The new MMU SODA (School of Digital Arts) Building is a £35m investment into workspaces, networks, teaching and research that will support the urgent and growing demand for skilled workers in the region's creative and digital industries.

The five-storey, 5200m2 SODA building will be located on Higher Chatham Street, adjacent to Manchester School of Art in the Benzie Building, the Students' Union and Salutation pub. It will provide space for a digital innovation lab, green screens, edit suites, screening space, film studio, motion capture, stop motion, music making, a media gallery, sound, music and production studios.

The front façade of the building features an integrated LED light wall, that will illuminate visual images, videos, and digital content produced by students. The wall is split into a low and high resolution sections. The building is fully air-conditioned using energy efficient air source heat pump technology, LED lighting, photovoltaic roof and audio/visual, sound, video, communication, studio lighting and studio engineering infrastructure.

From September 2021, SODA will produce over 1000 graduates annually with expertise in disciplines that span film, animation, UX design, photography, games design, VR, AI and more, often working on live projects with industry partners.

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