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The Bachelor of Fine Arts in Digital Art and Animation is a rigorous program that prepares you for the challenges of professional art production. It begins with a solid grounding in the traditional arts, then progresses to computer animation techniques and technologies, and culminates in a series of projects that teach you all stages of the art production pipeline. You’ll graduate with the tools to translate your ideas into powerful, affecting imagery — and a new way of looking at the world around you.

As a student in the BFA degree program, you will both learn and practice the many roles that make up the art production pipeline for games and animation.


Who Should Pursue This Degree?

The BFA in Digital Art and Animation is a challenging program — one that will mold you into becoming a capable artist through sustained creative practice and critical feedback. If you have the capacity to get lost in your artwork, an interest in learning the stages of the art and animation pipelines, and the determination to begin creating at a professional level, this program is designed to help you succeed.

As a student in this program, you will:

  • Master the Fundamentals

    Build your artistic foundation through sustained practice in traditional media and application of core concepts.

  • Build Your Proficiency in Digital Tools

    Dive deep into the world of 2D and 3D digital art and animation production by learning the tools, pipelines, and techniques of professionals in the industry.

  • Work on Original Film or Game Projects

    Apply what you learn toward collaborative film or game projects as a team artist, animator, or related role.


Academic Roadmap

As a BFA in Digital Art and Animation student, you’ll spend the majority of your first year learning about tone, color, composition, and other foundational subjects as you practice observational drawing and working with traditional media. From there, you’ll begin to apply those same fundamentals to the realm of computer graphics, digital sculpting, and 2D and 3D animation. As you advance through the traditional and digital foundations, you will work on projects that incorporate the many roles and job types common to modern-day films and game productions. By your junior year, you will tailor your electives to specialized skill sets that match your career aspirations. By the end of your studies, you’ll have a deep understanding of production pipelines and a body of work to get you started on your career path.

View a sample course sequence

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Houdini Certification

DigiPen is a Certified Partner of SideFX, developers of the procedural 3D art software, Houdini. Certification means our students have demonstrated exceptional skill using the industry-leading tool favored by professional technical artists working in the film, television, and games industries.

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Admissions Requirements

In addition to meeting all standard undergraduate admissions requirements, applicants to the BFA program must submit an art portfolio.

View all requirements

Topics Covered

Students in the BFA in Digital Art and Animation program will gain the following:

  • Extensive production experience in both 2D and 3D animation, as well as an area of greater focus that enables you to target a specific sector of the industry according to your interests and abilities.
  • Excellent drawing skills, including a mastery of perspective, shading, drawing from observation, figure drawing, value, color, and composition.
  • Strong storytelling abilities, including visual storytelling, literary traditions, story through dialogue, story through acting, and cinematic conventions.
  • Familiarity with modern studio processes, including the ability to use current tools and software, as well as the ability to learn new software while maintaining a strict production schedule.
  • Professional work habits, including an understanding of how to continually enhance your craft, as well as the ability to utilize and implement professional criticism.

Event Schedule

Deep Dive: BFA in Digital Art and Animation Program

Wednesday, May 15, 2024 - 3:00 to 4:30 p.m.

Undergraduate Preview Day

Saturday, May 25, 2024 - 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Undergraduate Preview Day

Saturday, July 6, 2024 - 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.

DigiPen Student Stories

Student Projects

Multidisciplinary team projects make up a core component of the BFA in Digital Art and Animation curriculum. As a student in the program, you will have the option to contribute on collaborative endeavors in student games, animated films, and more. These semester- and year-long projects will give you the opportunity to see a project through from the concept stage to final, polished product. These are just a few examples of team projects that BFA students have worked on.

Meet the Faculty

DigiPen’s art and animation faculty is composed of experienced artists, educators, and industry veterans from the world of professional film and game production. These are just a few of the faculty who teach core courses in the program.


Career Outlook

As a graduate of the BFA program, you’ll be equipped to pursue a wide range of professions within the fields of game and film, as well as other applied arts.

Potential Careers

Character Artist

The role of the character artist can involve or incorporate a number of specialized roles, including modeling, texturing, rigging, and more. Their job is to create the actual 3D or 2D character assets that populate the games we play — relying on the fundamentals of anatomy, locomotion, and visual storytelling.

Environmental/Asset Artist

Environmental/Asset artists create and build the interactive worlds and spaces of video games, as well as the props and objects found within.

Animator

The animator brings life and motion to the creatures, characters, and environments in a game or film — in a way that is accurate and believable. Similar to a character or environmental artist, the day-to-day work or specialized role of an animator can take many forms, however, the foundation remains the same.

Other Job Titles

  • 3D Lighting and Camera Designer

  • Art Instructor

  • Character Animator

  • Character Designer

  • Character Modeler

  • Character Rigger

  • Compositor

  • Concept Artist

  • Illustrator

  • Level Designer

  • Maquette Sculptor

  • Producer

  • Project Manager

  • Props and Environment Modeler

  • Simulation and Effects Animator

  • Storyboard Artist

  • Technical Artist

  • Texture Artist

  • UI Designer

  • Web Designer

DigiPen BFA Alum Edward Davies Wins CTN’s First Andreas Deja Scholarship Award

Davies 2D animation merit earned him one-on-one mentorship with a master of Disney’s classic “Illusion of Life” techniques.

DigiPen 2023 Year in Review

DigiPen had a banner year in 2023, full of student awards, campus camaraderie, faculty achievements, and alumni excellence.

DigiPen Grads Embark on a Hero’s Journey as Overwatch 2 Character Artists

Ying Liu and Chonlawat “Takki” Thammawan shared a career-defining moment last May when Blizzard unveiled the new Overwatch 2 support-class hero Lifeweaver.

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Sign up to get in touch with a personal representative at DigiPen, and we’ll also send you a digital viewbook detailing our degree programs.

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Start Your Application

Ready to take your education further? Head to our secure application portal and submit an application for admission.

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