Simons Cat

Simon Tofield is an English animator. He has a great interest in wildlife, painting and cats. He is the creator of ‘Simons Cat’ (Simons Cat 2012). Tofield began animating at a very young age. He was inspired to get into animating by the cartoons he would watch on the television. He studied graphics and Animation at De Montfort University, Leicester in the United Kingdom.

 ‘Simons Cat’ is a series of books as well as a series of short animations. It is all about Tofields nameless cat that’s always up to mischief.  His stories are simple and humorous. Tofield captures the personality of a cat very well through his work. For those who own cats they would be able to relate to his work. The images are simple. The simple black and white outlined illustrations are particularly appealing because they are simple . They can convey an idea or a story just as much as a coloured image. Although, Tofields work in colour is just as pleasing to the eye. He does not go overboard with the colours. They complement the drawings rather than over power them. He uses pastel like colours rather than bright colours . Tofield has also animated ‘Simons Cat’. He animates in the traditional style. Each animation is made up of hand drawn images. It takes between twelve to twenty-five drawings to create one second of a cartoon. He does all the drawings and sounds himself for his animations. He is inspired by his one cat and the adventures and antic they get up to.

Tofields work is humble and likeable. His cartoons and stories are simple and humorous. He does not over do the drawings with colours. He keeps it very simplistic. The cartoons are relatable, easy to understand and funny. Over time Tofield has created a huge fan base. He has five books published all about his cat and the escapades. His work shows how a story can be both illustrated and animated. This is something to consider when it comes to the final output of this project.