Film is an important part of many people's lives. It has the power to inspire a range of responses from the emotional to the reflective as students are drawn into characters, their narratives and the issues films raise. Film Studies explores what many consider to be the major art form of the last century. Students will explore the ways in which meanings and responses are generated through film and how films reflect the social, political and cultural contexts in which they are made.
Students studying Film Studies are introduced to a wide variety of cinematic experiences through films which have been important in the development of film and film technology. Learners will develop their knowledge of US mainstream film by studying films from the 1950s through to the 1980s, looking at Hollywood's development. In addition, they will study more recent films - a US independent film as well as films from Europe, including the UK, South Africa and Australia. This will provide students with a contrasting, culturally diverse range of films from different national contexts.
Production is an important part of this specification. Studying a diverse range of films from several different contexts is designed to give learners the opportunity to apply their knowledge and understanding of how films are constructed to their own screenwriting and screenplays.
Film Studies is an ambitious, academic and challenging subject that will encourage students to see the world around them in a new way!