This past Saturday, December 6, approximately forty professional artists from the world of comics and animation descended upon the Warner Bros. Ranch studio in Burbank, California, to draw pictures for the kids and families coming to a holiday party sponsored by the Ronald McDonald House organization. It was such a blast to spend three hours of our day putting smiles on the faces of these kids.
It was hard to to draw with some clown looking over my shoulder, so I stood up to pose for a picture with the boss man himself!
You see, throughout the year Ronald McDonald House helps out families that have kids with some serious health problems. Each December Warner Bros. graciously opens their property to a wonderful party for those families who have needed Ronald McDonald House that year. They come and can ride on carnival rides, they are fed all kinds of goodies, they can meet Santa, they meet Ronald McDonald, there is face painting, free Christmas hats made by a senior citizens group, they can meet child actors that come, and they get lots of toys all for free.
The best part is, they come to the artists for free drawings of whatever they would like, or whatever the artist is able to draw. Sometimes the two don’t exactly match. I’m not afraid to tell folks I don’t know how to draw a particular character, but sometimes they pull up an image on their phones which makes me obliged to accommodate their requests.
Enough chit-chat. How about I let some photos do the talking…
I had a few requests for Baymax from “Big Hero 6”. This customer was satisfied with his drawing.Chris Hubbard, a story artist for Disney drawing a Sulley and Mike for a child.A trio of ladies with their Disney sketches from yours truly.This was my view from the end of the table. Next to me there in the hat is storyboard artist Dan Kubat with whom I worked last year.After I finished this Jack Skellington, Hannah informed me that I had drawn one for her last year, too. She eased my mind by letting me know I drew him differently this year. Whew!Artists Rafael Navarro & Geoffrey Wheeler.The crowds around the artist’s tables were enthusiastic, and very polite. You didn’t mind one bit drawing for these folks.I had quite a few requests for Olaf from Disney’s “Frozen.” Hadn’t drawn him before that day. Olaf would have enjoyed the summery weather we had.Yes, the kids could get free drawings from the great Dean Yeagle!Storyboard artist Gavin Freitas working feverishly to meet the demands of his clients!Art Leonardi (at right), known for his work on the classic Pink Panther cartoons, always organizes the artists for this event together with his daughter Lisa Leonardi-Knight.More happy customers!Here is a group shot of all the artists that came to draw for the kids!And my very last drawing of the day had to be the most challenging. Elsa from Disney’s “Frozen”. Since I had never drawn Elsa before, I had been turning down requests for her all day, until that very last one when this girl’s mother pulled up a picture on her phone.
So, that was the great event! Looking forward to joining the group again next year with the hope that we won’t see some of these same kids again because they healed!
