Press
Awards
Adam won the Children’s & Family Emmy for Outstanding Directing with “A Very Devil Christmas” on The Cuphead Show!, and was part of SpongeBob SquarePants’ 2018 Daytime Emmy win as one of its directors. Pinreel’s first production, Tenacious D’s “Video Games,” won an Annie and a Webby, and “Go Fetch!” was an official selection in competition at Annecy 2026. He has also been nominated for a Primetime Emmy for SpongeBob and an Annie for character design on The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants.
Full list
| Year | Honor | Project | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Annie Awards, Best Character Design, Feature | The SpongeBob Movie: Search for SquarePants | Nominee |
| 2026 | Annecy International Animation Festival, official selection in competition | SpongeBob SquarePants, “Go Fetch!” | Official selection |
| 2024 | Annie Awards, Best Sponsored | Tenacious D, “Video Games” | Winner |
| 2024 | Webby Awards, Branded Animation | Tenacious D, “Video Games” | Winner |
| 2023 | Children’s & Family Emmy Awards, Outstanding Directing for an Animated Program | The Cuphead Show!, “A Very Devil Christmas” | Winner |
| 2022 | Annecy International Animation Festival, official selection | The Cuphead Show!, “Ghosts Ain’t Real” | Official selection |
| 2019 | Primetime Emmy Awards, Outstanding Short Form Animated Program | SpongeBob SquarePants, “Plankton Paranoia” | Nominee |
| 2018 | Daytime Emmy Awards, Outstanding Children’s Animated Series | SpongeBob SquarePants, director of “Mimic Madness” | Series win |
“Video Games”
Annie Award, Best Sponsored, 2024. “Video Games” won at the 51st Annie Awards at Royce Hall, UCLA. Jack Black gave a surprise speech.
Webby Award, Branded Animation, 2024. “Video Games” also won the Webby Award for Branded Animation.
Watch the speeches
In the Press
“Video Games”
IGN: “Jack Black gets transformed into video game legends for new Tenacious D video.”
Tomb Raider and Rockstar Games shared their support on X.
“As the artist who concepted, modeled and sculpted that Fallout 4 Deathclaw, I am SO THRILLED to see him in this video.”
“Ahh! We love this so much.”
“Tenacious D new material….”
College Lectures & Public Speaking
- Playgrounds: The Art DepartmentArtist talk and masterclass · Eindhoven, Netherlands · April 2026
- Rhode Island School of DesignGuest lecture, RISD Museum · Providence · 2026
- Kansas City Art InstituteGuest lecture · Kansas City · 2026
- University of California, Irvine“Success in Animation,” guest lecture · Irvine · 2024
Irvine · November 2024
“Success in Animation,” UC Irvine
A conversation with UCI students about directing SpongeBob and Cuphead, walking through concept drawings from the episodes. Afterward, he drew SpongeBob, Gary, Cuphead and Mr. Krabs straight into students’ sketchbooks.
Eindhoven · April 2026
Playgrounds: The Art Department
A sold-out artist talk on the road from art school to a first job on SpongeBob to founding Pinreel, with the influences, the veteran crews and the politics along the way.
About the masterclass
Plus an in-depth masterclass on creating, adapting and developing series: directing an established show, turning the Cuphead game into a series, and building original projects from script to final picture.