Beyond the Frame | AFCT Outstanding Graduate Interview Series 4

In this era of light, motion, and imagination, graduates from the Academy of Film and Creative Technology at Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University are stepping boldly onto the global stage.

With creativity and determination, they have secured offers from some of the world’s leading art and media institutions— including University of Cambridge, Columbia University, University of Cambridge, the American Film Institute, Chapman University, Loyola Marymount University, University of the Arts London, Glasgow School of Art, School of Visual Arts, Goldsmiths, Teesside University, the London School of Economics and Political Science, University College London, University of Edinburgh and the University of Manchester, and more—spanning fields such as film production, animation, game design, communication and cultural studies, interaction design, and computer arts.

In the Beyond the Frame interview series, we feature outstanding students from our four key programmes: Digital Media Arts, Filmmaking, TV Production, and Arts, Technology and Entertainment.

How did they find their paths, shape their portfolios, and win global recognition? The stories of their growth and choice are waiting to be discovered.

1.  Xingyue Jin

Q&A：

• What inspired you to choose this programme in the first place?
• Embarking on the road of design has always been my wish. In high school, I was not able to take the art exam for various reasons, which has always been a regret in my heart. To make up for this, I chose XJTLU. When faced with similar programmes, I chose Arts, Technology and Entertainment with Contemporary Entrepreneurialism. This is because I thought that the Taicang campus would be able to provide students with summer internship opportunities. It was definitely a great help for me who had little clue about internships. In addition, ATE's curriculum emphasizes interdisciplinarity, which means that I am able to freely explore various fields, and my future artistic path will be more diverse. Therefore, I chose this programme.
• In your view, what stands out the most about your programme? Any favourite modules or lecturers?
• I think there are two main features of this programme: the diversity of course content and the deep integration of group work.

  First of all, the curriculum covers a wide range of artistic fields, including installation art, curation, modeling, music, etc. It provides a lot of opportunities for exploration and is especially suitable for students who are still looking for their personal points of interest. Following completion, you will have the opportunity to reap the benefits of a portfolio of work that spans multiple fields. For example, my portfolio presents the entire process from art to technology, planning to landing the finished game.

  Secondly, most of the assignments in this programme take the form of teamwork. In teamwork, each team member can interpret the same topic from different perspectives, and mutual inspirations collide with each other. This discussion process is very interesting, and it also allows a social terrorist like me to make a lot of friends.

  This programme's VR course had a profound impact on me. In this course, my group members and I took the risk of exploring and making VR games from scratch. It was based entirely on hand recognition, which was very challenging for us. In the process, we tried the whole process of making VR as we stumbled around. We were introduced to a lot of technology for the first time, and we became great friends. At the same time, this experience also helped me a lot in my Offers and internships, and I even met my VR startup buddies.
• Could you share some tips or reflections on your postgraduate application journey?
• I have been looking for an agency since Winter vacation of my junior year, and have started working on my portfolio. The agency could only give a direction, mainly need to find out what you want to do and learn it by yourself, and make good use of the works you did during study. My portfolio was very diversified, I tried everything, and showed my planning ability, drawing ability, programming ability, etc., and the style of each small work was different. Perhaps because of the above, I was able to get accepted into multiple programmes at one university.
• What are your academic or career plans for the future?
• My goal was clear: to get into the gaming industry, regardless of the entry point. In order to validate my potential in different directions, I applied for graduate school in a very diverse range of directions, and then made further judgments based on the results of my applications. This covers from concept art to code programming, from VR to 3D animation effects. It is the extensive learning and practice in the past few years that has equipped me with such opportunities to try out my application, and continues to broaden my possibilities in the game industry!
• Sum up your four years at XJTLU in three key words – and don’t forget to share a piece of advice for your juniors!
• Diversity, Freedom, Adventure

  Diversity comes without saying, as the ATE programme encompasses knowledge and skills in all directions of art.

  Meanwhile, the university, especially the ATE, gave me plenty of freedom to decide what kind of project I wanted to do for my final project, whether it was a game or an installation. I was also able to completely dictate the pace of my project. If I wanted to take a break, I would stop, and if I wanted to work hard, I would work all night with my peers to fix bugs.

  Adventure is because my project planning for coursework always exceeded the limits of my knowledge, and I had to force myself to learn and produce work in a limited amount of time. It's always thrilling to learn something from scratch, especially when it comes to DDL.

  Don't limit yourself to one direction, explore your possibilities. Fully enjoy this freedom given by the university

   

2.Yiqi Chen

Name: Yiqi Chen

Programme: Filmmaking

Received offers：

The London School of Economics and Political Science

--Global Media and Communications (LSE and USC)

The University of Amsterdam

--Media Studies

Q&A：

• What inspired you to choose this programme in the first place?
• I hope to combine my interest in social sciences with a more influential medium of communication. Film, especially documentary, allows me to convey cultural reflections and emotional connections in a creative way, while also enriching my perspective on the world.
• In your view, what stands out the most about your programme? Any favourite modules or lecturers?
• Theory and practice are deeply integrated here. Exploration and reflection are constantly encouraged and guided by the instructors. I have endless opportunities to test theories through practice, deepen my understanding through reflection, and apply these insights to new creative work.
• Could you share some tips or reflections on your postgraduate application journey?
• Bold trial can dispel much confusion. I’ve been fortunate to explore fields like film production, marketing, curation, and film studies, and these experiences have helped me accumulate knowledge and find the right direction for my growth.
• What are your academic or career plans for the future?
• I aspire to be a filmmaker with critical thinking and a researcher with creative vision.
• Sum up your four years at XJTLU in three key words – and don’t forget to share a piece of advice for your juniors!
• Explore, Vision, Convergence

  Ms. Biwei Cong's inspiring words in my sophomore year still resonates: "Go forth. Be bold. Be kind." I've carried these words with me, and hope they may inspire you as well.

