'TOON-UP' SHOP NICK STUDIO A NICHE FOR ARTY TYPES.

Byline: Alex Dobuzinskis Staff Writer

BURBANK - With green slime decorating the front of the building and statues of cartoon characters on the roof, Nickelodeon Animation Studios in Burbank stands out. But it's what goes beyond the iron gates that makes the studios so unique.

A half-court basketball gym has been regularly used for weekly screenings of production teams' latest work. And an entrance corridor doubles as an ``art gallery'' to display pieces employees have done in their free time, although most recently it featured art by employees' children.

``It's one of those things where it's fun and it's also functional. And it's tough to not smile when you're in here,'' said Mark Taylor, vice president and general manager at the studio.

A renovated storage facility is the superstructure for the studio. The remains of the old building are seen in the warehouse-like ceiling of some parts of the facility, with exposed wooden beams and air ducts.

The more artistic part of the 72,000-square-foot facility is found in the use of circles, squares and triangles to differentiate work areas. Offices have elliptical windows facing the corridors, and a colorful band stretches above each production area.

Artists work in individual cubicles decorated with curving, wavelike patterns. But each of the seven production teams at the studio has a small kitchen where employees can grab breakfast if they missed it, and a living room space where they can meet.

``We encourage conversation here. We don't encourage isolation,'' Taylor said.

Angi Ma Wong, author of ``Feng Shui Dos and Taboos,'' said Nickelodeon did well to use geometric shapes in the design of its facility ``because creativity is the shape of the circle, and bizarre shapes.''

It is also good that the facility has different designated areas within a large space. ``In other words, this is the antithesis of the MBA'' or ``traditional work space, corner-office type'' facility, Wong said.

When the Nickelodeon Animation Studios at 231 W. Olive Ave. opened in February 1998, it was the first studio built in the area exclusively for TV animation in 35 years. About 300 employees work at the facility, which hosts tours for schools as well as community and youth groups.

Visitors who walk in through the gates and under a giant foot will first encounter a green fountain that spouts soapy water - meant to resemble Nickelodeon's signature green slime.

The interior lobby has seats of various geometric shapes and cartoon characters along the wall. Cartoon characters also are found in the work spaces of employees, such as Butch Hartman, the creator of the show ``The Fairly OddParents.'' He's a toy collector, and the couch in his brick office is nearly full of toy figures still in their packaging.

``This is a great environment. I call this a big day-care center for adults,'' said Hartman, 39, who also created the soon-to-debut cartoon ``Danny Phantom.''

Last summer, the various production teams competed in a remote-control car race around the facility, Taylor said. But although work schedules are flexible, a board posted on one of the studio's walls reminds employees of deadlines for finishing their projects.

The Nickelodeon Animation Studios does pre- and post-production work on its shows. Model sheets and other materials are shipped to South Korea, the Philippines and Taiwan, where animation work is done before the product is sent back to Burbank for the final touches.

``With all this fun and games, at the end of the day you need to ship. You need to get your work done,'' Taylor said.

Alex Dobuzinskis, [phone]

alex.dobuzinskis(at)dailynews.com

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3 photos

Photo:

(1 -- 2) Larger-than-life penguins, above, flank the entrance to a designer's office at Nickelodeon Animation Studios in Burbank. At right, the studio's general manager, Mark Taylor, shakes hands with a cartoon cutout of Danny Phantom in the hallway.

(3) Butch Hartman, creator of the show ``The Fairly OddParents,'' shows off a Superman doll from his Nickelodeon office's toy collection.

Tina Burch/Staff Photographer