Hunga pāpāho,
The world needs new ways of telling stories. Join the next generation of leaders in digital media.
- Animation
- Factual Production
- Film Production
- Game Development
- Immersive Media
- Media Technology
- Visual Effects
On the set of Return to Fable Grove.
Shooting INHABIT in the field.
What can I study?
Animation
Bachelor of Screen Arts with Honours
Create imaginary worlds that transport us into the unknown.
This major caters to those who are interested in joining the industry, providing pathways to studio employment or exploring the medium as an independent filmmaker.
In this major you will learn how to animate, focusing on the principles of the craft and learn how to model, texture and light 3D assets, as well as opportunities to work in team-based production environments and on personal animation projects.
Courtney Gilbert.
Courtney Gilbert
BCMP
Graduated 2018
In the final year of her degree Courtney Gilbert pitched to TVNZ for the commission of her 3D animated episodic series, ‘Kiwis Can Fly’.
Courtney directed and produced this project, while supervising a highly skilled team of peers and managing the client liaison. The ‘Kiwis Can Fly’ team completed four episodes and a mixed reality game accompaniment using Microsoft HoloLens technology.
‘Kiwis Can Fly’ took flight to the international market in 2019 after Courtney won the top prize at the 2018 SPADA Competition.
'Kiwis Can Fly' team: Courtney Gilbert, Tom Zhang, Kyle Phan, Andrew Peek, Caillan McCrostie, Joshua Tong.
Kiwis Can Fly. Courtney Gilbert, Tom Zhang, Kyle Phan, Andrew Peek, Caillan McCrostie, Joshua Tong.
Kiwis Can Fly poster. Courtney Gilbert, Tom Zhang, Kyle Phan, Andrew Peek, Caillan McCrostie, Joshua Tong.
Factual Production
Bachelor of Screen Arts with Honours
Storytelling is the basis for all human connection, and stories that tell us about real people, situations and issues are compelling touchstones in relating to our fast-changing times.
Factual Production is usually associated with non-fiction broadcast and includes formats such as documentary, chat shows, comedy, quiz and reality shows etc. In addition to broadcast TV, these formats are distributed across a number of different digital platforms both real-time and pre-recorded.
You will go on a journey of discovering compelling real-world true stories and characters lighting the screens of Aotearoa, as well as the international market. This deep dive into factual development, production and post- production reveals the mechanisms of fun and formatted, multi-camera, and studio shows all the way to long-form storytelling around the big issues of the day and character-based features.
We will investigate how the story or format defines the best approach to making the content, alongside explorations to discover your unique, creative voice. Students will also be working with clients throughout their degree generating online content.
Wiktoria Ojrzyńska
BCMP
Graduated 2018
“When I was presented with an opportunity to work with an external client to create meaningful content for an international audience, I knew it was a chance to bring awareness to the issue of climate change.
“Directing Subject to Change was an amazing storytelling experience, during which I worked with many inspirational people and gained experience across different aspects of filmmaking.
“Exploring the impacts that climate change is having on our world, Subject to Change is a documentary film that presents a collection of interviews and personal stories from across the Pacific.
“With passion and determination, we have created a film that shares insight to New Zealand’s response to the global objectives set by the Paris Agreement alongside intimate stories from the frontline, Batiki Island, in a truthful and evocative way.”
Subject to Change has been shown at major exhibitions in Poland, London and Paris.
Subject to Change team: Wiktoria Ojrzyńska, James Bruce, Nicholas Cook, Alexandra Brock, Amiria Ranfurly, Tasman Roy.
Wiktoria Ojrzyńska on location in Fiji.
Film Production
Bachelor of Screen Arts with Honours
Learn all aspects of film production including creative development, pre-production, production and post-production.
You will have regular access to leading industry-standard film production equipment and the opportunity to work in industry specific film crew roles on your own project.
Gain practical experience in a wide range of roles, before specialising in your chosen area and collaborating on independently-developed productions. You'll be working on a variety of creative projects, using both contemporary filmmaking techniques as well as emerging technologies like Virtual Production.
The Film Production Major will train you in the art of developing and producing stories for film, and you'll gain expertise in telling the stories that are important to you and in helping others realise their creative visions as well.
