Masters Degrees (Film Curating)

This interdisciplinary programme is taught by staff from a wide range of departments at UCL, all international experts in the field of film studies. Linguistic and cultural expertise informs our teaching on the film-making traditions of Europe, the Americas, the Middle East, Asia and Southeast Asia.

Degree information

The programme covers the history of cinema and a wide variety of world cinemas. It is designed to provide students with advanced knowledge of both the history of cinema and its contemporary developments, and with the skills, concepts, methods and theories required for the study of cinema and media at graduate level.

Students undertake modules to the value of 180 credits.

The programme consists of one core module (30 credits), three options (90 credits), a dissertation (60 credits) and a research methodology module (not credit bearing).

Core modules
-Moving Images: Technology, Forms, Receptions
-Reading and Research Films

Optional modules
-Ancient Rome on Film
-Film Exhibition
-Genre in Italian Cinema
-Hollywood Genres
-How to Make an 8-Minute Documentary
-New Argentine Cinema
-Nordic Cinema: Contextualising Dreyer, Bergman and Dogme
-Political Cinema
-Russian Cinema: Epochs and Genres
-Spanish Film
-The French New Wave
-The Idea of Documentary
-Theories and Practices of Film
-Global Cinemas
-Digital Media
-East and South Asian Cinemas

Dissertation/report
All MA students undertake an independent research project which culminates in a dissertation of 12,000 words.

Teaching and learning
The programme is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, tutorials, and film and video screenings. The core courses are assessed by essays and examinations, which together count for 20% of the final mark. Optional courses are assessed by essays (40%), and the dissertation makes up the final 40%.

Careers

Graduates from the MA in Film Studies have pursued various careers, including: academic research and teaching; careers within media arts (writing, directing, editing); print and media journalism; arts and museum management; multimedia authoring and digital design; film preservation and curating.

Top career destinations for this degree:
-Lecturer, SOAS, University of London
-Communication Officer, Camera Lucida Productions
-Head of Development, Clcada Bellweather (CB Productions)
-Media and Film Studies Lecturer, City and Islington College
-Programme Assistant, ICA (Institute of Contemporary Arts)

Employability
Former students of this programme have gone on to careers in education and publishing and a wide variety of careers in the media arts, including film production, festival programming, and film curation with organisations that include the BBC, the Barbican Centre, the Athens International Film Festival, and the London Film School.

Why study this degree at UCL?

Each year, we welcome students from all over the world to our Film Studies MA. Under the aegis of UCL's Centre for Multidisciplinary and Intercultural Inquiry (CMII), students spend a year amongst a thriving, cross-disciplinary community of cinema scholars and research students.

We have particular research strengths in film history, film theory, and in an exceptionally broad range of national and regional cinemas.

UCL has made a major commitment to refurbishing its multimedia infrastructure for the study of film and related media. This includes building a significant collection of print and visual materials and new facilities for teaching and for film and media screenings.

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Film Studies

Since 1984, UBC’s Department of Theatre and Film has granted MA degrees in Film Studies. The MA is a two year program with thesis. We’re looking for recent and upcoming graduates of undergraduate film and media studies programs.

Moving pictures dominate today’s world. Whether accessed via the internet, home media systems, or the traditional theatre, the reach of the moving picture industry is truly global, and its impacts are felt on every level: locally, nationally, and internationally. The study of moving images provides a major way of thinking about our approach to reality. In this context, it is essential to analyze film forms, theories, aesthetics, receptions, and policies and to thoroughly understand cinema in relation to history and culture.

In our BA in Film Studies and MA in Film Studies programs, our mission is to educate students in the diversity of cinematic practices, and in their historical and contemporary formats. We aim to provide a supportive environment in which students can discuss the role that moving pictures play in various societies, and how they mediate our perceptions of the world. Our aim is to teach students in a liberal arts context that will help to prepare them for a wide range of careers, including teaching, curating, policy-making, programming and distribution, preservation, filmmaking, writing, consulting, and arts administration.

UBC Vancouver is a remarkable place to study film. In addition to the resources of the university, we benefit from the fact that the Vancouver region has the largest film industry activity in Canada, popularly known as “Hollywood North”. The city also hosts several high-profile festivals and dedicated institutions that program independent international and Canadian cinema.

The Film Studies Faculty members are renowned experts in the various specialties of film studies. They are actively engaged in researching and publishing on cinema in its diverse forms. They chair academic conferences, and they maintain a public profile as intellectuals concerned with the heritage and future of moving pictures. Their dedication provides a stimulating intellectual environment for students.

The Film Studies faculty founded and operates The Centre for Cinema Studies at UBC, which aims to advance the scholarly study of film and film culture. Graduate students in the MA in Film Studies Program edit and publish a freeʪournal of film studies, entitled Cinephile. Our Visual Resources Centre houses over 5,000 film titles in various formats, and is an essential research resource for students and faculty.

Quick Facts

- Degree: Master of Arts
- Specialization: Film Studies
- Subject: Creative and Performing Arts
- Mode of delivery: On campus
- Program components: Coursework + Thesis required
- Faculty: Faculty of Arts

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Our innovative MA in Film and Television builds on its prestigious heritage as the longest running degree programme of its kind in the UK. We aim to equip you with wide-ranging skills, knowledge and critical awareness to meet your career aspirations in sectors in which moving images play a central role. Our curriculum incorporates an exciting variety of learning and teaching activities designed to foster your capacity for researching and rigorously analysing different aspects of film, television and moving images. You will have the opportunity to develop key skills for communicating about and with moving images across a range of contexts and platforms. You can choose to have a broad-based learning experience in film, television and moving image, or you can specialise in moving image curation and screenwriting via our suggested pathways.

