Futureworks
UCAS Code: W216 | Bachelor of Arts (with Honours) - BA (Hons)
Entry requirements
A level
Pearson BTEC Level 3 National Extended Diploma (first teaching from September 2016)
UCAS Tariff
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About this course
**You are a creative storyteller with an obsessive passion for animation. You want to develop your technical skills and you love working with the latest technology. If you think this applies to you, then you should apply for this course. This degree is an amalgamation of animation and illustration. When we created the course we spoke to our contacts in the industry and asked them what the course should cover. As well as both 2D and 3D animation, the industry wants people who can draw and they seem to be in short supply.**
Our degree is a mixture of animation and illustration. When we created the course, we spoke to our contacts in the industry and asked them what the course should cover. As well as both 2D and 3D animation, the industry wants people who can draw and they are in short supply.
• Creative Storytelling
• 2D Animation
• 3D Animation
• Post-Production Techniques
• Motion Capture
• Small Class Sizes
• Excellent Course Structure
• Industry Contacts
• Creative Community
• Broad Career Opportunities
• Excellent Tutor Support
• Real-World Briefs
• Industry Standard Facilities
• Year 1
You will gain a solid grounding in the fundamentals of illustration and animation. Using light boxes and rostrum cameras you will explore the traditional methods of animation. Creative thinking, storyboarding and story structure are all covered.
• Year 2
You will develop your illustration skills, and become proficient in 3D digital animation, covering all the essential skills needed for creating captivating performances in 3D worlds.
• Year 3
Your skills will continue to develop, culminating in your third year honours project which will become the centrepiece of your portfolio and should reflect the area of animation in which you plan to specialise.
**Why Choose The Digital Animation and Illustration Degree at Futureworks?
By initially focusing on traditional 2D animation skills, the course produces more rounded and proficient 3D digital animators. The illustration aspect of the course makes it stand out from many digital animation degrees and you will enjoy the way we come together as a team to express stories in a fun, creative and exciting way.
As you move on to digital animation, you will be using the latest versions of industry-standard software, like Autodesk Maya, together with the same hardware and workflows that you will find in the real world.
The reason for this is that our tutor team are all industry professionals who either still work within the industry or contribute to current projects on a freelance basis. They feel that it is essential that you understand the way the industry work as soon as you start on the course. This highly experienced team of tutors is augmented with independent animators and professional comic book illustrators who teach specific specialisms and deliver guest lectures.
Finally, all our students really appreciate the smaller class sizes at Futureworks. You can be confident that you will get plenty of one-to-one tutor time when you need it and our students often say that there is a real family feel to the course.**
Modules
**HE Level 4 (Year 1):**
Fundamentals of 2D Animation (20 credits)
Year 1 Animation Project (20 credits)
History of Animation and Illustration (20 credits)
Fundamentals of Illustration (40 credits)
Pre-production (20 credits)
**HE Level 5 (Year 2):**
Fundamentals of 3D Animation (20 credits)
Year 2 Animation Project (20 credits)
Post-Production and Motion Graphics (20 credits)
Contemporary Animation and Illustration(20 credits)
3D Modelling (20 credits)
Applied Illustration (20 credits)
**HE Level 6 (Year 3):**
Motion Capture (20 credits)
Personal Portfolio Development (20 credits)
Honours Project (40 credits)
Year 3 Animation Project (40 credits)
Assessment methods
We want to do everything we can to prepare you for working within the creative industries, and this is reflected in the way we teach and assess you. The course is mostly coursework based, which means your tutors will be able to give you constant, constructive feedback. Presentation techniques will give you valuable experience of how to present your thoughts and ideas successfully and enthusiastically, so you are better at selling your ideas to prospective employers.
The written work is an important part of assessment and will improve your communication skills. A combination of lectures, tutorials, peer reviews, discussions and observations will ensure that you’re industry ready. External trips will present you with a wider range of topics and the opportunity to expand your portfolio, whilst guest speakers will help you to understand the world of animation and illustration, how it works and how you can make your mark on it.
Tuition fees
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The Uni
Futureworks (Manchester)
School of Art and Design
What students say
We've crunched the numbers to see if overall student satisfaction here is high, medium or low compared to students studying this subject(s) at other universities.
How do students rate their degree experience?
The stats below 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.
Cinematics and photography
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Design studies
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
Computer games and animation
Teaching and learning
Assessment and feedback
Resources and organisation
Student voice
After graduation
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Looking further ahead, below is a rough guide for what graduates went on to earn.
Cinematics and photography
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£17k
£20k
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.
Design studies
The graph shows median earnings of graduates who achieved a degree in this subject area one, three and five years after graduating from here.
£17k
£20k
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.
Sorry, no information to show
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