MA (Animation)

Our MA animation course will enable you to enhance your animation skills under the supervision of industry professionals. Whether you're looking to create brilliant character animation, an outstanding animated film, or amazing sound design, we'll help you master your craft. 

• The animation industry is expanding. Animation is used in games design, advertising, special effects or to simply tell a story or a joke. It can be seen online, in a TV series, in a feature film or as part of a documentary.
• Throughout this course you’ll be encouraged to unleash your creativity as you develop advanced practical skills and technical expertise in the areas you’re most interested in – from stop motion to 2D animation and 3D digital animation. You’ll work alongside industry professionals who will guide you towards creating a professional-standard body of work that will show off your skills and prepare you for a thriving career in the animation industry.
• The design activities and tutorials you undertake will be geared towards identifying an area of interest that you’d like to explore in depth for the duration of the course – so you could opt to specialise in character design, digital animation, storyboarding, sound design or other areas. The area you choose to specialise in will form the backbone of the rest of the course.

Why study with us

• Opportunities to work on ‘live’ projects with industry connections and build up an impressive portfolio of professional-standard work.
• You’ll have access to extensive studio, workshop and computer facilities equipped with the very latest specialist software.
• Key facilities include stop motion studios with lighting rigs, computer suites, rostrum suites for traditional animation and stop motion, a recording studio, and 3D printing and scanning.

What you’ll do

• You’ll get the chance to take part in our unique cJAM employability event, where you can pitch to industry professionals offering work opportunities.
• Regular visiting industry professionals and trips to animation festivals will help and encourage you to network with the animation industry and are a key part of this course.
• You'll be taught by professionals who have created and directed their own animation series for terrestrial broadcast - Channel 4 and BBC. Sarah Ann Kennedy and Mark Mason still work in the industry today and have active academic research profiles.

Modules
Year 1

Compulsory modules
These modules are set and you have to study these as part of your course.

• Animation Advanced Practice
• Research Methodologies
• Research in Context
• Reflective Practice
• Experimental Practice
• Specialist Practice

Future careers

• Our Animation graduates have gone on to enjoy successful careers as animators, model-makers, editors, directors, scriptwriters, set designers and sound designers.
• Others have gone on to work at major companies such as Nintendo, The factory, McKinnon and Saunders, Sony Pictures, TT Games, Soccer Manager, the BBC and many others.