Jittlov entered a 16mm film made for his UCLA class,[3] Good Grief,[4] into Academy Awards competition.

Some of his other original film shorts, including The Interview, Swing Shift, Animato, and Time Tripper (released separately and as a collection called Animato)[6] won many top awards and repeat film festival screenings, bringing him to the attention of The Walt Disney Studio.

Since Disney did not usually allow individual creators to receive credit on their television productions (preferring a generic thanks to "the many Disney animators who made this possible") Mike put his and partner Deven Cheregino's name on the toys in the final production number, where they could not be easily edited out.

Jittlov also created the inaugural short film played on the cable TV Disney Channel.

The Mickey Satellite film played to park-goers waiting in line at Space Mountain for years, and is still shown to Walt Disney Parks and Resorts employees during orientation.