COURSE CURRICULUM

In Year 1, the focus is on developing fundamental skills in the visualisation and creation of comics and concept art. *Block 1: Visualisation* introduces students to the essential practices, tools, and techniques used in visualising comics and concept art, while also exploring the historical, cultural, and social contexts of these mediums. It combines lectures, tutorials, and studio/lab work with a significant amount of self-directed study and assessment. *Block 2: Design Thinking* focuses on the intellectual foundations of design, teaching students the critical thinking process that underpins successful design practices, with a similar delivery pattern of lectures, tutorials, and studio/lab work. *Block 3: Making Comics* offers an introduction to comics creation, storytelling, and the use of software like Clip Studio Paint EX and Adobe InDesign, allowing students to improve drawing and design skills. Lastly, the *Concept Art* block builds on the previous modules, introducing the workflow of concept art, with an emphasis on real-world industry specifications, design processes, and research. All modules follow a consistent delivery pattern of lectures, tutorials, studio/lab sessions, self-directed study, and assessment, ensuring students gain both theoretical knowledge and practical skills for their future careers in art and design.In Year 2, students delve deeper into the creation of comics and concept art, focusing on advanced narrative and design skills. *Block 1: Visual Narrative* covers essential concepts of visual storytelling, such as using visual tools to build narratives, the mechanics of sequential art, and an introduction to critical theory and thinking. *Block 2: World Building* expands on previous learning by introducing the practice of creating immersive environments and backgrounds for narratives, laying the foundation for complex worlds and their inhabitants. *Block 3: Professional Practice Comics* applies the knowledge and skills gained from earlier modules in a professional context, allowing students to create work for industry-standard briefs while honing their design skills and software knowledge. Finally, *Block 4: Character Building* focuses on the creation of compelling characters and entities to bring worlds to life, emphasizing the use of idea generation, iterative processes, and research to inspire creative work. All modules follow a similar delivery pattern with lectures, tutorials, studio/lab sessions, self-directed study, and assessment, helping students develop both the technical and creative skills needed for professional practice in the art and design industry.In Year 3, students focus on professional practice and the completion of their major projects, preparing them for post-graduation careers in the art and design industry. *Block 1: Professional Practice* aims to provide experience working with external industry briefs, exploring employability options such as freelancing, and beginning the planning and research for the dissertation. *Block 2: Dissertation* allows students to delve deeper into their chosen specialism (comics or concept art), demonstrating their knowledge and understanding while gaining further professional practice experience. *Block 3: Personal Project - Planning and Pre-Production* guides students through the initial planning and pre-production processes of their personal project, tailored to their specialism. *Block 4: Personal Project - Production and Post-Production* focuses on the execution of the personal project, aligning it with industry practices and helping students produce a major, sustained piece of work that supports their future aspirations. Each module is delivered over seven weeks, with a mix of lectures, tutorials, studio/lab sessions, self-directed study, and assessments, helping students refine their skills and build portfolios for their professional careers.