National Centre for Computer Animation

Our courses

Undergraduate courses

BA (Hons) Computer Animation Art & Design

This cutting-edge course places an emphasis on the creative side of computer animation, combining traditional art disciplines like life drawing and cinematography with more technically focused disciplines to produce computer animation using industry-standard tools and software.

BA (Hons) Computer Animation Technical Arts

Technical Art/Direction is the practice of using art/animation and computing/maths skills to solve aesthetic problems. This course is a unique 50/50 mix of art and science, reflecting practice relevant to the production of graphics and animation for a range of applications.

A Computer Animation, Games & Visual Effects student at work

BA (Hons) Visual Effects

If you have a strong desire to work in the feature film visual effects industry or associated areas, this is the perfect course for you.

BSc (Hons) Virtual and Augmented Reality

This course provides you with a deep level of understanding and the critical skills necessary to develop new and existing practical applications in Virtual and Augmented Reality applications, such as in Medical, Engineering and Entertainment settings.

Postgraduate courses

MA Digital Effects

This course will provide you with a strong theoretical and technical underpinning for the principal areas of study, thanks to lecture series on filmmaking techniques, green screen, MOCAP, computer graphic principles, the fusion of art and technology, personal research, and applied digital effects theory and practice.

MA 3D Computer Animation

This Master’s is the perfect launch-pad for a career in a wide range of disciplines, including concept design, character and creature animation, modelling, lighting, rigging, texturing, compositing and simulation. The course will help you acquire the skills needed to work in a number of areas where computer animation is applied, including films, animated features, computer games, television production, commercials, illustration, scientific visualisation, and flight simulation, to name just a few.

MSc Computer Animation & Visual Effects

During your year-long study, you will develop your programming and scripting skills, and become familiar with special techniques and tools associated with computer animation. These skills are assessed in a variety of projects you will undertake during the year. Emphasis is placed on the use of industry-standard hardware and software in the development of these techniques.

Image of a group of people watching many pictures

MSc Artificial Intelligence for Media

This new course focuses on using existing machine learning frameworks of Tensorflow and PyTorch to address practical problems in media production. As a student on this course, you will have access to the latest deep learning methodology such as VGG, LSTM and GAN which are commonly used in AI research on image processing.

Industry links and accreditations

We have forged links with many of the UK’s, and the world’s, most prominent animation organisations and award-winning professionals. BU is also one of a small number of institutions from around the world who have been granted Houdini Certified School status by Side Effects Software, and a number of our computer animation degrees boast the ScreenSkills Tick, indicating the quality of those courses. Find out more about our accreditations and industry links.

More about the NCCA