Mike Foster

Hi! I'm Mike!

I'm Senior Animator and Designer for Tinmouse, an animation studio based in the UK.

Like most creatives, my adoration for all things hand-drawn began at an early age, with all the usual suspects from the 80s/90s feeding into my obsession; Disney, Hanna-Barbera, Looney Tunes, Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network, the list goes on! I say "obsession", as I struggled with learning to read for quite some time in my younger years, as I was too focused on the imagery in any storybooks and would rely, solely, on the characters, objects and places to guide me on the narrative.

On completing my degree in Animation in 2009, I took a slight detour from the industry, focusing on working in education, where I worked as a studio assistant in an art department of a college based in the North-West of England. Working in classes ranging from textiles to photography and fine art to media studies, it was refreshing to broaden my skill set and take inspiration from previously unexplored avenues in art and design.

I made one more pit-stop along the way, seizing an opportunity to work as a technical illustrator for AC&S Aerospace Consulting and Services Group, based in a small town in Germany, near the Austrian border. This took me out of my comfort zone, on many levels, but helped to hone skills, such as attention to detail.

Along the way I had dipped in and out of animation and design, but it was in 2014 that I finally took the plunge and became a freelance animator and then full-time employed for Tinmouse Animation.