BA(Hons) Animation

Become a highly skilled animator ready for a rewarding creative career on this practice-based animation degree course. You will learn screen-based 2d and 3d animation, as well as motion graphics, title sequences, narrative and video editing for promotional design, infographics and music promotion. 

• We place an emphasis on creative and imaginative outcomes and embrace alternative and innovative approaches to construction, visualisation and interaction. 
• Our connections with local media organisations mean there are exciting opportunities available for work experience, field trips, collaboration and live projects.

Top reasons to choose this course

• We take an experimental approach and blur the boundaries between digital and analogue processes.
• You will be learning in a city with a thriving digital industry with opportunities for building connections.
• We integrate theory and practice, so you graduate with a strong foundation in both fields.
• During your degree you will explore a range of design approaches.
• Your lecturers are a team of industry professionals.
• You will use specialist software and equipment.

There is an emphasis on storytelling through imaginative projects using linear and non-linear narratives. 

• Animation is explored in response to contemporary culture and society. 
• There are opportunities to collaborate with other disciplines including music, sound art and design. 
• A placement in your final year – our media students have carried out placements in organisations including Ricochet, BBC Good Food and Olive Magazine, Absolute Radio, Brighton and Hove Green Party, Lowkey Films, Bauer Media and Brighton Dome.
• Opportunities to exhibit work and the end of the degree you participate in the graduate show, a large-scale exhibition.

Year 1 

• In year 1, you will explore animation through a series of creative projects. These projects will develop your skills in storytelling through a variety of experimental artistic techniques. 
• Your work will be nurtured and developed through both group and personal tutorials, and inspired by a series of lectures from visiting industry professionals.
• Under the guidance of expert teaching staff, you will immerse yourself in an exciting programme of lectures and workshops, shaping your projects and building your portfolio as you progress through the year.
• In year 1 you will work alongside Games Art and Design students, sharing modules and collaborating on projects.

Modules

• Animation Principles and Practice
• Sequence and Narrative
• Introduction to Animation
• Historical and Critical Studies

Year 2 

• In year 2, you will focus on developing your creative potential, building on knowledge gained during your first year.
• The projects you will be set have strong links with industry, so that the skills you learn and practise reflect those that employers are looking for.
• During your Animation degree BA(Hons) you will be encouraged to work collaboratively with your fellow students to develop ambitious projects within the local and wider professional community. Your research and analytical skills will be developed through group discussion and documentation of project outcomes.

Modules

• Virtual Studio
• Visual Language and Personal Voice
• Advanced Animation
• Historical and Critical Studies 2
• Global Challenges – Visual Communication

Final year 

• In your final year, the knowledge and skills that you have developed so far come together as you work on a final personal project. You will also write a dissertation in conjunction with Historical and Critical Studies.
• Final year lectures and tutorials are taught by teaching staff and by visiting industry professionals. They include practical information about professional development, preparing you for your professional or academic life after university, and one-to one personal tutorials offering in-depth, personalised support for your continued development.

Modules

• Context and Consolidation
• Virtual Studio: Animation
• Professional Practice
• Extended Research Project

What can I do with an Animation degree?

When you graduate you will be qualified to work in industries such as advertising, events, television, games, theatre and film in roles including:

• Animator
• Illustrator
• Motion graphics designer
• Creative media producer
• Content creator
• Digital artist
• VFX artist.

This animation degree also opens up postgraduate study options.

Professional advice and support 

• Outside of your course, our Careers Service is here to support you as you discover (and re-discover) your strengths and what matters to you. We are here for you throughout your university journey as you work towards a fulfilling and rewarding career.

Connect with our careers team

• Find part-time work that you can combine with your studies.
• Find, or be, a mentor or get involved with our peer-to-peer support scheme.
• Develop your business ideas through our entrepreneurial support network.
• Get professional advice and support with career planning, CV writing and interview top tips.
• Meet potential employers at our careers fairs.
• Find rewarding volunteering opportunities to help you discover more about what makes you tick, and build your CV.

Whatever your career needs, we are here to help. And that's not just while you are a student, our support carries on after you've graduated.