While work-from-home is the new ‘norm’ and companies are shifting their infrastructure remotely, Netflix Animation has leased a massive 171,000-square-feet in Burbank for its first dedicated animation studio.
The streaming giant is quite hopeful and confident about animation studios contributing to its content creation legacy in a big way. This news comes a couple of weeks later when co-founder, co-CEO Reed Hastings mentioned that they wish to “surpass Disney in Animation.”
To be located at Burbank Empire Center’s 2300 W. Empire Avenue, as The Real Deal reports, it’s the biggest new office lease in all of Los Angeles County this year, given the size of the deal. According to the same site, the streamer is taking 150,000-square-feet upfront, with expansion plans for the additional 21,000-square-feet. Netflix is leasing around half of the 351,300-square-foot seven-storey building, including the entire first floor, and various spaces across three other floors.
In addition to its main animation office in Hollywood, Netflix leasing around 33,000-square-feet in Burbank hints that the streaming powerhouse might move a significant portion of its animation operation to Burbank, which is the central hub for television and feature animation production in southern California. Rival animation studios such as Disney, Warner Bros., DreamWorks, Nickelodeon, and Cartoon Network are all situated within four miles or more from Netflix’s new office.
In February, independent animation studio Titmouse also rented 95,000-square-feet of Burbank office space. Like Netflix, its main L.A. operation had been located in Hollywood.