Animators and Cartoonists are those professionals who engage in the work of creating comic characters. They are in the same field of work. Even though both these professionals work with the same theme their work nature is entirely different. Cartoonists are those who create cartoon drawings in a paper and that convey a message to the public. Animators are those people who create cartoon characters and give them movements with computer technologies.

Animator

Animators are the professionals who work in the animation field. That is they create the cartoon characters according to a story or a short film that communicates a message. Their works can be seen in television or in animation films and even in the video games. Most commonly an animator first writes a story or short film that conveys an idea. Then they draw the comic characters that appear in the story. A series of movements are given to the characters using various technologies. While making the movements they also give the characters soundtracks, story lines, and special effects that make them appear lively. All these techniques are implemented in the computer. Animators have many opportunities in various areas like 2D animation, 3D animation, or any computer generated arts. They can work in industries such as films, online advertisements, websites, video gaming, etc.

Cartoonist

Cartoonists are also the professionals who are expert in creating cartoons. These people will have outstanding skills in drawings. Their works are usually humorous and it is for conveying messages, for entertainment, advertising or for political commentaries. Cartoonists’ works are commonly seen in the print media like newspapers, magazines, etc. in the earliest centuries and now they can be seen even in online also. A cartoonist may work with various formats like editorial cartoons, graphic novels, comic books, etc. They develop their work through a sketch initially. Then it is given outline drawing with pencils and finally finishing is done with black inks using a brush or nibbed pen, for reproduction purposes. These professionals can work with various print media and presently they are most commonly seen in the digital media.

Key differentiators between Animator and Cartoonist

• Animators are those people who create the cartoons depending on a story or short films whereas cartoonists are those who draw the comic characters for specifically conveying a message or for commenting.
• An Animator give the comic characters a series of movements or give life to them using various technologies in computers whereas a Cartoonist creates drawing using pencil or pen in paper.
• The works of animators can be seen in televisions, films or in video games whereas the creations of cartoonists are most commonly seen in the print media.

Although an animator and cartoonist work with same theme i.e. comic characters, their nature of work and result of their works differ entirely.