The studio, run by NYC animation veterans Vincent Cafarelli and Candy Kugel, primarily took on commercial work to help fund their own independent films like the award-winning short A Warm Reception in LA.
Originally signing on as JJSP's first staff artist in 1992, Warburton spent five years working as an animator on dozens of commercials for clients like Levi's, Converse, Slim Jim and 7 Up.
(including the award-winning "The Tale of Mr. Morton"),[7] and served as production designer on the first season of MTV's groundbreaking and controversial series Beavis and Butt-Head.
[10] While at JJSP, Warburton did freelance work helping Sue Rose design characters for a series about a quirky and imaginative girl named Pepper Ann.
Even though the production was based in Los Angeles, Warburton remained in NYC, working as lead character designer and faxing his drawings at night.
Instead of just being five troublemakers, the five kids became a "multi-ethnic team of experts battling against evil adult super villains bent on raising the drinking age of soda up to 13 and making summer school year round".
Mo Willems was starting the second season of his Cartoon Network series Sheep in the Big City and asked Warburton to come aboard as a director at NYC-based Curious Pictures.
Shortly afterwards, he was hired as creative director on the Disney Channel series Fish Hooks,[8] created by Noah Z. Jones and executive produced by fellow Cartoon Network alum Maxwell Atoms.
[24] While finishing post-production on The 7D, Warburton was tapped to develop and executive produce a CG reboot of the 1980s hit animated show Muppet Babies.
While finishing Muppet Babies, Mr. Warburton reunited with his Sheep in the Big City partner Mo Willems to write and executive produce Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed: The Underground Rock Experience, an hour-long CG animated film based on Mr. Willems' stage musical Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed: The Rock Experience (based on his best selling book of similar name).
With Muppet Babies and NMR winding down, Mr. Warburton was tapped to help develop and executive produce the pilot for a new Disney Jr. show created by musicians Michelle Lewis and Charlton Pettus, along with musical partners Dan Petty and Kay Hanley.