BA (Hons) Media, Film and Television

Summary 2012/13

• Utilise some of the best technical facilities for film and TV production in the country;
• Discover film and TV within a broader media context;
• Learn from the experts and discuss your future with people from within the film and TV industry.

Contemporary television, video and film industries are experiencing technological and organisational change on an unprecedented scale. This programme responds to the changing needs of these industries by focusing not just on technical skills, but on the development of ideas, creativity, professional practice and an understanding of the industries. You will get the chance to put your learning into practice, build industry contacts and test your team working skills on a large-scale production project. The course also gives you a range of transferable skills, useful across all career areas.

2012 Entry Requirements

280 UCAS tariff points overall. The selection process normally includes an interview workshop.

Summary 2013/14

• Utilise some of the best technical facilities for film and TV production in the country;
• Discover film and TV within a broader media context;
• Learn from the experts and discuss your future with people from within the film and TV industry.

Contemporary television, video and film industries are experiencing technological and organisational change on an unprecedented scale. This programme responds to the changing needs of these industries by focusing not just on technical skills, but on the development of ideas, creativity, professional practice and an understanding of the industries. You will get the chance to put your learning into practice, build industry contacts and test your team working skills on a large-scale production project. The course also gives you a range of transferable skills, useful across all career areas.

2013 Entry Requirements

280 UCAS tariff points overall. The selection process normally includes an interview workshop.

Details

Who is this course for?

This programme is for anyone who wants a grounding in creative film and television production and a comprehensive understanding of the wider media context.

What will I study?

In Year 1 you will explore the relationship between media, culture and society. This will help you to put your studies into context and look at visual cultures, and will encourage you to think about, and critically examine, visual technologies and experiences. You will work on a range of single-camera and studio-based projects and learn a range of pre-production, production and post-production skills including storyboarding, scriptwriting, camera work, editing, sound recording and studio practices.

Year 2 builds your understanding of media theory through the study of narrative, genre and representation, developing practical skills through the making of a digital short and a documentary production. You will also study in detail the workings of contemporary media industries, including their economic, legislative and regulatory systems.

During Year 3 you will write a dissertation and conduct a large-scale moving image project (film or TV) within a small team, improving your communication and teamworking skills. You will also study contemporary media policy and practice, issues of identity in the media, and will explore fully the potential of new media.

How will I study?

Teaching and learning takes place predominantly through workshops, lectures, seminars and screenings. You will also have opportunities to work with visiting professionals from the film and television industries.

Who will be teaching me?

You will be taught by an experienced team with a wide range of interests reflecting all areas of media theory and practice. Team members are active in the research of contemporary developments in film and television and offer current or recent experience of working in industry.

How will I be assessed?

Assessment in the first year is to ensure you have reached a sufficient standard to continue on an honours degree. In Years 2 and 3 assessments contribute to your final degree classification. Assessment is by a mixture of coursework and examinations, either at the end of the module or distributed throughout the course. Coursework includes essays, case studies, individual and group presentations, practical projects and dissertation.

What are my career prospects?

Typical career paths include broadcasting, the cultural industries or academic research.

A Great Study Environment

Based in 160 acres of beautifully landscaped grounds, the Ormskirk Campus is a unique and inspirational place to study. Industry standard resources and cutting edge technology combine to make an interactive and highly advanced teaching and learning environment. Everything you could want is on one site with 25 acres of sport and leisure facilities, more than 1,400 rooms in halls of residence and fantastic modern spaces in which you can study and socialise.

The University library gives you access to thousands of books, journals, online resources and extensive PC and media provision. You'll get all the support you need to succeed, reflected in Edge Hill University being ranked in the top two in England for students' personal development, and the top three in the country for assessment and feedback, in the 2011 National Student Survey. The University is also featured in the top four in England for graduate employment.

The Media Department runs its own annual film festival, Tinnes, each year and Edge Hill also has its own student film review magazine, Iris, waiting for your contributions.

