Film Aesthetics

Master

In Oxford

Price on request

Description

  • Type

    Master

  • Location

    Oxford

About the course
The MSt in Film Aesthetics equips you with the skills and knowledge necessary for analysing film as an art form. It concentrates on film criticism, detailed film analysis, film theory and philosophy insofar as they related to film aesthetics. It teaches the history and the contemporary developments in the scholarly literature relating to these aspects. It encourages analytical, thoughtful and imaginative engagement with film as a medium and with individual films.

Facilities

Location

Start date

Oxford (Oxfordshire)
See map
Wellington Square, OX1 2JD

Start date

On request

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Subjects

  • Ms Word
  • Theory Philosophy
  • Aesthetics
  • Humanities
  • Art
  • Film Analysis
  • Film Theory
  • Philosophy
  • Supervisor
  • Word

Course programme

The MSt in Film Aesthetics is a degree in the humanities run by the Humanities Division.

The course concentrates on film from the point of view of aesthetics, including:

  • the detailed study of film style and form, and the articulation of it in writing - for example, narrative structure, use of camera, colour, performance, sound, music, editing and composition;
  • matters of philosophical aesthetics, and their particular application to film - for example, value and evaluation, appreciation, ontology, medium, intention, expression, meaning/interpretation, creativity, metaphor, symbolism, fiction, storytelling, convention, stylistic groupings and histories, emotion and the relation between ethics, morality and aesthetics; and
  • classic and contemporary film theory and philosophy as they relate to film aesthetics.

Many master's programmes concentrate on historical, cultural, geographical, or political approaches to film and may only contain an aesthetic component. This programme is dedicated to the specialist study of form, and film as an art form.

The course runs from late September to June, from two weeks before the first term to the end of the last term.

Two weeks before term officially begins, you will attend a practical film workshop for one week. Although the degree itself is not practical, this week acts as an introduction to film techniques and allows the group to work with each other before the degree begins. This part of the course is not assessed.

In the first two terms the course is taught by seminar only, although there will be individual meetings with tutors to discuss essay preparation and feedback. In the third term the course is taught by individual supervision.

The first term of the course will look at the analysis of film style and film form, train techniques of film analysis and look at key concepts in film form, film criticism, film theory and philosophy.

The second term consists of four short segments, each covering a particular aesthetic topic. Each segment is compulsory and there are no optional components. This part of the course provides you with the opportunity to engage with four different areas of specialisation.

The topics for the second term change from year to year but may include:

  • aesthetics of Italian cinema
  • spaces of American cinema
  • film and modernism
  • contemporary theories of spectatorship - embodiment, ethics and politics
  • cinema of the non-human
  • the film-philosophy of Stanley Cavell
  • contemporary Chinese cinema

In the first two terms there will be two seminars per week. Seminars vary in length depending on the module. In the third term there will be individual tutorial supervision of the dissertation. You will be expected to read quite extensively for seminars and supervisions, and also view films. All the staff involved in delivering the course have doctoral degrees (most are at professorial or associate professorial level), in many cases are leaders in their fields and have extensive experience of teaching their area of film studies.

Assessment is by two 6,000-word essays, one 3,000-word essay and a 10, 000-word dissertation. The dissertation, written in the final term, provides an opportunity to work with a tutor in your chosen area of specialisation.

Supervision

The allocation of graduate supervision for this course is the responsibility of the Humanities Division and it is not always possible to accommodate the preferences of incoming graduate students to work with a particular member of staff. Under exceptional circumstances a supervisor may be found outside the Humanities Division.

Graduate destinations

The analytical skills taught in the course are applicable in a wide range of jobs concerned with film and visual media, for example film programming, film reviewing, film production, design and teaching. The course is especially suitable as a foundation for further scholarly research into film.

Changes to this course and your supervision

The University will seek to deliver this course in accordance with the description set out in this course page. However, there may be situations in which it is desirable or necessary for the University to make changes in course provision, either before or after registration. In certain circumstances, for example due to visa difficulties or because the health needs of students cannot be met, it may be necessary to make adjustments to course requirements for international study.

Where possible your academic supervisor will not change for the duration of your course. However, it may be necessary to assign a new academic supervisor during the course of study or before registration for reasons which might include sabbatical leave, parental leave or change in employment.

For further information, please see our page on changes to courses.

Other courses you may wish to consider

If you're thinking about applying for this course, you may also wish to consider the courses listed below. These courses may have been suggested due to their similarity with this course, or because they are offered by the same department or faculty.

Interdisciplinary courses offered by the Humanities Division

Comparative Literature and Critical Translation MSt

Film Aesthetics MSt

Late Antique and Byzantine Studies MSt

Late Antique and Byzantine Studies MPhil

Medieval Studies MSt

Women's Studies MSt

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Entry requirements

Film Aesthetics

Price on request