Top 20 Animation Schools and Colleges in Europe - 2022 College Rankings

Gobelins, l'école de l'image (Gobelins, School of Images) has been around since 1964, making it one of the world’s oldest animation schools. A member of the European Animation School Network, Gobelins serves more than 1,100 students enrolled in programs that lead to a BA, MA or Professional Certification.

The Animation Program at Gobelins has multiple pathway options including the 3D Character Animator Professional Certificate (Level II, 2 years), the 3D Character Animator Professional Certificate (Level II, 3 years), the BA in Animation and Character Animation and Animated Filmmaking (three years), and the MA in Character Animation and Animated Filmmaking (two years).

An Animation Preparatory Year Program is available and open to students with a high school diploma who would like to develop basic artistic and technical animation skills. This program allows students to create at least one project and a portfolio. The Animation Preparatory Year Program can be an entry point for the Gobelins BA in Animation Program.

Across programs, students will explore areas such as acting, 3D layout, body mechanics, animation of characters, motion capture techniques, character and background design, scriptwriting, direction, sound design, storyboarding, the 3D pipeline, dynamics of movement, editing, special effects, and compositing.

Students in all Gobelins Animation Programs have the opportunity to produce a number of short films and a professional demo reel. Students will complete a mandatory two-month internship in France or abroad and participate in workshops and projects sponsored by partner companies and public institutions such as the French Ministry of Justice, Universal Music, Dell, Netflix, BMW, Musée Picasso, and Olympus.

Thanks to events such as the Speed-Recruiting event, which attracts more than 50 companies during the last year of the programs, graduates of the Gobelins Animation Programs enjoy a near 90% job placement rate within six months of graduation.

The Animation Workshop/VIA University College (TAW) is part of the School of Business, Technology and Creative Industries. Launched in 1988, TAW serves around 650 of VIA University College’s 17,800 students across seven departments including the Bachelor of Arts Department, Animated Learning Lab, Business Development, Open Workshop – Artist Residency, Visual Talent Center, Professional Training, and Research and Development.

Housed in an old military complex, TAW features include nearly 119,000 square feet of facilities and buildings, 100 instructors who are professionals in the industry, and a creative community of more than 30 animation, games, and new media start-ups, companies, and freelance artists. TAW also hosts the Viborg Animation Festival (VAF)—the biggest animation festival in Denmark.

The Animation Workshop has two formal degree programs for Animators including BA degrees in Character Animation, Computer Graphic Arts, and Graphic Storytelling. Professional training programs, seminars, and non-degree programs are also provided by TAW. 

The TAW BA in Character Animation is taught in English and may be completed in 3.5 years. The final semester of the program features a 14-week internship with a production studio such as Illumination, Sun Creature, Aardmann, Nørlum, or Cartoon Saloon. The Computer Graphic Arts Program is also taught in English, and it takes 3.5 years to complete. The Graphic Storytelling BA takes four years to complete, and it is also taught in English.

All degree options consist of assignments, lectures, and mini productions. Programs culminate a final project that typically takes four to five weeks to complete. Students focusing in animation will complete an animated short film.

Professional training programs, seminars, and non-degree options include the Animated Documentary Development Seminar - ANIDOX: LAB, TDA Classical & Visual Storytelling Foundation, TDA Classical Foundation, TDA Advanced, TDA Portfolio, Visual HF, Creative Simulation Technologies, Storyboard, 3D Character Animation, Illustration, Animation Sans Frontieres (ASF), Animation Production Manager, Animation Producer, 2D TV Animation, Comic Creation, Animation, Classical Drawing, Computer Graphic Arts for Beginners, Character Design, and Drawing for Animation.

The main École Supérieure des Métiers Artistiques (ESMA) campus is now located in the Creative Campus, which was built in Montpellier’s new district—The Creative City. The new location is outfitted with state-of-the-art classrooms, sound studios, an auditorium, and the FabLab. Other ESMA campuses include Lyon, Nantes, and Toulouse, France, and Montreal, Canada.

Founded in 1958, ESMA houses the CG Animation Cinema and Special Effects Department, which has two programs for animators: the 3D Animation Cinema & Special Effects leading to a Professional Diploma and the CG Animation & FX Master’s Degree. The Diploma Program includes an eight-week internship, where students can gain hands-on experience in animation before graduating. Available at all ESMA campuses, the 3D Animation Cinema & Special Effects Program has a 100% recruitment rate within nine months of graduation.

Available at the Montpellier, Lyon, Nantes, and Toulouse campuses, the CG Animation & FX Masters explores animation techniques and the animation production pipeline. Students in this program will have the opportunity to create an industry-ready animated short film in groups of four to seven students. The ESMA CG Animation & FX Masters takes three years to complete. Graduates of the program enjoy a 93% recruitment rate within six months after graduation and a 100% recruitment rate within just nine months.

