Course summary

It’s Britain, not Hollywood, which leads the world in Visual Effects. The course has been devised with input from industry professionals, to develop your understanding of primary visual effects and animation technology and their application in a film production process. There is also a specific focus on traditional art and design skills to inform and enhance your abilities as a VFX practitioner. Once completing our degree course, you will be able to apply your creativity and technical knowledge to enrich the storytelling aspects in a range of films and related projects. What you will learn From dramatic depictions of impossible worlds to subtle enhancements of everyday reality, its blending of art and technology calls for practitioners who are technically skilled and aesthetically aware. We believe it is essential that these skills are developed in an integrated filmmaking environment. This course will give you a detailed knowledge of the production context and an understanding of related disciplines that informs visual effects practice. Alongside technical knowledge of industry standard software and hardware, the course emphasises the importance of complementary art and design skills, which will inform and enhance your abilities as a practitioner. It recognises the international aspects of visual effects practice, and the possibility for artists to work as part of a global marketplace. The resulting portfolio of skills will inform your personal aspirations in preparation for entry into postgraduate study or professional practice. You will experience a team-based production process that replicates industry best practice; including concept development, on-set data acquisition, asset building, animation and compositing. The course will give you a detailed knowledge of the production context and an understanding of related disciplines that informs visual effects practice. Alongside technical knowledge of industry standard software and hardware, the course emphasises the importance of complementary art and design skills, which will inform and enhance your abilities as a practitioner. It recognises the international aspects of visual effects practice, and the possibility for artists to work as part of a global marketplace. The course believes in both the development of independent study skills and the experience of team-based production processes that replicate industry best practice, thereby encouraging awareness of collaborative roles and personal responsibilities required for a successful ethical practitioner. By supporting both group and independent modes of study, the course encourages an engagement with visual effects in the broadest possible sense. It promotes the opportunity for collaboration with other disciplines, and encourages the potential for multiple outcomes beyond an immediate application in the film industry. Approximately 68% of your time will be contact hours, including scheduled teaching sessions, but also supervised time in the workshop or studio, and the remainder will be independent study. 100% of assessment for this course is coursework based. By the end of the course you will be able to...

• Confidently demonstrate strong observational skills through traditional practices in art and design that complement the visual effects process.

• Demonstrate skills relevant to your specialist profile, with detailed knowledge of the production context in which you work and an understanding of related disciplines that inform your practice.

• Demonstrate a depth of knowledge that allows you to address a range of professional visual effects problems.

• Demonstrate skills in research, analysis and communication to interpret briefs to an industry standard.

• Demonstrate knowledge and critical understanding of historical and cultural contexts that inform visual effects practice.