The core teaching team consists of members of the University’s Westminster School of Media, Arts and Design. The course has close links with the Centre for Research and Education in Arts and Media (CREAM), the leading research centre in the UK for arts and design, whose members include internationally renowned filmmakers, film and television theorists and historians, and moving image artists and curators. We combine research-enhanced teaching with classes delivered by film and television industry and moving image art professionals, in order to make sure that you develop skill sets and the full range of critical awareness that are in demand and to deliver an exciting learning experience for you.

Course content

The course combines core and optional taught modules. The design and delivery of our taught modules draw on CREAM’s research excellence in documentary, Asian and European cinema, moving image curation, and television history. The coursework requirements for some modules are research essays or a combination of research essays and research-informed blog posts and presentations. Other modules require a broad range of research-informed professional modes of writing such as a screenplay treatment, a curatorial proposal or an exhibition review. You will also undertake a substantial piece of independent research as a major part of your MA studies. In order to provide you with the flexibility to undertake a piece of independent research suited to your career aspiration, the final project module offers you the choice between writing a traditional dissertation or completing a theoretically-informed professional project such as a curating a film programme, writing and producing a series of themed blog posts, or writing a long-form screenplay.

Modules

The following modules are indicative of what you will study on this course.

The course is taught in two modes: full-time and part-time. Full-time Postgraduate students study 180 credits per year. For the award of MA in Film and Television: Theory, Culture and Industry, you must complete two core taught modules, four optional modules and a 60-credit final project module, for a total of 180 credits. Core modules provide you with a set of key skills for the theoretical, critical and reflective understanding of moving images. Optional modules give you the freedom to choose areas of specialisation. The course leaders can advise on which modules best fit your interests. You have the choice to pursue specialised interests through your choice of optional modules and coursework assignments. If you are not sure which optional modules to choose or fit your interests best, or which types of final project work to produce to best develop your area of specialisation, you should discuss this question individually with the course leaders and you should aim to do so early on in the academic year.

The course structure includes two suggested pathways for those wishing to specialise in film programming and moving image curation, or in screenwriting.

You will be able to choose among the following modules:
-Cinema Distribution and Exhibition (option)
-Contemporary Issues in Moving Image and Screen Studies (core)
-Documentary Aesthetics, Sites and Spectatorship (option)
-Film Programming and Moving Image Curation (option)
-Final Project (core)
-Key Concepts in Film, Television and Moving Image (core)
-Introduction to Scriptwriting (option)
-Longform Screenplay Preparation and Short Documents (option)
-Modern and Contemporary European Cinema (option)
-Researching Histories in Asian Cinema (option)
-Television Art: Aesthetics and Quality (option)

Associated careers

Our graduates have found employment in small- and large-scale film and television companies as filmmakers, producers, distributors, and exhibitors. Others have gone on to organise film festivals, or to work in film-related magazines and journals as well as in international arts and culture sectors. Some of our recent graduates have gone on to pursue academic careers as researchers or doctoral students at the University of Westminster and elsewhere. As the UK’s longest-running postgraduate programme in film and television several of our alumni are pioneers of the discipline of film and television studies.

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Sunderland's MA Curating is one of the few courses in the UK to specialise in curating across art, design, media and culture and has a unique delivery system which aims to fit the needs of national and international working arts professionals, as well as full-time international students.

Course overview

This course is for people who want to work either in the traditional areas of curating fine art and cultural artefacts or in emerging areas such as curating digital art, media or live art. We will equip you for careers in the gallery, non-gallery and digital sectors.

By the end of the course, you will have advanced skills in collecting, organising, interpreting and exhibiting cultural items. You will also have expertise in effective teamwork and collaboration with artists and practitioners. All this will be grounded in a rigorous understanding of the historical contexts of curating, arts administration and museums.

The course features three week-long blocks of intensive delivery in October, February and June, plus weekly online contact, meaning national and European candidates can fit attendance and travel around work or family commitments, whilst regular online contact supports the completion of assignments. The course is also a full-time MA for international students, who will attend both intensive blocks and weekly contact onsite. The second intensive block will take place in London in February, accessing key curators and institutions during visits to organisations including Tate, V&A, and Wellcome Collection.

This block is also available as a professional development short course, building on a history of masterclasses including in New York and the UK. With accreditation of prior learning, this 60-credit block can also be taken as an accredited qualification leading to a Postgraduate Diploma.

Graduates from Sunderland can be found in curatorial and academic roles across the world, in cities such as New York, Stuttgart, Vancouver and London. Our graduates are also employed here in the North East by galleries and archival services.

You will be taught by academic staff with research interests that range across art, design, media and culture, with particular specialisms in public art, performance art, and new media art. We provide a well-regarded resource for curators and exhibitors of new media art, known as Curatorial Research for Upstart Media Bliss (CRUMB).

For a specialist web pages about the course and the activities of students, please see: http://www.macurating.net

Course content

The content of the course is shaped by your personal interests with guidance and inspiration from Sunderland's supportive tutors.

Modules on this course include:
Curating 1 – Certificate (60 Credits)
-Genealogies of Curating
-Mechanics of Curating

Curating 2 – Postgraduate Diploma (60 Credits)
-Contexts of Curating
-Visions of Curating

Curating 3 – Masters Degree (60 Credits)
-Curatorial Practice
-Major Project and Report

Teaching and assessment

Compared to an undergraduate course, you will find that this Masters requires a higher level of independent working.

We use a wide variety of teaching and learning methods which include lectures, seminars, study visits and group work. These are supported by a range of guest speakers from diverse academic and industry backgrounds. You will also have high levels of contact with tutors who give regular feedback and support.

Field trips and practical workshops are important elements of the course, giving you direct contact with curators. Host organisations have included the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art, Workplace Gallery, the Northern Gallery of Contemporary Art, the National Glass Centre and Shipley Art Gallery.

Facilities & location

The University has invested in modern facilities that include generous studio spaces and state-of-the-art teaching space and resources as part of a vibrant and outward-looking learning environment.

Arts and Design Library
Our Arts and Design Library has a specialist collection of over 120,000 books, CD-ROMs, videos, slides and one of the largest electronic information networks in the sector.

