MA Character Animation

Master

In London

£ 5,000 VAT inc.

Description

  • Type

    Master

  • Location

    London

  • Duration

    2 Years

Ideas for stories and characters, but not sure how to go about it? Want to make your drawings move? MA Character Animation appeals to designers, artists, illustrators and others who want to learn how to animate. You don't need to have had much experience of making animation before.This two-year course is very practical and will teach you all about how to make your characters do much more than move – you make them perform. You’ll learn timing, software, storytelling, character design, film language, take weekly life drawing and acting lessons, as well as looking into historical and critical approaches to animation. From the three short films students create on the course, we have had many award winners at international festivals.This course is subject to revalidation in 2016/17. Whilst the focus of the course remains the same, some of the detailed content may be subject to change.Our real-life briefs have come from the English National Opera, Old Operating Theatre Museum, Royal Shakespeare Company, Cartoon Network, National Gallery and the Children’s Society. Frequent visiting lecturers from industry include Shelley Page (Dreamworks), Philip Hunt (Studio AKA), Andy Blazdell (CelAction), Sue Tong (Illuminated Picture Company), Dave Anderson (Dog and Rabbit), Clare Jennings (Aardman/Laika Pictures), Joanna Quinn (Beryl Productions), Barry JC Purves, Osbert Parker, Daniel Greaves, Pete Bishop and Caroline Leaf.We have a high employment rate after the course and our award-winning students are working at Cartoon Network, Framestore, the Mill, BBC, Dreamworks, Industrial Light and Magic, Disney, etc. Two of our graduates have so far been nominated for Academy Awards for their animated short films – could the next one be you?This course is part of the: Drama and Performance Programme .Great reasons to applyMA Character Animation enables you to pursue your studies whilst also undertaking part-time employment, internships or care...

Facilities

Location

Start date

London
See map
1 Granary Square

Start date

On request

About this course

Entry requirementsAn applicant will be considered for admission who has already achieved an educational level equivalent to an Honours Degree.This educational level may be demonstrated by:An Honours Degree or an equivalent academic qualification;A professional qualification recognised as equivalent to an Honours Degree;Applicants who do not meet the standard course entry requirements may still be considered if the application demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence . This might be demonstrated by:Prior experiential learning, the outcome of which...

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Subjects

  • Staff
  • Networking
  • Network
  • Animation
  • Acting
  • Drama
  • Theatre
  • Design
  • Post Production
  • Drawing
  • Life Drawing
  • International
  • Project
  • Industry
  • Part Time
  • Team Training
  • Network Training
  • Media
  • Production

Course programme

Course details

All applicants considered for September 2017 entry will be applying for the newly revalidated version of the course. Further detailed information will be published as it becomes available however the focus of the course remains the same.

Instead of trying to cover every aspect of a complex subject, this postgraduate course specialises in one area - animation of characters. You'll broaden and challenge your contextual awareness of animation while gaining advanced skills in communication, project management and technique.

MA Character Animation's distinctive features include:

  • Links with Drama Centre London enabling unrivalled use of performance techniques through classes in Storytelling, Acting and Movement Studies
  • Classes in Animation History & Theory, Life Drawing and Anatomy that complement the technical animation curriculum
  • Simulated work experience through team projects, with input from industry professionals
  • Wide-ranging commercial and creative partners in London and beyond
  • An extensive alumni networking community

The course is supported and advised by Visiting Professor Shelley Page, Dreamworks.

