MA Film and Television Production

About the course

The MA Film and Television Production degree’s mission is to provide an environment for students to develop their vision and use their voice as a filmmaker. Through a culture of filmmaking practice, students will regularly undertake shoots in which they explore multiple styles of cinema and television drama and documentary. With a strong focus on feature film, high-end drama and feature documentary, students are challenged to produce creative ideas, scripts and shorts across each week. The course ensures students build their own filmmaker’s sketchbook of genres, skills, narratives and vision. In the final semester, students produce their own major film or TV production, or write a substantial screenplay (such as a feature length film script or a pilot episode and series outline for TV drama).

Why choose this course?

Across the course, students will gain and build on knowledge of production and post-production practice, and essential industry practices including finance, marketing and distribution. Our regular hosted sessions with industry professionals ensure students learn current industry practice and trends from the very best. We also work closely with key industry partners to enable students to connect directly with their future employers and mentors. Students undertake a programme of screenings, masterclasses and seminars, to extend their knowledge of film and television histories, genres, aesthetics and narrative processes and to develop a range of research and communication skills. Students are encouraged to develop the aesthetic and conceptual awareness required to analyse and critically situate their work within current theoretical, cultural and commercial contexts, whether as a director, producer or scriptwriter. The modules focus on script development, camerawork, lighting, sound recording, post production techniques, producership, funding, distribution and other relevant areas. You will benefit from the expertise and creative ideas of students working in specialised areas elsewhere in the School (e.g. Visual Effects, Special Effects, Animation or Music) whose input can enhance the professionalism of your major projects.

What will I study?

You are taught in an intensive mix of lectures, seminars, workshops, tutorials, masterclasses and industry guest sessions. Tutorial support is offered in small groups and one-to-one, with further support available online and by email. All students on the PG Media programme engage in an interdisciplinary project as a part of their MA study, giving them an opportunity to work with students from other disciplines in an experimental and creative way.

Careers

When you successfully complete your MA, you will have made a very substantial addition to your CV and have a clear understanding of the next steps in the development of your career.