Fátima Ptacek (/pəˈtɑːtʃɛk/; born August 20, 2000) is an American film and television actress and human rights activist working with UN Women's #HeForShe campaign for gender equality. She is best known as the lead actor in the 2012 Academy Award winning film Curfew and its 2014 full-length feature film version Before I Disappear. She has lent her voice as the lead role of "Dora" in Nickelodeon's animated television series Dora the Explorer since 2010 and Dora and Friends: Into the City! since 2014.
Ptacek was born and resides in New York City with her parents. Her mother is Ecuadorian. Her father has Colombian, Czech, Irish and Norwegian roots.
She is a gymnast, competing at United States of America Gymastics Level 7, and takes part in English equestrian riding; as of 2010, she noted that she was hoping to qualify for the Olympic Games. In 2010, she noted that she was aiming for a scholarship to Harvard or Yale, and was enrolled in an academy for intellectually gifted children; that year, she suggested she may be too old to act by that point. In 2013, she was inducted into the National Junior Honor Society. She has expressed interest in transitioning from acting to a career in law someday. Her childhood dream was to be elected President of the United States; and her remarks led to her being invited to view the New York State Assembly and New York State Senate debate in person. She was acknowledged by Assemblyman Francisco Moya on the floor of the Assembly and recognized for her contributions to the arts. In 2013, Ptacek was recognized for her academic, professional, and philanthropic success by the New York City Council with a Proclamation from then Council Speaker Christine Quinn and Council Member Daniel Dromm. In addition to being fluent in English and Spanish, Ptacek has been studying Mandarin Chinese since childhood.