How do I apply?

Apply online through UCAS at www.ucas.ac.uk.

Visit www.edgehill.ac.uk/apply for more information on the application process and our Admissions criteria.

Fees and Finance

For academic year 2012/13, Edge Hill University will charge £9,000 for full-time BA, BSc and LLB degrees. Eligible students will not have to pay upfront for their tuition. The cost of tuition will be paid by a loan which you will only start to repay once you have finished the course and are earning over £21,000.

Eligible full-time students can also apply for a maintenance grant, subject to household income, and a non-means-tested loan to help with living costs.

Edge Hill University offers a range of scholarships for prospective full-time students. These include £2,000 Entrance Scholarships rewarding determination, commitment and achievement in creative arts, performing arts, sport and volunteering. Eligible entrants with outstanding grades are recognised through the £1,000 High Achievers Scholarship.

The University will also be offering awards, worth £3,000 in cash benefits and fee/accommodation waivers for academic year 2012/13, to eligible prospective full-time students through the National Scholarship Programme.

For more information on scholarships, including eligibility criteria for each award, visit www.edgehill.ac.uk/scholarships.

To find out more about fees, grants and loans for academic year 2012/13, visit www.edgehill.ac.uk/undergradfees2012.

Please note, the above information is for UK and eligible EU students only. International students should check the fees and finance information at www.edgehill.ac.uk/internationalfees2012.

Not got the entry requirements?

Students returning to education may present their previous experience in work (paid or unpaid) to support their application.

Students with relevant study through either a professional body or appropriate academic course can apply to join the programme at an advanced stage.

For personalised advice based on your circumstances, please contact us or come to an event.

Where can I find out more?

If you would like to receive a copy of our prospectus or be kept updated about forthcoming events, contact the Course Information, Advice and Guidance Team by emailing study@edgehill.ac.uk or calling 01695 657000.

If you want to attend one of our open events held throughout the year, visit www.edgehill.ac.uk/opendays to book your place.

You will also find Edge Hill University staff at many national careers fairs and UCAS events.

Still want more?

If you have any questions you would like to ask the programme leader about this course, please contact:

• Dr Mark Fremaux, Media Department, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Edge Hill University, St Helens Road, Ormskirk, Lancashire, L39 4QP
• Tel: 01695 584023
• Email: fremauxm@edgehill.ac.uk

Overseas students should visit www.edgehill.ac.uk/international or email international@edgehill.ac.uk for further information.

Modules

Year 1

MED 1204 Understanding Visual Cultures introduces you to ways in which you can think about, and thus critically examine, the visual and visualisation. Engaging with a variety of theoretical approaches, you will be offered opportunities to actively engage with visual technologies and experiences and to apply and problematise critical approaches through reflection upon your experiences.

MED 1207 Media and Society offers you opportunities to interrogate the complexity of interaction between media and society. Introducing 'media-worlds', the module encourages you to critically examine the connections between the media and social experience. You will be encouraged to bring your own personal experiences to discussions and equip yourself with the critical and analytical tools required to position and understand these perspectives.

MED 1208 Moving Image Production introduces moving image production practices including the origination, development and refinement of ideas, the stages of pre-production, production and post-production and the basics of camera operation, lighting and editing. You will also be acquainted with the issues of resource and budgetary constraints and a range of creative, commercial and industrial contexts within which production may take place.

MED 1040 Digital Photography covers various genres within photography such as landscape, portrait, architecture, pictorial and other areas. Each session will typically consist of a lecture, workshop and a tutorial / seminar. You will consider composition, framing, colour and editing. All work will be undertaken using digital technology and basic training in the use of cameras and Photoshop will be provided.

MED 1200 Scriptwriting introduces you to the theory and craft of scriptwriting. This includes consideration of story, narrative, structure, character, setting, and dialogue. You will also engage in research and development and practice the process of rewriting and layering in order to adhere to established industry conventions of format and presentation. There is the opportunity to demonstrate your creative potential through the development of and reflection on your ideas and scripts.

