Undergraduate Course: Film and TV 2A: Exploring Film Language (DESI08132)
Course Outline
| School | Edinburgh College of Art |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 8 (Year 2 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | This course explores practical and historical relationships between cinema and other art forms. You will engage with interdisciplinary and experimental approaches to filmmaking beyond conventional modes of production. Research, analysis and exploration of wider art-forms will conceptually and technically inform your creative approaches and contextual understanding of filmmaking. |
| Course description |
The course will embolden you to research and utilise other art forms to both conceptually and technically inform your filmmaking practice and further develop your creative voice. Specific film examples featuring interdisciplinary processes will be analysed to assist you in building theoretical and applied understanding of cinema's artistic context. Examples will include a range of international independent filmmakers and experimental artists who utilise painting, still photography, collage, animation, glasswork, video games (machinima) and computer-generated imagery or other creative disciplines within their film practice. Throughout the course, you will work toward an individual boundary-pushing film, sharing progress on your project with peers and tutors and obtaining regular formative feedback through group discussion and critiques. You will also document and analyse your practical experimentation and independent research toward a summative reflective journal submission.
Cinema has a rich artistic heritage and 8 2-hour seminars across Weeks 1-4 and 6-9 will explore the myriad ways that artistic and technological innovations have helped to shape cinematic language. Alongside this, a series of 4 3-hour practical workshops in Weeks 2-4 and 6-8 will support you to explore new film techniques beyond mainstream conventions. Tutorials in Weeks 5 and 10 will offer individual guidance and feedback on your practice. Work-in-progress screenings in Weeks 5-6 and 10-11 will provide further feedback to shape the development and realisation of your final film.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | This course is only available to students on the Film and Television Degree Programme in the School of Design. |
| Additional Costs | This course requires additional costs to be met by the Student.
Travel and Accommodation: There are travel costs associated with filming.
Equipment and software: Most equipment and software required will be provided by the School, but student will be expected to provide some specialist equipment, such as buying USB sticks and Compact Flash Cards. Total costs should not exceed £ 30.00.
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Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2026/27, Not available to visiting students (SS1)
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Quota: 0 |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Seminar/Tutorial Hours 20,
Supervised Practical/Workshop/Studio Hours 12,
Feedback/Feedforward Hours 8,
Summative Assessment Hours 2,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
154 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
SUMMATIVE Assessment(s)
Portfolio (100%) submitted at the end of the course and evidencing all Learning Outcomes.
Learning Outcomes are weighted as LO1 33% LO2 33% and LO3 34%
All Learning Outcomes must be passed to pass the course.
SUMMATIVE Assessment details
Portfolio (2000-3000 words total) should include:
- A Short Film, 3-5 minutes
An individual short film which challenges conventional modes of production and has been conceptually and technically informed by at least one other visual artwork.
- A Research Journal, 10-15 pages
A reflective research journal documenting your creative process and decision making during the film project, including the relevance of interdisciplinary ideas and the film's artistic context.
Resit info
The resubmission assessment is the same as the original submission for this course.
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| Feedback |
FORMATIVE
Formative feedback will be offered throughout the course and in a variety of formats, including written and/or orally at formative submission point(s), tutorials, and other activities.
SUMMATIVE
Final course grades and written feedback will be provided at the end of the course. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Utilise a theoretical understanding of film in an artistic context as well as interdisciplinary ideas to develop their creative practice.
- Identify and draw on non-conventional modes of production and new practical techniques to achieve a desired film form and aesthetic.
- Communicate and reflect on their experimentation, research and creative decision-making within a practical filmmaking process.
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Reading List
Deren, Maya. (1946). An Anagram of Ideas on Art Form and Film. New York: Alicat Book Shop Press.
Dorsky, Nathaniel. (2014). Devotional Cinema. Berkeley: Small Press Distribution.
MacDonald, Scott. (2002). The Garden in the Machine. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Ramey, Kathryn. (2016). Experimental Filmmaking: Break the Machine. Abingdon: Routledge.
Tarkovsky, Andrei. (1988). Sculpting in Time: Reflection on the Cinema. Austin: University of Texas Press.
Vache, Angela. (1996). Cinema and Painting: How Art is Used in Film. Austin: University of Texas Press.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Research and enquiry:
Through practical experimentation in film and reflective writing compiled in your research journal, you will build independence , critical thinking and the ability to articulate complex ideas across artistic disciplines.
Personal effectiveness:
During the creation of your individual short film, you will engage in interdisciplinary thinking that will advance your collaborative skills, ability to manage resources effectively and adaptability in production environments.
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| Keywords | Cinema,Film Production,Film Studies,Film Language |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Mr Scott Barley
Tel:
Email: sbarley@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Hollie Gilligan
Tel:
Email: hgilliga@ed.ac.uk |
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