Summer Bishil Bio

Summer Bishil was raised in Pasadena (California). When she was just three years old, older, her family members and she moved to the United States. Summer attended American and British schools as her family lived abroad. She returned to Pasadena, California just short of her fourteenth birthday. Attracted by the idea of acting since at the age of 5, Summer took her first acting class when she was 14 years old. Nine months later, Summer signed with an agent and a manager and began to follow her goal full-time. She is currently working towards her college degree in her free time. She was among the stars of the future featured in Vanity Fair’s August 2008 cover article, "Hollywood’s New Wave: Hollywood's Most Hot Kids in Hollywood". When she was 14, Bishil started acting classes. In just one year Bishil was offered an employment contract by a management or agency. Bishil was initially seen in the Nickelodeon TV series Just for Kicks. She also appeared on other children's shows. In 2007, she played the main character in Alan Ball's film Towelhead, an adaptation of the novel. Slate critic Dana Stevens said, "Her performance is the best in a film that, in spite of its noble intentions, is completely fake and a little embarrassing, much like an extended PSA regarding inappropriate touching." Bob Strauss writes for many Los Angeles newspapers and states that Bishil "...is one of the most natural film actresses of all time. Gary Goldstein in a September 12 Los Angeles Times review of the film Towelhead, stated that, "...newcomer Summer Bishil turns into a confident, stunning performance as Jasira. "In 2009, she was a part of Wayne Kramer's film, Crossing Over, starring Harrison Ford, Ray Liotta and Ashley Judd, a portrayal which received some praise from the Associated Press's Jay Reiner. The film was a success and she was cast as Azula in M. Night Shyamalan’s 2010 film The Last Airbender. This was to be the primary focus of the planned, yet unproduced sequel.