Childhelp Kids at Nickelodeon Studios!

We are deeply grateful to Nickelodeon for welcoming our Ink Well kids once again for a private tour and drawing session with Nickelodeon animators! This time we welcomed the fantastic kids of Childhelp!

We introduced this eager, artistic crew to the many people of all backgrounds that it takes to get a cartoon on-air and showed that art is not only a great tool of self-expression, it’s also a viable career opportunity!

Here are just a few of the amazing opportunities we all got to have together on this very special day: we went into the private booth of Nickelodeon’s Radio Station and got to meet the DJ!  We delved into Nickelodeon’s animation archive, which was filled with rare original artwork from ages of cartoons past. We got to watch a movie in the official Nick personal theatre about everything that’s going on at Nick: future projects, community involvement, and all the current shows. We continued through the studio, meeting artists and execs along the way. Everyone was so gracious and it was so inspiring for the children to get to have all this special one-on-one time.

Nickelodeon itself is a museum and we enjoyed the thousands  of original artworks hanging on all the walls. We ended our tour and adjourned to a big conference room, where animators, Darin McGowan and Miguel Puga, gave an extraordinary presentation on how to storyboard a cartoon and how to draw the characters of The Loudhouse (which is Nick’s #1 rated show!).

We then talked earnestly with the kids about how we all as artists got involved in a career in animation, and how our life-long love for drawing led us there. We also discussed the many non-artist related opportunities at Nickelodeon, trying to emphasize all the opportunities available in the animation world. Finally, we did what we do best and just drew with the kids and showed them how to be creative no matter the medium, and to never be afraid to follow your dreams- whatever they may be!

We would like to specifically acknowledge each member of the Nickelodeon team for all they did to help us with the tour… Carson Smith for being our point man and coordinating this whole day with us. He is maybe the chillest man on the planet. 🙂
His assistant, JuliaGuillen, for supporting so much of this interactive tour and handing out beautiful Nick gift bags to each of the kids afterward.

Eric Brown for  his stellar tour guide skills and gentle, patient, and engaging demeanor he gave to each kid along the tour. He clearly loves his job and we loved having him as our guide!

To our good friends and collegaues, Darin McGowan and Miguel Puga, for donating their time wholly and gladly, sharing so many tips and insider’s insight that will be invaluable to the kids for all time. Your talent and kindness are legendary.

And finally to our fearless West Coast Director, Joseph Scott. You are how we keep doing these meaningful, life-changing events. We owe you everything, you shining sun. ☀️