Course dates

Autumn term:
Monday 24 September 2018 – Friday 7 December 2018
Spring term:
Monday 7 January 2019 – Friday 15 March 2019
Summer term:
Monday 15 April 2019 – Friday 21 June 2019

About the course

  • MA Character Animation lasts 60 weeks structured as two consecutive periods of 30 weeks each (i.e. two academic years) in its 'extended full-time mode'.
  • MA Character Animation is credit rated at 180 credits, and comprises 3 units. Unit 1 (60 credits) lasts 20 weeks. Unit 2 (60 credits) runs for 10 weeks in the first year and 10 weeks in the second year. Unit 3 (60 credits) runs for 20 weeks in the second year
  • All units must be passed in order to achieve the MA, but the classification of the award of MA derives from your mark for Unit 3 only. In exceptional circumstances, you may be able to exit successfully achieving 60 credits (Graduate Certificate) or 120 credits (Graduate Diploma).
  • We expect you to commit an average of 30 hours per week, within which your taught input will normally be scheduled over three days in first year and two days in second year. The course structure is intended to allow you to pursue your studies while also undertaking part-time work, internships or care responsibilities.

Course rationale

From the internet and mobile phones to television commercials, games and special effects for blockbuster movies, animation is everywhere. The medium, which today takes many different forms, has permeated our visual culture.

Technologies used to create animation are evolving rapidly. The competitive nature of the software market means certain computer programmes dominate in one year before becoming obsolete the next. Against a backdrop of constantly changing industry standard software, MA Character Animation fosters a specialist, practice-based knowledge you can apply to different software packages, technical processes, creative approaches and distribution technologies in the future. Instead of focusing on a narrow range of software-specific skills, you'll build universal skills and contextual awareness of character animation.

Originally called the London Animation School, MA Character Animation grew out of an initiative by the Guild of British Animation, which represents the interests of many of the UK's top animation houses. Many existing courses, it was felt, failed to equip students with either the right skills or level of experience for swift assimilation into useful roles in the workplace. In partnership with Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design, funding was raised from the Central London Training Enterprise Council (FOCUS TEC) to provide quality animation training.

Animation is a universal medium capable of communicating concepts and narratives without spoken language. A popular art form in a global marketplace, it appeals to all cultures, inviting them to apply their own visual and storytelling traditions. A feature and strength of MA Character Animation is that it attracts applicants from a wide range of practices and cultural backgrounds. About a quarter of students come from the UK, a further quarter from within the EU, while half are from outside Europe representing a wide range of nationalities. It adds up to an exciting opportunity to learn about other cultures and to develop international networks. You'll be encouraged to investigate and apply a range of different visual and storytelling traditions to your own work.

Course outline

MA Character Animation aims to develop both creative and technical skills. Learning to animate is about much more than software. At the core of engaging and effective animation is an understanding of motion, characterisation and the portrayal of performance. Our hands-on, practical approach focuses on creating innovative animated characters that can move convincingly and perform with emotional and psychological nuance. The curriculum covers motion analysis and performance based animation, from the simplest bouncing ball techniques to movement in animals, acting in humans and the representation of speech.

Lectures and critiques deliver a programme of rigorous enquiry into key areas of the theory and context of character animation. Established links with the other courses in our School of Performance mean this postgraduate course offers an unparalleled application of performance methodologies to the practice of animation. Because animation is the representation of performance, the MA Character Animation course team strongly believes that all animators benefit from a study of movement and acting. As a result, MA Character Animation emphasises the analysis of characterisation through acting and the study of motion through drawing. Drawing is an important part of the course - animation classes are supported by life drawing workshops and drawing field trips. You'll also have workshops in relevant software techniques.

Throughout the postgraduate course you'll be expected to extend your present knowledge and understanding and apply them to new areas of professional practice. You'll keep a blog from the start of the course in which you document your work and reflect on your progress. Working as an animator demands professional skills - you'll be encouraged to develop your experience in problem solving, project management, planning, and communication while working both collaboratively and independently.

We encourage a networking environment through collaborative team projects, simulated work placements, group critiques, and an industry-based mentoring programme that gives you continuous external input. You'll also benefit from regular visits from practitioners in all aspects of production and live projects with external agencies. Our goal is to help you become a reflective, innovative practitioner able to locate yourself within the animation industry.

