Drawing on Technology for Digital Arts

AU offers nine bachelor's degree programs in graphic design, animation, video game art and programming, and emerging technologies, as well three master's degree programs. Additionally, AU is very hands-on with technology and keeps in close contact with industry experts to constantly expand, redesign and strengthen their academic offerings. “Having the right hardware, software and expertise are crucial to our success,” says Fernando J. Montilla, Chief Innovation Officer of Atlantic University. “There is also a convergence such as what we are seeing with Virtual Production, which combines Video Game Development, 3D Animation and Digital Cinematography. By concentrating on these three pillars, we claim a stake in this important ecosystem and our students can take all they learned and apply it professionally.”

Embracing Technology

The staff and students at AU are not intimidated by technology. They embrace it. When AU built its motion capture lab in 2005, their peers thought the move might be a bit premature. Fast forward almost 20 years and AU finds itself in the enviable position of being way ahead of the competition. “We like to expose our students to technology that becomes standard in the industry,” continues Montilla. “We introduce new technologies strategically, then we evaluate equipment performance by listening to our students and faculty, the end users, to see what works and what doesn't before deciding to expand or vet.” It is clear that AU is doing all the right things to prepare students for the future by making sure the technology is helping them leap forward, not backward.