(FORTUNE Small Business) – The three most important words in animation? Location, location, location. Noodlesoup, a three-year-old company, has inked freelance work for Saatchi & Saatchi and Warner Brothers in large part by being one of the few animation studios to remain in New York City after the economy soured. "We're close to ad people, and that gets us steady work," says founder Jeff Nodelman, 33. "And that assures the studios that we'll be around in six months." In March, Noodlesoup's first series--Venture Brothers, a Johnny Quest spoof--will appear on the Cartoon Network. Up next: Omega Dome, a series to air in April on Fox Sports Network in which two agoraphobics (left) yak about sports. One potential topic: the importance of a home-court advantage. --NINA SOVICH