Animation MA

The Animation MA at the RCA fosters critical and creative artistic investigation across analogue, digital and hybrid practices, supporting you to develop your authorial voice within contemporary discourse and the expanded field of animation. Through a director-led, studio-based approach rooted in rigorous practice and critical inquiry, you are encouraged to experiment with motion capture, XR, classical, pre-cinematic and stop-motion animation. The programme nurtures imaginative leadership and material exploration, where animation becomes thought made visible, shaped by a global cohort whose diverse voices influence the evolving future of the moving image.
Programme structure:
Term 1
In Term 1, you will study Serious Play, exploring a wide range of creative practices and their cultural, historical and critical contexts. Through rapid prototyping and experimentation, you will develop ideas and receive feedback from tutors and peers. You will also present a poster at the Animation Autumn Symposium, with a focus on inventive approaches to form and concept.
Term 2
In Term 2, you will study Development and Exploration, refining the ideas and skills developed in Term 1 into a plan for a sustained animation project. Through experimentation and research, you will develop your creative process and articulate the influences that inform your practice. Alongside this, you will takean elective unit, working with students from other disciplines on cross-disciplinary challenges.
Term 3
In Term 3, you will study Independent Research Planning. This will be the culmination of your studies and your opportunity to confidently realise and extend your plans, ideas, and exploration into public facing practice. By the end of the unit, you should have a sustained body of animated work with audio, and a critical understanding of your practice within your research area of interest.

The programme attracts individuals from a notably wide range of disciplines who wish to explore their fields through animation, including, for example, film, architecture, graphic design, literature, communication arts, performance, art history, computing, illustration, pure and applied sciences and maths or fine art, or a combination of these.Candidates are selected entirely on merit and applications are welcomed from all over the world. The selection process considers creativity, imagination and innovation as demonstrated in your application and portfolio, your technical animation skills and your potential to benefit from the programme and to achieve high MA standards overall.Candidates are selected on the basis of a body of work that demonstrates an advanced understanding of the subject and sufficient technical animation and moving image skills to realise intentions, evidence of commitment to the subject, intellectual curiosity, open-mindedness, the ability to collaborate, to engage in debate and respond to constructive criticism, and the ability to engage in sustained and consistent study. We also want enthusiasm for your practice, commitment and a strong sense of personal responsibility for your subject matter and your own learning and development.Portfolio requirementsPersonal statementPlease provide a 300-word written personal statement that addresses the following points:Introduce yourself, your interests and your motivations for applying to the Royal College of Art, and to this programme in particular.Briefly summarise any educational background and professional experience to date that will support your application.Tell us what you want to do in the future.Video requirements