Bachelor of Applied Arts, Animation and Visual Effects

Students who complete the Bachelor of Applied Arts in Animation and Visual Effects will be well prepared for entry level jobs in mid to large sized animation studios, and they will also possess the skills and attributes to collaborate with others in the creative arts to develop independent projects that serve the animation and visual effects needs of local industry.

The program is built on a foundation of communication, storytelling, and traditional art skills, such as sculpting in clay and life drawing. Students are introduced early in the program to concepts of storyboarding, layout, color and light that will be applied to character animation in 3D software, digital sculpting, digital texture painting, compositing, and visual effects. In the 4th year of the program, students will be guided and supported in the creation of their own demo reels. Business and entrepreneurial skills will also be taught in the program.

The unique nature of this program ensures that Animation and Visual Effects students will be well grounded in studio animation processes, and they will also have scheduled opportunities to work collaboratively on projects with other students in the School of Creative Arts.

What You’ll Learn

• Develop stories through the visual medium of animation
• Develop and demonstrate a foundation for executing the creative process
• Develop and demonstrate fundamental artistic skills
• Apply the principles of acting for animators within animation assignments
• Apply technical knowledge using a variety of animation industry relevant software
• Construct animations, following a current and typical animation production pipeline with a focus on techniques
• Demonstrate a high level of proficiency in a chosen area within the animation pipeline (character animator, modeler, lighter, texture artist)
• Create pre-visualizations in 3D software for a variety of industries
• Compose drawings, with a wide variety of media, to serve different stages of the animation industry
• Recognize and discuss work and gender cultural diversity (aboriginal/global/gender perspectives/awareness)
• Develop a personal portfolio/demo reel—at an industry accepted level—showcasing a combination of: completed animation scenes; and/or visual effects shots; and/or animated shorts; and/or textured 3D models; and/or scenes lit in 3D software; and/or pre-visualization
• Demonstrate teamwork, time management, self-direction, self-motivation and self-evaluation, to be able to respond appropriately to feedback
• Apply entrepreneurial skills in order to seek out and create meaningful career opportunities locally and globally in pre-existing, as well as new, personally created areas of animation

Course takes place in Red Deer, Alberta.