MA Filmmaking*

Content

You’ll study a practical, production-based course carefully sequenced to deliver a dynamic student journey over three intensive terms.

In the first term, you’ll be challenged to look again at storytelling in film. A bespoke series of workshops and projects will broaden your understanding of narrative and stylistic pathways, while you simultaneously find a compelling story for a clearly identified audience. With this project in mind, you’ll explore production management and editorial development.

At the end of the first term, you'll explore and connect arts research and discourse across a community of postgraduate peers. This will result in the presentation of bold, change-making creative proposals.

The second term will focus on your capacity to creatively refine and adapt a pitch for filming. Bespoke technical and craft training, and deep contextual research, will help you to identify and complete final preparations before production. The term concludes with the realisation of a comprehensive and coherent filming plan. This leads into the third term, where you'll have the opportunity to realise your ideas within a supportive community of interdisciplinary practice, technical expertise, and academic criticality when completing your final project.

You’ll present your film to the public at our MA Film Festival.

Throughout the year, you'll develop your understanding of enterprise within the creative industries and develop knowledge of the contemporary character and conventions of the creative economy. You'll have the opportunity to refine your professional skills, attributes and identity in preparation to succeed in an uncertain and complex cultural landscape.

The University continually enhances our offer by responding to feedback from our students and other stakeholders, ensuring the curriculum is kept up to date and our graduates are equipped with the knowledge and skills they need for the real world. This may result in changes to the course. If changes to your course are approved, we'll inform you.

Learning and Teaching

Taught by a team with industry expertise across a breadth of creative practice, you’ll learn to understand and push filmmaking boundaries through technical and theoretical input. You’ll study through a combination of practice-oriented lectures, seminars, workshops, and tutorials, and you’ll also benefit from events with industry experts.

Learn by making; applying advanced craft techniques used in professional media organisations. You’ll also build a unique mixture of editorial, creative and technical skills that you can apply to this rapidly expanding industry. Working individually and in collaborative teams, you’ll conceptualise, research, plan and deliver a series of creative projects.

All School of Arts MA courses actively encourage cross-disciplinary dialogue and multi-disciplinary interaction across our diverse community of postgraduate artists, filmmakers, and designers. This ensures you’ll bring different perspectives to your creative practice.

See our full glossary of Learning and Teaching terms.

Study time

This is a full-time course, which starts in September and runs for three terms over 12 months. Learning and teaching sessions typically take place over three days per week. Outside of your contact hours, you’ll have the opportunity to access the available resources.

You’ll be expected to undertake a substantial amount of independent study and attend relevant events.

Assessment

You’ll be assessed through a range of methods designed to mirror professional practices in the film and television industries. You’ll be evaluated through presentation, portfolio, practical work and written reflection with ongoing feedback from tutors.

You’ll spend your last term working towards your final outcomes for the year, which includes an opportunity to screen your work publicly.

Learn more about our assessments.