I was unaware of this too until the other night when I looked it up. Apparently the first one was made as an entry into a student film festival. Then a produc

I was unaware of this too until the other night when I looked it up. Apparently the first one was made as an entry into a student film festival. Then a producer saw it and asked them to make another as a gag gift for a friend. That was the birth of the Jesus vs. Santa episode. In the original, the character that looks like Cartman is referred to as "Kenny". He "dies" just like Kenny always did in later episodes.