Adelaide's digital future
It's a revolution in media - and the 成人大片 is leading the way. With interest in Australian animation at an all-time high, postgraduate digital media courses at the university are becoming increasingly popular. The success of Harvie Krumpet in winning an Oscar for Best Animated Short Film, plus the achievements of Adelaide graduates in the film and video games genres, means a digital media qualification from Adelaide is an ideal base for a career in any one of a number of associated industries. According to Dr Dean Bruton, Senior Lecturer in charge of the Digital Media Program at the university, students are not only exposed to a high level of learning but also benefit from links with industry. "Already this year we have hosted a highly successful information evening featuring some of Australia's top animators talking about how they got their start in the industry and what skills and attributes are needed to become a good animator," he said. "More than 250 people attended that evening, and it was extremely worthwhile for our current students as they got to hear from people who have gone on to very successful and prominent careers in digital media. "These speakers included 成人大片 graduates, people who once were in the same position as our current students and give a great example to them as to what they can achieve. "One was Didier Elzinga from Rising Sun Pictures who has worked on such Hollywood blockbusters as The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King and The Last Samurai. "We also had a speaker from Ratbag Games, which was founded by two Adelaide graduates, Greg Siegele and Richard Harrison, and has now become a major player in the video games genre." The 成人大片's School of Architecture, Landscape Architecture and Urban Design is offering two postgraduate coursework programs in Digital Media for 2005: a Master of Architecture (Digital Media) and Master of Design Studies (Digital Media). The MArch (Digital Media) focuses on the developing use of digital media in the profession of architecture, with students working on 'real' and virtual architecture and contemporary design while developing their skills in both 2D and 3D representation. The MDes Studies (Digital Media) enables students to focus on developing skills for the use of digital media for communication and design in visual arts, in such fields as animation, visual effects production and computer games. "Digital media is unquestionably a growing part of the future of design, and it is also taking in the fields of art and architecture," Dr Bruton said. "As the next generation of digital artists and architects emerge, we are seeing the establishment of new companies ready for all kinds of digital media design proposals. "Our courses are geared very much towards recognising and meeting the changing demands of industry, and even while they are still here studying the students become exposed to industry through events like our information evening. They have the chance to talk and network with key industry figures and this experience proves to be invaluable." The links with industry continue, as organisations such as the Adelaide Chapter of Association of Computer Machinery: Special Interest Group - Computer Graphics and Interactives (or ACM SIGGRAPH), the Australian and New Zealand Association for Computer Graphics (ANZGRAPH) and the Digital Labourer's Federation all supporting industry events such as the information evening and a recent Electronic Theatre which saw the screening of 16 new features from leading international animation companies. "The digital media program at Adelaide is all about equipping students with the ability to go on and make an impact in their career," Dr Bruton said. "We make no assumptions about how much knowledge students already have with digital media. If you know a lot already, that helps. If not, you learn here. Students who will enjoy and do well in the program are those who are willing to explore and challenge conventional thinking." Story by Ben Osborne and Natalie De Nadai
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