The Foundation year prepares students for university level study. Successful completion of our Foundation course permits access to any of our Art or Digital Media BA (Hons) or BDes (Hons) degree courses, which include Computer Games Design, Animation and Film and Television Production. The Foundation year begins with modules aimed at providing transferable study skills and then, in the second semester, gives students the opportunity to study more specialist modules, with a focus on various aspects of Art and Digital Media.

The BA (Hons) Animation course helps you combine visual ideas with sound and time to create an on screen experience for your audience. On this course you learn: ideas generation, visual storytelling, storyboarding, scriptwriting, sound design, character design, character animation, experimental animation, 2D animation, 3D animation, stop motion animation, film editing and compositing. At your fingertips you will have the power of software suites such as Adobe and Autodesk which are renewed annually. Specifically in animation we use Maya, Mudbox, TV Paint, After Effects, Photoshop, and Premiere Pro. We also use pencils, paper, clay and anything else that communicates a brilliant idea!

What's unique about this course?
Brand new state of the art facilities as part of £4m screen school investment
You will explore a range of styles and we cover any approach to the art of animation, depending on your talents and skills.
The animation course is a key contributor to the FLIP Festival and winner of prizes including a Royal Television Society award.
What happens on the course?
The course is delivered via a variety of teaching methods, including studio and workshop teaching, seminars and presentations. You will complement your practical studies with theory-based modules that investigate the current contextual and historical aspects of the subject. This includes the study of film language, narrative, non-narrative and conceptual approaches to ‘genre and related contextual issues.

Drawing and observation are the foundations of animation. Drawing is used to study and analyse movement as well as being a powerful medium for self-expression and an invaluable tool for conceptual development. Important related skills such as pre-production planning, video editing and digital sound are also taught.

Potential Career Paths

Typical career opportunities open to graduates include work in animation, television and games design, illustration and the creative and communications industries.

You may also continue your studies to postgraduate level on our MA programmes: MA Art and Design, MA Design for Advertising or MA Fine Art.