out because she drew some 16 year old characters doing sexual things, and people were calling her a pedo who don't distinguish between 2D and 3D. She also has a comic about animorph like furries where people can morph between human, anthropomorphic, and feral, and say that she draws beastiality. Those are the two main complaints that I keep hearing. Elfie has had people go full autism over fictional characters ages, it's really nothing new; and really shouldn't be note of any drama as many/all cartoonists have drawn lewds of their underage characters. Sugar from SU even used to draw Ed, Edd, and Eddy yaoi, and there's a surviving story board joke done by some of the animators for Rugrats where Stu gives Tommy prune Juice and he starts shitting himself to death, then implies that he's going to fuck angelica. The other stuff though I think is just furries being furries, and people on tumblr getting pissed off when someone finds minor success because their shitty fanfics haven't taken off. The fastest option I could see for this show getting made is being greenlit by netflix. Networks you really have to put your years in to get anywhere with them. Everyone who has had a show on a network worked their way up by working on other shows and showing their pilot to other people. I really doubt a tv network will pick her up unless she actually enters the industry and puts in her time.  Crowd funding will not work at all. I haven't seen a single successful crowdfunding animation. The only way a crowd funded animation would even be possible is if she became more hands off with the project, just make the story boards to be shipped overseas to a decent animation studio and hope for the best. 
 

[DragonSinger]

1 hour ago, HardcoreHunter said:

I don't know about her rep with actual studios, just tumblr and DA nobodies like myself. People were sperging out because she drew some 16 year old characters doing sexual things, and people were calling her a pedo who don't distinguish between 2D and 3D. She also has a comic about animorph like furries where people can morph between human, anthropomorphic, and feral, and say that she draws beastiality. Those are the two main complaints that I keep hearing. Elfie has had people go full autism over fictional characters ages, it's really nothing new; and really shouldn't be note of any drama as many/all cartoonists have drawn lewds of their underage characters. Sugar from SU even used to draw Ed, Edd, and Eddy yaoi, and there's a surviving story board joke done by some of the animators for Rugrats where Stu gives Tommy prune Juice and he starts shitting himself to death, then implies that he's going to fuck angelica. The other stuff though I think is just furries being furries, and people on tumblr getting pissed off when someone finds minor success because their shitty fanfics haven't taken off. The fastest option I could see for this show getting made is being greenlit by netflix. Networks you really have to put your years in to get anywhere with them. Everyone who has had a show on a network worked their way up by working on other shows and showing their pilot to other people. I really doubt a tv network will pick her up unless she actually enters the industry and puts in her time.  Crowd funding will not work at all. I haven't seen a single successful crowdfunding animation. The only way a crowd funded animation would even be possible is if she became more hands off with the project, just make the story boards to be shipped overseas to a decent animation studio and hope for the best. 
 

Her real problem is that she's stupid and associates with every problematic as fuck person she can find and then whines when she gets called out for defending them. If at least three folks you hang with have an assortment of abuse accusations against them, yeah, it makes you look sketchy.

[The1gairon]

..... why would someone who is aware of their bad reputation in professional circles want to also ask those same professional circles to greenlight something she created?

[Jman]

21 minutes ago, elfie said:

..... why would someone who is aware of their bad reputation in professional circles want to also ask those same professional circles to greenlight something she created?

Because she thinks she’s sitting on something that is worth it.

I have been Pooh-poohing her work a lot, but I actually saw potential in this.  Now you’re this creator, and you see all this shit on Netflix and on TV.  You see Big Mouth get a damn 3 season renewal with a spin-off.  And you know in your heart of hearts you can make something better. And it got 7 million views on YouTube!  NWA Power barely gets 100,000!  You’re damn right that you would seek any avenue to make it a full series even if it’s a fools errand.  To be this close, why turn back now?

[HardcoreHunter]

58 minutes ago, SorceressPol said:

Her real problem is that she's stupid and associates with every problematic as fuck person she can find and then whines when she gets called out for defending them. If at least three folks you hang with have an assortment of abuse accusations against them, yeah, it makes you look sketchy.

Sounds like Tumblr to me; but yeah it's like I said for green light. It's about putting in years and making connections. Though from what it sounds like is that bad decisions aside, is that she has a combative personality. That would be a big problem more than anything. Nobody wants to work with someone who is going to fight them on everything; and networks don't want to deal with it. Netflix is still the only real option I could see this series going in.

