Tori Michel: So you are a Producer and Head Writer for Jake and the Never Land Pirates. Could you share what your job entails?

Mark Seidenberg: The most important thing is coming up with stories for the series. Jake has a lot of stories to tell. We're on the third season now, but I think there are a million stories to tell. Never Land, Jake, and Captain Hook have such a rich playground to be in. There are plenty of adventures for all of them.

I have a staff of writers. Every day we're talking about stories, what would be some fun adventures for Jake and the kids to go on, and what are some of the themes we'd like to touch upon, and so on. Friendship and teamwork are of course very important to the series. We'll talk about each of the characters individually. We want to make sure we're showing that Jake and his Mateys' problems are very similar to the kinds problems kids in our audience might be experiencing, like "I lost something", or "I miss a friend", or "I'm feeling sad about not getting my way". We try to find ways to put those kinds of emotional stories in our adventures.

The other thing I'm involved in is making sure all of these stories and scripts are being recorded by our actors. It's a full time job, I could do this 24 hours a day if i didn't have to sleep anymore!

When I first started with Disney it was Disney's Gummi Bears, which was a wonderful experience. I got a chance to work with the other shows of the time like Winnie the Pooh and DuckTales.

And now, I have the privilege of working with Captain Hook and Mr. Smee and Jake and the Never Land Pirates. This isn't a job for me, this is fun! It's been like a dream to get to work with the actors and the people who bring Captain Hook and Jake and the Neverland Pirates to life. It's just a thrill! I have also worked on Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and it's a really rewarding experience working with all the classic characters at Disney. They're very dear to my heart. It's very important to me to make sure we're following the heritage of those characters.

TM: What do you like best about working on Jake and the Never Land Pirates?

MS: The Fun, definitely! The kids have a lot of fun having adventures. I'm always like a little kid myself. I love going on adventures with them. The other thing is we get to tell a lot of different stories where we can expand on what Never Land is and explore new places. You never know what to expect in Never Land. Jake is such a positive show. I think what we give to the kids watching the show is a sense of optimism. No matter how tough things are, if we stick together and we're close with our friends, we can do anything. That's really important to me. I don't say our show is just entertaining kids, I really think we give a message of positivity and optimism.

TM: Let's talk a little bit about Jake Saves Bucky.

MS: The idea behind feeling like you lost your best friend, it's a really strong emotional story. I really think in Jake Saves Bucky that the message comes across well. That at one point we do lose our best friend, but we do everything we can to get him back. I think that our message of friendship and teamwork really comes across in this movie. I'm really proud of it. I remember originally thinking about the story. It started with a simple question of what would happen if the kids lost Bucky to Captain Hook; that's really where it all started. The artists, under Howy's direction and under Rob's direction, really pulled it off fabulously.

TM: For me as a viewer, Jake Saves Bucky was the first time I actually saw Bucky as his own character. I liked how you guys filled out that Bucky has these feelings and emotions, and it makes it a whole different aspect of the show that as a parent I didn't pick up on previously. And now when I see the newer episodes, and even the ones I've seen ten times already, that's something I didn't click with before.

MS: That's fantastic! Just what we want to hear!

TM: What was your favorite past project?

MS: My favorite shows have been Mickey Mouse Clubhouse, and I got the chance to work with Aladdin the series in the late '90s. Working with Aladdin and the Genie, it was a lot of fun. I have to say other than Jake and Mickey, Aladdin was another favorite of mine.

TM: If you could work with any cartoon, past or present, what would you choose and why?

MS: A dream of mine even from when I was a little kid, really was to work with Mickey Mouse. He was the first character I ever laughed at when I was a little kid and they would show the Mickey Mouse short cartoons. I always dreamed that "gee, it would be so cool to work with Mickey" and I got the chance! I finally got it. Definitely Mickey. He's always been a hero of mine.

TM: Would you call Mickey your favorite cartoon or do you have another favorite personally?

MS: Well again, growing up (it's from another studio!), was Rocky and Bullwinkle. That was a long time ago when I was a little kid. I didn't understand all the jokes, but it always struck me as a really funny show.