| Unit name | Social Media Content Creation |
|---|---|
| Unit code | FATV30026 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | H/6 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Trimmel |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | Department of Film and Television |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
An increasing amount of screen content we engage in, primarily for entertainment, is produced outside film studios and broadcasters. Social media platforms such as YouTube, Instagram, Twitch and TikTok with their particular technological affordances, algorithms and content moderation policies shape contemporary users’ access to and journeys through screen entertainment. Screen careers now often begin on, remain, or continue via social media. Content creators serve as powerful cultural intermediaries. The have the power to shift representation away from traditional screen industries, bringing into sharp focus key questions of social justice in the digital age, including gender, sexuality, ethnicity and class, while evolving, reiterating and challenging textual traditions and conventions of film and television.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
In exploring the interplay of technologies, creativity, screen works and everyday life, this unit will apply prior learning in film and television to the emergent cultural form of content creation as social media entertainment, analysing processes of both production and reception. Students will thus deepen their understanding of the interconnectedness of texts and contexts, and of the shifting configurations of cultural and aesthetic practices. The unit will apply such understanding to creative practice in content creation.
An overview of content
This unit will cover a range of issues exploring the premises, consequences, forms and issues surrounding social media and platform-based content creation. Exemplary topics include such things as: internet celebrity and microcelebrity; content creators as cultural intermediaries; digital labour, monetization, and Neo-Liberalism; content creation and precarity; fans, producers and participatory culture on social media; genres and content innovation; content creation and gaming; and, transmedia storytelling and paratexts.
This unit offers a critical analysis on the emergence and consequences of screen media and its corresponding textual forms. The units thus offers extensive opportunities to explore the interplay between macro forces (such as technology, culture, economy) and how they intersect with individual practices, including our own participation in social media and other platformbased entertainment as users, producers and intermediaries. Students will be guided to use this knowledge to reflect on their social media practices in both the professional and private realm and apply their knowledge to content creation practices and strategies.
Learning Outcomes:
On successful completion of the unit students will be able to
Weekly lectures and seminars.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
You will develop both your summative case studies and content creation projects in the accompanying seminars and workshops. You will be able to test your ideas and analysis through peer feedback and formative discussions with unit tutors.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Essay, 2500 words (40%) [ILOs 1-3]
Content creation portfolio (50%) [ILOs 1,2 & 4]
Contribution Mark (10%) [ILO 5]
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the form or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are normally confirmed by the School shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the academic year.
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. FATV30026).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