Graduates of the Animation Programs at ESMA have been recruited by Ubisoft, Sony Pictures Imageworks, Illumination Mac Guff, Framestore, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Weta Digital, Aardman, Fontes Architecture, IKKS, Mikros Animation, MPC, Untold, A+Architecture, and ba&sh, among others.

ARTFX, School of Digital Arts, has an Animation Program with two options leading to a Master’s Degree. The 2D Film Animation and 3D Character Animation can be completed in five years. Open to applicants with a Bachelor’s Degree, the Animation Programs at ARTFX feature masterclasses with partner studios, a mandatory internship lasting six weeks (students may complete multiple internships), workshops, and access to state-of-the-art classrooms, labs and studios equipped with software such as Storyboard Pro, Affinity, Krita, SideFX Houdini, Autodesk Maya, Dragonframe, ZBrush, Unreal Engine, and Affinity Photo.

Established in 2004 and serving around 500 students, ARTFX is also recognized Toon Boom Center of Excellence. Students in all programs will complete an animated short film and participate in the program’s End-of-Studies Job Dating Session, which attracts French and international recruiters from top animation studios. ARTFX alumni enjoy a 95% job placement rate within six months to a year after graduating.

The graduation films at ARTFX have won dozens of awards and received more than 900 selections in festivals around the world. Alumni have worked on productions such as The Lion King, Star Wars Episode VIII, The Minions, Gravity, and Ready Player One. Potential job titles include 2D Animator, Character Designer, Animator, Concept Artist, Puppet Animator, Background Artist, Storyboard Artist, and Layout Artist.

MoPA School of Animation (MoPA) dates back to 1988, when it launched as Supinfocom School—the first French institution of its kind devoted entirely to CGI. Supinfocom became MoPA School of Animation in 2015. In 2022, MoPA became a member of a network of schools known as the BRASSART Group. Located across 14 cities in France, the Group specializes in 3D Animation, Video Games, Audiovisuals, and Graphic Arts and Design.

MoPA features include access to 200 computers across MoPA’s studios, which house the same equipment and software used in professional studios, internship opportunities, and study abroad experiences.

The Animation Program at MoPA utilizes a project-based teaching method that emphasizes collaboration and teamwork. Leading to an Expert Diploma in 3D Design, Production, and Animation (Baccalaureate), the program takes five years to complete, which includes a preparatory year and two cycles: Fundamentals and Training and Professional Development. Examples of areas explored across the Prep Year and Cycles include rigging, body mechanics, facial animation, acting, body language, emotional expressions, compositing, and tracking.

In the final year of the program, students will work in teams of four to six to produce a short animated film under real studio conditions. Student films at MoPA are presented at the Final Year Jury in the Theatre of Arles. The event attracts 2,000 artists and spectators. After this public screening, student films will make their way through the International Film Festival circuit. MoPA graduates are prepared to seek careers in all areas of animation and game art, among others.

University of Hertfordshire (UH) houses the School of Creative Arts, which serves a large number of the school’s 30,000+ students. Established in 1952 as Hatfield Technical College, UH opened with just 1,500 students.

The UH School of Creative Arts has BA Degree options in 2D Digital Animation and 3D Animation & Visual Effects. At the graduate level, the school has an Animation MA that emphasizes multidisciplinary studies, research, and project-based work. Students in this program will actively participate in lectures, seminars, workshops, work placements, and the study abroad year. Other Animation MA Program features include the opportunity to complete a simulated brief in collaboration with program alumni and organizations such as Promise and National Poetry Day.

Graduates of the University of Hertfordshire Animation Program have been recruited by Industrial Light & Magic (ILM), Blue Zoo, and Creative Assembly, among others.

At the undergraduate level, 2D Digital Animation and 3D Animation & Visual Effects BA will have opportunities to complete several projects, including a final film project to be screened at the School of Creative Arts animation Exposé. Students will also complete a number of simulated real-world briefs, a portfolio of their best work, and internships and study abroad experiences at partner universities in throughout Europe, and in Australia, South America, Africa, Canada, and Asia.

University of Hertfordshire graduates enjoy a 96.5% employment rate. UH School of Creative Arts alumni have won Emmy’s BAFTAs, and Oscars for their work on productions such as Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, Avatar, The Chronicles of Narnia, Gravity, The Jungle Book, Inception, Star Wars, and The Lion King.

Staffordshire University (Stafford) opened as a polytechnic institute in 1914. The school received university status in 1992. Serving more than 20,000 students around the world, Stafford houses three academic schools (Digital, Technologies and Arts; Health, Science and Wellbeing; and Justice, Security and Sustainability), the Institute of Education, and Staffordshire University London.

