Kingston upon Thames, United Kingdom
DURATION
3 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
Request application deadline *
EARLIEST START DATE
Request earliest startdate
TUITION FEES
GBP 9,250 / per year **
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* only for home students. We will continue to accept applications from international students after the 25th of January
** UK students: £9,250 per year | international: £16,500 for the first year
Key Summary
Introduction
Why choose this course?
The Illustration Animation BA (Hons) - the UK's first degree in Illustration Animation - at Kingston School of Art combines narrative and time-based subjects to give the undergraduate complete creative freedom to engage in visual thinking, expression and communication.
The course is part of the highly-regarded Department of Illustration Animation and Kingston University is ranked No.1 in London for graphic design* in the Guardian League Tables 2023 (*covers graphic design and illustration animation).
Illustration has expanded from the traditional printed page to explore many forms of visual media including digital objects and interaction, spaces and environments. Animation as a time-based medium allows exploration from traditional to hybrid domains like film and television, and virtual and augmented reality.
We celebrate the cross-pollination of ideas and skills through the hybrid nature of the course. You'll benefit from dedicated studio spaces and the opportunity for collaboration between illustration and animation.
Built around drawing, the course is carefully structured to develop your individual voice, applying content to image communication to reach an audience.
We encourage learning through making and you will have access to all workshops to test and prototype using any process from etching to ceramics, arc welding to laser cutting, and 3D printing or large-scale textile printing.
The course includes self-initiated and group work assignments and presentations encouraged through self-reflective and critical discourse, individual practice is built and tested by peer group interaction. This breadth ensures students develop the range of skills essential to contemporary practice in all forms of applied image-making.
Projects with industry, cultural and social institutions test and shape student understanding in real-world situations. Staff practitioners and alumni networks offer insight and contacts with international creative practice, including studio visits and placements.
The course has an excellent reputation for nurturing graduates who go on to be leading practitioners in illustration and animation, as well as design, direction and a broad range of creative careers.
Reasons to choose Kingston
- We're ranked No.1 in London.
- 84 per cent of students from this course were in highly skilled employment or further study within fifteen months of graduating (Graduate Outcomes Survey 2018).
- This course produces top graduates who go on to work at the best creative agencies and companies globally, such as Cartoon Network, Nexus, Netflix, Nickelodeon, Blink, Moth Studio and Google.
Gallery
Admissions
Curriculum
What you will study
Throughout the course, you'll gain an understanding of text, image, narrative and sequence. We build strong observational skills through drawing as a basis for your development and equip you with the necessary techniques to realise your creative ambition.
Modules
Each level is made up of four modules each worth 30 credit points. Typically, a student must complete 120 credits at each level.
Year 1
Year 1 encourages an open-minded and exploratory approach to illustration animation. You'll be introduced to idea development, visual research, and image and content relationships. Drawing, animation, digital crafts, presentation techniques, life drawing and location workshops are all taught.
There is an optional field trip to destinations such as New York, Berlin or Florence. Eligible students will be supported with a travel bursary.
Core modules
- Studio: Introductory Principles
- Process: Materials and Methods
- Presentation: Collaboration and Communication
- Image & Text - Communication Design History for Illustration and Animation
Year 2
Year 2 enables you to explore different ways of communicating your ideas. You'll learn how to critically challenge subjects and develop your personal direction. You'll work on set and self-initiated projects, developing your ability to create effective solutions.
Core modules
- Process: Technologies and Application
- Presentation: Audience and Context
- Studio: Practice and Purpose
- Critical Issues in Illustration and Animation: Research and Practice
Year 3
Year 3 focuses on the development and resolution of personal practice, with an awareness of professional contexts. A series of set and live assignments will inform your self-initiated extended project. Helping you with your individual presentation will be industry research and engagement combined with web, portfolio, showreel and curatorial workshops.
Core modules
- Studio: Practice and Realisation
- Presentation: Professional Practice
- Dissertation: Research and Reflection
Optional Year
You'll have the opportunity to study for a fourth year abroad or to do a work placement, or even combine both.
Please note
Optional modules only run if there is enough demand. If we have an insufficient number of students interested in an optional module, that module will not be offered for this course.
Program Tuition Fee
Career Opportunities
Careers and progression
Our graduates are employed worldwide in roles such as freelance illustration and image makers for magazines and newspapers; book publishers; film and TV production companies; and advertising and design groups.
Some pursue careers in animation, games, multimedia, special effects and design for film and TV; others pursue postgraduate study in the UK or overseas.
Exceptional achievements by Kingston School of Art students mean our students enjoy a reputation for innovation and creativity. Achievements include awards from BAFTA, Design and Art Direction Student Awards, the Macmillan Prize, the Penguin Student Design Award, the World Illustration Awards and the Royal Television Society Awards.