Unleash your imagination by producing narratives that inspire and amaze audiences. Immerse yourself in the dynamic realm of animation, where you will learn a range of studio practices that incorporate traditional, digital, and experimental methods.
The 2D Animation program emphasizes experimental storytelling that communicates a spectrum of ideas and emotions, encompassing both personal narratives and broader societal observations. Starting with traditional paper-based techniques, students progress to mastering industry-standard software for 2D animation, editing and compositing. Further explorations may include stop-motion, puppet fabrication, experimental animation, 3D animation and performance. Throughout the program, there is a focus on fostering expression and directorial voice. Group projects play a pivotal role in nurturing collaborative and professional soft skills, ensuring that students excel in the professional world.
Student Work
The Experience
Star Ren, BFA 2D Animation ’22
The 2D Animation pathway introduces an amazing range of tools and techniques taught by internationally renowned faculty. Studio courses factor in every semester, lending ample opportunity to create an impressive graduation showreel. Most courses are located in our award-winning Myrtle Hall facility, which is less than 30 minutes away from hundreds of New York’s world famous cultural institutions, many of which sponsor our students through internships. When not in class, our students are soaking up the limitless screenings, openings, festivals, shows and exhibitions that are occurring throughout the year in New York City.
Digital Arts Facilities
Cintiq Workstation
Studio Crit
Dragon Frame Station
Experimental Studio
Stop Motion Studio
Students in the 2D Animation BFA have excellent studios with access to several digital computing facilities that are outfitted with state of the art Apple computer stations. These computers are loaded with top of the line animation software including Nuke, ToonBoom, TVPaint, Adobe Suite, Ableton, ProTools, and much more.
All 2D Animation students also have access to shared Digital Arts facilities that include a green screen room, an audio editing suite, a variety of 3D printers, laser cutter, ink-jet printers and a world-class spatial computing lab. Further access to Pratt Institute facilities is also possible, including fine art workshops and a large photogrammetry volume.
Internships
The Department of Digital Arts and Animation offers an internship program tailored to digital artists. Throughout the academic year, students partake in internship opportunities at a variety of studios and companies in the metropolitan New York area, gaining skills and experience in areas covering animation, visual effects, motion graphics, game design, interaction design, fine arts, and publishing.
The internship program places students on their career paths, providing experiences that aid in determining their educational and professional goals. Internships may be taken for college credit by both undergraduate and graduate students. While the Department has our own Internship Coordinator, students may also want to visit Pratt’s extensive network and dedicated staff that supports and facilitates Internships and Industry Connections.
Study Abroad
Immersing yourself in another culture is an incredible experience that can extend the boundaries of creativity. Study abroad programs are an integral part of the college experience, and Pratt has deep connections with university partners around the world. See where you can go.
Learning Resources
We develop disciplinary fluency in our program of study and we celebrate the interdisciplinary nature of design critical to address the plurality and complexity of the environments in which we operate. Learning resources.
Our Faculty
Pratt’s distinguished faculty of outstanding creative professionals and scholars share a common desire to develop each student’s potential and creativity to the fullest. Bringing different views, methods, and perspectives they provide a rigorous educational model in which students make and learn. See all Digital Arts faculty and administrators.
2D Animation alumni have risen to the tops of their fields in animation, from self-directing award winning projects to collaborating on award winning blockbuster animations.
Where they Work
Some examples of where our alumni have gone on to work include Disney, Cartoon Network, Nickelodeon and Titmouse.
Join us at Pratt. Learn more about admissions requirements, plan your visit, talk to a counselor, and start your application. Take the next step.
Building your portfolio can be daunting. We’ll answer your questions and help you feel confident about the portfolio you submit with your application. Start building your portfolio, now.
You’ll find yourself at home at Pratt. Learn more about our residence halls, student organizations, athletics, gallery exhibitions, events, the amazing City of New York and our Brooklyn neighborhood communities. Check us out.
Congratulations to Cameron Brentlinger, Bachelors of Industrial Design '24 (@CameronGroovyBrentlinger) as the 2024 Material Lab Prize recipient! 🏆
Their project “Community Gravestone,” proposes a dignified and compassionate approach to funerary practice on Hart Island, where unknown or unclaimed New Yorkers are buried at the end of life with no commemoration. Brentlinger’s project revolves around gravestones made of local adobe foraged from clay deposits on Long Island; the bricks erode over time releasing native seeds, and offer an ephemeral ceremony gesturing towards environmental cycles and embracing the impermanence of life and memorial space.
The project earned praise from the jury for its deliberate perspective. Juror Chen Chen (@chen_cckw) especially appreciated the storytelling and narrative that carried throughout the process book, while juror Emily Gordin (@emgordin) was drawn to its careful consideration of community.
Ben Thannat Somwong, Masters of Industrial Design ‘25 (bensomwong) received an honorable mention in this year’s Material Lab Prize for their project “BioShell,” a ready-to-use sheet that enables designers to shape and work with biomaterials without the need for specialized equipment and addresses a common challenge for designers working with biopolymer: the gelatin-based sheet serves as an alternative to traditional hard plastics like PVC and ABS. Jury member Sean Kim, Pratt alumnus and founder of @wooj.design noted that this project stood out for its impressive research and the clarity of its intention.
To see all this year’s submissions visit the link in our bio.
