Elissa Sussman - Drawn That Way

A tribute to ambitious girls, big dreams, and true creative passion.

Maurene Goo, author of Somewhere Only We Know

Drawn That Way

Elissa Sussman

Stray

Burn

An imprint of Simon & Schuster Childrens Publishing Division

1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, New York 10020

www.SimonandSchuster.com

This book is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real places are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and events are products of the authors imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or places or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

Text 2021 by Elissa Sussman

Jacket illustration 2021 by Francesca Protopapa

Jacket design by Sarah Creech 2021 by Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Interior illustrations 2021 by Arielle Jovellanos

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

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Interior design by Hilary Zarycky

The illustrations for this book were rendered digitally in Procreate.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Sussman, Elissa, author. | Jovellanos, Arielle, illustrator.

Title: Drawn that way / Elissa Sussman ; illustrations by Arielle Jovellanos.

Description: First edition. | New York : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, [2021] | Audience: Ages 12 up. | Audience: Grades 10-12. | Summary: Seventeen-year-old Hayley Saffitz, a confident, ambitious, aspiring animation director, participates in her idols summer program but must risk her blossoming relationship with his son if she is to prove she is as talented as the boys.

Identifiers: LCCN 2020057258 | ISBN 9781534492974 (hardcover)

ISBN 9781534492981 (paperback) | ISBN 9781534492998 (ebook)

Subjects: CYAC: Internship programsFiction. | Animation (Cinematography)Fiction.

SexismFiction. | Dating (Social customs)Fiction.

Classification: LCC PZ7.S965663 Dr 2021 | DDC [Fic]dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2020057258

For Dad

Who gave me big dreams and equally big feet

Even with primitive materials, one can work small wonders.

LOTTE REINIGER

From ANIMATION_STEW.COM

BB GUN FILMS ANNOUNCES FIRST-EVER SUMMER INTERNSHIP

Bryan Beckett, the creative force behind BB Gun Films, announced on Monday that they would be opening their doors to a select group of high school interns.

Beckett made waves in the animation community ten years ago with the release of the critically lauded film A Boy Named Bear. Inspired by and named after his own son, Beckett directed and wrote the film about a boy whose imagination is so powerful that hes considered a risk to himself, his government, and the world. It won Beckett his first Oscar.

After news of his custody battle over Bear was leaked to the press, Beckett became known for his extreme privacy, rarely granting interviews. That secrecy extended to his studio, and all films in production.

Beckett made an exception a year ago when he recorded a CalTED Talk for the California Animation Institute (CalAn). The ninety-minute video offered a rare glimpse into the mind of the director/producer who has been dubbed the keeper of Americas imagination. In it he discusses his process, why he wears the same outfit every day, and why he thinks that a curious, creative mind is the most formidable weapon in the universe.

The announcement of the internship sent shock waves through the animation community, and it seems fair to assume that this could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for a few lucky students.

One can only imagine the wisdom a visionary like Bryan Beckett will dole out to his freshman class of interns.

From the official release:

In order to be eligible for the internship, students must be entering their senior year of high school. Accepted applicants will work at the studio during the day and be housed at the nearby CalAn campus. They will be assigned mentors and work in teams with their fellow interns to develop and produce four short films to be screened at the end of the summer.

Applicants must fill out a questionnairenow available on BBGunFilms.com/SummerInternshipand submit a portfolio of their work. Details regarding format can be found on the website.

I had arrived.

Leaning over my steering wheel, I got my first real, up-close look at my future. It was big and bright with round, swooping architecture and a giant wrought-iron gate that was currently wide open. Id seen the building from the freeway almost daily on my way to school, and Id even driven past the main entrance once or twice or two dozen times before, but Id never had a reason to pull up to the studio entrance. Until today.

This was the place where a pencil and a piece of paper could be the start of something extraordinary. Id been imagining this momentthis dayfor weeks.

A Boy Named Bear had been made for my generationfor meand wed all grown up with Bryan Beckett teaching us the proper way to tell a story. Now I was going to be one of the lucky few to learn it directly from him.

No. Not luck. I wasnt an intern at BB Gun Films because I was luckyI was an intern at BB Gun Films because I was good at what I did. Because I knew how to tell a story. With my pencil and paper, Id beaten out almost five thousand students for a coveted slot in what was possibly the only internship program BB Gun Films would ever do.

It was the first step toward my future. An apprentice at eighteen, a storyboard artist at twenty, head of story by twenty-four, and directing my first feature way before I was thirty. That was the plan.

Next to me, Dad let out a low whistle. I knew exactly what he was seeing. So this is the house that cartoons built, he said.

Theyre not cartoons, theyre animated films, I said for the thousandth time. And this multibillion-dollar studio was designed by Andrew Howard.

Dads eyebrows rose. The guy who did the childrens museum in Argentina? He looked over at me. Now you show an interest in architecture?

I shrugged. We were both aware that my architectural knowledge was limited to all things BB Gun. I knew Dad would notice the design, but I was also hoping it would impress him. That the studio would impress him.

For seventeen years, Ive tried to encourage a love of art, Dad said. And this is how you repay me. By becoming obsessed with cartoo He cleared his throat as he caught my glare. Animated films. He was joking. Mostly.

Behave, I said. I wanted him there and not there. After all, it had taken a lot to convince my parents to let me do this internship. It was clear that they hadnt even thought Id get in, but when I did, Id had to sit through several discussions where my parents weighed the pros and cons of agreeing to let me spend the whole summer doing what they saw as nothing more than an unpaid internship in a field they knew nothing about.