Sara Barackzay is 24-year-old animation artist and one of the very first and few in her country to follow animation arts professionaly. For Barackzay, who lost her hearing as a child, animation was a universal language which presented her with a world full of possibilities. Despite the lack of support from her extended family members, she left Afghanistan to study in Turkey on a fully funded scholarship. After completing her degree, she returned back to Afghanistan with the dream of introducing a specialist school for animation arts, a rarity in Afghanistan. Her dream was solidified when she finally founded the course called Nasl-e Musbat or Generation Positive and held around 30 digital arts courses in Afghanistan.
Barackzay ardently believes that animation is a medium through which Afghanistan’s problems and its very vibrant culture can be better explained and described. As opposed to the dominant discourse on Afghanistan as propagated by international media, her illustrations bring in a new perspective in our understanding of the region. She primarily uses animation to tackle the stereotypes and misconceptions about her homeland and show the world that Afghanistan is much more than the Taliban and decades of wars. Through her art, she attempts to pay homage to her culture and share her skills with other women who dream of becoming animation artists.
Her commitment to women’s rights is evident in her work: scenes of an Afghan woman breaking open prison bars or a young girl dancing without a concern in the world amidst scenes of war. Despite the threats, she teaches other young Afghan women her skills and hopes to make their future. However, Barackzay’s achievement are just not limited to her work on women’s rights and peace, she has successfully created drawings for children’s book projects with the United Nations International Children’s Emergency Fund (UNICEF) and UNESCO. These drawings are meant to help children who are unable to go to school with learning.
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