‘VeggieTales’ Co-Creator Mike Nawrocki Uncovers the Secrets of His New Show, ‘Dead Sea Squirrels,’ Premiering Feb. 14

An unlikely pair of disciples are ready to make their animated debut next month, when Christian family content platform Minno launches Dead Sea Squirrels. Premiering February 14, the series is based on the books published by Tyndale, which follow the daily adventures of Merle and Pearl — a pair of squirrels petrified in the salt of the Dead Sea for 2,000 who reawaken after an archaeological dig ready to share their first-hand accounts of Jesus’ teachings in the 21st century.

The series is created by Mike Nawrocki, co-creator of VeggieTales, and produced by music producer, recording artist and filmmaker Steve Taylor, and features contributions by former Disney animator Tom Bancroft. Nawrocki also voice stars, with joined by special guests like VeggieTales alum Phil Vischer and original songs from notable Christian artists.

Nawrocki dug into the making of his squirrelly new take on scripture for an interview with Animation Magazine:

Animation Magazine: Congrats on your new show. Can you tell us a bit about the history of the new project and how you thought of the premise?

Mike Nawrocki: Thank you so much! The first seeds of the idea came to me a number of years ago during my VeggieTales years. What if a character from the first century Holy Land could experience 21st ^century America? Kind of like Encino Man meets the Dead Sea Scrolls. From there, my brain went immediately to a bad pun: The Dead Sea Squirrels. Merle and Pearl Squirrel, an old Jewish couple from Galilee, would take a trip down the Jordon River, swim in the very salty Dead Sea, then take shelter from the desert heat and get lost in a nearby cave. The combination of dark, dry and salty would preserve them for a couple of millennia until they were discovered by a 10-year-old boy tagging along with his dad on an archeological dig. Once rehydrated and desalinated, Merle and Pearl would be fish out of water in their new world but would have plenty to offer modern kids with their first-hand knowledge of the stories in the New Testament. 

When did you start working on it and how long did it take to deliver?

I began working on developing the show once I left Big Idea/DreamWorks in 2016. I started pitching it around, and a friend (Dan Lynch) in the publishing industry asked me if I had ever considered it as a book series. I had not, but I thought that was an interesting idea, so I went away and read a lot of Captain Underpants and Diary of a Wimpy Kid books to familiarize myself with the format. I worked up a book pitch, and Dan (now friend and literary agent) set up a meeting with a publisher (Linda Howard) who loved the concept. I signed a six-book deal in 2017 that eventually became a 12-book deal with Tyndale. By 2020, I was eight or nine books in, and they were selling well and starting to gather an audience. At that point, another long-time friend and collaborator (Steve Taylor) loved the idea of it being animated and helped raise the money for a pilot. The pilot turned out great, and we used it to attract investors to fund the remainder of the 13-episode Season 1, which we wrapped in 2024.

Where is the animation being produced?

All pre- and post-production is happening in Nashville, Tennessee. We have partnered with Mukpuddy Animation in Auckland, New Zealand, for the lion’s share of animation production, but each episode has a two- to three-minute musical number, most of which have been animated here in Nashville. I’m a professor at Lipscomb University, and we have an incredible animation program led by veteran Disney animators Tom and Tony Bancroft. We’ve been able to recruit top students and set each musical number up as a mini-production. I love that the show can play a role in training the next generation of animators!

How many people are working on the show and which animation tools are used?

Roughly around 50 total cast and crew (pre-pro, production and post) in Nashville and 50 or so on the Mukpuddy crew. Mukpuddy’s pipeline is set up on Adobe Animate. Our student animation crew works in Toon Boom.

What do you love about Dead Sea Squirrels (aside from the amazing title)? What makes it stand out?

Thank you! I am thrilled with the way the show has turned out. I think it will stand out with its unique blend of humor, music, adventure and heart. Each episode plays out a faith-based theme that I think parents will appreciate and that kids will resonate with. The series also has an overarching storyline that I hope will keep viewers engaged and interested in what happens next. And Merle and Pearl are adorable!

What do you hope audiences will take away from your show?

I think our show is super funny, has great music and heartfelt, faith-filled lessons that go down easy. I hope audiences will fall in love with the characters and be interested in what they have to say. Stories have the power to make our lives better, and I’ve always wanted to be part of creating ones that can make a positive difference.

What do people tell you when they find out that you are the man behind VeggieTales?

It’s amazing to me the impact VeggieTales has had over the years and how many people know about the show. The biggest comment I get is, “You were my childhood!” I mean, what could be better than that? What an honor. They’ll also ask me to do “the voice” — meaning Larry the Cucumber, which I love to do. It’s so much fun to see the reaction on people’s faces when they hear a 6’5” old dude squeaking out “The Hairbrush Song.”

When did you know you wanted to work in animation?

I was a theater kid in high school, but as I grew taller and taller, I began to feel more and more self-conscious on stage. Initially, puppetry was a way I could entertain people and not be seen. I’ve also always been a bit of a perfectionist. When CGI animation began to emerge in the late ’80s / early ’90s, Phil Vischer (Bob the Tomato) and I were working in the video post industry in Chicago. He was also a puppet guy, and we were in the right place at the right time to take advantage of the new technology to create the very first CGI animated series; the internet might tell you it was ReBoot in 1994, but we launched VeggieTales in 1993! What I loved about animation was that I could entertain people without being seen and take the time to work on a story and make it the best it could be before anyone saw it.

Biggest animation heroes?

John Lasseter tops the list for me here. I’ve never met him, but without his pioneering work in CGI at Pixar in the late ’80s / early ’90s, I would have never gotten into the business. Since your question was in the plural, I’ll also toss in Mel Blanc, Tex Avery and Chuck Jones. All these guys told stories that transcended age groups and generations.

Any advice for new animation show creators?

Surround yourself with great people on both the art and business side. Creating an animated show is such a challenging thing to do, and to make it work, you need people with integrity who are really good at what they do and who you like to spend a lot of time with. Also, it can be a roller coaster of emotions — and sometimes, all you can do is, in the words of Dory, just keep swimming.

What do you think of the animation landscape in 2024-25?

I love that traditional (2D) animation is making a comeback with audiences. And I’m not just saying that because Dead Sea Squirrels is 2D! For so long, audiences have demanded CGI, but the art form has so much more to offer than a single style. I’m also both fascinated and terrified by how AI will disrupt the industry, but mostly optimistic that great new tools will emerge for humans who want to tell emotionally compelling stories to other humans. With squirrels.

Dead Sea Squirrels premieres February 14 exclusively on Minno, available on Google Play, App Store and Amazon as well as through Roku, FireTV, Chromecast and AppleTV. See gominno.com/lp/deadseasquirrels for details.