Multimedia University is one of Malaysia's first private university. In 1996, the Ministry of Education was searching for an established company to set up a private university. After the long search, the Ministry finally found the most suitable company which is Telekom Malaysia. October 1996, the first ever private university in Melaka opened its doors officially to the public and in 1997, the government started a project to create a new town. The new town isn't just any ordinary town but it is a technology town and a home for MSC, Multimedia Super Corridor, called Cyberjaya. Telekom Malaysia saw this opportunity and established another university right at the heart of the Multimedia Super Corridor creating an advantage for Information Technology. Multimedia University currently has 7 faculties listing from IT to Business Management and also Creative Multimedia. Among all faculties, the Faculty of Creative Multimedia (FCM) is one of the best faculties to be in. The entire faculty is a medium for design students to unleash their creativity. When walking at the corridors of this faculty, various art works done by students can be seen hanging on walls; giving inspiration to the newer students. It is truly a place to breed young creative designers and to allow them to think beyond the small box. The Faculty of Creative Multimedia is proudly led by a reputable man, Associate Professor Harold Thwaites, Dean of FCM. Mr Harold Thwaites hails from Montreal, Quebec in Canada. Before being a dean of FCM, he was an associate producer for the Canadian Broadcasting Corp for 10 years hence pioneered the development of New Media production at Concordia University in the early 80’s. He is also the President of International Society on Virtual Systems and Multimedia. Besides that, he holds a degree in Communication Arts (University of Montreal) and a degree in Education Technology (Concordia University).
The studies in FCM begin with foundation year, which also known as alpha year, where the lecturers provide students basic skills and knowledge in drawing, computer graphics application and media production technique. In the first semester of alpha year, student will be attending several classes, such as Visual Research and Communication 1 (VRC1), Life Drawing, Basic Photography, Computer Graphics 1 (CG1), Media Appreciation and General English. Through VRC1, students will learn about the basics skills of designing using the elements of design and principals of design. Next, students will also learn how to draw through observing sculpture, surroundings and lighting in Life Drawing class. In addition, Basic Photography class will provide the basic knowledge about camera, such as aperture and how to work with them. Moreover, in CG1, skills on how to work with the software, Adobe Illustrator will be introduced and taught to the students. Other than that, students will also learn about types of media and how to appreciate each of the media in the Media Appreciation class. Last but not least, students will get to learn the basic english speaking and writing skills from General English. For trimester 2, students will be facing Visual Research and Communication 2 which provide skills on how to delivers information through design. Going on is Figure Drawing which teaches the skills on drawing human figures and human skeleton. Proceeding from Basic Photography, Creative Photography then teaches the skills on how to capture pictures with effects as well as learning studio lighting. Continuing from CG1, Computer Graphics 2 introduces students to another software which is Adobe Photoshop. The humanity subject, Creative Studies will provide students the skills of how to be creative. Lastly, Creative English teaches student more of literature so that they can generate creativity while learning. The last semester for alpha year, students learn the last basics which are Visual Research and Communication 3, Creative Drawing, Computer Graphics 3 and Introduction to Business Management.
Following on are five degree majors in the FCM which are Media Arts, Animation and Visual Effects, Advertising Design, Interface Design and Virtual Reality. After foundation, FCM students are able to choose their major based on their interest and pursue, but at the same time they must meet the requirements. For students who are interested in computer, internet, as well as exploring digital media through creative expression, Media Arts could be the best choice for them. Media Art relates to mediums where students learn to create, express and challenge themselves. Furthermore, Media Arts student experience the media creation and create interactive systems installations, galleries, performances, websites, games, and public spaces. In addition, students are also taught the ways to create socially and culturally relevant objects, experiences and spaces. On the other hand, for Animation and Visual Effect, students are expected to understand the process of producing a good animation with nice design in the scope of digital animation. Moreover, students will develop and improve their technical skill and artistic understanding in storyboard and animation groomed with interesting and creative storylines. Students are encouraged to adapt local contents in their storylines that will instil a sense of national pride to viewers. The next major, Advertising Design is about the fundamental learning and the ability to apply their knowledge on elements and principles of advertising into working ideas. Students must be able to use the latest innovations of electronic media, with a strong comprehension of their product to impact consumer and marketplace. Furthermore, students also learn the theory of advertising, creativity and innovation, basic marketing, media, and indirectly, research skills as well as the business acumen. For Interface Design, students are educated and trained as a designer to design and achieve the creative and innovative solutions for applications, ICT products and services. The students then learn and improve their skills of design for physical products or non-physical products with creativity and knowledge. The works of Interface Design also highlights the presentation techniques, product conceptualisation, 3D modelling, model making, product mock-up, sales pitch, and rapid prototyping. Lastly, for Virtual Reality, students are taught to analyse situation and solve current issues by proposing projects ranging from virtual heritage, virtual manual, and virtual art to entertainment. Within two semesters, the students start researching the subject matter and designing the world, interaction and interface. Next, they began to create the 3D world and breathe life into it by putting colours, sound and avatar.
