| Unit name | Analysing Film |
|---|---|
| Unit code | FATV10009 |
| Credit points | 20 |
| Level of study | C/4 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 1 (weeks 1 - 12) |
| Unit director | Dr. Alex Clayton |
| 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:
In this unit you will learn how to analyse film as a distinct medium and artform. You will explore relevant topics such as the relation of film to other artistic and expressive forms, the particular ways in which films generate meanings and pleasures, and the forms and conventions which have shaped the medium historically. Furthermore, as part of this unit you will learn how to use moving images and sounds to produce video-essays. These are films which offer an analysis, critique or argument audio visually.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study:
This introductory unit affords students essential discipline-specific analytical skills and methods, including audio-visual criticism. Such skills will develop students’ knowledge and understanding of film as subject of study and discipline, as well as their technical skills as critical and creative filmmakers. Upon completion of this unit, students will be able to recognise the meaning and relevance of creative filmmaking choices, how they can generate affect and pleasure and how they can be deployed to mobilise the essential and distinct possibilities afforded by film as an artistic medium.
Overview of Content:
Analysing Film is taught through screenings, lectures and seminars. Examining a range of fiction and non-fiction films, formats and genres and engaging with key concepts and theories, the unit challenges students to reflect critically on key topics related to film analysis. These might include photographic image and representation, editing and its relation with storytelling and ideology, fiction and non-fiction forms and genres, and authorship and the hierarchies of formal elements. Students collaborate in groups in the production of video, learning how to use film reflexively to creatively explore, among others, its forms, conventions and uses.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit:
Taking this unit will enable students to research and analyse a range of films and relevant materials. Doing so will provide students with high critical and analytical skills, as well as knowledge of some of the relevant arguments, topics and questions which have shaped Film Studies as a discipline. The unit will also allow students to develop critical and creative skills related to video-essay production. Such skills will be relevant to them in future audiovisual creative work, including fiction and documentary filmmaking and
social media content creation, among others.
Learning Outcomes:
Weekly seminar, lecture and screening, supported by self-directed tasks where appropriate.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
1X 5-10 minute group pitch of video-essay (0% required for credit, formative) [ILOs 1-4]
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
1000 word film analysis (40%) [ILOs 1 & 2]
5-10 minute video-essay (50%) [ILOs 1, 3 & 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. FATV10009).
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.
