Kathryn Deykun

Computer Animation BFA '23

“I thought as an Animation major, I was only going to be learning movement and how to animate things, but I learned a surprising amount of other skills,” says recent Computer Animation graduate Kathryn Deykun.

What would you say has been the most surprising thing you learned at Columbia?

I thought as an Animation major, I was only going to be learning movement and how to animate things, but I learned a surprising amount of other skills. If you’re able to learn other skills well, it becomes really helpful because you can combine a lot of things to make cool projects. Also, just from talking to friends I’ve learned a lot, especially since everyone has different things they like and study. I’m also very happy my Keyframing class went really into detail on animation topics and gave great critiques, since it’s definitely the class I learned the most from.

What individuals or programs at Columbia were helpful to you in reaching your goal of graduating

Freshman year of college I met with my advisor, and I got to really understand my degree audit and how it worked. I also asked some teachers about the BFA. Understanding the graduation requirements from the beginning, making a loose plan for the BFA, and taking all my required classes first, really helped me avoid any downfalls and graduate on time.

What are your plans for after graduation?

After graduation I’m going to continue studying art and animation. I’ve been looking at a lot of studios, and I hope that by applying to anything I have skills in, I can get a job. I hope to eventually work on animated films as well.

If you were going to sum up your experience at Columbia in one sentence, what would you say?