Sophia Mylan

My name is Sophia Mylan, I am an animator and illustrator based in the UK. I did my BA Animation and Illustration at Cambridge School of Art. I love to incorporate music and storytelling in my work, I produce mainly 2D animations.

My main goal regarding my work is for it to be enjoyed or related to, a lot of my work is influenced by my own experiences, and I think if others can find that they aren’t alone in my work, then my work would be successful.

Of course I work in other areas as well, I have taken on more commercial projects, such as producing 2D animated adverts for clients like Provide Wellbeing (NHS), I find working for commercial clients fulfilling but I have a bias towards story-based works.

Generally, I look forward to a future where I can create personal projects and work with others to produce stories through the medium of 2D animation. With the rise of 3D I want to keep true to the cartoons and artists I grew up loving, I don’t think it’s a dying art but it is my preferred medium and I think it needs more appreciation – I hope that my work can have some influence in the future.

Fissure is a short animation that I have produced for my Final Major Project. It follows the story of Cherry and Althea who have to flee their island due to a mysterious force causing it to crumble. The relationship between the two girls is strained because Cherry refuses to leave her home whereas Althea wants to escape before it’s too late but won’t leave without her. Eventually the two make their escape as the island falls apart, its revealed that a large fish is the cause of the islands demise.

With this film I wanted to explore themes of change and relationships. With the end of university and the impending weight of adulthood coming I wanted to use this in my film, in a way it’s a non-typical ‘coming of age’ film. I wanted to convey the fear of change, even when there’s no other option, but something that has been a constant source of comfort is the people around me.

Cherry and Althea end up with their home destroyed but in the end they have each other, no matter the changes you have to go through at least you may have someone to go through it by your side.