In FCM, hardware and software are the supporting tools for students to learn in their studies. They are mainly divided into several parts. For Alpha level, the students will learn on the basic of design software. For example, Adobe Illustrator (Ai) is teach in Computer Graphics class. Ai is used to create vector graphic. The following is Adobe Photoshop (Ps). Ps is a very functional and useful software because we can do many editing such as, manipulating images, enhancing images, create high resolution raster graphic, digital make over, and blending images. Beginning Beta year, students learn parts of animation and film. The software used for most of the animation are Autodesk 3DS Max, Autodesk Maya and Adobe After Effects. Both 3DS Max and Maya is mainly focused on the drawing and creation of 3D figure whereas After Effects is for graphical animation instead. On the other hand, film editing mostly depend on Adobe Premier which is a professional software that helps to edit videos. Next, students are also taught about web development. They learn how to create and compose a website. Moreover, they also adapt all the creative steps they leant. The software that they use is Adobe Dreamweaver. This software is specifically for web design and it’s taught but the tutor step by step. Lastly, sound software is also an important part especially in film. As a result, the sound software that is used is Adobe Soundbooth (Sb). Sb is used to edit sound or recordings as well as manipulating the sound by editing it. Overall, these software and hardware are important for design students as they work with them in different aspects.
Special facilities are usually the main attraction for everyone. First of all, K-space is work space for faculty staff and postgraduate research students. It is also a sharing research knowledge space. The staff and students can collaborate in group working to devise and experiment with a blended work by utilising technologies to seamlessly integrate the physical space and virtual spaces. Tools and technologies in K-space are based in multimodality devices will facilitate collaboration via human-computer interaction, user acceptance, and intelligent ambient tools. Moreover, K-space provides a good space for knowledge research and experiment. Secondly, Electronic Theatre is a cinematic hall of the FCM. It is also named as E-Theatre. E-Theatre provides around 200 comfortable seats. It is equipped with audio and visual facilities for lecture and screening purposes. It is also the largest theatre in the Multimedia University. Another theatre available is VR theatre. This immersive mini VR Theatre is used for stereoscopic image projection with surround sound. The Electronic Gallery (E-Gallery) is the only gallery in the FCM building. E-Gallery is an exhibition centre where the conceptualised becomes a portal to the multimedia and digital world. Showcases of the best student’s work also held in the e-gallery. Besides that, there is a Design studio for students to enhance their creative thinking skills and evaluate their ideas to precede their design projects and assignments. This studio allows students to discuss their work with friends or consult their lecturer. Another studio is Set and Background Studio. It is a physical studio with blue screen and motion capture facilities for a virtual studio set-up. Lastly, there are labs in FCM building. Graphic Labs provide computer installed with professional graphic and image editing software tools to develop high-resolution computer graphic images. Interactive Labs provide fast and networked computer equipped with sophisticated industry standard authoring tools for students to create highly interactive multimedia applications for digital medium. 3D Labs are divided into 3 minor labs; it is Modeling Labs, Animation Labs, and Rapid Prototyping Labs. The 3D Modeling Labs provide high-end computer and tools for student to create complex 3D objects. The Animation Labs contain specialized facilities comprising of hardware and software intend for high-end 3D animation purpose. The Rapid Prototyping Labs consist of Computer Aided Design facilities to produce prototype designs and mock-ups for interface design concepts. Lastly is the Post Production Labs. It divided into Video Labs for high-end non-linear editing and Audio Labs for creating and editing digital sound. One of the latest facilities is the Knowledge Garden. It is a ‘Go Green’ project where there is a large area filled with plants and seats. This place is especially for students to perform their discussion as well as to chill and relax.
