Bye-Bye Bin Laden!

Jennifer Corker
Co-Producer

Jennifer Corker was a senior at San Jose State University when director (and professor) Scott Sublett recruited her as co-producer of "Bye-Bye Bin Laden!"

"I was an animation/illustration major and had some background in animation production," said Corker.

"I knew that making an independent animated feature was almost unheard of and virtually impossible. Hollywood animation costs a million dollars a minute! Yet I somehow, crazily, I agreed that we could do it.

"So I really didn't know how we would do it. What I did know is that Scott and I would need to recruit a talented team of people who knew a lot more about animating, than we did!" Along with Sublett, Corker assembled an animation crew for "Bye-Bye Bin Laden."

"Recruiting animation director Dave Perry was key," Corker recalls. "When Dave agreed to join the project, we were very relieved. It was at that point that we knew the film really could be realized."

Corker also recruited and managed storyboard artists, visual development artists, and animators, many of whom were her friends and colleagues from the SJSU animation department.

"This film could not have been possible without the combined efforts of my talented animation friends. Zachary Knoles, Julien Shields, Geoff Stone, and Ian Wing were paramount," says Corker. "Also, a very recent grad of SJSU, Dave Coffman, was so important in that his original character designs were the keynote for the film's visual style. While I created schedules and spreadsheets, the animators and artists were busy creating the film, and I always was in awe of their work. Artists are incredibly thoughtful and hardworking. They truly are the most enjoyable people to work with."

Prior to her work on "Bye-Bye Bin Laden!" Corker worked as a production intern on "The Simpsons," and as a script supervisor on Sublett's live-action feature "Generic Thriller."

Corker also wrote and directed the short film "The Inside Scoop with Biff LeBuick," which was showcased on ABC News online. Her screenplay "Popcorn and Fondue," which was created in Sublett's screenwriting class, was a Finalist for the 2006 Harold Crane Award for screenwriting. In 2007, Corker was part of the prestigious Monday Night Playground at the Berkeley Repertory Theater, an elite group of new Bay Area playwrights.

Upon graduating summa cum laude with a B.A. in Art from San Jose State University in 2007, Corker worked as a production assistant at Industrial Light and Magic. Hoping to contribute to the field of education, Corker is currently pursuing a Multiple Subject Teaching credential and plans to combine her passion for art and education by creating books and films for children.