Hidden in the hallways

You can see her in the halls of West High. She keeps to herself as she thinks of what she just doodled in her last class. You see a book peek through her hands, The One Memory of Flora Banks. You wonder who she might be as you turn to the door of your classroom. What makes her stand out?
Cindy Antun, ’21, is more than meets the eye. On top of animating, reading, and writing, she has important idols and stories that she carries with her as she goes about her day.

When asked who her role model is, she mentions her dad. “He has [the] most interesting background I have ever heard in my life,” Antun states. “I feel so inspired by that, I want to be as strong and daring.” Her father immigrated from Mexico after going through many hardships, according to Antun. He walked three miles everyday barefoot, just to get water, and he climbed trees to collect fruit to eat. He had to drop out of high school when he was sixteen. He walked from Mexico to the United States on foot at the age of 17 and taught himself English. All this because of perseverance and hard work.
“Never say the words, ‘I can’t,’” is Antun’s father’s mantra. “I want to be just like him.” Antun has her own goals that differ from her father’s old ones. These include; getting a good education by trying hard in her classes and getting good grades, and having a strong career. Antun’s currently wants to become a vet, but is conflicted by the fact that she also wants to animate things.
A friend from fourth grade, Annie Perez ’21, states that, “[Cindy] inspired [me] to edit because of her animations. I thought they were cool and I wanted to do something cool like that too.” She gets her ideas from the books she reads and the music she listens to while making her animations on FireAlpaca. She tends to create human anatomy based animations that include movement.

As she draws inspiration from her father and art, Antun says that the most important things she has learned in life are, “Never give up,” and “Never look back”.
These goals helped Antun go through some of the hard events in her life. Starting in fifth grade, Antun became insecure and more worried about what other people would think of her. “People are so judgmental.” She stated. She changed her personality. She became more of an introvert, quiet, and less confident in herself. The important lessons she learned from her father have helped her find her way through the rough patches.
As someone who inspires and is a long lasting friend, Cindy Antun is an easy going, fun person to be with. She stands out in small ways that you don’t always see at first glance.