This Master of Arts in Concept Art and Experience Design encapsulates the many roles that a Concept Artist / Designer can do in the entertainment industries. We focus on digital design for industries, such as games, animation and film, as well as real thematic environments in the areas of experiential design for branded events, theme parks, interiors and museums using a combination of 2D and 3D approaches.

As well as games and film design, you’ll learn design methodologies and artistic practice from the fields of industrial design, concept art for characters, props and environment design as well as experiential design for thematic real-world scenarios used in events, branded entertainment, theme parks, museums, installations, set design, VR visualisation and VAD (Virtual Art Department).

You'll develop your design skills and build upon core fundamentals of traditional and digital drawing, digital painting, design and digital art practice, allowing for pathways that utilise industry standard approaches. You'll elevate your designs, develop new approaches in 2D and 3D, empowering them to create concept art for their portfolios and projects. For the 2D Artist this course provides the platform to learn how to augment their existing workflows with new technologies in real-time engines and 3D visualisation.

This masters degree covers the fundamentals of drawing, design and 3D modelling as part of the concept art and design pipeline. Individual course modules include: Environment Design, Character and Costume and Thematic Entertainment Design, with a further two modules for students to pursue their own desired industry specialisms, supported by industry briefs and mentoring. 

Upon graduating from Concept Art and Experience Design you will have the training to develop a sustainable and exciting career in both 2D and 3D visualisation and able to use the latest tools and design methodologies in a range of exciting and developing sectors.

Why choose this course:

• Designed with industry - this course has been created with Atomhawk, three global, award-winning studios who provide creative support across the full game development pipeline through art, design and technical excellence.
• Learn from Industry Experts – Our Concept Art and Experience Design course is led by a course leader with extensive professional experience. We also bring in leading industry specialists to set real-world projects, previously we've welcomed professionals from Scruffy Dog Creative Group and Framestore.
• Get to grips with the software used in industry, including Adobe Photoshop, Blender, Photoshop and Unreal Engine.
• Work on industry-standard briefs and experience real-life scenarios, just like in a professional studio
• Receive feedback from industry professionals - an opportunity to level-up your work and build connections, ready to embark on your creative career.
• Recognised degree - graduate with a postgraduate MA qualification awarded by Coventry University which will boost your employability around the world.
• Aftercare package - we'll help you polish your portfolio and find the right job, with access to our studios and showreel clinics for 12 months.

Teaching and learning:

Your overall workload will be divided between teaching sessions (2.5 days per week) and independent learning. 

During your course, you’ll be able to develop your knowledge and skills in a number of ways. Some learning time will be closely directed and supervised by your tutors, at other times you’ll be free to organise your own study with guidance. All your scheduled studio time, except for some information sessions and presentations, will be in smaller groups based on specialism. 

For your team project, you’ll be working with a smaller team, collaborating to meet a shared brief. This will give you ample opportunity to get the support and assistance that you need. 

The first three modules have a high contact time, as this is where you will learn the knowledge and skills associated with your chosen subject, directed and informed by your tutors’ expertise and experience.

The Industry Specialism and Production Project modules will have a lower contact time, with your tutors taking on the roles of supervisors or studio leads. You’ll meet with them regularly to get feedback and help you stay on the right path, but these modules are much more about you managing the learning experience to meet your objectives. You’ll be free to organise your work either as a team or an individual to best suit your project requirements. 

Each module has its own area on our Online Learning Environment (OLE) where you will find information about the module and the resources that are provided to support your learning. Some of this information will be dedicated to the module, other elements may be shared across different modules and some may be external assets that can help with your further study. There may be links to videos, online journals and e-books, and you should take advantage of these to enhance your development and take it beyond the studio experience. Tutors may highlight some of these during their sessions.