Animation (BA)
Bring your art and stories to life in a vibrant, creative community.
- Available as
- Major
- Degrees/Options
- Bachelor of Science
- Length
- 4 years
- Locations
- Fort Wayne
Why Study Animation?
Entertainment. Education. Advertising. You will find multimedia stories and creative messaging everywhere, on screens of all sizes. An animation degree gives you the skills to bring your imagination to life through storytelling and digital technology — and prepares you for production, design and other creative roles in industries of all kinds.
57,300
Number of job openings projected per year
BLS.gov
$99,800
Median annual pay for Special Effects Artists & Animators in 2024
BLS.gov
24-hour
Access to the Saint Francis animation lab and TV studio
Why Saint Francis for Your Animation Degree?
We structured our program to run like a professional animation studio. This means you not only get graphic design and digital storytelling experience right away, but you also will learn about project management, product development life-cycle and cross-team collaboration.
Equipped with business know-how, solid design and production skills—and the talent and creativity that led them to this field in the first place—Saint Francis graduates have brought characters and scenery to life in blockbusters like Frozen and Moana, developed and designed branding campaigns, built special effects for live performances and so much more.
Fundamentals to FIN: Hands-on from Beginning to End
The nature of an animation degree means plenty of practical learning experiences. At Saint Francis, you’ll develop a foundation in art, drawing, traditional animation and even human behavior. You will conceptualize, design, produce, edit and share using industry-standard technology.
Your classes will include:
- Visual Storytelling
- Storyboarding
- Traditional Animation
- Motion Graphics
- 3D Production
- Character Puppeting
Beyond your everyday classwork, your hands-on experience will include student productions in our animation and TV studios, your senior project, production collaboration with external community partners, internships and studio simulation environments.
“Saint Francis gave me an artistic foundation whose principles and techniques I still use every day.”
Adam Green ’02 Animator at Walt Disney Animation Studios (“Frozen,” “Tangled” & “Moana”)
“I was hired into my current position before I even graduated, which was amazing. The job came through a USF referral. I’m immensely grateful for how well the Animation program prepared me for my career.”
Jennifer McKibben ’15 Digital Designer at Franklin Electric
“There’s so much support at Saint Francis. The professors are an ongoing resource of information, encouragement & opportunity. Because of that, the Animation program has an impressive professional network and is becoming well known in the industry.”
Josh Bullock ’19 President and Creative Director, Boom Animation
Connect With Industry Experts
From Fort Wayne to Studio City. Saint Francis’ animation degree program has earned a nationwide reputation for talent, and this recognition continually opens up career connections and learning opportunities for our students and alumni, such as:
- Webchats with professionals at Disney, DreamWorks, Pixar, Warner Brothers and Blizzard
- Workshops and webinars with well-known industry creators
Faculty and Facilities
You will learn skills and techniques—and find motivation and inspiration—from a faculty made of artists, animators, producers and writers.
Digital storytelling students have 24-hour access to state-of-the-art equipment and facilities in our Animation Lab and Television Studio.
Campus and Community
Animation and graphic design students at Saint Francis are some of the most involved on campus and in their industry. Here’s a look at how they keep busy:
- Animation and Film Club
- Film Festivals—our students regularly submit their work to regional, national, and international film fests. Among their achievements:
- The Fox’s Wedding: An animated short with international recognition. This student-animated short has won both Gold and Silver Telly awards.
- Spring Cleaning was selected for the Animur International Animation Festival as well as for Fort Wayne’s Hobnobben Film Festival.
Our campus is full of creators: Saint Francis is home to about a dozen other majors with a creative focus, so you’ll find plenty of showcases, performances, and career-focused or arts-related campus clubs that might interest you, including:
- Animation and Film Club
- Game Meat – Game Development Club
- American Advertising Federation
- Mudslingers – Ceramics Club
Get Your Career in Motion: What You Can Do With an Animation Degree
A degree in animation gives you a diverse set of skills and experience working with the latest tools, technologies and best practices in the industry. Digital storytelling, graphic design and other multimedia skills can lead to positions such as:
- 3D or 2D Artists
- Motion Graphic Artist
- Animation Editor
- Storyboard Artist
- Visual Effects Artist/Designer
- Game Artist or Designer
- Character or Environment Designer
- Production Coordinator
- Art Director
Animation and design skills aren’t just for arts and entertainment: you can find opportunities in education, manufacturing, industrial design, architecture, biotechnology, healthcare and other industries.
Saint Francis graduates create content, tell stories, design products and animate at companies such as:
- Disney Animation Studios
- Warner Bros. Entertainment Group
- Blizzard Entertainment
- Smashbits Animation/Dreamworks TV
- WANE, 21 Alive
- Industrial Light & Magic
- MotionLit Services
- Telltale Games
- Studio D
- Funko
- Tripwire Interactive
- Journeys
