Film Studies

Hone your communication and analytical skills with this exciting course. In the first year you will increase your awareness of film form by exploring how cinematography, editing, mise-en-scene, performance, and sound go together to create meaning in film. The course will encourage you to develop a keen awareness of the role of the audience in making meanings from film, in particular reflecting on your own role as a spectator. Film history will also be explored, covering a range of significant movements, styles and popular and iconic filmmakers. You will demonstrate your knowledge and understanding through practical and written tasks. In the second year, you will undertake further study of films by researching a topic of your choice culminating in the completion of a creative project. You will extend your knowledge of world cinema and explore some key styles of film and issues such as how silent and experimental films elicit emotional responses from an audience.

What skills will I develop?

• You will develop your analytical skills, in particular your ability to identify and justify the use of key technical features in film.
• You will learn a more sophisticated way of writing, including expressing your personal voice and applying a range of critical perspectives in your analysis of Film.
• You will gain technical skills with industry-standard hardware and software (if you choose to create a film production in the coursework unit).

What topics will I study?

Component 1 – Examination: Varieties of Film and Filmmaking (2 hours 30 minutes – 35%)

• Section A: Hollywood Film from 1930-1990 (comparative study)
• Section B: American film after 2005 (two-film study)
• Section C: British Film (two-film study

Component 2 – Examination: Global Filmmaking Perspectives (2 hours 30 minutes –35%)

• Section A: Global Film (two-film study)
• Section B: Documentary
• Section C: Film movements – Silent cinema
• Section D: Film movements – Experimental film (1960-2000)

Component 3 – Production (NEA Portfolio of production and written work – 30%)

• Section A: You will study a variety of short films to understand how they differ from feature films
• Section B: You will create either a short film or a screenplay / digital photo storyboard and a critical evaluation of your own work.

Where does the course lead?

Film Studies will prepare you for degrees and careers which require good communication and analytical ability as well as a future in writing, publishing, film journalism, and television or film personnel.