Post Production & Visual Effects with Integrated Foundation Year

Develop your skills by entering the creative industries on an Integrated Foundation Year degree.

If you’re interested in taking on a new subject that you’ve not had the opportunity to study in depth before, or have been out of education for a while, then our Integrated Foundation Year courses might be for you. These four-year courses include an introductory year to help you build the core skills needed for specialist degree-level study.

This is a chance for you to let your imagination run wild and explore your creativity, expand your professional skills and develop enhanced subject knowledge in the domain you want to study. We’ll help nurture your expertise in problem solving, risk-taking, designing and making as you develop your abilities through five core modules.

After your foundation year, you’ll have a deeper knowledge of your subject, a clear understanding of your strengths, a developed practical and technical skill set and the confidence to excel in your chosen degree subject when you join other students for the rest of your course.

Create cinematic greatness as a post production and VFX specialist.

This is the final frontier in the film-making process, where raw footage is transformed into cohesive, compelling film and visual storytelling is pushed beyond the realms of possibility. This degree covers all aspects of post production and visual effects (VFX) for film, TV and animation, from creating magical sound design to clever scene cutting to ramp up tension. You’ll gain hands-on technical experience in a specialist facility with equipment and workflows that mirror industry practice, developing high-level skills and professionally recognised software qualifications.

You will:
Develop technical, design thinking and production skills in your chosen specialism.
Learn teamwork, leadership and project management skills through a variety of learning environments.
Develop critical thinking and creative problem-solving skills through the development of unique and innovative projects.
Complete your chosen degree over a four-year period.
Refine your skills in areas including picture editing, colour grading, compositing, VFX, rotoscoping, digital imaging, sound design and audio mixing.
Gain intensive, hands-on technical and craft experience of image and audio post-production equipment, workflows and software.
Gain recognised industry software certifications as an optional part of the course, giving you the edge over your peers.
Have the opportunity to participate in live client briefs as well as short and feature films through our Sound/Image Cinema Lab.
Benefit from our industry links with the likes of Adobe, Avid, Blackmagic Design and Arri, as well as numerous UK-based and international post houses and VFX studios including Framestore, ILM and Envy amongst many others.

You will also engage in our weekly InTo Industry programme of guest speakers and alumni. You’ll learn directly from leading practitioners and connect with our extensive global alumni, helping you to build your network from day one. Recent guests have included Nikki Atkinson (previs/postvis, The Matrix Resurrections, postvis, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story), Mark Connell (Production Designer, Radiohead: Follow Me Around and The Chemical Brothers: We’ve Got To Try) and Graham Wild (Dubbing Mixer, Our Planet, Blue Planet II and Planet Earth II).

This course is accredited by CILECT, Albert, AVID, and ARRI

You'll develop a strong skills base and a working knowledge of industry practice by responding to an exciting and diverse range of post production and visual effects challenges. With access to professional-standard facilities and software including Avid Media Composer, Pro Tools, Houdini, Maya and Nuke, the chance to collaborate with multi-skilled teams and opportunities to learn from industry leaders, you'll graduate with a diverse portfolio, invaluable connections and the entrepreneurial skills to start making an impact.

Foundation Year:
In your foundation year, you'll study five core modules: three short modules in the first study block and two in the second (one short, one long). These are all designed to help you explore the foundational elements of both creative practice and your chosen specialism. You'll gain relevant technical skills, learn to experiment and take risks, develop an understanding of professional practice, have opportunities to work across disciplines and collaborate with other students on live project briefs.

After your foundation year, you'll have a deeper knowledge of your subject, a clear understanding of your strengths, a developed practical and technical skillset and the confidence to excel in your chosen degree subject when you join other students for the rest of your course.

Modules:
Explore
Technique
Apply
Industry
Launch

Year One:
In your first year, you’ll strengthen your foundational skills and develop crucial knowledge of industry practice including workflows and current technologies. This will give you the essentials to learn across all three strands: audio, video and VFX, at an equal level. You’ll work in professional-standard facilities and collaborate with your peers on post production and visual effects projects, building your portfolio and developing your technical and creative skills.

Modules:
Audio Post-Production Fundamentals
Video Post-Production Fundamentals
VFX Fundamentals
Audio Post-Production Competency
Video Post-Production Competency
VFX Competency

Year Two:
Your second year is designed to give you greater confidence in your skills and a clearer understanding of your own interests. You'll continue your development on the three core areas of audio, picture and VFX, but also be given that crucial space to refine your own specialist interests. This may be as a specialist editor, sound mixer, VFX supervisor, colourist, sound designer or compositor, among the many other roles open to you. By exploring and collaborating on challenging projects you’ll get to connect with peers from the School of Film & Television, across the wider University and beyond.

Modules
Audio Post-Production Proficiency
Motion Graphics & Colour Proficiency
VFX Proficiency
Collaboration
Intermediate Post-Production & VFX Project

Year Three:
Your final year of the degree will be dedicated to refining and mastering your skills as you prepare for a career in industry. You'll cement your learning across your chosen pathway of audio post-production, video post-production or visual effects. You'll have the opportunity to take on a collaborative or entrepreneurial project with peers from across the University, especially in animation, film, television, prosthetic effects, games or on one of the School of Film & Television's funded micro-budget films. You'll also work on an advanced post-production or visual effects project.

Modules
Pre-Production & Development
Extended Research Project
Futures
Final Major Project

As part of our process of continuous improvement, we routinely review course content to ensure that all our students benefit from a high-quality and rewarding academic experience. As such, there may be some changes made to your course which are not immediately reflected in the content displayed on our website. Any students affected will be informed of any changes made directly.

Foundation Year assessments are 100% coursework based.

Assessment will take place at the end of each module, and you'll get feedback and evaluation throughout the year. You'll be assessed through visual, verbal and written assignments, including your portfolio and a reflective journal. In your foundation year all assessments are pass/fail to encourage students to take risks and engage with the feedback provided.

Progressing in your specialism:
Students studying on courses with an Integrated Foundation Year must successfully complete and pass all foundation modules before they can progress to the next stage of their course.

Your specialism:
100% of your assessment will be coursework and presentations. There are no formal exams on this course.

Assessment methods
The BA Post Production & Visual Effects degree employs two main coursework assessment strategies over the year:

Portfolios – these bodies of works will be comprised from weekly skills development tasks to major projects, depending on what you are studying in each module
Presentations – some of the more advanced modules in this degree course require presentations of research and development, such as the Extended Research Project module
Your final assessments occur at the end of each module, usually at the end of a study block. You'll also benefit from interim formative assessments partway through modules.

These assessments help ensure that you remain on track with your work. You'll receive feedback on all your work throughout the year. It will be delivered in tutorials and studio-based workshops. At the end of a module, you'll be given detailed written feedback on your work and the opportunity to meet with your assessor to gain further clarity.