MED 1202 Sound for Picture considers the theory and practice associated with film sound, and particularly post-production sound design. You will be subject to both relevant theory and the technology necessary for successful capture of audio suitable for film. The module will be assessed by two pieces of interrelated coursework. You will record all of the sound for a short digital movie, using only one microphone and a digital recorder, and have the opportunity to explore the perceptual properties of sound and manipulate it for dramatic effect with industry standard software. Keeping a production diary will reflect your knowledge and comprehension of the subject as gained over the duration of the module.

Year 2

MED 2215 Analysing Audiences aims to provide you with a range of approaches to the understanding of audiences and methods of researching and theorising those audiences. You will experience a range of texts in a variety of media. Consideration will be given to the role of the media producer in audience creation and evolution, including the role of new media and new technology in the creation of contemporary audience practices.

MED 2217 Fact to Fiction engages with key ideas regarding film and television in relation to the factual and fictional representation of the world. It emphasises that fact and fiction are part of a scale of representations which include documentary formats, reality television, drama documentaries, dramatisations of factual content, and fiction films and television drama. It examines the impact of new technologies on how ‘the real’ is constructed and highlights changes to the concept of ‘witness’ (Ellis 2000) due to an increase in mobile recording technologies.

MED 2214 Media Genres and Narrative. Theory genre plays an important role in the study of film, television and other media forms. It has long been recognised that output in these fields can be grouped into categories, and that each category or class is marked by a particular set of conventions, features and norms. However, genre is more than simply a form of classification - it is not a neutral category but rather an ideological construct that needs to be situated within larger systems of power. Similarly, narrative - another key function across a range of media - is not natural or universal but it has to be historically and culturally positioned. In this module, we will investigate - through a variety of topical examples - how genres are formed and reworked and how narratives are constructed within the complex interrelations among texts, industries, audiences and historical contexts.

MED 2227 Spectacles, Bodies and Other Pleasures: Concepts in Television, Animation and Film develops the work undertaken in the ‘Understanding Visual Cultures’ module by offering a range of approaches to the analysis of media. Th focus here is on contemporary media theories, which will inevitably change as time progresses but currently revolve around issues of spectacle, viewing film and television, the spectacle of new technologies, convergence, aesthetics and viewing pleasures.

FLM 2023 Film Authorship conducts an in-depth consideration of a range of authorship approaches to cinema. It familiarises you with the values and flaws of such approaches as the ‘auteur theory’ from Andrew Sarris and the debates of the Cahiers du cinema critics by applying them to the films of specific directors. At least two core studies of directors will be conducted, providing you with detailed knowledge of at least two oeuvres.

FLM 2027 Censorship and the Cinema introduces you to the concept of film regulation and censorship, its history in Anglo-American cinema, the theoretical debates surrounding the subject, and several key films that have been contested throughout motion picture history as relevant case studies. In this way, it provides you with historical, contextual, academic and theoretical knowledge which will inform your own opinions and attitudes towards censorship.

BMS 2027 Graduate Enterprise is a context for the development of a range of specific business knowledge and skills, together with the improved self-awareness and personal development appropriate to graduate careers in business with the potential for management positions. This includes the encouragement of positive and critical attitudes towards change and enterprise, so as to reflect the dynamism and vibrancy of the business environment.

MED 2222 Crisis Management looks at a number of theoretical models relating to how crises develop, to the analysis of crisis situations and to the management of crisis. It focuses on reputation management and related concepts of organisational image and identity. The module includes analysis of past examples of crisis management and workshops simulating reactions to hypothetical crisis scenarios.

CIS 2105 Usable Hypermedia has been devised in response to the rapidly changing nature of the web. It is a synthesis of the traditional fields of hypermedia and usability. The module focuses on the structuring, organising, labelling, and managing of hypermedia content, where information architecture and information management remain particularly significant. The module embraces established methods and skills, which can be employed, systematically, to inform a high degree of functionality in the design of navigation for Web content.

