The Animation programme is divided into two main specialisations: Animation, and Illustration and Comics. The Animation Department was established in 2002 and was designated a National Animation Teaching and Research Base in 2004, with the Animation programme recognized as a provincial-level key discipline. Drawing on its background in fine arts, the department focuses on the artistic characteristics of animation, emphasising observation of reality and experimentation. It has achieved outstanding teaching results, with students’works consistently selected for film festivals and exhibitions both at home and abroad. Among these, Seahorse won the Crystal Award in the Student Section at the 2021 Annecy International Animation Film Festival, and The Dog Left Behind on the Bridge won the Grand Jury Prize in the Student Section at the 2022 Annecy International Animation Film Festival, and Shh received the Grand Jury Prize in the Student Section at the 2024 World Festival of Animated Film–Animafest Zagreb, setting a new record for Chinese animation. The Department of Animation has also recruited foreign experts such as renowned animation director Koji Yamamura, seasoned curator Gerben Schermer and veteran producer Denis Walgenwitz as visiting experts, forming a highly influential mentorship team. Moving forward, the Department of Animation will be guided by the development of a contemporary, culturally distinctive path for Chinese animated film, focusing on neo-realist animation and continuing to explore the interaction between animated imagery and new technologies and media.
The Department of Illustration and Comics is dedicated to cultivating leading talents in illustration and comics creation who possess both a deep understanding of Chinese culture and a global perspective. Centred on visual storytelling, the department emphasises the integration of art and technology, guiding students to master drawing and modelling, integrated text-and-image expression, and digital media creation skills, thereby developing unique personal styles across illustration, comics, picture books, animation and gaming. Students delve deeply into frontier topics such as picture book design, representational media and illustration and comics techniques, using contemporary drawing to interpret Chinese stories and construct a visual expression system imbued with distinctive Oriental connotations. Graduates are active in illustration, comics, publishing, animation, gaming, film and television, education and the cultural and creative industries, driving diverse innovation in global visual culture through their exceptional artistic judgement and sense of social responsibility.
Curriculum Overview
·Curriculum Structure
The Animation programme follows a practice-oriented undergraduate curriculum organized progressively along the animation production pipeline. The second year focuses primarily on modules covering the fundamentals of the discipline, enabling students to acquire a comprehensive understanding of animation theory and the foundations of creative practice. Courses include screenwriting, character design, audiovisual language and narrative strategies. The third and fourth years focus primarily on specialised tracks, project-based courses and the final-year project module. Centred on research into social, cultural and educational themes, the programme employs interdisciplinary, inquiry-based teaching methods to strengthen students’ creative thinking skills. Students are encouraged to engage in cross-disciplinary collaboration with music, theater, and screenwriting—deepening their understanding of narrative strategies and their application in diverse forms of animation. Through systematic training, students develop the ability to independently conceive, design and produce animation projects, whilst mastering digital animation techniques.
The Illustration and Comics programme adopts project-based teaching from the second year onwards, emphasising both individual creation and group collaboration. It integrates knowledge modules spanning illustration, comics, picture books, RISO printing, art book design and animation to construct a cross-media, multi-disciplinary knowledge system. In Years 2 and 3, the curriculum follows a progressive course sequence: progressing from the fundamentals of illustration, comics, picture book creation and RISO printing, to experimental creative exploration, culminating in the production of finished books and merchandise design, thereby realising a complete closed loop from concept to tangible output. In Year 4, students focus on their graduation projects under faculty supervision, integrating prior learning to achieve a mature expression of their personal artistic language and the successful realisation of their creative vision.
