Escape Studios
UCAS Code: I705 | Master in Arts - MArts
Entry requirements
A level
GCSE/National 4/National 5
English Language at Grade 4 or C
International Baccalaureate Diploma Programme
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
UCAS Tariff
You may also need to…
Present a portfolio
About this course
In recent years, 2D animation has experienced a significant revival, as studios including **Blue Zoo**, **Aardman Animation** and **Brown Bag Films** are creating wonderful films and experiences using the latest tools. The industry demand for more 2D Animators has recently gone through the roof.
This degree has been developed in collaboration with top Animators to give you the technical, creative and soft skills that the industry is looking for. You’ll also start building your experience and professional network and will graduate with a killer showreel to help open the doors to your dream studio.
Our experienced tutors who’ve worked on the likes of **The Lion King**, **Who Framed Roger Rabbit**, **Godzilla** and **Doctor Strange**, will teach you a range of animation techniques through intensive hands-on tutorials in our London industry-standard studios.
**Why choose this course**
+ Ranked 3rd in the UK and 8th in Europe in the Animation Career Review’s school ranking
+ Based in London - home to some of the best animation studios in the world
+ Industry briefs - work on industry-standard briefs and experience real-life scenarios, just like in a professional studio
+ Successful alumni - you’ll join our community of thousands of Escapees, many of whom have gone on to work at some of the world’s top studios including **Rare, Rockstar, Ubisoft, DNEG** and **Framestore**. 47 Escapees worked on **Avengers: Endgame**, 26 on **The Mandalorian**, 23 on **Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3** and 16 on **Stranger Things**
+ Study in a studio environment that mirrors current industry practice, using professional software such as **Maya, Toon Boom Harmony** and **Blender**
+ Professional input - our advisory board of experts from the likes of **DNEG (Avengers: Endgame and Oscar-winning Dune)** and **Cinesite (Thor: Love and Thunder)** help develop and keep this degree up to date. You will also receive feedback on some of your work from industry professionals
+ 2D specialism - follow 2D specialist modules, focusing more on traditional drawing skills and how to leverage them with new digital tools. With modules including sketch-visualisation, backgrounds, lighting and shading, concept art.
Modules
First year (Level 4 - 120 credits)
Students on our BA/MArt Animation, Games, Visual Effects and Motion Graphics degrees study common modules in their first year. This will give you the all-round skills needed to become a professional, and a chance to choose a different specialism if you change your mind before your second year (subject to availability).
Creative foundations - craft (30 credits)
Creative foundations - project (30 credits)
Computer animation - core (15 credits)
Video game art - core (15 credits)
Compositing for VFX - core (15 credits)
3D for VFX - core (15 credits)
Second year (Level 5 - 120 credits)
You’ll start to specialise in 2D computer animation and work in teams on industry-style projects.
Computer animation (2D) - pro (30 credits)
Computer animation (2D) - advanced (30 credits)
Specialism (15 credits) - options include:
Sketch-visualisation
Backgrounds
Lighting and shading
Concept Art
Industry studio project (45 credits)
Third year (Level 6 - 120 credits)
You’ll be working in a team just like a fully functioning independent studio, alongside developing an in-depth knowledge of your chosen specialisation.
Advanced specialism (30 credits)
Professional practice (30 credits)
Professional studio project (60 credits)
Fourth year - Integrated Masters students only (Level 7 - 120 credits)
You’ll develop entrepreneurship skills needed to manage your own studio as a real business. You will be asked to organise yourself to work as a digital studio, working on projects that are viable and to a commercial standard. The modules of this final year will cover the crucial aspects that will define your studio's success.
Art and design (30 credits)
Craft (30 credits)
Process (30 credits)
Business (30 credits)
Assessment methods
Formative assessment
The majority of modules contain at least one piece of practice or ‘formative’ assessment for which you receive feedback. Formative assessments are developmental and do not count towards your overall module mark.
Summative assessment breakdown
Level 4 and 5:
For Level 4 and 5 modules, your assessment will be split into two parts:
• 75% product - you will be required to create a product (short computer animation, rendered image of a 3D object composited shot, etc) to a specified brief, then present it in front of a panel and demonstrate how you have met the learning outcomes in your work
• 25% retrospective - you will be required to write a reflective analysis and present it for moderation and assessment.
Level 6:
The professional studio project module will be assessed just like level 4 and 5 modules; for the two other modules (advanced specialism, professional practice), 100% of your mark will be based on a self-evaluative portfolio.
Level 7:
If you’re doing the four-year MArt programme, you will be required to complete level 7 modules. The assessment of these modules will be split into four parts corresponding to four stages of the project - explore, ideate, accelerate, and incubate. Each stage will be equal to 25% of your final mark.
Progression:
In order to progress to the next stage (from first to second year, and from second to third year), you will have to achieve 120 credits at the end of the academic year.
For further information, please see Escape Studios' website escapestudios.ac.uk.
Tuition fees
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What students say
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How do students rate their degree experience?
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Computer games and animation
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
After graduation
The stats in this section relate to the general subject area/s at this university – not this specific course. We show this where there isn't enough data about the course, or where this is the most detailed info available to us.
Computer animation and visual effects
What are graduates doing after six months?
This is what graduates told us they were doing (and earning), shortly after completing their course. We've crunched the numbers to show you if these immediate prospects are high, medium or low, compared to those studying this subject/s at other universities.
Top job areas of graduates
This is a newly-classified subject area for this kind of data, so we don’t currently have very much information to display or analyse yet. Over time we can expect more students to study them — there could be opportunities that open up for graduates in these subjects as the economy develops over the next few years. But at the moment this looks to be a good degree if you want to work on the technical side of film and TV and this is the most common industry for new graduates.
What about your long term prospects?
Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Computer animation and visual effects
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£24k
Note: this data only looks at employees (and not those who are self-employed or also studying) and covers a broad sample of graduates and the various paths they've taken, which might not always be a direct result of their degree.
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While there are lots of factors at play when it comes to your future earnings, use this as a rough timeline of what graduates in this subject area were earning on average one, three and five years later. Can you see a steady increase in salary, or did grads need some experience under their belt before seeing a nice bump up in their pay packet?
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