During these 10 years of hardship, Faculty of Creative Multimedia (FCM) has boasts up to a higher level. Students and members have amazing accomplishment locally and internationally. The faculty gained recognition from various prestigious awards and film festivals participated by the students and members. First of all, in year 2001, International Film and Video Awards Chicago (USA) awarded Silver Screen Award (in collaboration with Lensa Films) to FCM. Students of FCM are awarded Asia Pacific Digital Art Animation Competition and Asian Television Technical & Creative Award (ComGraph), Singapore, in the year of 2002 and 2004. Besides that, they are also awarded APICTA Asia Pacific ICT Awards, Malaysia in the year of 2002, 2005 and 2006. In the year of 2003, they attended lots of international awards. For instant, 26th New York Asian American International Film Festival, New York, USA, (2 Finalists / Screening), Asia Digital Art Awards, Fukuoka, Japan (7 Awards), KINOFILM 2003, 8th Manchester International Short Film Festival, Manchester, UK (3 Finalists / Screening), Hamburg Film Festival, Hamburg, Germany (Finalist / Screening), Cork Film Festival, Ireland, UK (Finalist / Screening). The following year, 13 screenings of which 10 are finalist is screen in the 2004 Siggraph USA while FCM is awarded the Best Program of the Year and the Best TV Series for Teenagers and Adults (in collaboration with POV) in the 8th Pulcinella Awards International TV Cartoons Competition, Positano, Italy. In addition, Principal Award is awarded in 51st Oberhausen International Short Film Festival 2005, Germany. In 2007, FCM is awarded the Best Postgraduate Award in University Malaya's (UM) Engineering Invention 'N' Innovation Challenge (EINIC), NETPAC Best Film Award in Osian's Cinefan 9th Festival of Asian and Arab Cinema, New Delhi, Best Digital Film Award in 20th Malaysian Film Festival, Best Appealing Design Awards and Third Prize Award in 2007 Philips Young Inventors' Challenge (PYIC) 2006. Although FCM did not get much award in 2008, yet they are awarded the Best Video Music Awards and Best Video Animation Awards in Festival Filem dan Video Pelajar Malaysia ke-5 (FFPVPM 5) 2007 on 6 January 2008, Universiti Malaysia Sabah and also Interface Design Team Winner for Mobile Edutainment Content Category in MSC Malaysia Intellectual Property Creators Challenge Series 2008. In 2009, students of FCM had great achievement in NEXTGEN Contentpreneur Award where they won 6 among their 17 entries. On the other hand, student, Wan Affendy Abdullah won the 2009 Best Exeperimental Flim/Video in Festival Filem dan Video Pelajar Malaysia ke-6 (FFPVPM 6) 2007 on 10 January 2008, Universiti Putra Malaysia. Film. In the 10th year of FCM, students and member had an outstanding performance. Mr. Kamarulzaman b. Russali, lecturer of FCM, won an international award and local award. He is the winner (POTY2010 Travel Category) of Digital Camera Photographer of the Year 2010, UK, with the photo title Journey of Ocean Life on 7th December 2010 and 2nd Place, Human Rights from Your Perspectives for SUHAKAM Photo Competition, Malaysia on 15th December 2010.In conclusion, students and members of FCM work hard to obtain these awards.
Career prospect is the main reason for people to study. Animation and Visual Effects is one of the most popular courses among FCM students. It covers the integration of artistic elements with psychology and animation in high technology film and video production which also includes 3D animation and visual effects. In fact, the career prospect for this major are film director; which planning and plotting of a 3D animation film, animation director; which is the planner of the animation in a series of films, and animator; who in charge in creation of the whole animation. Next, Interface design, the term "User Interface" refers to the methods and devices that are used to accommodate interaction between machines and the human beings who use them (users). Student who decides to enrol in this major should have an avid interest in new technology and multimedia devices. Some job based on Interface Design are advertising consultant; people who acquire the knowledge of the connection in between a machine and its users, art director; a person who supervises the creative process of a design, and product designer; to create a new product and sell it to users. Moreover, interface designers learn on the creation of appliance and application based on demand of users. Next, Advertising Design, utilized the latest innovations skills in electronic media performance and printing media. The job prospects are Multimedia designer; designing and creating arresting multimedia artwork for use in marketing campaigns, marketing communications, and web designer; develops applications specifically for the World Wide Web. Following on is Media arts. Media Arts is the merging of form and content in design, animation, sound and other related applications in the realm of digital technology. Career prospect such as simulation designer; the use of a computer program to simulate the operation of a digital circuit, immersive content consultant; consult in design, animation, and any other related application. Lastly, Virtual Reality is the development of real-time interactive virtual reality content for education and entertainment using real-time computer graphics and multimedia applications. Career such as graphic designer; a profession who assembles together images, typography or motion graphics to create a piece of design, virtual environment designer; describes a means of delivering computing resources that have been decoupled from physical machinery.
Based on all the above information on Faculty of Creative Multimedia, there are so many extraordinary benefits when one is to enrol in. Being creative definitely shows the differences between those who are theoretic. When skills are to be compared to theory, skills will win because theory won’t bring you that far at certain stages. Hence, MMU is one of the best choices that will worth every single cent you paid for. Not to forget, MMU is also the first private university in Malaysia.
Joel Lai [1112700887]
Michelle Tan [1112702287]
Chong Teak Wei [1112702002]
Grace Ngeau [1112700346]
Kenny Ch'ng [1112701951]
Low Jia Fei [1112701822]
Liew Kwan Chuan [1112700343]
