Film

What are today’s pressing research questions? What are current lines of inquiry in the discipline? What are film scholars working on right now? Although universities are devoted to the distribution of knowledge, they distinguish themselves crucially from other educational institutions: uniquely, they are also sites dedicated to the production of original knowledge. With access to the international expertise and cutting-edge research of the university’s film staff, you will engage in one specialist topic for the duration of the module. The specific topic of the module varies from year to year according to the convenor’s area of expertise. (For the year's specific topic, please get in touch with the module convenor.) By doing so, you will be able to critically engage in an active area of research and use this to reflect upon how new knowledge is created and how your own ideas can be contextualised within scholarly debates.

How do films communicate their ideas? How do they convey narratives and build story worlds? How have the various audio-visual components of film been deployed and conceptualised and what does this tell us about the history of the medium, present-day practices and the larger film industry? This module will train you to communicate confidently and professionally about film form, style, and technique in a variety of spoken, written, and audio-visual formats (e.g. presentations, writing, video-essays and/or podcasts). You will study the theoretical frameworks and specialised terminology which you need to produce accurate, coherent, and effective film analysis. You will also learn to reflect critically on filmmaking from a variety of modes, genres, historical periods and national traditions (including, where applicable, your own filmmaking).

Since the advent of recorded moving images as a potent sociocultural phenomenon and aesthetic form in the late nineteenth century, film and cinema have inspired a voluminous diversity of writing: utopian celebrations of a new art and leisure activity, fan mail to stars, jeremiads of impending moral doom, reviews and critiques, and, eventually, theoretical and empirical scholarship in the context of an academic discipline. This module makes this writing and thinking about film its central focus. By varying topics and emphases from year to year, in line with current public discussions and cutting-edge research, the course focuses on empowering you to be able to better read, understand, test, apply and interrogate complex conceptual thinking on film; to recognise the purposes and audiences of diverse forms of writing about film; to rigorously debate and formulate theoretical questions about film and media culture; and to bring these insights to bear on exemplary film screenings.

Film Studies, a relatively young academic discipline, traces its origins to both the humanities and social sciences. Although some of contemporary Film Studies derives from the literary traditions of genre, thematic or textual analysis, major swathes of the field are now delving into wider and often interdisciplinary investigations of aesthetic, technological, economic and/or social formations of cinema, film and wider media culture. This module acquaints you with a variety of sources, methods and methodologies currently used in film scholarship and how to talk about them in rigorous ways. It empowers you to read and understand how researchers in the discipline strategically use sources and methods to answer research questions and advance knowledge, and to be able to apply these insights in your own research and enquiry.

Where do innovative ideas come from and how are they translated into published works? You will engage with this question by turning attention to your own research and writing practice. How do you come up with a research question? How do you narrow down your sources and make the most of your reading time? How do you plan an advanced piece of writing? This module focuses on the skills of advanced research writing, providing you with the training needed to research, plan and communicate with confidence for an academic audience.

The module will trace the process through which research is consolidated and prepared for the academic essay, highlighting the importance of structure, signposting and clarity of expression.

This module is also research-led, meaning the topic through which such skills are developed will be chosen by the module convenor to reflect their own research interests. The module will therefore also engage directly with current, innovative research and allow you to gain an understanding of the discipline’s larger research community and activities.  

After taking this module you will be able to reflect on the connection between innovation and writing, and your own development as a researcher. You will refine and develop the skills of constructing a sophisticated argument which engages critically with appropriate scholarship and is clearly articulating an intervention.

What does it mean to decolonise the curriculum? This module answers this question and explores the history of world cinema with a focus on diverse film industries which may include South American, African, and Asian national cinemas. It aims at situating histories of cinema that do not originate from the West in the context of imperialism and colonialism and considers narratives that were long marginalised. As part of this module, a wide range of films is represented and used to reflect on wider historical perspectives and global frameworks. You will reflect on connections and cultural flows between national cinemas, the history of film and a global history built on the exchange of creatives, styles, and technologies across national borders. International events with an impact on multiple nations and continents are also explored in relation to film style and genres. By the end of the module, you will have honed your research skills and ability to reflect on, and write about, the industry as a global phenomenon.

Do you have a particular interest in a specific film, filmmaker, genre, or national cinema? Are you drawn to a particular area of theoretical enquiry? Did you find certain topics you studied  appealing and would you like to take them further?

Here, you will be able to choose your own topic, develop a question and methodology and conduct original research. You will be allocated a personal supervisor with suitable expertise who will guide you through this process, offering advice and guidance about how to conduct independent research. You will have the opportunity to deliver a presentation about the research project to your peers and ultimately will produce a piece of extended, original writing on a subject you are passionate about.

The module will thus give you first-hand experience of conducting independent research – a skill much sought after by employers. It will also allow you to develop an area of specialist expertise, which will really help you stand out.