Journals and research
We subscribe to a comprehensive range of print and electronic journals so you can access the most reliable and up-to-date articles. Some of the most important sources include:
-Art Full Text + Art Abstracts, which is a major resource for media and arts information
-Design and Applied Arts Index, which covers journals featuring both new designers and the development of design and the applied arts since the mid-19th century
-British Universities Film and Video Council (BUFVC), which provides resources for the production, study and use of film and related media
-JSTOR (short for ‘Journal Storage’), which provides access to important journals across the humanities, social sciences and sciences

Employment & careers

Postgraduates are highly employable and, on average, earn more than individuals whose highest qualification is an undergraduate degree. On completing this course, you will be equipped for roles throughout the creative industries.

Specific opportunities include working in curatorial institutions and event management. Recent Sunderland graduates are now working in institutions such as the BALTIC, the Arnolfini (Bristol), Klomp Ching Gallery (New York), Banff Centre (Canada), Shipley Art Gallery and Tyne & Wear Archives and Museums.

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This well-connected degree is for those wishing to explore curating and develop curatorial skills in one or more of the following areas: fine art, digital media, film, festivals and social history.

Key benefits

You will work at least one day a week with your partner institution to gain experience in a real curatorial setting and develop skills required by industry.

Course detail

You will study alongside an intentionally small and supportive group of students with backgrounds in areas including fine art, sculpture, art history, architecture, 3D design, film studies and history, sharing practice and ideas and providing opportunities to work creatively and collaboratively on group projects.

You will benefit from unique and professional mentoring from a curator in one of our partner museums, galleries or other cultural spaces for the duration of the course, culminating in the delivery of a real-world curatorial project. Our partners are renowned creative and cultural organisations: Arnolfini, Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, Encounters Film Festival, M-Shed, Royal West of England Academy, Situations, Spike Island, Watershed, National Museum of Wales, Cardiff and ss Great Britain. A mentor is allocated based on your skills, interests and career aspirations and brings current industry insight and valuable support and guidance.

Through the final live project with your partner institution, you will gain interesting and relevant curatorial experience, sourcing venues, developing audiences, planning, programming and project management whilst developing key contacts.

Structure

The full masters course comprises 180 credits divided into three 60 credits stages: Postgraduate Certificate, Postgraduate Diploma, and Masters. Students work incrementally through the three stages and must pass all modules at each stage in order to progress to the next.

The course is made up of five modules taught over three semesters (January - December).

Modules

• Curatorial Histories
• Developing Practice and Audiences
• Professional Practice: Curating
• Curating and Project Management
• Final Project: Curating (MA) or Final Project: Curating (MFA)

Format

You are taught through a series of lectures, seminars, practical workshops, master classes and projects. Guest speakers and study visits enhance learning and provide valuable industry insight.

Assessment

You will be assessed through a combination of practical and written work at the end of each module.

Careers / Further study

MA Curating graduates have gone on to work in a range of professions in areas of social history, fine art, museum curating and film programming in various arts, culture and heritage-related organisations. There are also curating and programming opportunities at film festivals both nationally and internationally and options to teach or progress to further PhD study.

How to apply

Information on applications can be found at the following link: http://www1.uwe.ac.uk/study/applyingtouwebristol/postgraduateapplications.aspx

Funding

- New Postgraduate Master's loans for 2016/17 academic year –

The government are introducing a master’s loan scheme, whereby master’s students under 60 can access a loan of up to £10,000 as a contribution towards the cost of their study. This is part of the government’s long-term commitment to enhance support for postgraduate study.

Scholarships and other sources of funding are also available.

More information can be found here: http://www1.uwe.ac.uk/students/feesandfunding/fundingandscholarships/postgraduatefunding.aspx

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This programme, delivered by School of Arts and specialist visiting lecturers, develops your skills and provides experience relevant to a career in curating.

Based at the School of Arts Studio 3 Gallery, you are involved in all aspects of the running of the Gallery. You work closely with partner organisations such as Canterbury museums and the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA).

You have the opportunity to develop your own project, working within the Gallery’s exhibition programme.

Visit the website https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/96/curating

About the Department of History & Philosophy of Art

The History & Philosophy of Art Department within the School of Arts, provides opportunities for graduate study with well-established researchers in the fields of art history, philosophy of art and aesthetics. Staff research covers contemporary art and aesthetics, modernism, theories of art, the historiography of art and the Cold War; biographical monographs, the photograph (in its historical, contemporary and critical contexts), and the historical interplay of image, theory and institutions from the Renaissance to the present (especially European and North American).

Developing areas of interest include the cultural and historical significance of the print, and the role of performance and new media in contemporary art practices, which draw upon our links with other subjects within the School of Arts and the Faculty of Humanities. In particular, postgraduates have the opportunity to participate in the activities of the multidisciplinary Aesthetics Research Centre and the Art History and Visual Cultures Research Centre. There is also a full programme of visiting speakers from across the constituent subject areas within the School of Arts, which includes Film and Drama.

Course structure

Compulsory modules provide an overview of the history of collecting and exhibitions through a series of case studies, taking advantage of our proximity to major London collections. We also cover theoretical issues relating to curating and museology.

Optional modules focus on providing practice-based opportunities for developing curatorial skills.

Modules

The following modules are indicative of those offered on this programme. This list is based on the current curriculum and may change year to year in response to new curriculum developments and innovation. Most programmes will require you to study a combination of compulsory and optional modules. You may also have the option to take modules from other programmes so that you may customise your programme and explore other subject areas that interest you.

HA826 - History and Theory of Curating (30 credits)
HA827 - Curatorial Internship (60 credits)

Assessment

Assessment is through a combination of coursework essays, critical logbooks and practice-based exercises. A long dissertation is required for the Exhibition Development and Design module.

