When I was 10 years old, living in Oakland, California, I had a dream of working for Sanrio and creating an adorable character who could stand proudly alongside Hello Kitty, Little Twin Stars, and my all-time favorite, Keroppi.
I started brainstorming and decided to draw up a frog character to send to Sanrio. My idea wasn’t very original, but I thought it was at least a representation of my artistic skill, and good enough to secure a position there as an artist/illustrator.
I folded up the drawing, placed it in an envelope, and addressed it to the Sunshine Station at Southland Mall in Hayward. That was one of the closest Sanrio retailers in the Bay, and my happy place — I visited whenever I got the chance. We didn’t have internet in those days, so finding an address for Sanrio headquarters at the age of ten would have been a bit difficult. I thought the best idea would be to send it to Sunshine Station and, from there, it might get into the right hands.
I didn’t tell anyone about the letter, nor did I send it. I placed it at the bottom of a wardrobe and forgot it was there. But I never gave up on my dream, or my love for Sanrio!
Sunshine Station, Southland Mall, Hayward
In the early 2000s, I was introduced to Studio Ghibli films by my cousin, who gave me Grave of the Fireflies to watch. It changed my life. I became interested in animation at that point and began to create stop-motion clips the old-school way — using paper, pencils, and sometimes watercolor paints.
More recently, my niece — who taught herself to animate on her iPad — inspired me to download the apps she was using and try them for myself. I love animations that are created in the original way, but I also appreciate how doing it digitally makes things a little more manageable. I have come to love using Procreate, although I think it’s important for me to stay active in the mediums I learned with so that I don’t lose that capability and become totally dependent on computers to do a lot of the work.
It took a few years to come up with a character that I could begin to animate. I thought about which animal or creature I could bring to life, something original, unique, and extremely cute! By this time, I had already started my business, Haus of Deluxe, and had also designed my logo, which was inspired by an angel I saw carved on gravestones in Westfield, New Jersey. Since I was born in the Year of the Ram in Chinese astrology, I gave the angel ram horns. *THIS HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH ILLUMINATI.
I started sketching a very kawaii version of my logo in Procreate. My Friend Zia was born in Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir on June 22, 2023. He was named after my coworker at a Toyota dealership in Hayward, California, who had a kind, calm spirit and the same color eyes as Aishwarya Rai Bachchan (hence, Zia’s turquoise eyes). I loved the name Zia so much, I said that if I ever had a child, I would name them Zia. The name means light, splendor, or radiance, and in this world where hate and division are encouraged, I pray that through Zia, I can spread a message of love, light, and togetherness. I know it sounds cliché, but that is what I hope to achieve.
First ever sketch of Zia.