After "Halo 2" shipped, Bungie cofounder Jason Jones went on sabbatical, leaving the "Halo 3" team with little direction or leadership; different staff members wrestled over who would take on creative positions for the new game, and no clear creative direction was decided upon. Story writer Joseph Staten took a vacation after coming into conflict with other staff members, meaning there was no clear person who was responsible for the game's story for a portion of development. The story was drafted by a committee, then presented to senior Bungie members. Composer Martin O'Donnell recalled he did not feel the draft would work, as it left out previous characters and plot threads. Having recently seen the film "Serenity", he insisted that characters should die to increase the stakes. Staten returned to do edits after the plot had been established.