answer: He teamed up with several Nickelodeon veterans and Rocko crew members, including creative director Derek Drymon ( Action League Now! , Hey Arnold! , and Rocko's Modern Life) writers and directors Sherm Cohen , and Dan Povenmire , writer Tim Hill , actor and writer Martin Olson , animation director Alan Smart (all from Rocko's Modern Life), and story editor Merriwether Williams ( The Angry Beavers ), who worked on the series for its first few seasons and switched to SpongeBob SquarePants in July 1999.