Francesca Sewell
BCMP
Graduated 2018
Francesca's major project Raspberry and Coke is a short kiwi drama, a melancholic slice of New Zealand life which she co-wrote, directed and edited, alongside fellow BCMP student Alice Toomer.
Raspberry and Coke has recently been featured in the official selection of four international film festivals and has won awards at the California International Short Film Festival and the Independent Shorts Awards.
Mentored by US/NZ writer, director and producer Casey Zilbert (Ash vs Evil; Hangtime; Born to Dance), Raspberry and Coke and its success has been an amazing springboard project for Francesca and her team.
Raspberry and Coke.
Game Development
Bachelor of Screen Arts with Honours
Games are one of the most powerful forms of storytelling, creatively engage with characters and narratives in innovative ways.
Develop skills in critical thinking, logic, design, 3D modelling and texturing, animation, and team-based production while building fun, engaging, and challenging worlds, experiences, and adventures.
You’ll be ideating, designing, and developing games. Using industry-standard software and real time engines and techniques, you'll will work through game design, art and aesthetics and programming to create unique and original experiences for desktop, console and mobile platforms.
Dylan Richardson
BCMP
Graduated 2017
Dylan started out studying graphic design, but a passion for gaming saw him switch to a Bachelor of Creative Media Production. During the course he developed new skills and explored ways to use virtual reality and motion capture.
His major project was the complete two-player cooperative game ‘Mara and Blu’. He currently works at Wellington game studio PikPok as a junior game designer.
Mara and Blu team: Dylan Richardson, Samantha Andrews, Kristopher Sutherland, Nic MacIntyre, Lloyd Powell, Jasper Aitken-Lean, Jasmine Hodge, Broghan Woods, Joshua Tong, Olivia Simpson, Kyle Phan, Jeremy Millar, Elliot Scrimshaw, Tom Zhang, Susie Legg, Nick Cook, Kat Lanigan, Jerome Caballes, Issie Loseby, Julia Babbage, Michael Sutherland.
Mara and Blu. Dylan Richardson, Samantha Andrews, Kristopher Sutherland, Nic MacIntyre, Lloyd Powell, Jasper Aitken-Lean, Jasmine Hodge, Broghan Woods, Joshua Tong, Olivia Simpson, Kyle Phan, Jeremy Millar, Elliot Scrimshaw, Tom Zhang, Susie Legg, Nick Cook, Kat Lanigan, Jerome Caballes, Issie Loseby, Julia Babbage, Michael Sutherland.
Immersive Media
Bachelor of Screen Arts with Honours
Virtual and Augmented Realities (VR and AR) allow new ways for us to blend the physical and digital worlds, creating uncharted possibilities for the future.
Study at the frontier of immersive media development. Gain skills working with industry-standard software, VR/AR, and capture hardware, to develop and produce a range of immersion-based projects.
Blend digital technology with real-world experiences. You will gain an understanding of the current state of immersive technology in industry, and push the boundaries and potential of immersive media applications.
Thomas Williams
BCMP
Graduated 2021
Thomas Williams has used a multitude of immersive and emerging technologies to enhance his practice. Technologies such as photogrammetry, motion capture and 360 HDRi imagery have aided him in the development of virtual production workflows for film and VFX.
In a recent short film production, lighting assets created with photogrammetry and 360 HDRi images allowed Thomas to insert objects into any shot with accurate lighting. These tools provide ways to speed up existing production processes and open the door to new possibilities.
In the MOCAP studio
Media Technology
Bachelor of Screen Arts with Honours
The evolution of media technologies is offering new ways of working and is creating new tools and techniques for content production and consumption.
In this major, you will be at the forefront of creating and developing new technology with exciting concepts and ideas across a range of platforms and applications.
You will gain and apply practical skills in software and hardware production with a view to developing innovative products for the screen and creative technology sector. You will gain an understanding of prototyping and testing systems and how to develop ideas through to producing final projects such as:
- online distribution
- lighting systems
- game controllers
- performance capture and virtual production
- production workflow solutions
- custom audio systems
- interactive and kinetic set design
- media exhibition.
Nursyafiqah Binti Jamap (Eqa)
BCMP
An international student from Malaysia in her first year of CMP, Eqa’s prototyping project exceeded the expectations of the experimental game controller brief by building the electronic table game Basket Madness.
