8Feb
Undergraduate This course is subject to validation. You can still apply for this course while it is being approved.
De Montfort University has participated in the Teaching Excellence Framework. These ratings were awarded in 2023, for four years.
Open days
Course summary
We encourage you to be innovative, creative and push the boundaries of storytelling and artistic style. You will receive a grounding in the fundamental skills of animation, with the opportunity to develop more specialist skills from the second year of study. You will develop your own distinct style and voice, as well as enhancing your technical and creative knowledge by studying the modules within this programme. Our excellent facilities include dedicated animation and sound studios, graphics studios, computer suites and a suite of Cintiq stations. You will be supported to master professional tools, such as TVPaint, Maya, Photoshop, Premiere Pro, Substance Painter and After Effects. Our supportive and collaborative studio culture creates a nurturing atmosphere that aims to encourage professional development. Teaching is delivered primarily through demonstration and practical workshop sessions, providing hands-on experience in drawing, script writing, idea generation, visual communication, pre-production, audio production and digital 2D and 3D animation practice. Key features
- Prepare for a rewarding career in the animation industry. Recent graduates are working as animators, VFX technical directors, lead technical runners, compositors, modellers and designers, with companies such as Brown Bag, Studio SOI, Cloth Cat, RJDM, Double Negative and Disney.
- Access one-to-one support from the Leicester Media School Drawing Centre to perfect your drawing skills and meet like-minded artists.
- Work on a major project tailored to the animation industry, which will give you the chance to enter national and international competitions and festivals.
- Through block teaching, you will focus on one subject at a time instead of several at once. This means that you will be able to focus closely on each subject and absorb your learning material in more depth, whilst working more closely with your tutors and course mates.
- Exhibit your work at the week-long DMU Degree Show, one of Leicester’s biggest art and design shows, where final-year students have the chance to meet talent scouts and win industry prizes.
- Enjoy developing your skills in a vibrant studio culture and preparing for a future in the animation industry by using our specialist facilities and software.
- Add an international experience to your CV with our DMU Global programme. Previous trips have seen Animation students draw inspiration from dramatic city skylines and urban environments in New York, Berlin and Hong Kong.
Modules
Year one Block 1: Introductory Sessions Block 2: Animation Principles Block 3: Visual Thinking and Communication Block 4: Project 1 Year two Block 1: Look Development Block 2: Fundamentals of Movement Block 3: Acting Block 4: Project 2 Year three Block 1: Project Ideation, Concept, Script Block 2: Script, Storyboard, Animatic, Design Layout Block 3: Production Block 4: Post-Production
Assessment method
On this course, you will benefit from Education 2030 - DMU’s new way of delivering courses. Through block teaching, you will focus on one subject at a time instead of several at once. Teaching is delivered primarily through lectures and practical sessions, with access to keynote lectures and support from industry mentors. Practical classes provide hands-on experience of both drawing, idea generation, pre-production and digital 2D animation development. Tutorials are used to provide feedback and a framework for ensuring you see improvements in your work. Additional learning materials are also offered online. Assessments include regular screenings of artwork and reports for peer, tutor and industry critique. You will be encouraged to produce festival ready animation and a showreel for employment, guided by experts from the animation industry and the teaching team. Industry representatives make regular visits to give presentations and review showreels. You will normally attend around 12-16 hours of timetabled taught sessions each week, and are expected to undertake at least 24 further hours of directed independent study and assignments as required.
How to apply
31Jan
This is the deadline for applications to be completed and sent for this course. If the university or college still has places available you can apply after this date, but your application is not guaranteed to be considered.
Application codes
Please select a course option – you will then see the application code you need to use to apply for the course.
Points of entry
The following entry points are available for this course:
- Year 1
Entry requirements
Qualification requirements
UCAS Tariff - 104 points
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016) - DMM
Access to HE Diploma
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme - 24 points
T Level - M
Additional entry requirements
Portfolio
Student Outcomes
Operated by the Office for Students
Employment after 15 months (Most common jobs)
Go onto work and study
The number of student respondents and response rates can be important in interpreting the data – it is important to note your experience may be different from theirs. This data will be based on the subject area rather than the specific course. Read more about this data on the Discover Uni website.
Fees and funding
Tuition fees
| Channel Islands | £9250 | Year 1 |
| Republic of Ireland | £9250 | Year 1 |
| England | £9250 | Year 1 |
| Scotland | £9250 | Year 1 |
| Wales | £9250 | Year 1 |
| Northern Ireland | £9250 | Year 1 |
| EU | £16250 | Year 1 |
| International | £16250 | Year 1 |
Tuition fee status depends on a number of criteria and varies according to where in the UK you will study. For further guidance on the criteria for home or overseas tuition fees, please refer to the UKCISA website .
Additional fee information
Please note that fees for subsequent years of study for continuing students are subject to an annual review. Any increase in fee will be in line with RPI-X (linked to the retail price index) and the fee cap set by the Government.
Provider information
De Montfort University
The Gateway
Leicester
LE1 9BH