[[Programme aims
This programme aims to:

- create and interpret knowledge at the forefront of the discipline through the development of critical, conceptual and practical abilities

- develop a self-directed programme of practice and related research

- contextualise and theorise practice in relation to, and through critical evaluation of, the work of contemporary practitioners and leading researchers within the discipline

- develop a comprehensive understanding of methodologies applicable to independent research

- develop autonomy in practice work within a context that fosters collaborative learning

- sustain an advanced practice that encompasses the disciplines of writing, discussion and producing practice-based outcomes

- achieve high-level skills and competencies as a preparation for professional practice and further development in the field of curating

- embed your research within the context of the University and utilise the resources offered in the research environment such as staff expertise, symposia and colloquia

- develop public outcomes outside the University in a range of formats

- attract students from a diversity of arts contexts and contexts that inform artistic practice, including fine art, history of art, sociology, journalism, English literature, film studies architecture and philosophy

- attract intellectually able and talented students who are enquiring, open to experimentation, discussion and collaboration as well able to work independently

- provide a forward-thinking, dynamic learning environment that responds to the current climate of debate and production in the arts.

- forge an international identity within the field of study through developing partnerships with international universities and non-HEIs

- support specialism and progression by allowing students to opt for specific routes of study that include curating, art history, cultural history, arts management, conservation or museum studies.

Research areas

The Department has a collective interest in developing interdisciplinary projects, including projects informed by art history and philosophy of art or aesthetics. Shared areas of research interest include: photography, art theory from the Renaissance to recent times and contemporary art.

Careers

Arts postgraduates have gone on to work in a range of professions, from museum positions and teaching roles to marketing and gallery assistants. Our graduates have found work with Tate Britain, the V&A, Museum of Childhood and other arts, culture and heritage-related organisations.

Find out how to apply here - https://www.kent.ac.uk/courses/postgraduate/apply/

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Our MA Curating offers a practical and theoretical training in devising and curating exhibitions, as you work towards the preparation of an exhibition at our on-site Art Exchange gallery.

Our course combines practice, theory and histories of curating in equal measure. You will develop an essential base skills for a successful exhibition – from object handling to managing exhibition budgets – through visiting lectures by active museum professionals; practical workshops using our on-site collection and galleries; and competitive placements at leading institutions.

You will build your own confident grasp of the history and theory of exhibition-making, studying with academics who besides being active curators are producing new key texts on the curatorial history and theory. You study topics including:
-How an exhibition can be used as a means of social or political critique
-The historical role that museums have played in society
-Participation and social engagement between spectators, artists and curators
-A choice of history of art options

One of the major reasons for choosing Essex is the quality of the education you will receive. Our Art History programme is 6th in the UK for research excellence, with 89% of our work rated “world-leading” or “internationally excellent” (REF 2014), and we achieved an exceptional 95% student satisfaction in the 2016 National Student Survey.

Our expert staff

Our staff consists of a dynamic group of art historians. While our research interests span a range of cultures and media, from the early modern to the present, core specialties include exhibition design, modern and contemporary art, public engagement and activism.

Here are a few examples of recent or current projects by staff members:
-Dr Gavin Grindon, Lecturer in Art History and co-director of our Centre for Curatorial Studies, recently co-curated the Disobedient Objects exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, one of the best attended shows in the museum’s history. He has also widely published on activist art in leading journals such as Art History.
-Dr Adrian Locke, a Visiting Fellow in Art History and Senior Curator at the Royal Academy of Arts, London, has curated a diverse range of exhibitions, including Mexico: A Revolution in Art, 1910–1940 (2013) and Radical Geometry: Modern Art of South American from the Patricia Phelps de Cisneros Collection (2014). He also co-curated the exhibition Ai Weiwei, which opens at the Royal Academy in September 2015.
-Dr Matt Lodder, Lecturer in Art History with an emphasis on modern and contemporary visual culture, is co-curating the exhibition Tattoo: Ancient Myths, Modern Meanings, which opens next year in the U.S.
-Dr Michael Tymkiw, co-director of the Centre for Curatorial Studies, has a book under contract entitled Nazi Exhibition Design and Modernism. He has also just launched an interdisciplinary research project that focuses on using digital technologies to expand disability access in museums—a project that involves collaborations with several museums in Colchester and London including firstsite and the Victoria and Albert Museum.

Specialist facilities

At Essex, you have the best of both worlds: on the one hand, you are part of a tight-knit, campus community with close ties to several small but excellent museums in the nearby town of Colchester; on the other hand, you can travel from campus to London in an hour, which puts the world’s best museums and galleries at your fingertips.

Our facilities enable you to gain curatorial experience and engage in object-based learning, a cornerstone of our approach when teaching the history of art and its modes of display:
-Our Essex Collection of Art from Latin America (ESCALA) is the most comprehensive Latin American art research resource in the UK and has a state-of-the-art teaching and research space. Many of our students gain work and research experience through our collection
-Our onsite gallery Art Exchange runs an ongoing programme of contemporary art exhibitions, talks and workshops by curators and artists, as well as exhibitions organised by our postgraduate curatorial students
-Colchester’s iconic Firstsite gallery features an exciting programme of contemporary art exhibitions, film screenings and talks, and exhibitions organised by our curatorial students
-Our Centre for Curatorial Studies is home to staff who specialise in the history of exhibition design and curate high-profile exhibitions

Your future

The visual arts and culture industries have become an increasingly significant part of the national and international economy, and our art history graduates leave Essex with the skills to take advantage of this growing opportunity.

Graduates from our programmes are ideally prepared for roles in the media, in advertising, in museums and galleries, in education (in schools, universities, and cultural institutions), as conservators, as auctioneers, dealers and antiques specialists, in charities, in publishing, as specialist arts lawyers, as PR agents, in fashion, or to run their own galleries.

Our recent graduates have gone on to work for a wide range of high-profile companies including:
-National Portrait Gallery
-Victoria and Albert Museum
-Sotheby’s New York
-Momart Ltd
-John Lewis

We also offer research supervision for PhD and MPhil for those who want to continue with research. We cover the major areas of European art and architecture from 1300 to the present, as well as the art and architecture of Latin America and the United States.