[Jman]

12 minutes ago, HardcoreHunter said:

Sounds like Tumblr to me; but yeah it's like I said for green light. It's about putting in years and making connections. Though from what it sounds like is that bad decisions aside, is that she has a combative personality. That would be a big problem more than anything. Nobody wants to work with someone who is going to fight them on everything; and networks don't want to deal with it. Netflix is still the only real option I could see this series going in.

Netflix tends to get comedy toons from people who have paid their dues in the industry.  Bill Burr, John Mulaney, etc, all guys who paid their dues and made connections in the stand up world.  Their stuff also tends to be a lot cheaper by virtue of being ugly as hell.  
 

If, hypothetically she was to bring this to Netflix, they would want one of two things - A reduced budget from the pilot and a comedian who’s done stand up for Netflix to be a major voice.  I don’t know how willing she will be to agree to those terms given everything I’ve heard about her.

[Lytbryt]

I like the Radio Demon a lot cool character hope this gets fleshed out in future

[Jman]

I guess when one pilot doesn’t get any attention from networks you try another only go wackier and cruder.  This is Helluva Boss, which apparently takes place in the same universe as Hazbin.

[Lytbryt]

Hazbin looks really good I hoep it gets picked up

[1pooh4u]

I like it. Really liking Radio Demon. 

[Lytbryt]

46 minutes ago, 1pooh4u said:

I like it. Really liking Radio Demon. 

I KNOW RITE!!!! He is such a cool character design and love his personality! His like a mix between Joker and Him from the Power Puff Girls def the show stealer! 😁🤗

[1pooh4u]

4 minutes ago, Lytbryt said:

I KNOW RITE!!!! He is such a cool character design and love his personality! His like a mix between Joker and Him from the Power Puff Girls def the show stealer! 😁🤗

All that and the voice too 😁

[Lytbryt]

3 minutes ago, 1pooh4u said:

All that and the voice too 😁

Yes! I cant think of any specific character comes to mind but the voice is def based off some classic stuff like old Looney Toons speaker annoucner characters like at a race track or a sports game like in this clip the commentator voice sounds like what they were trying to go far

 

[MasqueradeOverture]

GREAT character design and world building, absolutely abysmal dialogue.

I could see this be a hit, but different writers need to be at the helm for it to work.

[Lytbryt]

1 minute ago, MasqueradeOverture said:

GREAT character design and world building, absolutely abysmal dialogue.

I could see this be a hit, but different writers need to be at the helm for it to work.

Idk I thought it was okay esp for a pilot almost every pilot sounds kinda forced like they havent worked out their groove yet early Simpsons and Futurama comes to mind the voice actors need time to explore the characcters 

[1pooh4u]

12 minutes ago, Lytbryt said:

Yes! I cant think of any specific character comes to mind but the voice is def based off some classic stuff like old Looney Toons speaker annoucner characters like at a race track or a sports game like in this clip the commentator voice sounds like what they were trying to go far

 

They were def going for old timey radio announcer voice.  😁

[The1gairon]

2 hours ago, Lytbryt said:

Yes! I cant think of any specific character comes to mind but the voice is def based off some classic stuff like old Looney Toons speaker annoucner characters like at a race track or a sports game like in this clip the commentator voice sounds like what they were trying to go far

 

Word of God says he's based on the radio host from the number "You're Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile" from Annie. The song title is even referenced in one of his lines.

[Lytbryt]

28 minutes ago, elfie said:

Word of God says he's based on the radio host from the number "You're Never Fully Dressed Without A Smile" from Annie. The song title is even referenced in one of his lines.

Neato who is that?

[PokeNirvash]

Google's right there, dude.

[The1gairon]

37 minutes ago, Lytbryt said:

Neato who is that?

.... don't know who is the who in this question so I'll provide both answers.

Hazbin Hotel is created by Vivienne "Vivziepop" Medrano.

The radio host from Annie is named Bert Healy.

[Lytbryt]

12 minutes ago, elfie said:

.... don't know who is the who in this question so I'll provide both answers.

Hazbin Hotel is created by Vivienne "Vivziepop" Medrano.

The radio host from Annie is named Bert Healy.

Oh I was talking about the Word of God who is that

[Lytbryt]

16 minutes ago, PokeNirvash said:

Google's right there, dude.

I got a bunch of stuff when I googled that

[The1gairon]

17 minutes ago, Lytbryt said:

Oh I was talking about the Word of God who is that

Word of God is a phrase codified by Tvtropes referring to the creator of a media title when stating something about the media title that is quoted from the creator.

Edited December 4, 2019 by elfie

[Lytbryt]

2 minutes ago, elfie said:

Word of God is a phrase codified by Tvtropes referring to the creator of a media title when stating something about the media title that is quoted from the creator.

