Overview

Overview

"What I liked particularly about the MA was the comprehensive overview it provided of the development of film scholarship since the inception of the medium, equipping those with undergraduate degrees not related to media studies with a thorough grounding in the discipline. Our seminar discussions of films and TV programmes as case
studies were fascinating and complemented the teaching on film theory very well. We learned just how much the films and television we watch shape our perception of the world in relation to gender and nationality for example. This, next to the supportive atmosphere in the department, deepened my interest in film studies and prompted me to do a PhD here in the department of Theatre, Film and Television."
Verena von Eicken

Cinema and television are high profile creative industries as well as and pervasive forms of popular entertainment and cultural expression within contemporary society. This MA programme addresses the significance of these media within the context of current developments and issues including the industrial organisation of film and television production; the creative process from initial script development to marketing the final product; the role of public institutions and policy; the impact of new technology; the organisation of audiences; and the various critical, theoretical and discursive frameworks that pertain to cinema and television. While there is a strong emphasis on British and American film and television across in the modules, the programme will also draw upon a wide range of ideas, insights and examples from the study of what are increasingly global moving image media.

The programme offers students a thorough grounding in the major conceptual and methodological approaches to the study and analysis of contemporary cinema and television.  It also provides opportunities for closer study of specific examples of cinema and television derived from the research expertise, including new and recent research, of the programme’s teaching staff, all of whom are internationally recognised scholars. In conjunction with the department’s other Masters programmes, students will also engage with the importance of story telling as a common theme in film and television studies which will also provide a bridge to other interests and work going on in the department including theatre studies and production work across all three media and beyond.

Teaching staff on the programme include Professor Andrew Higson, Professor Duncan Petrie and Dr. Kristyn Gorton.

Aims

Aims

• To provide students with an understanding of key aesthetic, industrial, policy, cultural and technological  issues in contemporary cinema and television
• To familiarise students with some of the most influential theoretical and methodological approaches to the study of cinema and television.
• To enable students to appreciate the value of interdisciplinary inquiry and to enjoy studying film and television from a variety of perspectives.
• To provide students with the analytical skills necessary to carry out research into contemporary cinema and television.
• To acquaint students in detail with selected case studies drawn from recent film and television.
• To help develop in students the skills involved in marshalling and making balanced judgements about complex bodies of evidence.
• To develop students’ communication, comprehension and co-operative skills, together with their capacity for independent, analytical and critical thought.

Teaching and assessment

Course structure

Autumn Term	Spring Term
Researching Cinema and Television - Theory and Method  (20 credits)	Key Issues in Contemporary Cinema and Television (20 credits)
Optional Module (10 credits)	Optional module (10 credits)
Storytelling (Part 1) (10 credits)	Storytelling (Part 2) (10 credits)
Summer Term	Summer Vacation
Dissertation (100 credits)	Dissertation (Continued)

Core Modules

Researching Cinema and Television: Theory and Method    

This module will introduce and examine some of the key approaches to the study of cinema and television, including significant traditions in film and television theory, methods for analysing films and TV programmes, and research models appropriate for dealing with questions of history, the media economy, production and agency, and audiences and exhibition. It will also explore cinema and television in relation to a range of disciplinary contexts, including film and television studies, sociology, cultural studies and media studies, as well as considering some of the conceptual assumptions that inform analysis of cinema and television, including some of the tensions and overlaps between different theories and methods.

Key Issues in Contemporary Cinema and Television

This module will introduce and examine a range of key issues of relevance to contemporary cinema and television, primarily in the United Kingdom and North America. Particular attention will be paid to issues of convergence and overlap between cinema and television by considering shared issues concerning industrial, commercial, institutional, aesthetic, cultural and technological contexts and issues of specific relevance to each medium. The module will also examine ways in which contemporary issues of interest and concern are framed and articulated by the film and television industries and by critics and academics  

Storytelling in Theatre, Film and Television

This module is taken by all MA/MSc students in the department over two terms and offers a unique opportunity for students to enter into dialogue across the three media. It is designed to stimulate common enterprise and to establish an arena of intellectual discovery and artistic experiment. The module explores questions of storytelling relevant to all three disciplines and will focus on matters such as narrative representation, the role of sound and visual image, the relationship between text and image, differences in acting and directing techniques, and the impact of new technologies. There will be an emphasis on learning about how certain aspects of specific disciplines might complement and enrich our understanding of the others.

Optional Modules

Contemporary British Cinema

This module will provide an advanced introduction to debates about and developments in British cinema from the 1990s to the present. It will explore debates about the local, the national, the transnational and the global filmmaking in relation to British cinema; as well as considering the ways in which industrial developments, media convergence, funding circumstances and state policy and practice relate to British filmmaking. While providing an overview of contemporary British filmmaking, the module will also identify and develop case studies of key genres or production cycles; and consider questions of identity, representation and style in relation to British cinema.

Small National Cinemas: Institutions and Cultural Identities

This module will explore the cultural and industrial significance of cinema in small nations drawing on examples including Denmark, New Zealand and Scotland. Each case study will closely examine the organisation of the specific film industry in relation to political and institutional contexts and factors; paying particular attention to the role of government policy and support, the profile of particular film-makers and popular genres pertaining to certain small national cinemas, and the significance and relationship between cinema and questions of national identity in small nations. The differential impact of globalisation on small national cinemas in different regions of the world will also be considered.

Television Audiences: Meaning and Emotion

This module will introduce students to the study of television and more specifically, the significance of the television audience. In particular, the module will examine audiences in relation to feminist perspectives on the concept of emotion and affect and theoretical work on the concept of emotion and affect within film and television studies. It will also consider developments and key issues within the study of contemporary global television and fan cultures. A number of contemporary case studies on emotion and television drawn from British and US media contexts will also be included.

Careers

Employment prospects

The MA in Contemporary Cinema and Television will help orient graduates towards a wide range of careers in which a deep understanding of audio visual media – how they are organised and function as creative industries, as technologies, as aesthetic forms, as popular entertainment and as cultural expression – is a major advantage.

In addition to opportunities in the film and television industries, this also includes the fields of advertising, marketing, public relations, teaching and journalism. A prerequisite for further doctoral research in film and television, the skills offered by this degree will also prepare graduates for various kinds of research-based employment opportunities.

Related information

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