Unit One: Character and Movement Analysis

Unit One is an intensively taught period of 20 weeks that is designed to advance your core understanding of character animation principles. Animation techniques will be comprehensively covered and applied to traditional pencil-drawn, 2D and 3D digital techniques in a series of short creative exercises. The critical analysis of motion, including the articulation of movement, anatomy, timing, weight and effort will be supported by contextual studies in life drawing, acting, animation history and theory.

Unit Two: Characterisation studies (60 credits)

Unit Two is designed to enable you to build a narrative based effective real character performance and for you to become a self-sufficient, critical practitioner, confident to pursue your own goals. The unit focuses on two longer narrative driven character performance pieces which are designed to bring together the formation of strong character performance through narrative action and sound.

Unit Three: Final Project (60 credits)

Unit Three is designed to enable you to self-direct a longer narrative character project film. You will devise your own narrative and develop a proposal for a self-directed micro short film that you can complete as an individual or in a team, by negotiation with staff.

Teaching staff and resources

Our MA Character Animation staff team consists of experienced professionals who continue to work as consultants and freelancers in the animation, multimedia and software industries. MA Character Animation also encourages a networking community by maintaining links with ex-students, many of whom are now in high-profile employment.

MA Character Animation benefits hugely from being in the heart of London, a thriving international centre for innovative design, the production of commercials, and post-production special effects. Advertising agencies and film companies come from all over the world to have creative work done here.

MA Character Animation Programme Specification 2018/19 (PDF, 346)

Industry collaborations

Based in London near the animation and post-production facilities of Soho, MA Character Animation has close links with the industry. Live projects with external agencies have included Cartoon Network, the National Theatre Archive, and the National Gallery.

Through lectures, demonstrations and workshops by working professionals, as well as through its successful mentor scheme, MA Character Animation maintains and values its links with the animation industry. We are committed to ensuring it remains commercially and artistically relevant in a volatile and fast-moving field.

MA Character Animation works closely with industry to ensure our graduates have the creativity, professionalism and specialist technical skills required for employment.

Short films created by MA Character Animation students have been nominated for prizes at:

  • Austin, Texas IFF Short Animation Award
  • BAF
  • Bitfilm Festival Germany
  • British Animation Awards
  • Cinanima Onda Curto Award, Portugal
  • CobraVision (ITV4)
  • Dervio International Animation Festival
  • Edinburgh IFF McLaren Award for British Animation
  • Festival Internazionale del Cinema d'Arte
  • Foyle Film Festival Animation Award
  • Junior Animator Award | MESH (Channel 4)
  • Microsoft Xbox Outstanding Student Award
  • Propeller TV Studentfest
  • Soho Rushes
  • Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival Audience Prize
  • Virgin Media Shorts People's Choice.

Over 80 per cent of our graduates find employment in the animation industry, in London and beyond. They work in Oscar-winning special effects teams on films such as Gladiator, Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter; acclaimed television series like Walking with Dinosaurs and Charlie and Lola; commercials; award-winning websites; TV graphics and games.

Our graduates are employed by companies like Aldis Animation, BBC, Studio AKA, Cartoon Network, Chase Animation Studios, Cinesite, Dreamworks, EA Games, Flush Draw, Framestore, HRA, Michael Dudok de Wit, the Mill, Moving Picture Company, Richard Purdum Productions, Passion Pictures, Pesky, Saatchi & Saatchi, Slinky Pictures, Tiger Aspect, Tandem, Twelve Foot Nine, Uli Meyer Studios, Unit 9.

For details of the wide range of careers support provided for students, please visit the Student Jobs And Careers section.

Facilities

  • Animation

    Find out more about our animation workshop

  • Post-production

    Find out more about our post-production workshop.

  • Digital Media

    Find out more about our digital media facility at King's Cross

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Staff

Course Leader: Shaun Clark
Senior Lecturer: Steve Roberts
Associate Lecturer, Movement: Lydia Baksh
Associate Lecturer, Life Drawing: Dr Maryclare Foá

MA Character Animation

£ 5,000 VAT inc.