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Photography and Film & Television Studies at Aberystwyth University combines a practical and theoretical approach to the study of media production, film and photography in a specialised interdisciplinary degree. Drawing upon the combined expertise of the Department of Theatre, Film & Television Studies and the School of Art, this exciting and stimulating course will allow you?to acquire advanced technical skills in the use of cameras and digital editing software alongside a broad grounding in the academic study of the mediums of film and television. In studying Photography and Film & Television Studies you will develop a deep appreciation of both the still and moving image as art form and industry, while acquiring a range of practical skills, creative attributes and critical awareness that will open up numerous employment pathways in the creative arts.
Student Satisfaction and Employability Results
90% overall student satisfaction for the Department of Theatre, Film and Television Studies (NSS 2020).
97% of our graduates were in work or further study within 6 months, 3% more than Creative Arts and Design graduates nationally, (HESA 2018*)
Overview
Why study Photography and Film & Television Studies at Aberystwyth University?
You will be taught and mentored by a team of internationally known experts and practitioners.You will benefit from our complementary learning experiences where theory and practice feed into each other.
You will have access to our superb facilities and resources for practical film work: three rehearsal studios, each with flexible technical facilities; 2 large professionally-equipped studios with digital lighting rigs controlled via ETC Congo and Strand Lighting consoles, Yamaha and Soundcraft PAs, Sanyo AV systems and Strand lighting and two NXAMP; and costume and wardrobe facilities. You will benefit from our connections with key industry partners, such as the BBC, S4C, BAFTA Cymru, Tribeca Film Festival (New York), Fiction Factory, Tinopolis, Edinburgh International Film Festival, the National Broadcast Archive of Wales at the National Library of Wales and Avid. These partners provide an excellent opportunity to network and liaise with those in the industry before graduation. You will benefit from access to The Screen and Sound Archive at the National Library of Wales, which houses a wide-ranging and unsurpassed collection of films, television programmes, videos, sound recordings and music relating to Wales and Welsh culture.
Aberystwyth Arts Centre, situated on Penglais campus, is one of the largest Arts Centres in Wales, and regularly presents screenings, talks, master classes, exhibitions and film festivals. The National Library of Wales, which is located next to Penglais campus, houses the largest collection of photographic images relating to Wales, and holds a copy of all works published in the UK.
Our School of Art Museum houses a vast collection of rare and original photographic prints which are used to inform our teaching.
The School of Art at Aberystwyth University has been awarded?Accredited Museum Status?by Arts Council England. This demonstrates that its collection care and management are at the highest standard.
Our Staff
All academic staff at the Department of Theatre, Film and Television Studies are research active and/or involved in Knowledge Transfer projects and have either relevant academic qualifications at doctoral level or equivalent professional experience and expertise.
Our teaching staff are
practicing professionals. As exhibiting artists, publishing researchers and curators,
they provide an informed and stimulating learning environment. This ensures
that the skills you learn at the School of Art are practice orientated,
relevant and applicable.
Please note: The modules listed below are those currently intended for delivery during the next academic year and may be subject to change. They are included here to give an indication of how the course is structured.
* Also available partially or entirely through the medium of Welsh
Employability
Studying Photography and Film & Television Studies at Aberystwyth University will ensure that you develop specialist technical knowledge and first-hand practical skills in photographic and film production, while deepening your creative and cultural understanding of different media forms. The skills you acquire will afford you many career opportunities, including: Broadcast engineer, Film director, Film/video editor, Documentary filmmaker, Sound technician, Television camera operator, Television floor manager, Television production coordinator, Magazine journalist, Newspaper journalist, Press photographer, Magazine features editor, Media researcher, Film/video editor, Graphic designer, and Web designer.
Learning & Teaching
What will I learn?
In the first year you will?explore the ways in which film and television relate to their wider historical, cultural, political and social contexts, and develop an understanding of the key concepts, theories and critical methodologies as applied to the academic analysis of film and television. You will develop essential photographic skills focusing on presence and place and identity and face and will be introduced to the principal techniques of media production with an emphasis on screenwriting, directing, cinematography and editing.
In the second year you may choose from a wide range of option modules relating to such topics as documentary filmmaking, celebrity culture, the emergence of the press, film and broadcasting in Wales, digital media or writing for film and tv. You will extend your own photographic skillset, while acquiring the critical apparatus to evaluate photographic imagery as an art form.
In the third year you may opt to take a more practical skills route by choosing to hone your technical ability in video production and editing, or film or documentary making. Alternatively, you may elect to enhance your scriptwriting abilities or pursue a more academic study of television, cinema and other media forms. At the same time, you will develop your curatorial skills by preparing an exhibition of your own photographic work in the Graduation Show at the School of Art.
How will I be taught?
This course is delivered through a combination of lectures, seminars, tutorials, workshops, demonstrations, and practical sessions.
Your photographic portfolio of prints will be accompanied by your working notebooks detailing your process experiments, image plans, drawings, written and visual material, demonstrating both thematic and technical research and experimentation in technique, format and media.
Other forms of assessment may include essays, presentations, media projects, video productions, scriptwriting, critical reflections on your work, and exams.
