Post Production & Visual Effects BA(Hons)

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

You’ll be introduced to the fundamentals of audio post-production and workflows. You’ll learn how to manipulate sound in both digital and analogue environments using industry-standard software skills.

Exploring the creative aspects of post-production and sound design, you’ll practice recording techniques for dialogue and Foley, while gaining skills in audio editing and mixing. You’ll do this while learning how to integrate software into post-production workflows and have the option to bolster your professional skills by gaining software certifications. 

Video Post-Production Fundamentals

You'll learn about the key processes and essential tools used in picture editing. Using industry standard tools such as Avid Media Composer, you’ll gain skills in post production over a series of short intensive projects.

These projects will serve as the start of your portfolio, showcasing your foundational video editing skills while enabling you to cultivate a professional voice and critical thinking approach. 

VFX Fundamentals

You’ll expand your understanding of key visual effects (VFX) principles and learn how to use industry-standing computer generated (CG) software applications.

While mastering these essential software skills, you’ll explore areas such as film language and storytelling (storyboarding, blocking shots), previsualisation (previs), VFX pipelines and the basic principles of practical filmmaking and VFX. 

Audio Post-Production Competency

You’ll further develop your software skills and continue to build confidence in using industry-standard tools for audio post-production. You'll deepen your understanding and proficiency in working with audio hardware, audio suits and mixing desks, and delve further into the creative side of sound design.

Video Post-Production Competency

You'll develop your editing skills further through Avid Media Composer 110 and delve deeper into the tools and platforms used within post-production, applying these in a creative video post-production project.

VFX Competency

You’ll expand your knowledge of VFX techniques, learning how to combine computer generated (CG) assets with live-action plates to create captivating and lifelike environments. Through hands-on practice, you’ll enhance your software-based knowledge and skills, exploring techniques like rotoscoping and 3D & 2D tracking. You’ll developed a deeper understanding of VXF principles and pipelines, equipping you with the expertise to creatively apply these concepts and overcome challenges in VFX shots.

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

You’ll dive into more advanced techniques of audio post-production using industry-standard software, methods, shortcuts and workflows. You’ll attend technical workshops that will take you beyond the basics of using the software, gaining a deep understanding not only of the user interface but also the backend of the software and its operation, learning how to troubleshoot and apply your skills effectively.

You’ll spend more time in front of the mixing desk as you learn various mixing techniques on different hardware. This will broaden your knowledge and help you mix confidently in a dubbing theatre environment. 

Motion Graphics & Colour Proficiency

In this module you’ll move from competent to professional in your video editing abilities.

You will gain greater confidence and proficiency with the tools and techniques employed in a professional video post-production workflow. You will move beyond the ‘edit’ to graphic enhancements, colour grading and finishing.

VFX Proficiency

Building on your skills, you’ll tackle more advanced processes, with an emphasis on generating computer graphics with a view to implementing them in live action footage.

You’ll apply what you’ve learned as a VFX artist by working on a short intensive project developing a portfolio around a singular shot or shots and creating supporting materials where necessary. 

Collaboration

Within this module you'll get the opportunity to collaborate with peers from across the School of Film & Television and beyond to meet a project challenge by your developing specialist skills. This is your chance to shine as a specialist within your chosen area.

You can choose to take an optional professional placement after your second year on a three-year programme, or after your third year if you’re studying for a degree with an Integrated Foundation Year. 

You’ll be responsible for finding your own placement, with support from the Employability team. 

Choosing this option will enhance your industry experience and skills while studying. 

How you’ll study during your professional placement 

You’ll spend time working in a professional context, as part of a business or organisation. This can be in one role, or up to three, and must be for a minimum of 24 weeks. 

You’ll develop in-demand workplace skills, deepen your insight into industry and grow your network of contacts, all of which could help you get ahead in your career after graduation. 

Throughout this year, you’ll develop a portfolio of work that includes critical self-reflection on what has been learned from the experience. You’ll be required to evidence your experiences, the skills you’ve learned and your professional growth. 

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

In this module you’ll be immersed in pre-production and project development practice.

You’ll create an ambitious, innovative and complex project that could form the basis of your Final Major Project. Your ways of working will reflect professional creative industry processes, contexts and culture. 

Extended Research Project

This module will give you the opportunity to choose a project in your specialism and run with it. You’ll develop a high level of in-depth subject knowledge making you an expert within your chosen field of Post-Production and Visual Effects.

Futures

Focusing on your professional future, this module will give you the skills you need to transition from university to industry. With input from our employability team and your supervisor, you’ll build your professional profile to enable you to stand out from the crowd on graduating.

Final Major Project

Launching you into the professional world, your Final Major Project allows you to build out a complex project to completion.

Following the industry workflows and processes you’ve learned throughout your degree, you’ll take charge of your creative direction and produce work you’re not only proud of, but which will contribute to your professional portfolio. 

Why study an Integrated Foundation Year route? 

If you’re taking on a new subject that you haven’t studied in depth before, have been out of education for a while or have a non-standard educational background then an Integrated Foundation Year degree may be the right choice for you. It is a four-year degree with an Integrated Foundation Year to start, which allows you to explore the primary elements of your subject before progressing on to the remaining three years of the BA(Hons) degree. 

What you'll study in your Foundation year

If you choose this pathway, you'll study five core modules in your Foundation year. These are all designed to help you explore the foundational elements of your subject. 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.

Modules

Explore

You'll begin your foundation year by working collaboratively with others to explore themes of the future. You'll take risks, experiment through play and be supported to break through barriers.

Technique

You'll take subject-specific workshops and develop essential technical and practical skills in your area of study. You'll also enhance your analytical and organisational abilities.

Apply

You'll work with your peer group to think beyond discipline by addressing a societal or global issue. You'll then showcase your work to your peers and deliver and accompanying evaluation of your process.

Industry

You'll enhance your creative and practical skills in your subject specialism by responding to typical industry briefs, underpinned by focused research and experiments. You'll also gain industry insights through guest lectures and workshops.

Launch

You'll develop your unique identity in your specialism through the production of a self-initiated body of work. Your final project will be the bridge to your next year, fully supported by evaluative reviews and critical analysis of the work you have created.

After the Foundation year, you progress into Year One of the full three-year degree, equipped with a deeper knowledge of your subject, a clear understanding of your strengths, and develop a practical and technical skillset and the confidence to excel in your chosen subject. 

If you apply for and enrol onto a degree with an Integrated Foundation Year, you’ll have the option to switch onto a five-year version including a placement year. That means you’ll complete the first three years of your course before completing a placement in industry in your fourth year and returning to Falmouth for the fifth year of your programme.

This practice-based degree is underpinned by creative, technical and critical tuition, designed to reflect and meet the demands of today's post production and visual effects industries. Through the first half of the course, you will gain a firm foundation across the three core disciplines – audio, picture and VFX. For the second half of your studies, you will have the opportunity to focus in and specialise. The Post Production & Visual Effects course is delivered through lectures, seminars, workshops, panel discussions, masterclasses and individual tutorials. 

Teaching will be complemented by our visiting lecturer programme and opportunities for work experience and internships over the duration of your degree. Learning within an inclusive and supportive environment, you’ll graduate with a varied portfolio of technical and creative work.

At Falmouth, we use a 'digitally enhanced learning & teaching' approach. Your experience will always be predominantly in-person, including seminars, tutorials and studio teaching, with some, more targeted elements, being online either live (synchronous) or pre-recorded (asynchronous). You can read more here.

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.

If you choose the Integrated Foundation Year pathway for this course, all assessments within your Foundation Year will be 100% coursework based.