Course description

The highlights

• You will be taught by tutors who are still successful in the film and TV industry today. They have worked on feature films, TV dramas, promotional videos and sports broadcasts
• You will work with the best digital cameras, just like those used for Hollywood blockbusters
• There’s the option to work with traditional celluloid film (35mm), which is what most blockbuster productions use. Few UK film degrees offer this
• Our film students have a track record of winning high-profile industry competitions, such as the Royal Television Society Awards and the NAHEMI Kodak Student Commercial Awards
• You will have many opportunities to gain experience on real film and TV sets, plus we offer a career-making six-month placement with Malta Production Hub.

For ambitious and creative film-makers

Explore the most exciting and challenging areas of contemporary film and high-end TV-making on a course designed to get you noticed in an intensely competitive industry. If you aspire to make big-budget productions for cinemas or small-screen streaming platforms like Netflix and Amazon, this course will suit you. You’ll need to be highly creative, passionate and dedicated.

This degree is based on our long-established and successful BA (Hons) Film Production, and has been updated and renamed to be relevant to the media industry of the 2020s. We recognise that students today will want to make productions for streaming platforms just as much as for the big screen, so our course content has been updated to reflect this. We also give you the chance to experiment with other forms of media-making — such as apps, web video, podcasts and other digital content — so that you are prepared for the ‘multiplatform’ nature of the media industry today.

From raw talent to real deal

Through a blend of practical projects and more traditional teaching, you’ll develop the creative, technical and theoretical expertise needed to work within the moving image sector. We’ll cover these key areas:

• Screenwriting and directing
• Cinematography, sound and editing
• Production, including 1st assistant directing
• Film history and theory
• Research skills
• Employability skills.

You’ll work on a series of productions in a variety of on-set and post-production roles. The length and complexity of these productions will increase as you move through the course.

We are one of the few film courses in the UK which teach you to use both RED and ARRI cameras (high-spec digital cameras that the film industry use) as well as traditional celluloid or ‘35mm’. By the end of your final year, you will have built up an impressive portfolio of work that will help you gain employment or get accepted onto postgraduate programmes.

We’ll also make sure you leave with a great understanding of the film and television industry so you know how to create products that get seen by an audience. Plus, you will develop the professional skills you’ll need to deal with clients, commercial briefs, audiences and markets.

Developing you as an artist

As well as developing your technical, commercial and professional abilities, we’re also focused on helping you develop as an artist. You will be challenged to think beyond conventional ideas about media content, and explore how you can push and break boundaries. We’ll encourage you to experiment and see failures as a learning opportunity, as you develop your own unique voice.

Experience real film and TV sets

Thanks to our high-profile teaching team, you’ll get plenty of opportunities to work on real film and TV sets, for instance as runners and crowd marshalls. In addition, final year students get the chance to compete for a six-month placement with a production company in Malta, which is one of the most popular locations for films outside of America. This is potentially a career-making opportunity, and has led to some phenomenal successes.

Mari Olan spent a five-month placement at Malta Film Studios and worked on a variety of film projects, including acting as Second Assistant Director on a major film production.

Showcase your work. Win awards.

All our students get the chance to showcase their work in festivals and competitions. In 2019, our students took home three top prizes from The Royal Television Society Awards, including The Sir Lenny Henry Award for Excellence. While in 2020, student Omar Soomro won his category at the NAHEMI Kodak Commercials Awards.

The culmination of the course is the opportunity to screen your work at our prestigious film premiere evening held at Quad: the Derby arts centre which celebrates visual arts, film and media. Part of our annual Degree Show, the evening begins with a VIP reception which offers you vital networking opportunities. In previous years the screening has attracted guests of honour such as the Editor-at-Large for Empire magazine Nev Pierce, Director John Stevenson (Kung Fu Panda) and legendary British cinematographer Robin Vidgeon. It could also be a springboard to national exposure for your work.

Facilities

All Art and Design, Film, Photography and Music courses are based at our Markeaton Street site where industry-standard, purpose built studios and labs provide a modern and creative space for our students.

Markeaton Street encompasses Chandos Pole Street which is home to our Fashion and Textiles courses and Britannia Mill is home to Fine Art, Illustration and Interior Design studio spaces. Our Theatre students learn from professionals at the professional producing and learning Derby Theatre in the heart of Derby city centre.

Markeaton Street is a 15 minute walk from Kedleston Road, and is serviced by regular site shuttle buses.

Whilst studying this course, you will have access to Sounsnap to access music and sound effects.

How you will learn

We use a variety of teaching methods, including:

• Practical work and production projects
• Lectures, seminars and tutorials
• Studio practice
• Film screenings
• Presentations
• Essay or blog writing
• Web-portfolios
• Discussion groups and critiques
• Study trips to places like Prague, New York, Portugal and Malta.

How you will be assessed

It’s 100% coursework. This usually includes tasks like:

• Making films and other media
• Writing reflective journals or essays
• Keeping production folders of concepts and developments
• Giving presentations.