Cinematic and Videogame Architecture MArch

Applications are now open for the 2024 intake of the Cinematic and Videogame Architecture MArch course at the Bartlett School of Architecture, based at UCL’s brand new UCL East campus. 

The first programme of its kind in the UK, the Cinematic and Videogame Architecture MArch course teaches students to employ innovative architectural design methods using cinematic, animation and gaming technologies. Students will critically situate their work in relation to new developments in time-based digital media and how they shape our culture, identity and politics.

What is the programme’s focus
Architecture has a long history of acting as an underlying structuring device for both film and videogames. From the construction of film sets to developments in film compositing techniques and innovations in computer graphics, the depiction of space has been a key challenge in arriving at our contemporary media landscape of film and videogames. In turn, the narrative and storytelling power of time-based and interactive media are reshaping not only how architecture is constructed and represented, but also how it is conceived and experienced.

How will the programme be delivered
Taught by internationally renowned experts in cutting-edge digital technologies, the programme is based at UCL’s new campus, UCL East, occupying new state-of-the-art design studio and computation facilities alongside shared specialist media and workshop spaces. The programme is founded on a strong and experimental practice-led studio element, where practical learning is supported by robust theoretical research. Students engage with theoretical concepts through lectures and introductory design projects, supported by digital skills modules.

This cross-disciplinary approach allows students to test ideas and invent new research methods, leading to the production of architectural design projects that are developed and realised through films, video games and hybrid digital-physical environments.

The programme is led by Prof Penelope Haralambidou and Dr Luke Caspar Pearson. Penelope’s teaching and research employ an innovative practice-led methodology that uses, drawing, modelling, digital film and immersive environments to investigate spatial culture. Luke is co-founder of You+Pea, a design research studio working between architecture and videogames that collaborates with cultural and educational institutions alongside industry clients, and is the co-author of Videogame Atlas (Thames & Hudson, 2022).

How will the programme equip people for future careers
Students gain technical skills and explore time-based, storytelling and interactive media as new platforms for engaging with the design and production of space, from the domestic to the urban. Graduates develop advanced skills applicable in the fields of architecture and architectural visualisation, and gain expertise that can form the foundation for careers in immersive environments, film and videogame industries. Through regular visits by academic and industry experts, graduates will  understand how to position and present their work for future careers in many different creative disciplines.

Who should apply
We are looking for applications from graduates and professionals from architecture, but also from other backgrounds – including design, filmmaking, film studies, anthropology, geography, fine art, videogame design, graphic design, animation and computer-generated imagery design – who are interested in studying the relationship between architecture, cinema and videogames, and show evidence of a strong record both academically and/or in practice.

Applications close on April 5, 2024. Find out more: Cinematic and Videogame Architecture programme page / UCL Prospectus. Prospective students can explore UCL’s graduate scholarships here.