Parsons specializes in the experimental side of animation. You'll work in many different forms of media using a variety of tools. You'll focus on where the industry is going, not where it's been.
The animation and game design industry has shifted from console-based to online platforms. A trend toward pieces that are made quickly and with simple technology has also emerged, with drastically lower production costs as a result. Those tendencies, combined the ability to distribute work using the Web and even cable TV, means that individuals can be their own animation production house. That perspective is central to Design and Technology's philosophy. In contrast with animation programs at some traditional colleges, Parsons' bachelor's degree program teaches you how you can do it on your own.
As a Parsons student, you'll learn to use a wide variety of tools to produce animation, ranging from Flash to video, and from traditional cell animation to 3D digital animation built with software like Maya and Softimage. You'll combine this with resources shared with the field of motion graphics-programs like After Effects and Final Cut Pro—to emerge from the program ready to manage any one of these platforms or many of them at once.
The Design and Technology program emphasizes producing real work and developing the ability to make good animation. Creating successful animation in part requires the skillful manipulation of media, but it also has to do with establishing a story structure, developing a critical eye, and understanding how to combine elements to create a finished piece. Parsons' aim is to place graduates into creative work positions, not production roles.
