Brandt was born on December 24, 1961 as Christopher John Brandt in Milwaukee, Winscoin while Cervone was born on November 15, 1966 as Antony Joseph Cervone in Milwaukee, Illinois. Brandt got his start in animation at StarToons, a prominent animation studio located in Chicago. Its founder, animator John McClenahan, had worked previously for studios among the likes of Hanna Barbera. McClenahan hired Brandt because the studio needed some help animating episodes of "Tiny Toons" for Warner Bros. Brandt stayed for three years at StarToons, where he also worked on Warner Bros. shows like "Tazmania" and "Animaniacs." It was during their shared tenure at StarToons that Spike Brandt met fellow animator Tony Cervone. Together, they would embark on a considerably long-lasting professional partnership. The Brandt-Cervone formula has proven to consist of revamping classic cartoon characters and series for contemporary audiences without compromising their original appeal. For example, together they wrote, directed, and produced the Cartoon Network animated series "Duck Dodgers" (a re-imagining of a classic Daffy Duck segment) which aired from 2003 to 2005. Likewise, in 2011, they developed and produced "The Looney Tunes Show" (based on the original Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies series produced by Warner Bros.). Other characters to receive the Brandt-Cervone treatment are Scooby-Doo (the 2010 straight-to-video "Scooby-Doo! Abracadabra-Doo") and Tom and Jerry (the series "Tom and Jerry Tales," which aired on The CW from 2006 to 2008).