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1 4 P E R S P E C T I V E | J A N U A R Y / F E B R U A R Y 2 0 2 5 N E W S 29th Annual Art Directors Guild Awards for Lifetime Achievement Illustrator and Matte Artists Craft Winner: Dan Sweetman B Y D AV I D M O R O N G , E D I T O R Dan Sweetman was born on October 17, 1962, and was raised in Pasadena, California. The youngest of seven, Dan discovered a deep love for drawing during childhood, and can't remember a time when it wasn't his favorite activity. While in high school, Dan contributed to the school newspaper, drawing caricatures of teachers and cartoons for articles and flyers. In his senior year, he was able to attend Pasadena City College simultaneously, allowing him to begin serious study to develop his talents. After high school, he attended California State University at Long Beach and graduated with a BFA in Illustration and met a girl that would become his wife in 1988. Right from the start, he began freelance editorial illustrations for various newspapers and magazines such as the Los Angeles Times, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Conde Nast Traveler magazine and Rolling Stone, among others. At the same time, he illustrated the series Beautiful Stories for Ugly Children, published by Piranha Press, an imprint of DC Comics, written by Dave Louapre, a black- and-white monthly of self-contained illustrated short story fables with a dark humor twist. He also illustrated Vertigo Comics one-shot graphic novel Doctor Occult and the six-issue limited series The Last One, written by J.M. DeMatteis. Without the guidance of fellow alumnus from CSULB, David Lowery, Dan would have never considered a path to Hollywood as a storyboard artist. When Dan reached out to David asking: "What is this storyboard thing all about?" David's answer was, "I was waiting for you to call." David thought Dan would be a good fit for storyboarding and guided him into what that world was all about. David championed Dan by recommending him for projects, but success didn't happen overnight. Getting into the union was the key and that proved to be difficult. Finally, Dan landed a position as a Junior Illustrator on a Harold Becker film called A B A. DAN SWEETMAN. B. STORYBOARD FROM ALICE IN WONDERLAND (2010). A D G L I F E T I M E A C H I E V E M E N T AWA R D D A N S W E E T M A N