The School of Digital, Technologies and Arts has three-year Animation Program that leads to a BA. Students may Specialize in 2D or 3D Digital, Computer Games or Stop Motion Animation. As part of the School of Digital, Technologies and Arts, Animation students have access to state-of-the-art design, music, and sound studios, labs and production studio spaces, creative workshops, guest speakers, and opportunities to participate in educational trips. All students have the opportunity to present their work at industry events such as the Art and Design Degree Show, New Designers, and GradEX.

Other program features include global connections to Aardman, Nickelodeon, Pixar, and Walt Disney, participation in public screening events, international trips, and UK animation festival visits.

The program culminates with the production of a professional show-reel and body of work that supports the students career goals. In the final year of the Animation BA Program, students will have the opportunity to present their work to a panel of industry leaders as part of Industry Portfolio Week.

Stafford Animation graduates work in Animation, Stop Motion Animation, and Film at studios such as Brown Bag Films (BBF), DNEG (formerly Double Negative), Aardman Animation, Cinesite, Mackinnon & Saunders, Boulder Media Animation, Carse & Waterman, and many others. Program alumni have worked on projects such the CiTV series Go-Jetters, as Isle of Dogs, and Chuck Steel: Night of the Trampires.

The Animation Specialization at Emile Cohl Art School focuses on helping students develop skills in screenwriting and film production, from start to finish, and industry-standard animation tools such as Toonboom Harmony, TV Paint, and Adobe After Effects. Program features include workshops, professional critiques, business conferences, group projects, a six-month internship, and support and preparation for the final graduation project.

Students in the program will take courses that explore character design, sketching, modeling and digital sculpture, lighting and rendering in Maya and 3DS Max, composition painting, media writing, methodology and documentation, layout, scenery and level design in Photoshop, storyboards, sound design, compositing. and visual effects in Adobe After Effects and Nuke.

The Animation Specialization at Emile Cohl Art School takes two years to complete and it leads to Professional Certificate.

ISART Digital has campuses in Paris and Nice, France, and Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The school also has a partnership with Tokyo University of Technology, which allows students at other campuses to immerse in the video game and 3D-FX animation industries in Japan (TUT). During a one-month stay, ISART students will have the opportunity to participate in a Game Jam. Longer stays of six to 12 months allow students to complete a research thesis project with a TUT professor. Both options are suitable for Animation students who are interested in game art and animating for games.

Launched in 2001, ISART Digital has programs that prepare students for careers in visual effects, 3D animation, and video game design and development. For animators, ISART has two options: MA degrees in 3D Cinema or 3D Film. The 3D Cinema Program is based at the main campus in Paris. Students may Specialize in 3D Animation or Special Effects. Program features include the opportunity to master the entire animation production pipeline in a setting that functions like a real film studio, the chance to produce several productions individually or in groups, and the opportunity to complete two internships.

Graduates of the ISART Digital 3D Cinema MA Program have enjoyed a 90% employment rate for the past three years. Examples of potential job titles include 3D Animator, Concept Artist, Motion Designer, Art Director, Environment Artist, Storyboard Artist, CG Supervisor FX Artist or Supervisor, and Technical Director.

The 3D Film MA at ISART Digital provides the same opportunities as the 3D Cinema MA. Students in this program will spend the first two years of the program perfecting 3D Art skills. The final two years of the program consist of specializing in an area that fits the students career goals. Students will also complete a 3D short during this time. In addition to the job titles mentioned earlier, graduates of the 3D Cinema MA Program can pursue titles such as 2D/3D Graphic Designer, Character Designer, Previs Artist, SFX Artist, Digital Matte Painter, 3D Supervisor, and Compositing Artist.

Edinburgh College of Art (ECA) is one of 21 schools housed across University of Edinburgh’s three colleges: Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences; Medicine & Veterinary Medicine; and Science & Engineering. ECA dates back to the 1760 when it was founded at the Trustees Drawing Academy of Edinburgh—the first public school of art in Britain. The school became Edinburgh College of Art in 1906, and merged with University of Edinburgh in 2011.

Within ECA are five schools: Edinburgh School of Architecture and Landscape Architecture (ESALA); the School of Art; School of Design; Reid School of Music; and History of Art.

The ECA School of Design has an Animation Program that leads to a BA. Program features include small class sizes, individual and team-based projects, visiting animators who are industry leaders, access to state-of-the-art facilities and equipment such as CGI Labs, rostrum cameras, and stop frame studios, individual workspaces, and technical workshops. During the final year of the ECA Animation BA Program, students will complete a film as part of a team or solo.

ECA Animation graduates have launched successful careers at animation and game studios such as Aardman, Rockstar North, Rushes, Framestore, and MPC Film. Program alumni have also worked for directors such as Tim Burton. Many have launched their own studios or work as independent filmmakers.