“I feel like I’m way less connected to the creative than I used to be,” Chris says. “I end up getting pulled into the projects that have problems or issues, as opposed to just getting invited to the fun stuff.”

All the same, the Prynoskis strive to maintain a fun-loving and supportive workplace environment. Early on, Shannon established an annual “5-Second Animation Day” at the studio, providing employees the time and resources to create their own short, personal animated projects. The resulting work has been screened for several years at the SVA Theatre and elsewhere, and has become as indicative of the studio’s collected talents, imaginations and sensibilities as its official résumé. (And they still sell T-shirts: Check out titmousestuff.com.)

Having a child—the two have a son, Conan, who is now nine—also changed things for the couple. The demands of parenting led Shannon to step back from the day-to-day production work that previously consumed her life. And for a while, Chris found himself walking into meetings with network executives with a baby strapped to his chest.

As Conan has gotten older, the work-life balance has become easier—which is good, because his parents have ambitious plans. Chris hopes to produce more full-length animated features. Titmouse’s first, Nerdland, came out in 2016; their latest, Arlo the Alligator Boy, came out last year. Shannon is working on an initiative to support greater inclusion and diversity in the animation industry.

“I’m trying to show people, ‘You can be a woman and own a studio. You can be a lead person and still have a baby,’” she says—even if she sometimes finds it hard to believe herself.

Alexander Gelfand is a freelance journalist in New York City who often writes about technology, business and the arts.

A version of this article appears in the spring/summer 2022 Visual Arts Journal.

Features

The company, founded by two SVA alumni, is one of the busiest and most sought-after animation outfits in entertainment today