Course overview

This innovative course combines a range of film and media units focusing on various aspects of screen culture. It explores the dynamic relationship between film and television that exists on a number of levels: institutional, theoretical and textual. The programme of study roots this approach in an investigation of the histories of both media, with a comparative emphasis on British and American examples. As well as learning about the ways in which film and television have been studied, the course allows you to pursue practical routes in video production or media writing.

Film and television were the dominant international media of mass visual culture of the last century. People and society are continually influenced by the films they go to see and programmes they watch at home. The movie industry became not only a part of the lives of millions, but it also spawned creative innovation and cinema was established as an industrial and technological process in many countries.

Television, in comparison to film, has often been seen as the poorer relation in terms of cultural significance and quality, yet TV continues to influence the daily lives of the millions who watch it. Despite threats from new media and the internet to make film and television redundant forms of entertainment, movies and TV shows still dominate internet content. Without these two media forms the internet would arguably not hold the attention of the audiences it does.

In the twenty-first century film and television still hold sway in a range of global media leisure pursuits, enjoyed and celebrated in different kinds of spaces: in the cinema, at home on TV, video recording and DVD sales, and the internet. They remain popular forms of entertainment, yet also offer artistic and oppositional views of the world.

At Portsmouth you will study the history of film and television as mass entertainment. You will consider their creators and directors, their production regimes and audience markets. You will employ a range of critical approaches to reading film and television texts and debate the dynamic relationship between screen theory, video production and screenwriting as creative practices.

Course content

You will study an exciting range of units throughout your studies. Some are core units taken by everyone and some are specialised units chosen by you. You are encouraged to pursue practical pathways in either video production or media writing to complement your studies, culminating in a final-year project such as a written dissertation, a writing portfolio or a video project.

The first year of the course introduces you to the key critical concepts and a range of relevant approaches to screen studies. Years two and three allow you to choose from a range of optional units. Here is the course structure:

Year one

• Studying Film
• Spectacular Hollywood
• Audio Vision
• Media Writing: Critical Reviews and Features
• Screen Study Skills
• Advanced Media Research

Year two

• Critical Hollywood
• Screen Media
• Media Writing: Script/Press Portfolio or  Production Introduction: Script and Shooting
• Adaptations or World and Transnational Cinema
• Two options from:
  • Researching Genre
  • Media, Culture and National Identity
  • Documentary Screens
  • Media Networks: Exploring Digital Culture

Year three

• One of the following:
  • Dissertation
  • Media Writing Project
  • Practical Video Project
• Four options from:
  • Black American Film
  • British TV Drama and Society
  • Film Stardom and Celebrity Culture
  • Researching Animation
  • TV Talk Shows
  • Comedy Culture and Form
  • Film Journalism
  • Marketing Movies
  • Media Fan Cultures
  • News, War and Peace

Teaching and assessment

You will experience considerable intellectual freedom and choice. Specialist options are built into the programme to enable a great degree of freedom and personal exploration. In addition, the third-year dissertation (which is worth a third of the total mark during the final year) is based on a topic selected by you.

Our teaching approach involves lectures, seminars, tutorials and practical performance and workshop sessions. You will be expected to participate fully in stimulating group discussions and exciting group projects. You will also be encouraged to make effective use of information from a wide variety of sources, including books and journals, videos and DVDs, CD-ROMs and websites.

Assessment takes many forms. You can be assessed via an essay, a video production, a film script or a group presentation. You might also sit an exam, write a report or develop a research portfolio. Overall, we have sought to develop a range of assessments that allow you to demonstrate a range of skills and talents.

Career prospects

You will gain the academic, intellectual and research skills of numerous disciplines, which will enable you to become multiskilled in ways that employers are now demanding. This degree will also prepare you to apply for jobs in such areas as:

• publishing
• journalism
• film
• media production and management
• research
• script writing
• local and community broadcasting

You will also be able to further your studies with the undertaking of postgraduate study. It is an ideal pathway to the taught MA Film and Television Studies.

Facilities and features

As well as access to University-wide facilities, such as the award-winning Library and Students' Union, you will also enjoy subject-specific facilities. These include:

• theatres and rehearsal rooms
• music practice rooms
• television production and editing spaces
• cinema-style lecture theatres
• fully-equipped seminar and presentation rooms

The School is currently undergoing a multi-million pound building expansion programme, which includes plans to extend the New Theatre Royal. This will put us at the centre of the city's regeneration and make us a hub for the region's creative and cultural industries.

Entry requirements

View all the entry requirements for BA (Hons) Film and Television Studies for the academic year 2013/14 (opens in new window).