Mark Taylor Named Senior Vice President and General Manager, Nickelodeon Animation Studio

Mark Taylor Named Senior Vice President and General Manager, Nickelodeon Animation Studio

BURBANK, Calif., April 8, 2008 /PRNewswire/ -- Nickelodeon/MTVN Kids and Family Group has promoted Mark Taylor to Senior Vice President and General Manager, Nickelodeon Animation Studio, responsible for overseeing the day-to-day operations of Nickelodeon's Burbank Animation Studio, the largest producer of television animation in the U.S. He will report to Brown Johnson, President, Animation and Alison Dexter, Executive Vice President, Production, Nickelodeon & MTVN Kids and Family Group.

(Photo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080408/NYTU107 )

"Mark has been a talented and energetic driver behind our flourishing animation business," said Ms. Johnson. "He continues to raise the industry bar when it comes to creating an environment that attracts the best and brightest artists in the business and a studio that offers them a creative workplace with today's most cutting-edge technology."

Added Ms. Dexter, "Mark has traveled the globe to bring Nickelodeon some of the most innovative animation partners in the world. And here at home, he's played a key role in building our Nicktoons Studio into the most prolific producer of television animation in the U.S."

Based in Burbank, Calif., Mr. Taylor's expanded role as SVP includes production oversight of all current Nicktoon series, including contemporary classic SpongeBob SquarePants, The Fairly Oddparents, Nick Jr.'s Go Diego Go, Dora the Explorer and Ni Hao Kai-Lan and the much anticipated new series starring and co-created by Amy Poehler, The Mighty B. Mr. Taylor has also been a driving force behind the expansion of the network's CG production unit, tripling the size of the in-house CG staff and partnering with leaders throughout the world to deliver theatrical quality animation to Nick. In 2008, the studio expects to deliver almost 30 hours of CG animation, including upcoming series The Penguins of Madagascar, in partnership with DreamWorks SKG Animation.

An 11-year veteran of Nickelodeon, Mr. Taylor joined Nickelodeon as Vice President and General Manager in 1997, and was a key member of the original team responsible for the vision and design behind the 72,000 square foot studio, which celebrated its 10th anniversary in March.

Known for his artist-friendly management style, he was responsible for creating Nick University, an annex program for studio employees offering courses in everything from management training to foreign language to advanced art classes. Mr. Taylor also lead the charge in creating a longtime studio partnership with George Washington Elementary School in Burbank, implementing programs such as "Read and Animate" and an after school art program.

Prior to joining Nickelodeon, Mr. Taylor was Vice President of Animation Production for Columbia/TriStar Television. In this position, he was responsible for all operations of the Columbia/TriStar animation division, including overseeing the production of the hit animated series' Project G.E.E.K.E.R. for CBS and Jumanji for UPN.

Mr. Taylor began his career in animation at Jetlag Productions, Alchemy and DIC Animation City. His production credentials include the animated series The New Adventures of T-Rex, The Littlest Pet Shop, Conan the Adventurer and King Arthur and the Knights of Justice.

Mr. Taylor holds a Masters of Business Administration from the University of California, Los Angeles and a Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, Northridge. He lives in Woodland Hills, CA with his wife and three children.

Nickelodeon, now in its 29th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books, magazines and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in more than 96 million households and has been the number-one-rated basic cable network for more than 13 consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NYSE:VIA) (NYSE:VIA.B) .

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Source: Nickelodeon

CONTACT: Marianne Romano, +1-310-752-8208, Marianne.Romano@nick.com, or
David Bittler, +1-212-846-5263, David.Bittler@mtvstaff.com

Web site: http://www.nick.com/

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Profile: International Entertainment