BA/BA (Hons) Theatre and Film Studies

Theatre, film and television are at the heart of the creative industries globally and make a significant contribution to the UK economy. This course offers you the opportunity to study these creative industries as both commercial and artistic enterprises.

This course provides a broad-based, liberal arts education. You will acquire specialised knowledge in the area, enabling you to pursue a variety of careers or further study within the entertainment and cultural industries, and a range of transferable skills which you can utilise in many other fields. The course combines the history and theory of drama and performance with the historical and critical study of film and other screen media. It will provide you with a comprehensive understanding of critical approaches to theatre and film, with an emphasis on the aesthetic and cultural analysis of stage and screen fiction; the creation of new expressive forms; and their role in shaping social, cultural and psychological life. You will develop an informed understanding of the place of theatre and film in contemporary society and have the opportunity to develop your own forms of creative, communicative and expressive practice. Your critical understanding of the art, craft and practice of narrative drama in theatre, film and television will enable you to meet the challenges of employment in a society in which the creative industries play a central role.

In Year One, modules provide a broad understanding of how theatre and film work as creative industries, introduce the study of theatre and film narrative and performance, and gives the opportunity to produce your own forms of production.

Year Two examines questions of genre and creativity alongside the theory and practice of stage performance. Years Three and Four look at key periods, movements and practitioners in theatre and film drama, alongside modules in areas such as adaptation, comedy, playwriting, and Hollywood cinema.

Learning and teaching methods vary: lectures, seminars, individual work and group work, where you will be producing a range of performance events and production material. While the course isn’t primarily performance or production based, you will engage in these activities from Year One and can specialise in practice areas in later years.
Structure:
You can opt to study for an Honours degree over four years or an Ordinary degree over three years. You will complete a range of modules, as outlined, each year and a dissertation in Year Four.

• This innovative course is unusual in providing theoretical and practical education in both drama and film.
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• The vibrancy of the Scottish, and specifically the Edinburgh, theatre and media scene makes QMU an ideal place to study theatre and film.
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• Students' films are exhibited annually at an end of year show at the Edinburgh Filmhouse.