Director, MFA in Animatronics — UNCSA

I build things that have to work.

Twenty years in scene shops, opera houses, and prop departments led somewhere I didn't expect — directing the only animatronics MFA program housed in a school of the arts.

Portrait of Eric Hart

Alongside the building, there's been seventeen years of writing about it — documenting technique and industry practice for a global audience of makers. Three of those books are now used as texts in university programs across the US and UK.

Before UNCSA, I ran a props department for a professional regional theatre — budgets, hiring, safety, still building the work myself. I still take on select fabrication jobs when the right project comes along, including Oppenheimer, The Haunted Mansion, and MJ: The Musical. Staying close to the industry is part of how I keep the program honest.

The Program

MFA in Animatronics, UNCSA

[Dummy copy] The only animatronics graduate program housed within a school of the arts in the United States — where storytelling leads and technology follows.

Learn about the program
Program photo

Writing & media

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The Prop Building Guidebook cover

The Prop Building Guidebook

3rd edition, 2023
The Prop Effects Guidebook cover

The Prop Effects Guidebook

2nd edition, 2025
Cover pending

Prop Building for Beginners

2021
Theatre Design & Technology
[Dummy] Article on building Sylvie, an animatronic dove — forthcoming
[Podcast name]
[Dummy] Guest interview on the craft of animatronics
[Publication]
[Dummy] Feature on the UNCSA program

Selected work

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[Dummy copy] A curated set of animatronic and mechanical work, alongside a few standout pieces from an earlier career in theatrical props.

Project photo

[Project title]

Animatronics
Project photo

[Project title]

Animatronics
Project photo

[Project title]

Selected theater work

Get in touch

Press & speaking

[Dummy copy] Interview requests, conference talks, and speaking engagements.

Press & speaking →

Project inquiries

[Dummy copy] Select fabrication and consulting inquiries for the right project.

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