So u r talking about the craetor Vivziepops I tried to look uup some stuff about her? Someone maybe even in this thread said she was blackballed or sometihng in the industry but I could not find wht they were talking about

[The1gairon]

4 minutes ago, Lytbryt said:

So u r talking about the craetor Vivziepops I tried to look uup some stuff about her? Someone maybe even in this thread said she was blackballed or sometihng in the industry but I could not find wht they were talking about

Warning in 2019, be careful of who you look up on the internet, because controversies usually pop up first.

[Lytbryt]

2 minutes ago, elfie said:

Warning in 2019, be careful of who you look up on the internet, because controversies usually pop up first.

I didnt really see anything controversial it is probly some small thing that is blown out of preportion

[Chapinator_X]

I remember the Ke$ha music video this person made ages ago, but I finally sat down to watch this. Or rather, I watched it and skimmed through the songs. The art is very fluid and impressive, and there are some fun ideas present like the vocal effects of the Radio Demon's voice.

But the content is definitely geared towards teenage theater kids from the Tumblr crowd. Things like the rampant cursing from nobody characters like the newscasters, the sassy gay promiscuous character who speaks in innuendo jokes, and the Wicked-inspired song numbers are exactly the type of junk I ate up when I was in that drama nerd crowd in high school, but it all feels so antiquated. Like a production from 2007 or 2012 that's been untouched in development hell until the funds came in from some producer to make what they have to work with.

[Jman]

I’ll say that if Hazbin feels way too Tumblriffic for any normal audience to get invested in (see also: Tuca and Bertie, Voltron Legendary Defender, She-Ra) then Helluva Boss feels like that concept after a round of executive notes to make a more palatable product for the masses that watch Big Mouth and Seven Deadly Sins.  It has Zim’s VA, the humor is decidedly cruder, the one song is an ad jingle that’s a joke both in and out of universe, and it’s shorter (and therefore likely cheaper).  Interestingly, Helluva Boss also has its main relationship being a man and a woman who are both co-workers, while the Hazbin notes have the princess being a bisexual in a relationship with her female assistant.

Helluva Boss probably has more of a chance to actually get greenlit.  A slim chance, but it’s better than a guaranteed spot in Korgoth hell which is where Hazbin is destined to end up.

[The1gairon]

1 hour ago, imchapp.in said:

Like a production from 2007 or 2012 that's been untouched in development hell until the funds came in from some producer to make what they have to work with.

You may be onto something. This story has been existing online for so long, people watching the pilot have been familiar with even the EXTRAS who only appear only once!

[The1gairon]

20 minutes ago, Jman said:

I’ll say that if Hazbin feels way too Tumblriffic for any normal audience to get invested in (see also: Tuca and Bertie, Voltron Legendary Defender, She-Ra) then Helluva Boss feels like that concept after a round of executive notes to make a more palatable product for the masses that watch Big Mouth and Seven Deadly Sins.  It has Zim’s VA, the humor is decidedly cruder, the one song is an ad jingle that’s a joke both in and out of universe, and it’s shorter (and therefore likely cheaper).  Interestingly, Helluva Boss also has its main relationship being a man and a woman who are both co-workers, while the Hazbin notes have the princess being a bisexual in a relationship with her female assistant.

Helluva Boss probably has more of a chance to actually get greenlit.  A slim chance, but it’s better than a guaranteed spot in Korgoth hell which is where Hazbin is destined to end up.

... Tuca and Bertie doesn't at all feel Tumblriffic.

Helluva Boss is what results when Vivziepop sees The Office.

I must be getting old because I watched the pilot without knowing anything about the characters going in, and didn't at all get that Charlie and Vaggie are in a lesbian relationship. I suppose the "I don't touch the gays" line should've tipped me off, but I must've missed that on my first viewing because every single beat has the exact same pacing.

Edited December 4, 2019 by elfie

[Jman]

The writer apparently confirmed it in a Q&A after the premiere.

[The1gairon]

What makes me think Vaggie is juuuuuuust Vivziepop as an author avatar?

[Jman]

https://twitter.com/VivziePop/status/1249049862559023110
 

Several months later, Hazbin is still being pitched but it seems Helluva Boss exhausted all potential avenues so Vivzie wants to do it independently.

Good luck...

[Guest Sympl&Klyn]

This looked kinda similar and is getting a fair amount of traffic.

 

[Gyaos]

I love Hannah Daigle's stuff. She's really good at what she does. It also helps that she has a clean slate (no known troubled past) and also knows how to write a funny story without using the word "fuck" every five seconds.