Photography by Michael Tessier
You have a few more days to explore the @PrattMaterialLab Prize Exhibition! Now in it's fifth year, our Material Lab Prize awards $1000 to a student designer who explores new possibilities through experimental materials.
The prize seeks to showcase student work that explores material innovation and considers waste streams as a springboard for new design thinking. Selected projects are on display now in the Material Lab until October 11.
#Biodesign #Sustainability #Material #PrattInstitute #Pratt
A moment of calm with Pratt Reef.
For over 20 years, this meditative space on the Brooklyn campus—in the Writing and Tutorial Center (North Hall 101)—has been a go-to for Pratt students across campus with interest in the aquatic.
Read more about Pratt Reef and other Pratt traditions in Prattfolio at the link in our profile.
Video: Max Berger/Pratt Institute
The fall semester is in full swing! Amidst the excitement of new projects, classes, and studios, we wanted to remind our community of the incredible resources on campus - and beyond! See more tips at the link in our profile
It’s Founder’s Day! We love this archival footage of students celebrating the “Costumes of Then and Now” from 1937.
Charles Pratt was born in Oct 2, 1830. In 1887 he established Pratt Institute to provide college education to all students regardless of race, class, or gender.
Video Description: Students parade around Pratt Institute Campus in historic dress from the 1890s.
#PrattInstitute #Brooklyn #HistoricBrooklyn #ClintonHill #PrattAlumni
Watch until the end for the number one portfolio tip from our admissions team!
1️⃣ Review your portfolio with a Pratt admissions counselor at a National Portfolio Day! Visit the link in our bio for the schedule.
2️⃣ Focus on drawing what you love – rather than making copies of work that other people have done.
3️⃣ Need some inspiration? Look out your window and sketch what you observe in the world around you
4️⃣ Let your work speak for itself by documenting it in good lighting, using neutral backgrounds, and cropping around it.
5️⃣ Think of each piece in your portfolio as a chapter in a book. What story are you telling?
Can’t meet us in person? Schedule a virtual portfolio review at the link in our profile.
Fall is here! Our campus shines all year round but we are pretty partial to autumn in New York.
Thanks to Mohammed Alomari (@moalomari9) for their year long project of capturing our seasons. View from the Juliana Curran Terian Design Center.
Video Description: View of Pratt Campus during winter, spring, summer and fall. Audio says “it’s officially fall, and when the leaves start to turn we know it’s time”
#PrattInstitute #Brooklyn #ClintonHill
Climate Week NYC! Check out the Adaptations 2.0 exhibitions on Governors Island co-hosted by Pratt's Center for Climate Adaptation, the Trust for Governors Island, and the NY Climate Exchange.
Over one-tenth of the world’s population currently lives on islands. By 2030 more than 50% of the planet’s fastest-growing urban areas are on and/or contain islands within their borders. These exhibitions feature the work of renowned firms Foster + Partners and Skidmore Owings and Merrill (SOM), and Pratt GAUD students exploring climate resilience and how land-scarce/water-scarce, island-based habitats across the globe, their historic and contemporary practices could inform future urban and economic development.
On Monday, Pratt rang the @Nasdaq opening bell with Laurene Powell Jobs of Emerson Collective, Tom Steyer of Galvanize Climate Solutions, and other innovators, investors and changemakers kicking off New York Climate Week 2024. Pratt was recognized for our leadership in art, design, and climate resiliency at the Building the Future Summit. The event showcased the innovative work of our talented students and recent alumni from the Master of Industrial Design and BFA in Fashion Design programs at Nasdaq’s headquarters.
President Frances Bronet, School of Design Dean Anita Cooney, and Vice President of Institutional Advancement Stephanie Cook represented the Institute at this significant occasion.
We are leading the charge toward a more sustainable future, having earned a STARS Gold rating in the 2024 Sustainable Campus Index by #AASHE, ranking among the top 10 master’s institutions for the second consecutive year with high scores in curriculum, research, and campus engagement. As a founding partner of The New York Climate Exchange on Governors Island, we continue to drive transformational efforts that address the most pressing environmental challenges of our time.
#PrattInstitute #Nasdaq #NasdaqExchange #NYCW #Climate Week
In Pratt’s Department of Digital Arts, undergraduates will develop aesthetic finesse, technological skill, conceptual sophistication related to digital media, and thorough comprehension of the potential of art and technology. Graduates demonstrate an expertise in their discipline, a unique voice in their medium and a knowledge of historical works in art and technology. Students then learn to create professional documentation and presentation skills to launch their careers in the Digital Arts.
After graduation, Pratt Alumni can be found exhibiting in galleries and working in major creative industries:
Cartoon Network
Augenblick
Titmouse
The Mill
Curious Pictures
CHRLX Studios
Digital Domain
Psyop
Dreamworks Studios
Sony Imageworks
Disney Animation Studios
Dusty Studio
Rhythm and Hues Studios
Students create whimsical, sometimes gritty, worlds in which distinctive characters tell fanciful stories. While focusing on storytelling, 2-D Animation courses are constructed to afford a wide range of techniques from traditional and digital drawing to stop-motion, special effects, and experimental techniques. Courses include animation, character development, storyboarding, and storytelling, animation history and post-production courses. Recommended electives include contemporary issues in film and video, 3-D modeling, special effects, 3-D printing, and film making.