Her project evolved into a self-standing arcade game, fitted with a sensor and a microcontroller to connect to a laptop for score keeping, timing and sound effects. Eqa rigorously went through an iterative design process, starting with a simple paper prototype and user testing at each stage of her design.
Basket Madness won the inaugural “Prototyping Pineapple Award” as the most popular project among this student cohort.
Nursyafiqah Binti Jamap (Eqa)
Visual Effects
Bachelor of Screen Arts with Honours
The Visual Effects major provides expertise in creating fantastic characters and scenes for all forms of screen media.
The Visual Effects major teaches you the skills to develop an exciting professional portfolio of work that you can carry into your visual effects career.
Design and control visual destruction, explosions, fluids – you name it – using both procedural and keyframed motion, and fully integrate your visual effects into live-action footage from concept to postproduction.
Gain skills that will help you create fantastic characters and scenes using traditional techniques and advanced technology. Study character design, 3D modelling, texturing and rigging, storyboarding, compositing, particle generation and dynamics. You’ll work with motion capture, virtual production, and a green screen stage.
Lianna Shaw
BCMP
Graduated 2021
Lianna Shaw completed the Visual Effects pathway working on the project Night Lights, a 3 minute stylised 3D short film which has been entered into several international film festivals.
Lianna directed, wrote, animated, rigged, and was a story artist on Nightlights. She says “It was so great to experience all areas of production and I was grateful to make my own project, I had so much fun getting to lead a group of talented creatives, an invaluable experience.” Lianna has secured a role at Weta Digital as an Assistant Technical Director.
Night Lights poster
What degree?
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Bachelor of Screen Arts—BSA(Hons)
Become the leaders of the next generation of filmmakers, animators, game designers, producers and creative artists.
Ideal if
- You have a number of digital interests and want to explore what fit is right for you.
- You are a school leaver or you're starting a new career path.
- You want a full immersive experience in creative media and technologies.
Key information
- Duration
- Four years full-time study.
- Entry
Open entry—just apply online.
- Location
- Wellington.
- Intakes
- February or July.
- Application
- Due 03 February 2023 and 23 June 2023.
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Master of Creative Enterprise—MCE
Take your creativity to the market.
Ideal if
- You have a creative industry idea you want to commercialise.
- You want to learn skills for a sustainable creative career.
- You've just finished an Honours degree or you're coming to university from the workplace.
Key information
- Duration
- 18 months full time, or longer if studied part time.
- Entry
Selected entry—you'll need to submit a portfolio of your creative work, and a written expression of interest. Attend a consultation with the MCE coordinator to discuss your project before you apply.
Find out more about entry to the MCE.
- Location
- Wellington.
- Intakes
- February.
- Application
- Due by 30 November.
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Doctor of Philosophy—PhD
Become the absolute top in your field by pursuing rigorous research, and pushing and challenging current knowledge. Contribute significantly to the understanding of a field of interest.
Ideal if
- You want to produce a sustained piece of advanced research work in a creative arts discipline. This could be a written thesis, or one comprised of creative practice research and a written component.
- You have completed a postgraduate Bachelor (Honours) degree with first class or second class (division 1) honours, or a Master degree with first class or second class (division 1) honours in a relevant field. This qualification must also include a substantive (minimum 30 credits) research project, dissertation or thesis in which you have achieved a minimum grade of B+.
Key information
- Duration
- Three to four years full time, or six years part time.
- Location
- Auckland, Wellington, Manawatū, or by distance within New Zealand.
- Intakes
- February or July.
- Application
- Anytime.
Gwen Isaac
Lecturer, Te Rewa o Puanga
Gwen Isaac is an experienced producer and director of factual television, documentary and short-form content.
Gwen specialises in issues-driven, human-centred story-telling. She won Best First-time director at the London Independent Film Awards for her NZ Film Festival feature, ‘Where There is Life’ and her short documentary, ‘Siouxsie and the Virus’ has won multiple short-film awards around the world. With credits from ITV London, NBC USA and BBC Scotland, Gwen self-shoots, crew directs and is interested in equipping students with multiple skill-sets around fast-turn-around production. Currently, her academic research centres around Japan and post-graduate studies sees her using a feminist first-person film practice in documentary film production to investigate the mother-subject.
Turn your talents into a lifelong creative career.
Register your interest