THE 14TH ANNUAL SHORTY AWARDS

The Shorty Awards honor the best of social media and digital. View this season's finalists!
From the 15th Annual Shorty Awards

Bikini Bottom Inquirer

Entered in Long Form Video

Objectives

Bikini Bottom Inquirer is born from the idea of looking at the wacky underwater world of SpongeBob through a more grounded lens. We’re all familiar with the kinds of crazy adventures that happen in Bikini Bottom on an episode-to-episode basis, so how would a news show attempt to make sense of all the nautical nonsense?

Strategy and Execution

We started by writing original scripts for this animated news show. This presented a challenge- how could we revisit classic SpongeBob episodes and make them feel like news stories developing in real time? This involved mixing up the order of events to give the vibe of updates pouring in live from a variety of sources. We recruited legendary voiceover artist Dee Bradley Baker to reprise his role as newscaster Perch Perkins from the original SpongeBob series and provide some authenticity to this extension of the SpongeBob franchise. We then worked with a vendor to emulate the animation style of the SpongeBob series and create a more in-world exclusive SpongeBob experience than ever seen before on a digital platform. By utilizing show clips, stills, and sound bites, our animated host Perch Perkins provides a satirical and exaggerated perspective on the events in Bikini Bottom. Bubbles coming to life? Ghosts wreaking havoc? Cable programs about boxes? It’s all in Perch’s inside scoop!

Results

The series has already made a splash on the official SpongeBob YouTube channel. The first two episodes alone have brought in approximately half a million views organically in just two weeks, with SpongeBob fans already taking to social media to share clips as well as their excitement for surprise appearances of beloved lesser-seen characters like Squilliam Fancyson.

Media

Video for Bikini Bottom Inquirer

Entrant Company / Organization Name

Nickelodeon

Entry Credits