Prof. Fabian Gießler

Academic Profile

Fabian Gießler conducts research and teaches in the field of media design, specialising in animation, audiovisual narration and visual communication. As a filmmaker and university lecturer, he combines artistic practice with academic teaching and develops concepts at the intersection of film, design and digital media production. His work focuses in particular on visual storytelling, animated film and project-based teaching and production formats.

Academic and Professional Background

Fabian Gießler studied media design, specialising in film and animation, at the Bauhaus University Weimar, graduating with distinction. From 2008 to 2015, he worked at the Bauhaus Film Institute, initially as a research assistant and subsequently as an artistic staff member. There, he taught in the fields of film and animation, supervised student projects and helped to expand the animation department. From 2015 to 2016, he acted as a locum for the Chair of Multimedia Narrative at the Bauhaus University Weimar.

Since 2016, he has been Professor of Media Design and Programme Director of the Bachelor’s degree programme in Digital Media Design at Dresden University of Applied Sciences. There, he is responsible for the further development of the programme and the expansion of the film, animation and studio departments within the Faculty of Design.

Key areas of research and development

In his research and development work, Fabian Gießler focuses in particular on creative and narrative issues in audiovisual media. His main areas of interest include:

• Audiovisual narration and cinematic storytelling
• Animated film and hybrid narrative forms
• Visual communication in linear media
• Storyboarding and visual concept development
• Practice-based research in film, animation and media design

He combines these topics with issues relating to media production, creative innovations and the development of contemporary teaching and learning formats in the field of design.

Teaching

In his teaching, Fabian Gießler adopts a project-based approach that combines creative design with professional production processes. Students learn to tackle complex communicative tasks through visual concepts, cinematic narratives and animated content.

The focus is on developing an independent creative approach, fostering narrative skills and linking conceptual thinking with practical implementation. He places particular emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration and the supervision of individual artistic and design projects.

Drawing on his many years’ experience in film production, animation and university teaching, he guides students from the initial brainstorming stage, through concept development and storyboarding, to the realisation and presentation of complex media projects

Artistic publications and national/international festival presentations (selection)

The documentary, feature and animated films directed by Fabian Gießler (IMDb) have been screened at numerous national and international film festivals and have won awards. The selection of productions for these festivals reflects the recognition of his artistic work within the international film and animation scene.

Heimat in der Fremde , documentary,
Tyttönen (The Young Girl) , Finland/Germany; short fiction film
Zwischen Licht und Schatten (Fading Away) ; short fiction film
Zweibettzimmer (Double Occupancy) ; animated film
Familienurlaub (Family Vacation) ; short fiction film

Awards (selection)

• 37th Cleveland International Film Festival, USA – Nomination (Oscar-qualifying festival)
• German Film Classification Board, GER – Rating: particularly valuable
• Brantford Film Festival, CANADA – Award for Best Animated Film
• Visioni Corti Film Festival, ITALY – Award for Best Animated Film
• 61st Columbus International Film Festival, USA – Silver Chris Award – Best Animated Film
• Dortmund Short Film Festival, GER – Gold Short Film Award
• Cyprus International Film Festival, CYPRUS – Award for Best Animated Film
• Daytona City Film Festival, USA – Best Cinematography Award
• Media That Matters Film Festival, New York, USA – Seeds of Tolerance Award
• Visionale Leipzig, GER – Festival Grand Prize
• Worldfest Houston, USA – Platinum Remi Award
• St Petersburg International Film Festival, RUS – Best Short Film
• MDR Unicato Award, GER – Best Short
  Film Award