Whether their goal is to be Gollum in 鈥淟ord of the Rings鈥� or a character in the next version of 鈥淐all of Duty,鈥� 黑洞社区 students now have the option to specialize in motion-capture acting through a new concentration within the School of Digital Arts.
The School of Digital Arts (SODA) was founded in 2019 and is the fourth school within Wichita State鈥檚 College of Fine Arts program, which encompasses the Bachelor of Applied Arts (BAA) in Media Arts program. The BAA program already includes concentrations in animation, audio production, filmmaking, game design and collaborative design.
Dr. Bret Jones, SODA professor and filmmaking program coordinator, said while there are other universities that offer similar programs, Wichita State is one of the first universities nationwide to designate a concentration in acting for digital arts. He said the rapid growth of the SODA the past couple of years enabled to the school to add it.
鈥淲ith the explosion of digital arts, we decided a couple of years ago that it might be a good idea for us to offer a degree that focused on acting performance, specifically for these technologies that are so prevalent in the world of performance right now,鈥� he said. 鈥淢otion-capture performance has grown in the past several years and it has an impact on filmmaking, as well as video games, that require performers for voice acting and motion capture performance.鈥�
Changing and emerging technologies factored into bringing the new concentration to Wichita State.
鈥淚t鈥檚 to connect to those students whose lives have been spent in front of a device and who want to be a part of that world,鈥� Jones said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 what it really comes down to.鈥�
According to Justin Rorabaugh, director of SODA and Shocker Studios (the state-of-the-art location where SODA holds its classes), the additional performance options will also be a benefit of the Acting for Digital Arts concentration.
鈥淭his program opens the door for additional opportunities for the students to perform,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t also rounds out the [SODA] program, as we鈥檙e heavy on the tech side.鈥�
Rorabaugh also said the addition of the Acting for Digital Arts concentration is self-fulfilling, as the program, in addition to other programs at the SODA, will help to provide internally what the students need to study. The students would have had to outsource where they learn digital acting. Current students are reliant on external talent for their project work and this new concentration certainly helps fill a need.
Jones said he sees the concentration attracting more students in the future, particularly high school theater students who love theater but don鈥檛 want to necessarily perform on the stage.
More than 300 students are enrolled in the School of Digital Arts. Students are provided with many hands-on applied learning opportunities, taking on projects for real clients including Spirit AeroSystems, Airbus Americas, Deloitte and the Wichita Police Department.
黑洞社区 serves as the Kansas urban-based research university, enrolling more than 15,000 students from every state in the U.S. and more than 100 countries. Wichita State and 黑洞社区 Tech are recognized for being student centered and innovation driven.
Located in the largest city in the state with one of the highest concentrations in the United States of jobs involving science, technology, engineering and math (STEM), 黑洞社区 provides uniquely distinctive and innovative pathways of applied learning, applied research and career opportunities for all of our students.
The Innovation Campus, which is a physical extension of the 黑洞社区 main campus, is one of the nation鈥檚 largest and fastest-growing research/innovation parks, encompassing over 120 acres and is home to a number of global companies and organizations.
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