Disney grants a wish every hour of every day. Most of the world does not know that. “Drawn to You” is the film designed to change that, and the campaign behind it is the largest activation of Disney’s Make-A-Wish partnership in the company’s history.
The Film
“Drawn to You” is a two-minute brand film directed by Emmy-nominated filmmaker Goh Iromoto, produced through production company PRETTYBIRD for agency Fallon. It premiered on ABC’s Good Morning America on April 27, 2026, as the opening piece of Disney Week of Wishes.
The film follows a young girl through illness and recovery, told through the drawings she makes along the way. From sketching Disney characters in health, through hospitalisation, to meeting Mickey Mouse at Disneyland on the other side. The narrative structure traces not just how a wish is granted but how it begins, through a pencil, through imagination, through a child’s private language when words are not enough.
The creative starting point was Make-A-Wish’s official Wish Discovery Phase, a process where children with critical illnesses express their deepest wish through conversation, play, and art rather than direct questioning. It is how Make-A-Wish identifies what a child actually wants, and it became the structural backbone of the film.
The artwork woven throughout the film is not designed or generated. It belongs to EJ, a 16-year-old liver transplant recipient who has been drawing since age seven. His wish was to spend a day in the life of a Disney animator. That wish was fulfilled at Walt Disney Animation Studios this month, where EJ drew alongside Eric Goldberg, the legendary animator of the Genie in Aladdin and an incoming Disney Legend. Josh D’Amaro, Disney CEO, personally welcomed EJ outside the Roy E. Disney Animation Building and introduced him to Goldberg. Goldberg’s assessment of EJ was direct: “He draws beautifully. He already knows so much about how to draw the characters and their history.”
EJ’s reaction was equally plain: “I’m like a kid in a candy store. I get to learn from these great artists. And I will get here someday.”
Disney Week of Wishes: The Scale Behind the Film
The film is the front door to a week-long activation running from April 25 to May 1, 2026, spotlighting nearly 200 signature wish experiences across Disney’s global operations.
The flagship event is Wishes Assemble at Disneyland Resort in California, a first of its kind experience where nearly 40 Make-A-Wish children and their families step into the role of Avengers recruits at a private party. Actors Anthony Mackie and Paul Bettany appear in person. Two Make-A-Wish children announced first round NFL Draft picks for the Seattle Seahawks and Detroit Lions live on ESPN, appearing on set and meeting talent including Shaquille O’Neal and Charles Barkley. A wish kid received a personal invitation to the Mandalorian and Grogu premiere in May. Others performed in Disney’s Aladdin on Broadway and attended a meet with Miley Cyrus as part of a Hannah Montana alumni moment. One child went on a National Geographic Expeditions African safari.
Internationally, 80 Make A Wish children from 10 European countries gathered at Disneyland Paris for a three day Frozen themed weekend, marking the 25,000th wish granted at that park. Make-A-Wish child Lou performed during the World of Frozen grand opening ceremony. Experiences also ran in Tokyo, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Sydney.
Disney VoluntEARS assembled more than 10,000 wish kits during the week to be distributed to Make-A-Wish chapters across the United States.
The Numbers and the Award
Disney and Make-A-Wish have been formal partners since 1980, making this the 45th year of the relationship. More than 175,000 wishes have been granted in that time. Disney donated $30 million to Make-A-Wish last year alone. The organisation describes Disney as the world’s largest WishMaker.
During Disney Week of Wishes, Make-A-Wish America presented Bob Iger with the inaugural WishMaker Lifetime Achievement Award, recognising the more than 110,000 Disney wishes granted during his tenure as CEO.
Why the Film Works
The creative decision to anchor “Drawn to You” in real artwork from a real child rather than designed imagery or character appearances is the same instinct driving the broader brand transparency trend across advertising in 2026. The drawings are credible because they are EJ’s. The wish is credible because it happened. The film does not manufacture emotion out of scripted scenarios. It documents an emotional truth that already existed and finds the visual language to carry it.
Joanna Balikian, Senior VP of Brand Management at Disney, described the campaign’s intent directly: “Drawn to You was created to capture that journey of how fandom sparks imagination, and how that imagination often becomes the heart of a wish. It’s a powerful reminder that every wish begins with something deeply personal.”
For a brand that produces entertainment consumed by billions globally, the campaign’s most effective argument is its most modest one: the children who choose Disney in their hardest moments do so because a story once made them feel something real. The wish begins there, in the drawing, before the park, before the premiere, before any of it.
Campaign Name: Drawn to You / Disney Week of Wishes
Agency Name: Fallon / Production: PRETTYBIRD (Director: Goh Iromoto)
Brand Name: The Walt Disney Company / Make-A-Wish
Location: United States (national); Disneyland Resort, California; Walt Disney Animation Studios; Disneyland Paris; Global
