Sofia, an 11th grader from Erie, Pennsylvania, is this week’s A+ Award winner for her impressive growth as an artist and her contribution to designing the cartoon NewsHound featured in the Petting Zoo intro.
Sofia dreams of becoming a professional animator, blending her love for art and storytelling.
She creates animations using free tools like FlipaClip and OpenToonz.
Sofia draws influence from Studio Ghibli, especially Spirited Away.
She even shared a fun animation history fact about ancient cave art: that there were ancient cave drawings in France that depict animals with multiple heads, legs, or tails. and when viewed under flickering light - like from a torch or bonfire - these images can appear to move, creating a primitive form of animation.
Sofia describes her style as “funky,” experiments with new media like ceramics, and shares her work on Instagram.
Her advice to fellow young artists? “Just start. Don’t worry if it’s not perfect—you grow by doing.”
Congratulations, Sofia! All of us at NewsDepth headquarters are very proud of your accomplishments as an artist!
Submit your ideas for our NewsDepth A+ segment to newsdepth@ideastream.org for consideration.