We work with our university’s Employability and Careers Centre to help you find out about further work experience, internships, placements, and voluntary opportunities.

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The Sydney Master of Art Curatorship provides candidates with a sophisticated awareness of the full range of cultural, theoretical, social, political and economic issues underlying the art gallery and museum system.

A highly valued aspect of the course is the project-based internships supervised by industry professionals in local, national and international visual arts organisations which provide invaluable workplace experience, training and networking opportunities.

The Master of Art Curating is designed and taught collaboratively by the Department of Art History and Film Studies and Sydney College of the Arts. The course emphasises the skills required for curating in a variety of contemporary contexts.

The program will provide students with a rich combination of academic core skills, art-historical and art-critical knowledge and community-engaged experience, creating pathways to careers and professional development in art institutions of all types. Graduates will possess a strong foundation in the history of art museums and their cultural impact, and an awareness of the changing nature and role of curators in society and the current challenges they face.

The program provides critical insight into and practical knowledge of both traditional institutions, such as museums and galleries, and the expanding field of contemporary curating and its wide range of non‑traditional exhibition spaces. These include artist-run and community art spaces, public art projects, festivals and commercial spaces.

Graduates will develop specialist knowledge and understanding of major developments and issues in the field of the history of art, and to be able to apply these to the care, display, and interpretation of objects, performances and art practices in curatorial contexts.

The course brings students into major Sydney art institutions for seminars. It includes an internship placement and students may choose to complete a second internship as part of their studies.

To ask a question about this course, visit http://sydney.edu.au/internationaloffice/

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A first of its kind, this new MA in Film Curating explores both the traditional and the rapidly changing ways in which films are programmed by curators and received by spectators. In film exhibition today, the old and the new coexist: audiences still watch films in cinemas, but digital technology and the internet have multiplied ways of consuming moving images. Digital technology has also transformed the relationship between film and art: galleries and museums now routinely exhibit film in shows and installations. Film festivals are flourishing in new formats and locations as never before. These changes have profoundly affected practices of curating and programming.

This intensive (1-year, full-time) MA includes in its curriculum: the old and the new aspects of programming and curating; theoretical considerations of audience; spectatorship and reception; and the changing spaces and temporalities of film exhibition. The MA combines these strong critical, theoretical and academic foundations with site visits and internships in London galleries and exhibition spaces, as well as screenings and programming in the Birkbeck Cinema. Students will be taught by internationally distinguished academics and cultural practitioners such as Professor Laura Mulvey. Lectures from industry professionals and experienced curators provide a first step towards possible careers in art and film or for further research into the cultures of curating.

Why study this course at Birkbeck?

Arts and humanities courses at Birkbeck are ranked third best in London and 11th in the UK in the Times Higher Education 2015-16 World University Subject Rankings.
The award-winning Birkbeck Cinema is central to the course. The cinema is equipped with 35mm and state-of-the-art DVD projection, offering students the opportunity to experiment with programming and curating.
The Birkbeck Institute for the Moving Image programmes conferences, screenings and film-related events of all kinds throughout the academic year.
The inaugural Essay Film Festival, jointly run by the Birkbeck Institute for the Moving Image and the ICA, was held in March 2015.
Located in central London, in the heart of historic Bloomsbury, Birkbeck is within easy reach of cinemas and galleries, as well as facilities such as the British Film Institute and the British Library.
Editing workshops with the Derek Jarman Lab enable students to experiment with the compilation and assemblage of archive material.

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A ground-breaking new MA delivered in partnership with the BFI to prepare students to build successful careers in film exhibition, programming, criticism or archival work.

‘I wholeheartedly support courses like the NFTS Film Studies MA. Finding and developing talented individuals who can programme unforgettable content is priceless.’ - Efe Cakarel, Founder, MUBI

-The course is delivered in partnership with the BFI (the leading body for film in the UK) who will also provide hands-on placement opportunities across a range of curatorial and critical activities.
-The course is delivered by film professionals in film exhibition and distribution, festivals, archives and film criticism, alongside academics and film makers
-Students on the course will attend film festivals.
-Students learn how to conceptualise film work in terms of idea, form and style, as well as understanding the relationship between film and audience.
-Students will learn about the practicalities of film exhibition, distribution and preservation in the changing digital landscape.
-Students will study the practice of film criticism and comment, including reviewing and critical writing about films, filmmakers and the broader culture.
-Students have the opportunity to mount festivals, pop up screenings and other events.
-Access to NFTS's Masterclasses led by major creative figures from film, television and games.

We welcome EU/EEA Students. Those accepted onto courses starting in 2018 will have their fees guaranteed at the UK rate for both years of the course. Postgraduate students can apply for a loan to help with their studies via the Student Loans Company Loans. A £ 10,000 loan is available to contribute to course and living costs. The Post Graduate Loan is only open to EU/EEA and UK Students who normally live in England. It is not currently available to Scottish, Welsh or Northern Ireland Students. Find out more here: https://nfts.co.uk/fees-funding

COURSE OVERVIEW

This course commences at the end of January each year.

The National Film and Television School’s Film Studies Programming and Curation Masters delivered in partnership with the BFI is designed for students who wish to make a career in the wider film and media culture, whether in the fields of curation, exhibition, criticism, archives, preservation or restoration. The course provides a detailed understanding of the concepts, contexts and critical thought that have shaped the production and reception of film as a basis for engagement with rapidly changing contemporary film and moving image culture. A rigorous academic framework is combined with real world applications enabling each student to develop their own skills, knowledge and understanding to provide a strong basis for a career in film and media.

The philosophy of this course is to give students a theoretical, historical and critical understanding of film, which they will apply practically in the fields of film curating and programming, distribution and archiving.

With all the resources of the National Film and Television School available to them, students on this Master’s programme benefit from working alongside a new generation of filmmakers, encouraging creative dialogue between makers and curators/critics.