MUS 2004 Music and Media develops year 1 considerations of the mediation of popular music by offering a detailed analysis of the key media influences that are involved in the industrial activities of the music industry. Key areas will include music press, music television, radio, advertising, fanzine culture, user generated content (Web 2.0) and the impact of digital media.

MED2205 Documentary offers you the opportunity to research, develop and produce a short documentary film for submission to a festival or competition or for exhibition over an alternative platform. The overarching theme of this module is the development of students’ understanding of creativity and the creative processes in relation to documentary production.

MED 2209 Digital Shorts is designed to give you the opportunity to make your own short film for submission to a festival or competition or for exhibition over an alternative platform. The overarching theme of this module is the development of your understanding of creativity and the creative processes in relation to film production.

Year 3

MED 3204 Media Policy and Political Communication provides a critical excursion into the role of media within modern democratic politics, providing you with a good grounding of political theory and also covering the role of power and counter-power at national, European and global levels, the communication strategies deployed by political actors, and the outcomes of the consultation and decision-making processes in the creative industries. The module critically assesses the shift from national to transnational level in media policy making, in direct relationship with the development of media and communication technologies, and investigates the delicate balance between consumer autonomy and corporate interests.

MED 3205 Identities and Creative Citizenship. How are identities formed? To what extent can we shape our identities? What is the relationship between public / national identity and private / personal identity? How do changes in social, cultural and political life affect contemporary constructions of identity and citizenship? What effect does cultural and media production have on conceptions of identity? These are some of the questions that you will have the opportunity to explore on this module. Drawing on a range of theoretical approaches to identities and citizenship, we will investigate the formation, representation and production of identity in relation to issues such as gender, class, ethnicity, sexuality, nationality and politics.

MED 3206 (Post)feminist Media Culture Postfeminism is a concept fraught with contradictions. Loathed by some and celebrated by others, it has emerged in the late twentieth century in a number of media and cultural contexts. This module will introduce you to a range of postfeminist interpretations - from anti-feminist backlash to ‘raunch culture’ and cyber-postfeminism - and its filmic and televisual manifestations. Each week we will investigate and critically interrogate a different postfeminist strand and examine its historical, cultural and ideological underpinnings in order to develop an understanding of postfeminism as a contemporary ‘frontier discourse’ that defies the logic of non-contradiction.

MED 3207 Global Convergence: Film and Television Drama in the 21st Century rehearses some key developments in media in relation to film and television fictions. In particular, it examines how new developments in media - and in particular convergence technologies, multi-platform environments, new distribution technologies and aspects of global / glocalisation - impact on film and television drama. This necessitates a good knowledge of fictional forms in film and television, which the module will also discuss. You will have a chance to consider how your own productions need to reflect these new environments and how this impacts on the design and production of content, the planning of marketing strategies, the relevance of global and diasporic audiences, and the way serial forms in particular can communicate and engage with their audiences.

MED 3208 Media Futures allows you to study contemporary media practices, the impact of technology on creative industries, developments in global and local media, and changing paradigms of media production and audience consumption. It is essential for you to be able to demonstrate to employers that they understand contemporary working practices and have an awareness of future developments. This module engages you with the dominant themes which are present within media and culture industries. It is designed to be flexible in order to accommodate contemporary developments.

MUS 3001 Music Ethnographies. You will undertake a detailed ethnographic research project during which time you will observe the performance practices of a particular musician / group, or how music fans interact with a particular music interest.

MED 3203 Showreel is focused on the production of an industry standard showreel which provides you with the opportunity to present your best work in formats suitable for potential employers to judge.

MED 3209 Independent Production. During the module, you will develop advanced production and post production skills contextualised within theoretical frameworks. Emphasising the importance of developing as critically informed practitioners, the module will encourage you to analyse and interrogate relationships between product, practice and audience and apply this understanding to your own productions.