Bachelor of Arts (Hons) in Animation

at Norwich University of the Arts United Kingdom

Take the next step towards becoming a qualified architect on our MArch Architecture course*.

Developing a unique design voice is at the heart of the course while equipping successful graduates with the necessary professional competencies.

Research-by-design

The course is made up of eight units taught over two years full-time and three years part-time study. Each unit falls into the area of Design Studio, Research or Professional Studies.

Studio options range from practitioner-led masterclasses, or active research in coastal architectural design, contemporary considerations in conservation/rehabilitation, modern vernacular architecture in provincial towns and rural areas.

You will be supported to tackle real-world issues, while speculating and proposing new futures through bold experimentation and boundless enquiry in project-based learning.

Our tutors come from industry and research and our community is a place where academics, practitioners and students are co-designing new ways of thinking.

Teaching is delivered in a dedicated postgraduate studio space, equipped with computer workstations, model-making facilities, large format printers and 3D printers.

You share the infrastructure of a specialist creative arts university with equipment, expertise and support of disciplines such as Games, Fine Art, Fashion, and Interior Design.

You have access to workshops with capability for plastics, metal, wood, and concrete work.

Take your practice to new heights, refine your technical skills and explore the cultural and historical context of your work on our Creative Skillset accredited MA Moving Image and Sound Masters degree course.

Challenge your audio-visual practice and strive for originality through experimentation with concepts, issues and materials relating to moving image and/or sound design.

Collaborate

As a postgraduate student at NUA you’ll join a community of practitioners and researchers with diverse specialisms, giving you valuable opportunities to work collaboratively as well as individually.

Through intensive study and comprehensive technical workshops, you’ll develop the practical and conceptual skills required to create original and innovative work to exacting professional standards.

Specialise

Depending on your specialism, you’ll have the chance to engage with a wide range of audio-visual methods. These include: 2D Digital; CGI and stop motion animation film and moving image production; motion graphics; scripting and narrative; pre-production and post-production skills and techniques; sound design.

However you choose to shape your study, you’ll graduate with a deeper understanding of your own practise and a broader appreciation of how to apply your skillset in a variety of professional settings.

Taking Year 0 at the beginning of your degree course will get your studies at Norwich University of the Arts off to a flying start. The extra year of study will help you explore creative ideas and begin to develop the practical skills, research techniques and ways of thinking that are essential to undergraduate success.

Our BA (Hons) Fine Art degree course encourages ‘thinking through making’ and you will explore the breadth of fine art with workshops in painting, print, sculpture, mixed media and video. You will use project spaces and external venues for performance, display and curation.

You will shape your own distinctive career path as an artist on our BA (Hons) course and join generations of graduates who have achieved national and international success.

Our graduates are renowned for their unique voice and vision, leading them to Turner Prize nomination and inclusion in the UK’s annual New Contemporaries exhibition.  

Our BA (Hons) Animation degree course will encourage your individual creative exploration and development helping you choose which specialism to focus on.

You will master the magic of bringing characters and stories to life through a range of animation techniques at NUA – from 2D, 3D CG to stop motion.

Interactive lectures and practical workshops will help you explore character design and sculpting.

You will learn the fundamentals of animated storytelling through workshops and masterclasses in dynamics, storyboarding and character creation.

What you will learn

• Explore the three major animation techniques: hand drawn and digital 2D, stop motion and digital 3D
• Gain understanding of the principles of animation: dynamics; character design; storyboarding; animatic production; animation production; sound design; skills of observation and life drawing; acting for animators; editing; compositing and show reel design
• Explore theory in character analysis and narrative structures
• Develop an understanding of media roles and practices
• Work collaboratively through a series of projects designed to allow you to establish a good practice, essential for the animation industry
• Explore your chosen areas of specialisation and develop your skills, with the potential to combine techniques
• Develop an understanding of audience, context, film language, and the elements of compelling storytelling
• Bring together all your learning and experiences to create a personal portfolio with a great showreel
• Engage with a collaborative project with either your peers or external collaborators, allowing your creative skills to be tested in an industry-standard practice
• Produce a personal showcase of your specialist skills and an original, animated short film.

Taking Year 0 at the beginning of your degree course will get your studies at Norwich University of the Arts off to a flying start. The extra year of study will help you explore creative ideas and begin to develop the practical skills, research techniques and ways of thinking that are essential to undergraduate success.

Our BA (Hons) Fashion course will encourage exploration in concept development, pattern cutting, and professional garment construction supported by technical skills and couture levels of craftsmanship.

Your technical expertise and understanding of materials and industry markets will grow by working on design competitions and briefs for high profile companies such as Burberry and ASOS.

