Career Overlap Transition record
RecordMove

Cartoonist to animator

A cartoonist already meets 41% of what the animator role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.

Fig. 1 · Skill transfer ESCO v1.2.1 · directional
From cartoonist
41 % overlap
Partial match
To animator
14 You already bring
7 Still to learn
48 Skills in the target role2
Learning distance Substantial retraining

64.2/ 100

1 How much of what an animator is expected to do is already part of a cartoonist’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the animator role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.

Why

Why this move works

An animator role treats 10 of its required skills as things a cartoonist already does. You would walk in with these on day one.

  • ICT software specifications
  • adapt to type of media
  • create animated narratives
  • design graphics
  • finish project within budget
  • follow a brief

What stands in the way is 7 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.

Table 2

Table 2 · What you already bring

Of the 14 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An animator role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a cartoonist background worth leading with.

Skill the target role also needs Area
  • already held create animated narratives communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held create original drawings communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held create 2D painting communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held create sketches communication, collaboration and creativity
  • already held study media sources information skills
  • already held design graphics communication, collaboration and creativity

All 14 carried skills, including the 10 the animator role treats as required.

Table 3

Table 3 · What you may need to learn

The 34 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.

Skill to pick up Tier
01 communication, collaboration and creativity 3 required, 10 supplementary
  • still to learn analyse a script required
  • still to learn create moving images required
  • still to learn develop animations required
  • optional, not held animate 3D organic forms optional
  • optional, not held consult with production director optional
  • optional, not held convert into animated object optional
  • optional, not held create 3D environments optional
  • optional, not held help the programmer define an artistic vision optional
  • optional, not held identify customer's needs optional
  • optional, not held operate 3D computer graphics software optional
  • optional, not held manage feedback optional
  • optional, not held manage portfolio optional
  • optional, not held render 3D images optional
02 information and communication technologies (icts) 2 required, 9 supplementary
  • still to learn computer equipment required
  • still to learn computer graphics required
  • optional, not held Adobe Illustrator optional
  • optional, not held Adobe Photoshop optional
  • optional, not held Capture One optional
  • optional, not held GIMP (graphics editor software) optional
  • optional, not held Microsoft Visio optional
  • optional, not held SketchBook Pro optional
  • optional, not held Synfig optional
  • optional, not held graphics editor software optional
  • optional, not held augmented reality optional
03 arts and humanities 1 required, 3 supplementary
  • still to learn motion graphics required
  • optional, not held 3D lighting optional
  • optional, not held motion capture optional
  • optional, not held digital compositing optional
04 working with computers 1 required, 3 supplementary
  • still to learn provide multimedia content required
  • optional, not held apply 3D imaging techniques optional
  • optional, not held create 3D characters optional
  • optional, not held rig 3D characters optional
05 assisting and caring 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held receive appropriate permissions for use of recorded audiovisual examples optional
06 information skills 1 supplementary
  • optional, not held study relationships between characters optional
Table 4

Table 4 · Where to start

The 3 entries an animator role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.

Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.

Appendix

Appendix · The rest of the record

All 14 skills that carry over
Skill Type
  • already held ICT software specifications knowledge
  • already held adapt to type of media skill
  • already held create animated narratives skill
  • already held design graphics skill
  • already held finish project within budget skill
  • already held follow a brief skill
  • already held follow work schedule skill
  • already held graphic design knowledge
  • already held multimedia systems knowledge
  • already held study media sources skill
  • already held copyright legislation knowledge
  • already held create 2D painting skill
  • already held create original drawings skill
  • already held create sketches skill
27 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
Skill to pick up Tier
  • optional, not held 3D lighting optional
  • optional, not held Adobe Illustrator optional
  • optional, not held Adobe Photoshop optional
  • optional, not held Capture One optional
  • optional, not held GIMP (graphics editor software) optional
  • optional, not held Microsoft Visio optional
  • optional, not held SketchBook Pro optional
  • optional, not held Synfig optional
  • optional, not held animate 3D organic forms optional
  • optional, not held apply 3D imaging techniques optional
  • optional, not held consult with production director optional
  • optional, not held convert into animated object optional
  • optional, not held create 3D characters optional
  • optional, not held create 3D environments optional
  • optional, not held graphics editor software optional
  • optional, not held help the programmer define an artistic vision optional
  • optional, not held identify customer's needs optional
  • optional, not held motion capture optional
  • optional, not held operate 3D computer graphics software optional
  • optional, not held receive appropriate permissions for use of recorded audiovisual examples optional
  • optional, not held study relationships between characters optional
  • optional, not held augmented reality optional
  • optional, not held digital compositing optional
  • optional, not held manage feedback optional
  • optional, not held manage portfolio optional
  • optional, not held render 3D images optional
  • optional, not held rig 3D characters optional
15 held skills the animator role does not ask for
Skill Type
  • not needed by the target role analyse texts to be illustrated skill
  • not needed by the target role apply desktop publishing techniques skill
  • not needed by the target role consult with editor skill
  • not needed by the target role desktop publishing knowledge
  • not needed by the target role develop creative ideas skill
  • not needed by the target role follow the news skill
  • not needed by the target role interpret illustration needs skill
  • not needed by the target role maintain an artistic portfolio skill
  • not needed by the target role perform image editing skill
  • not needed by the target role practice humour skill
  • not needed by the target role select illustration styles skill
  • not needed by the target role use CAD software skill
  • not needed by the target role use digital illustration techniques skill
  • not needed by the target role use traditional illustration techniques skill
  • not needed by the target role write captions skill
15 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice

Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.

Skill to pick up Tier
  • still to learn computer equipment required
  • still to learn computer graphics required
  • still to learn motion graphics required
  • optional, not held 3D lighting optional
  • optional, not held Adobe Illustrator optional
  • optional, not held Adobe Photoshop optional
  • optional, not held Capture One optional
  • optional, not held GIMP (graphics editor software) optional
  • optional, not held Microsoft Visio optional
  • optional, not held SketchBook Pro optional
  • optional, not held Synfig optional
  • optional, not held graphics editor software optional
  • optional, not held motion capture optional
  • optional, not held augmented reality optional
  • optional, not held digital compositing optional
Index

Other moves recorded from cartoonist

Full index of moves from cartoonist

FAQ

Common questions about this move

Can a cartoonist become an animator?

Yes, and it is a substantial move. A cartoonist already covers 41% of what an animator is expected to do: 14 skills carry over, 10 of which the animator role treats as required.

What skills does a cartoonist need to become an animator?

7 required skills are missing, plus 27 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is analyse a script.

How hard is the move from cartoonist to animator?

Its learning distance is 64.2 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.

Note

How this record was compiled

Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.