3.Kexin Wu

Q&A：

• What inspired you to choose this programme in the first place?
• I chose to study TV Production because I love the creative aspect of being able to express my personal ideas freely. In this field, a small spark of inspiration can be infinitely amplified through camera, sound and narrative. It is possible that a panel discussion can spawn a variety show at the end of the period, and a casual social observation may be the centerpiece of a documentary selection. I chose this programme not only because I want to learn the relevant technical tools, but more importantly, I think it has built a creative ecosystem that is tolerant of trial and error, and can carry the free growth of my ideas.
• In your view, what stands out the most about your programme? Any favourite modules or lecturers?
• I think one of the great features of this programme is group work. In the process of creation, there are many times when the inspiration runs out, or the actual effect is not up to the expectation, and I also experience helplessness and anxiety. However, through group work, scriptwriters, cinematographers, lighting, sound, and art, we all work together and try to make the presentation of the work the best it can be, which I think is one of the charms of this programme. When you encounter difficulties, you have a group of friends to share them with you, and you may have to go through compromises, overthrowing, and reconstruction several times, but all these collisions make the work unexpectedly gain new vitality.

  A particularly important class for me is FTA 205 Studio Practice, with Mr. Yijun Guo as the module leader, which is divided into two semesters and involves the production of a game show and a reality show in a studio setting.I think this class is the result of a lot of hard work from the programmes, because we need to work together in a team of more than twenty people, each with a different task. Under Mr. Guo's guidance and encouragement, we rehearsed time and again, revised the script, formulated the plan, and overcame all kinds of difficulties, finally achieving a good result at the end. As the director of the second semester's reality show, this experience was also very precious, fulfilling, and something I am very proud of.
• Could you share some tips or reflections on your postgraduate application journey?
• I think it is very important to prepare for graduate school, must learn more about it and take the initiative to break the information gap. If you choose to find an agent, don't completely rely on the agent to give you a list of school selection, you can do more comparisons on the school's official website, the rednotes, to find a really like and suitable for the programme. With the guarantee, you can apply for some more difficult schools and programmes, don't be afraid to try. Secondly, make full use of the summer vacation of your junior year to prepare for your language scores or internships, don't procrastinate! Finally, take every assignment seriously to improve your grades, which largely determines your admissions results.
• What are your academic or career plans for the future?
• In the future, I will continue to pursue media-related graduate studies, hoping to learn more about the theories involved and explore more meaningful topics.
• Sum up your four years at XJTLU in three key words – and don’t forget to share a piece of advice for your juniors!
• Try, Brave, Firm

  Cherish every opportunity to try and innovate, don't give up when you encounter difficulties, try hard, persevere, every experience has its meaning.

4.Jiarong Sun

Name: Jiarong Sun

Programme: Digital Media Arts

Received offers:

University of Sydney

--Interaction Design and Electronic Arts

Monash University--Master of Design

Brunel University London

--Human AI Interaction

Kingston University

--User Experience Design

Q&A：

• What inspired you to choose this programme in the first place?
• I loved watching Transformers-like sci-fi films when I was a kid, and I was particularly curious about how such fake-to-life special effects were made. When I was choosing my major in my freshman year and saw the curriculum and learning content of the major, from graphic design to 3D rendering, I felt that this would be the major and path that I would love.
• In your view, what stands out the most about your programme? Any favourite modules or lecturers?
• The most distinctive feature of DMA is that the freedom of course creation is very high, and every student can think and express freely in this major. At the same time, the process of completing coursework is all about continuous exploration, learning and challenging yourself.
• Could you share some tips or reflections on your postgraduate application journey?
• I took the IELTS test during the winter break of my junior year so that I could spend the rest of the year preparing my portfolio for graduate school. During the second half of my junior year and the first semester of my senior year, I prepared four projects for my portfolio. The portfolio projects were prepared by boldly opening the topic, rigorous research, and showing the results of my "learning" and expressing myself while meeting the requirements of the graduate school I was applying to.
• What are your academic or career plans for the future?
• I will focus on Unreal Engine 5 and its blueprinting, Davinci colour grading and other professional software in my graduate studies and in the coming period of time, in order to prepare myself for the future. I will be working hard to learn the workflow of game and interaction design.
• Sum up your four years at XJTLU in three key words – and don’t forget to share a piece of advice for your juniors!
• Self-study, planning and execution

  University is a great opportunity to learn about yourself, what you love and what you want to be. Once you are clear, put in the effort. An undergraduate programme alone will not meet the need for competence in the industry, get clear on what software or skills you need to learn on the road ahead and improve yourself in various ways. There is a long way to go, and when you are lost, you may want to take something small as a starting point, give yourself a small goal, a small start, and realise your ideas little by little.

   

Interactive devices

Our heartfelt thanks go to all the students who generously shared their journeys in this feature. Your honesty, courage and creativity are truly inspiring—and will surely light the way for many more to come.

As you move forward from XJTLU to the world, may your talents and passions continue to flourish.

Here's to bold dreams, new chapters, and ever-growing brilliance—beyond the frame.

Contributed by Yuqi Liu

Edited by Wenzhen Li