Guest lectures, seminars and workshops with acclaimed practitioners, stylists and academics will give you insight into how the industry works.

We will help you to develop a professional portfolio to showcase your design identity and profile the quality of your manufactured garments to employers.

Fashion design skills

We’ll encourage you to innovate as well as to understand historic and contemporary trends in fashion.

You’ll develop essential technical skills to support your design thinking, including:

• Design development
• Planning
• Pattern cutting
• Garment construction
• Tailoring.

Develop the creative and technical skills behind the latest Hollywood blockbusters and learn from award-winning studio professionals on our BA (Hons) Animation and Visual Effects degree course.

Our Animation and Visual Effects degree reflects NUA’s success in both disciplines. Our approach to teaching visual effects evolved from advice from professional bodies like ScreenSkills and UK Screen Alliance and the majority of the UK’s VFX industry, including:

• Double Negative (DNEG)
• Framestore
• MPC
• Industrial Light & Magic (ILM)
• The Mill.

We are part of Access:VFX – the industry’s initiative to create the widest possible pool of future talent and host a number of workshops and events with invited industry guests

Taking Year 0 at the beginning of your degree course will get your studies at Norwich University of the Arts off to a flying start. The extra year of study will help you explore creative ideas and begin to develop the practical skills, research techniques and ways of thinking that are essential to undergraduate success.

Our BA (Hons) Animation degree course will encourage your individual creative exploration and development helping you choose which specialism to focus on.

You will master the magic of bringing characters and stories to life through a range of animation techniques at NUA – from 2D, 3D CG to stop motion.

Interactive lectures and practical workshops will help you explore character design and sculpting.

You will learn the fundamentals of animated storytelling through workshops and masterclasses in dynamics, storyboarding and character creation.

What you will learn

• Explore the three major animation techniques: hand drawn and digital 2D, stop motion and digital 3D
• Gain understanding of the principles of animation: dynamics; character design; storyboarding; animatic production; animation production; sound design; skills of observation and life drawing; acting for animators; editing; compositing and show reel design
• Explore theory in character analysis and narrative structures
• Develop an understanding of media roles and practices
• Work collaboratively through a series of projects designed to allow you to establish a good practice, essential for the animation industry
• Explore your chosen areas of specialisation and develop your skills, with the potential to combine techniques
• Develop an understanding of audience, context, film language, and the elements of compelling storytelling
• Bring together all your learning and experiences to create a personal portfolio with a great showreel
• Engage with a collaborative project with either your peers or external collaborators, allowing your creative skills to be tested in an industry-standard practice
• Produce a personal showcase of your specialist skills and an original, animated short film.

Taking Year 0 at the beginning of your degree course will get your studies at Norwich University of the Arts off to a flying start. The extra year of study will help you explore creative ideas and begin to develop the practical skills, research techniques and ways of thinking that are essential to undergraduate success.

Building your creative and professional skills in a variety of techniques and approaches to illustration is at the heart of our well-regarded course at NUA.

Our BA (Hons) Illustration degree course has a reputation for challenging conventional thinking. We will help you to develop your personal style as your expertise grows in drawing, print, collage and multi-media.

You will explore visual storytelling and both digital and analogue image-making: from the page to the screen, to installations and interactive experiences.

Step towards an illustration career

Live projects, competitions and collaborations will offer work opportunities to prepare you for a successful career in illustration.

You will develop your own way of thinking about illustration, storytelling and the connection of images to text or the spoken word.

We will help with advice about working in the creative industries, including freelance careers, employment and entrepreneurship, and practical tips on handling commissions and negotiating with clients.

Our BA (Hons) Games Art and Design degree has an international reputation for producing graduates who excel in a constantly evolving industry. The Rookies ranked NUA in the global top 16 for Concept Art and Illustration and in the top 50 in its world rankings — thanks to the reputation of the Games course.

The course is a member of the Sony PlayStation First Academic Partnership Programme and is accredited by ScreenSkills and the games industry body TIGA, which also crowned NUA the best educational institution in 2017.

Our BA (Hons) Fashion course will encourage exploration in concept development, pattern cutting, and professional garment construction supported by technical skills and couture levels of craftsmanship.

Your technical expertise and understanding of materials and industry markets will grow by working on design competitions and briefs for high profile companies such as Burberry and ASOS.

Guest lectures, seminars and workshops with acclaimed practitioners, stylists and academics will give you insight into how the industry works.

We will help you to develop a professional portfolio to showcase your design identity and profile the quality of your manufactured garments to employers.

Fashion design skills
We’ll encourage you to innovate as well as to understand historic and contemporary trends in fashion.

You’ll develop essential technical skills to support your design thinking, including:

• Design development
• Planning
• Pattern cutting
• Garment construction
• Tailoring.