'NFTS curating students are so full of energy and passion. I'm full of admiration for the NFTS which nurtures the talent that will build a future for film exhibition and filmmaking.' - Clare Binns, Director of Programming & Acquisitions, Picturehouse Cinemas Ltd

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This course offers you the opportunity to develop your creative and technical skills as an independent filmmaker working in fiction film. You will have the opportunity to write and direct your own Short Film, or follow a specialist route as a Head of Department in film production.

You'll develop high level skills in a learning environment which nurtures technical excellence in the creation of cinematic sound and image. You'll develop personal creativity and the ability to collaborate effectively within a team in pursuit of a shared cinematic vision.

The course allows you to experience the rigours of filmmaking by reflecting the realities of current film practice, within the supportive structure of our extensive Film School. It will enhance your understanding of the professional demands of the film industry and fully equip you for a freelance career, should you so desire.

You'll have the opportunity to engage in critical debate around current theoretical approaches to filmmaking practice, as well as developing your own practical project alongside other like-minded students.

At UCA, you'll also benefit from access to a fantastic selection of cutting edge facilities, including 16mm and digital cinema cameras, advanced sound recording equipment, a purpose-built film studio and industry standard post-production suites.

Our graduates have gone on to work on some of the biggest box office movies of recent years - including Gravity, the Harry Potter franchise, The Dark Knight, Mission Impossible, Skyfall, Godzilla, Guardians Of The Galaxy, Rush, Total Recall, Fast & Furious 6 and many more - as well as on major TV programmes and other projects with leading media companies. Some alumni have also started their own companies, with recent successes including Kode Media, Bright Stem and This Place.

Careers

This course prepares you for a career within the field of fiction film production and also equips you with a range of versatile skills that open up a broad variety of career paths.

Graduates from related UCA courses have been commissioned to work by broadcasters and film funds worldwide in a wide range of roles within the industry such as directors, producers, editors, cinematographers, sound designers, screenwriting, production design and VFX. Potential careers open to students undertaking this course might include work in archives, curating or distribution.

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This innovative Arts MRes course offers you the opportunity to undertake a closely-supervised piece of original research within a broad spectrum of arts disciplines, including art and design history, film and television studies, performance, and fine art practice.

You will undertake a specialist research project, based upon your own focused proposal, which may be subject-specific or span arts disciplines.

The centrepiece of the Arts MRes is an extended written Dissertation, or for practice-based researchers, a major Practical Project supported by a written dissertation component. This is supported by a framework of three modules, which provide expert knowledge and understanding of appropriate research methods to employ in your project, the wider critical contexts relating to your subject, and how to develop and communicate your research. The programme will enable you to position your research within a wider scholarly field, and furnish you with professional skills such as communication, self-management and planning, preparing you for doctoral study or further career advancement.

This course can also be taken part time, for more information, please view this web-page: https://www.northumbria.ac.uk/study-at-northumbria/courses/arts-dtpaar6/

Learn From The Best

The Arts MRes welcomes students from a wide range of interests. Whether your project is focussed on the history and theory of art and design, film and television, fine art or performance practice, or wider aspects of visual and material culture, you will be supported by a supervisory team with expertise in your subject.

Your supervisors will be academic specialists with in-depth knowledge of the critical issues relating to your topic, hands-on experience in appropriate research methodologies, and a highly regarded reputation of publishing scholarly materials, or exhibiting or performing works.Arts staff have specialist knowledge in Fine Art and Performance practice, art and design theory, film and television studies, curating, landscape, architecture, fashion, socially engaged arts, and digital arts practices.

Furthermore, if your project spans disciplines, your supervisory team may include staff members from different departments. Whatever your interests, you will be supported by the expertise of highly research-active staff whose work is of recognised excellence.

Teaching And Assessment

The Arts MRes is based around self-directed study, but you are supported by a framework of three modules. Research Methods and Critical Contexts in semester one are based around a series of seminars, and encourage the discussion and exchange of ideas between students with focussed research interests, but shared intellectual investment in the themes, concepts, practices and methods of visual and material culture. Assessment is through written assignments totalling 6000 words, or a smaller written element supported by materials for practice-based students (30 credits per module).

The semester two Research Development module is shared with students from MRes Humanities courses, to collaborate in all elements of organising (structuring, fundraising, marketing and publicity) and staging a cross-disciplinary symposium. You are assessed on a written paper, and a presentation at the symposium (totalling 30 credits). The culmination of your Arts MRes project is a final 20,000 word dissertation, or 10,000 word dissertation and body of work for practice-based students (90 credits).

Learning Environment

The Arts MRes will embed you in a vibrant postgraduate research culture, in which the formal framework of academic learning is enhanced by a multitude of opportunities to develop your specific research interests and skills, and widen the scope of your scholarly development. The modules themselves are based around seminars which encourage discussion and the exchange of ideas between researchers from a wide range of disciplines.

In addition you have access to specialist postgraduate training workshops, and events both on and beyond the campus. Fine Art practice-based students have access to studio space at the Baltic 39 studios, and all students are continually informed of events and opportunities of special interest to their research through the electronic learning portal, while regular individual tutorials with project supervisors will enable you to develop your project effectively.

Overall the Arts MRes provides a learning environment in which disciplined and self-directed academic rigour is enhanced by opportunities for the interdisciplinary pollination of ideas.

Module Overview
EF0126 - E.S.A.P. in FADSS Level 7 (Optional, 0 Credits)
EL7028 - MRes Dissertation (Core, 90 Credits)
HI7011 - Research Development (Core, 30 Credits)
VA7029 - Research Methods (Core, 30 Credits)
VA7030 - Critical Contexts (Core, 30 Credits)

Research-Rich Learning

With a student-focused course of study, supported by supervisors specifically chosen to compliment your project, research is embedded in the Arts MRes course from your initial project proposal, and you will be encouraged think about, develop, evaluate and refine your research approaches throughout the programme. The first module, Research Methods, will introduce you to generic considerations of research in the arts, before encouraging you to find and develop advanced methodologies specific to your project.

