Film Animation (BFA)

Why study film animation? 

• Discover how to articulate your artistic visions as you master a versatile art form. Concordia’s multidisciplinary film animation program provides a solid foundation in the art of creative, independent frame-by-frame filmmaking. Our fine arts approach to film animation, taught by international award-winning professor-practitioners, emphasizes artistic cross-pollination, innovation and experimentation. 
• Our students learn the fundamentals of animated movement, stop motion, under camera animation, storyboarding, drawing, animated documentary, sound for animation, creative compositing and other original approaches to the medium. You’ll graduate with the artistic knowledge and discipline to create festival-ready animated films, think critically about your work and connect to the thriving community of independent artist-animators in Montreal and around the world.
• With an Oscar win, eleven nominations, and hundreds of prestigious awards won by past and present faculty and students, we’re proud of the international acclaim our alumni enjoy as directors, producers, editors and designers of the world’s most creative animation.

Program highlights

• Participate in the Concordia Film Festival, a student-run festival showcasing student work.
• Numerous opportunities for gaining hands-on experience through internships

Program structure

• A Bachelor of Fine Arts degree takes a minimum of three or four years (90 – 120 credits) of full-time study, depending on your academic background.

Program options

• Major in Film Animation (60 credits)
• Minor in Film Animation (30 credits)

Courses
Courses emphasize experimentation with a variety of techniques and materials. Our acclaimed faculty provide students with intensive training in a diverse range of traditional and digital animation techniques, including:

• Classical animation
• Puppet animation
• 3D digital animation
• Direct animation
• Experimental animation
• Animated documentary
• Animated installation
• Sound design & music composition

This rigorous approach to classical and digital animation processes emphasizes cross-pollination experimentation, and an independent spirit, making the Film Animation program one of the most versatile training programs in its field.

International study opportunities

• Concordia University offers students the opportunity to take part in an International Student Exchange Program (ISEP) that will count for credit towards their Concordia degree, while paying the same tuition fees they do at home and possibly receiving funding. International study opportunities bring cultural diversity and enrichment through immersion in the programs of study at Concordia’s partner institutions.

Professional internships

• Internships provide students with the opportunity to pursue work in the film industry, film research, archival work, editing film publications, or writing film criticism. Consult the Undergraduate Calendar or Graduate Calendar for details about program specific requirements and prerequisites.

Independent studies

• Students may explore specific areas of film through independent study. Consult the Undergraduate Calendar or Graduate Calendar for details about program specific requirements and prerequisites.  

After your degree

• Our students have gone on to become some of the world’s leading independent animation filmmakers. Many work with the National Film Board of Canada or with animation studios and visual effects companies around the world. 

Your degree can also lead to career paths such as:

• Animation Director
• Storyboard artist
• Character designer
• Web animator
• CGI special effects supervisor
• 3D modeller
• Stop-motion, 2D and 3D animator