Pendleton Ward facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Pendleton Ward
Ward at the 2015 Peabody Awards
Born	San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
Pen name	Pen Ward buenothebear
Occupation	Animator writer producer director voice actor
Education	CalArts (BFA)
Genre	Science fantasy Adventure Comedy drama
Years active	2002–present
Notable works	Adventure Time Bravest Warriors The Midnight Gospel

Pendleton Ward is an American animator, writer, producer, and voice actor. He is famous for creating the hit Cartoon Network show Adventure Time. He also created the web series Bravest Warriors and the animated series The Midnight Gospel for Netflix.

Early Life and Education

Pendleton Ward, who often goes by "Pen," grew up in San Antonio, Texas. He was the youngest of three brothers. His mother, Bettie, is an artist who worked with animators. This inspired Pen to get into animation from a very young age.

In first grade, he was already making his own flipbooks. He also created short comic books with his best friend. This love for drawing and storytelling led him to attend the North East School of the Arts in San Antonio.

For college, Ward went to the California Institute of the Arts (CalArts). There, he made friends with other future animators like J. G. Quintel, who created Regular Show, and Alex Hirsch, the creator of Gravity Falls. After seeing one of Ward's films at a school screening, a vice president from Frederator Studios offered him a job.

Career in Animation

Early Projects

In 2002, Ward started a webcomic called Bueno the Bear. He later took it down, but he still uses the name "buenothebear" for his website and social media. He also made a student film called Barrista starring the same bear character.

Ward then made short cartoons for a Frederator Studios show called Random! Cartoons. One of these shorts was a very early version of Adventure Time, made in 2006. It became a huge hit online, getting over a million views in 2007. Even with its popularity, it took a while for a TV network to pick it up.

Working on Famous Shows

In 2007, Ward was hired as a writer and storyboard artist for Cartoon Network's The Marvelous Misadventures of Flapjack. A storyboard artist helps plan a show by drawing the scenes like a comic book. This experience was very important for him and shaped how he would later create his own shows.

Finally, Cartoon Network decided to turn his short film into a full series. Adventure Time premiered in 2010 and became a worldwide success. Ward was the main person in charge of the show, known as the showrunner, for the first five seasons.

After season five, Ward decided to step down as showrunner to focus on other creative parts of the show, like writing and storyboarding. He continued to help guide the series as an executive producer until it ended in 2018.

What Came After Adventure Time?

While Adventure Time was still on the air, Ward's other ideas also came to life. In 2012, Frederator Studios turned his other short, Bravest Warriors, into a popular web series.

In 2020, Ward co-created a new animated show for Netflix with comedian Duncan Trussell called The Midnight Gospel. The show follows a character named Clancy who travels through different worlds in a universe simulator to interview interesting beings.

Ward has also worked on other projects. He was a story consultant for a Dungeons & Dragons adventure book and was the art director for the Apple Arcade game Card of Darkness. In 2022, he won an Emmy Award for his directing work on the show City of Ghosts.

In November 2024, a new show he co-created called Mystery Cuddlers debuted on Adult Swim. In June 2025, it was announced that Ward was working with other famous animators on a new special called The Elephant, which is planned for release in 2026.

Creative Influences

Ward has said that his biggest inspirations are his friends, many of whom he worked with on Adventure Time. He was also influenced by classic animated shows like The Ren & Stimpy Show, Beavis and Butt-Head, and The Simpsons. He even got to be a guest singer for a "couch gag" opening on The Simpsons.

The French comic book series Dungeon was also a huge inspiration for Adventure Time. Ward loved how the characters in the comic talked and lived in a big fantasy world in a very casual, normal way.

Filmography

See also

In Spanish: Pendleton Ward para niños