REF2014 placed Northumbria’s Art and Design research within the UK top ten for “research power”, and as you progress, your tutors and supervisory team will advise you on how to hone these approaches, drawing upon their own rich research expertise and knowledge of the latest practices and developments. You will apply your developing expertise to a wide range of research materials, subjecting them to disciplined analysis and interpretation, and presenting your findings in an academic symposium and in your final thesis or project.

Give Your Career An Edge

Graduates of the Arts MRes have proven that they can undertake independent research to a high academic standard. They have demonstrated intellectual curiosity, sophisticated critical thinking and discernment in their investigation, evaluation and interpretation of many types of research materials.

A Masters of Research also develops transferable professional skills of communication, the ability to present intellectually complex information over written, verbal or visual platforms, time and resource management, and professional independence. In directing an individual research project from initial proposal to finished thesis, and through organising an academic symposium with others from different disciplines, MRes students develop a host of skills relating to project organisation, teamwork, marketing, using communication platforms, and event management.

The Arts MRes is an ideal way to develop a set of impressive outlooks, attributes and skills, which are directly transferable, whether you wish to pursue further academic research at doctoral level, or build a career in arts practice, the cultural professions or education.

Your Future

The Arts MRes is well established as a bridge between undergraduate or postgraduate study and focussed Doctoral research. It can also stand alone as an important step in career development.

Through carrying out a focussed project of independent research, MRes students develop skills ideally suited to careers in the contextualisation, communication or promotion of the visual arts. Whether developing careers in creative practice, education, curating, cultural management, community engagement, or traditional and digital media publishing, MRes graduates possess a directly relevant qualification and skill set to push their ambitions forward.

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Our MA Documentary Practices course will allow you to undertake cross-disciplinary work between new media, photography and film, positioning the course in response to new trends and discourse within creative documentary practice.

Your outcomes could be in photography, film, interactive or web-based formats - and we'll encourage you to exploit recent developments within the industry.

We aim to develop you as a thinking practitioner and help you to manage your career in a freelance industry. You'll learn to analyse and synthesise knowledge and understanding of your subject area on our course, and demonstrate your critical and reflective practice.

Tutorials, lectures, workshops, seminars and critiques support the development of your research and practice. As part of the course, you'll be expected to undertake some form of professional practice such as a work placement.

Careers

This course prepares you for a career within the specialised field of documentary practice, and also equips you with a range of versatile skills that open up a broad variety of career paths. Broadcasters and film funds worldwide have commissioned alumni from related UCA courses such as Film Production.

Graduates have gone on to work in a range of roles within the industry, such as:
-Directors
-Producers
-Editors
-Eesearchers.

Potential careers for students undertaking this course might include work in archives, curating or distribution.

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This course is for you if you need to improve your English language skills and subject knowledge of art history before going on to a Masters course. You improve your language fluency and academic vocabulary, develop your academic skills, and gain experience of western methods of teaching and learning so that you can progress onto a relevant Masters course in our School of Philosophy and Art History.

At Essex, you can progress onto our MA Art History and Theory, MA Curating Contemporary Art, MA Gallery Studies and Critical Curating, or MA Gallery Studies with Dissertation.

Our International Academy offers some of the best routes for international students to enter higher education in the UK. Our innovative courses and programmes have proved very successful with international students and have also attracted UK students because of the distinctive learning environment we offer.

If you are an international student, you may find that the education system in the UK is slightly different from other countries and, sometimes, that the transition to the British system can be challenging. Our courses help you to settle in and adapt to life in the UK.

Alongside improving your academic English skills, you also study two important areas of art history, focusing on a combination of Italian Renaissance art, modern European art, and contemporary art.

Our School of Philosophy and Art History is ranked 6th among art history departments in the UK for research excellence (REF 2014) - ahead of all but three of the Russell Group - with 89% rated as ‘world leading’ or ‘internationally excellent’. As such, you will be taught by some of the most innovative scholars in the field. Additionally, because we are a small school, you will be taught by our expert staff in your very first year, a rarity in UK art history courses.

Our expert staff

We are a dynamic group of art historians who investigate the production and reception of images and the built environment, across cultures and media, from the early modern period to the present day.

Our staff’s research interests include activist art, modernist art and totalitarianism, art and science, the artistic status of body modification, expressions of societal anxiety in art, as well as architecture and urbanism.

We also have significant experience in curation and public engagement. Recent projects include:
-Dr Gavin Grindo co-curated the Disobedient Objects exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, which was one of the most well attended shows in the museum’s history
-Dr Matt Lodder has acted as contributor for various television shows on body art and body modification, including the Today programme, the Jeremy Vine Show, Sky News, BBC Breakfast News, ‘Coast’, and National Geographic’s ‘Taboo’
-Dr Natasha Ruiz Gómez co-organised a major conference on Collect, Exchange, Display: Artistic Practice and the Medical Museum at the Hunterian Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons, London

Specialist facilities

By studying within our International Academy, you will have access to all of the facilities that the University of Essex has to offer:
-We provide computer labs for internet research; classrooms with access to PowerPoint facilities for student presentations; AV facilities for teaching and access to web-based learning materials
-Our new Student Services Hub will support you and provide information for all your needs as a student
-Our social space is stocked with hot magazines and newspapers, and provides an informal setting to meet with your lecturers, tutors and friends

Our outstanding art history facilities give you the opportunity for object-based learning, which is rare in other universities, and also e-nable you to gain curatorial experience:
-Our Essex Collection of Art from Latin America (ESCALA) is the most comprehensive Latin American art research resource in the UK and has a state-of-the-art teaching and research space. Many of our students gain work and research experience through our collection
-Our onsite gallery Art Exchange runs an ongoing programme of contemporary art exhibitions, talks by curators and artists, and exhibitions organised by our curatorial students
-Enjoy regular visits to London galleries, including Tate Modern, Tate Britain, the National Gallery and the Royal Academy of Arts, as well as many independent and alternative spaces
-Access our lively common room and departmental film collection
-Colchester’s iconic Firstsite gallery runs an exciting programme of art exhibitions, film screenings and talks

Example structure

Postgraduate study is the chance to take your education to the next level. The combination of compulsory and optional modules means our courses help you develop extensive knowledge in your chosen discipline, whilst providing plenty of freedom to pursue your own interests. Our research-led teaching is continually evolving to address the latest challenges and breakthroughs in the field, therefore to ensure your course is as relevant and up-to-date as possible your core module structure may be subject to change.

