(Any 4 courses, 12 credits)
 

ADA2004 Motion Graphics (3 credits)

This course will explore the design requirements for professional quality broadcast graphics and title design for animation and multimedia projects. Using combinations of still images, graphics, video footages and audio sound tracks, we will examine the relationships of motion, pacing, textures, transitions, design and composition in space and time. Emphasis will be placed on compositing techniques, design concepts, art direction, aesthetics and the overall style of professional motion graphics productions. Asset management, aspect ratios, resolutions, interpolation algorithms, colour depth and image stabilization techniques are also addressed. The Adobe CC software package will be used to illustrate the principles and techniques, and to produce the projects.
 

ADA2005 New Media Storytelling (3 credits)

Storytelling is an essential part of new media cultural production. This course introduces students to characteristics and techniques of new media storytelling, helps them to gain hands-on experience in producing multimedia artifacts, and investigates social and ethical issues involved in new media storytelling.
 

ADA2007 Experimental Animation (3 credits)

This course approaches animation from an artistic, individualized point of view. It offers an opportunity for students to experiment with different styles and techniques of animation while addressing fundamental problems such as rhythm, timing, and sound. Emphasis is on conceptual idea and development, abstract and material processes, and encourage students to discover and explore methods of visual expression in animation.
 

ADA3004 Interactive Art (3 credits)

This course introduces students to the concept, history, and techniques of interactivity in art and design, with an emphasis on interactive designs in computer animations. The course will explore the participatory and performative nature of interactive art and designs from various perspectives, including media studies and human-computer interaction studies.
 

ADA3005 Photography Theory (3 credits)

This course offers an introduction to some of the main theoretical issues that photography occasions. The medium of photography will be addressed from philosophical, technological, and art-historical perspectives. A special attention will be given to the analogue-digital transformation of photography, and the implications that this might have with respect to the epistemology of photography (how photographs provide knowledge), and photography's artistic capacities.
 

ADA3006 Sound Design (3 credits)

Animation means ‘giving life to,’ which is augmented by sound design and its integration with images. This course will enlighten students to discover the power acoustics have on human experience and creative process. Students will learn how to imagine, create and notate soundscapes.
 

ADA4002 Digital Art Installation (3 credits)

This course is an introduction to the history, concepts, and issues of installation of digital art. It will explore the uses of digital art in a variety of contexts, including theatres, musical, exhibition spaces such as museums, trade fairs, and various types of entertainment centres. Students will explore various modes of human-machinery interaction, including input-systems (e.g., sensors, motion capture, etc.), output-systems (projection, sounds, etc.), and hybrid reality where live actions of humans are mixed with digital elements.
 

ADA4003 Game Design (3 credits)

This course is designed to teach students the process of computer game design. It will focus on the practical aspects of game design, but will also introduce students to the history of games, especially board and card games, and the theoretical basis for gameplay in general. Students will learn to develop game ideas, create design documents, create basic computer games using popular design tools, collect player feedback, and revise their game designs.
 

ADA4004 Production Design (3 credits)

Production design translates written words for the screen, creating visual effects for narratives. This course introduces students to basic elements of production design and train students on how to use appropriate techniques to design.
 

ADA4005 Virtual Reality (VR) /Augmented Reality (AR) Workshop (3 credits)

This course offers a production-based introduction to the principles of virtual and augmented reality. The course is a combination of lectures and lab-based exercises, where the fundamentals of VR /AR technology is described and practiced. During the course, students will, as a project, design a basic Virtual Reality application.
 

ADA4006 Visual Effects Workshop (3 credits)

This course focuses on the overall workflow of digital visual effects productions, explores different visual effects and dynamics systems, and introduces the basic principles behind each process among the spectrum of digital visual effects that are being practiced in the current animation and digital arts industry.  Hands-on experience is provided in the workshops in order to assist students in expanding their visual vocabularies. An industrial standard 3D software package will be used to illustrate the principles and techniques dealt with.
 

CMI3003 Producing Digital Media (3 credits)

This course teaches students the theoretical, practical, and experiential dimensions in digital media production with the context of the creative media industry. Students will learn how to analyze and produce digital media campaign for events in the industry. The course covers principles and techniques in producing both graphic and time-based media. Through successful cases’ studies, students will be accustomed to high level industry standards in digital media production. Students will also be exposed to the latest development in both artistic and commercial applications in the field. This enables students’ readiness in exploring their creative expression through innovative channels.
 

CMI4004 Media and Digital Management (3 credits)

The course begins with an introduction of the development of media and digital management in contemporary society. Then, students will be guided to study a variety of topics regarding media and digital industries, including regulation and law, business economics, product design, and human resource management. Lectures and interactive application of managerial knowledge will equip the students with administrative, marketing, and communication skills for management of media firms. In addition, the students will be introduced to the organic function of non-for-profit organizations and emerging smart cities worldwide, as well as an in-depth examination of local and national digital media entrepreneurship. A site visit to Hong Kong Cyberport Management Company will be organized and two guest speakers will also visit to share their managerial experiences in the creative media industries.
 

VIS2106 Understanding Drawing (3 credits)

This course teaches students the theoretical, historical and experiential dimensions of the visual medium of drawing. Students will learn how to interpret artworks and assess claims made on the nature, function and value of drawing. In addition to the understanding of the theoretical and historical issues of drawing, students will learn to conceive and execute a drawing project by applying the knowledge and techniques they learn from the course.
 

VIS3006 Cinematography (3 credits)

This course will provide training focused on managing a complete video project for students intermediate level, from conceptual development, project planning, camera operation, video editing, and audio manipulation through to the completion of a video work. Several cinematographic theories and techniques of storytelling will be further introduced and explored in the studio setting. The video project also serves as a creative platform for intellectual sharing, with students being invited to further investigate their academic interests while making a video based on them. A screening of students’ final work with peer critique session will be arranged for feedbacks and discussions on the creative, aesthetic, affective impacts of the videos.
 

VIS3298 Studio Practice with Artist-in-Residence (3 credits)

This course will be taught by visiting artists associated with the Visual Studies Artist-in Residence Programme. The course, which is studio-based, will have a maximum enrolment of 15 students. The exact content of this course will vary from term to term, depending on the expertise of the visiting artists. Possible foci for the course include: painting, drawing, photography, web design, sculpture, printmaking, ceramics, and multimedia. The course will allow students to deepen their historical and theoretical understanding of visual phenomena through practical engagement with relevant techniques. The artists will introduce students to relevant techniques through a series of case studies and selected readings; help students to design manageable projects; provide basic instruction about materials, techniques, goals and strategies; and oversee the execution of student projects in the art studio. The aim is to enhance students' understanding of the visual arts through practical engagement with specific artistic techniques.