Art History with English for Academic Purposes - Graduate Diploma
-English for Academic Purposes
-Advanced English for Academic Purposes
-Critical Reading and Seminar Skills
-Extended English for Academic Purposes Project
-Photography in History (optional)
-The Work of Art in the Age of Digital Reproduction: Film, New Media, Software and the Internet (optional)
-Art & Ideas III (optional)
-Art, the Law and the Market (optional)
-Reworking the Past (optional)
-Visualising Bodies (optional)
-Inventing the Future: Early Contemporary 1945-1980 (optional)

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This course is for you if you want to develop your individual style and explore photography as a means of creative expression. You will create an impressive portfolio of work, which you will exhibit in real gallery space and disseminate to potential employers.

Course overview

Through the MA Photography, you will develop a professional base for your future career. The course is tailored to your individual interests and we invite you to share your aspirations with us at interview.

During the course, we support the development of student-initiated projects in which individuals can implement, research and extend their practical and intellectual skills across the spectrum of photography, digital imaging and video. By the end of the course, you will have prepared a substantial portfolio of creative and written work and participated in a public exhibition and a publication.

At Masters level, the specialisms of tutors are an important factor. Sunderland’s academic team includes staff with world-class reputations whose research interests fall within the areas of landscape, documentary and diaristic photography, experimental and alternative photographic methods, and span a variety of themes, from representations of femininity, subcultures, curating and exhibiting art photography with a specialism in new photographic technologies and the networked image.

In addition, we operate the North East Photography Network (NEPN) which develops and promotes photography in the North East of England. We also have close links with major arts organisations such as the Arts Council, the Laing Art Gallery and the BALTIC Centre for Contemporary Art.

Graduates from Sunderland have gone on to work throughout the creative industries and education. A Masters qualification not only opens doors in the workplace but also helps you progress more rapidly once your career is underway.

To find out more about the part time version of this course, please view this web-page: http://www.sunderland.ac.uk/courses/artsdesignandmedia/postgraduate/photography-part-time/

Course content

The content of the course is shaped by your personal interests with guidance and inspiration from Sunderland's supportive tutors.

Modules on this course include:
Photography 1 - Certificate (60 Credits)
-Self-negotiated Research Project (40 Credits)
-Revisiting Photography Theory (20 Credits)

Photography 2 – Postgraduate Diploma (60 Credits)
-Self-negotiated Portfolio Project (40 Credits)
-Issues in Contemporary Photographic Practice (20 Credits)

Photography 3 – Masters Degree (60 Credits)
-Exhibition (40 Credits)
-Research Project (20 Credits)

Teaching and assessment

Compared to an undergraduate course, you will find that this Masters programme requires a higher level of independent working.

We use a wide variety of teaching and learning methods ranging from technical workshops, research seminars, theory lectures, practical demonstrations, peer critiques, and group discussions. These are supported by a range of guest speakers from diverse academic and industry backgrounds. You will also have high levels of contact with tutors who give regular feedback and support.

You will have the opportunity to meet established photographers and hear about their work and careers. Past speakers have included Simon Norfolk, Liz Wells, Julian Stallabrass, Peter Kennard, Bas Vroege, Michele Sank. Portfolio review days allow you to discuss your portfolio with leading national and international artists, and photographic professionals, publishers, gallery and museum curators.

Assessment methods include project reports, research files, essays, your portfolio of work and the final exhibition.

Facilities & location

The University has invested in modern facilities in the recently refurbished Northern Centre of Photography that include:
-Chemical darkrooms for colour and black and white printing. You can print from 35mm to 5x4 with a large horizontal enlarger to create extra large prints
-Separate chemical darkroom for alternative printing methods
-Digital darkrooms with state-of-the-art scanners and digital production and printing
-Photography studios equipped with tungsten and flash lighting equipment
-Cameras ranging from 35mm to 5x4 Pentax, Nikon, Mamiya, Hasselblad, Fuji 6x7, Toyo, Sinar and Linhof. We provide Digital Nikons and Leaf backs for high-end digital studio work as well as HD video cameras
-Digital suites with open-access Apple Macs for editing video and digital images
-Digital studio with video, sound editing and screening facilities
-Project spaces
-Large wall screen with HD projection for film and video screenings
-Art gallery

Arts and Design Library
Our Arts and Design Library has a specialist collection of over 120,000 books, CD-ROMs, videos, slides and one of the largest electronic information networks in the sector.

Journals and research
We subscribe to a comprehensive range of print and electronic journals so you can access the most reliable and up-to-date articles. Some of the most important sources for your course include:
-Art Full Text + Art Abstracts, which is a major resource for media and arts information
-British Universities Film and Video Council (BUFVC), which provides resources for the production, study and use of film and related media

Employment & careers

Postgraduates are highly employable and, on average, earn more than individuals whose highest qualification is an undergraduate degree. On completing this course, you will be equipped for a range of positions within the creative sector which include professional photography and arts practice, curatorial, editorial and design work as well as education.

Recent Sunderland graduates are now working in art institutions, museums, community arts organisations, Further Education Colleges and the wider media industry.

A Masters degree will also enhance career opportunities within Higher Education and prepare you for further postgraduate studies.

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