[Oxford Guide Film Studies Pdf Download
Virginie Fayad
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 relate 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.
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 film form, and film as an art form. Applicants should note that historical, cultural, geographical, and political approaches to film study may feature in courses and in written work, but they are not prioritised in the teaching and assessment of the degree.
A week 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. There will be two seminars per week and they will vary in length depending on the module.
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.
Students can expect three one hour supervisions with their dissertation supervisor in Trinity Term. The allocation of graduate supervision for this course is the responsibility of the Steering Committee for the MSt in Film Aesthetics, in consultation with faculties in 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.
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.
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. The safety of students, staff and visitors is paramount and major changes to delivery or services may have to be made in circumstances of a pandemic, epidemic or local health emergency. In addition, 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 illness, sabbatical leave, parental leave or change in employment.
The requirements described below are specific to this course and apply only in the year of entry that is shown. You can use our interactive tool to help you evaluate whether your application is likely to be competitive.
This course requires proficiency in English at the University's higher level. If your first language is not English, you may need to provide evidence that you meet this requirement. The minimum scores required to meet the University's higher level are detailed in the table below.
If your ability to meet the entry requirements has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic (eg you were awarded an unclassified/ungraded degree) or any other exceptional personal circumstance (eg other illness or bereavement), please refer to the guidance on extenuating circumstances in the Application Guide for information about how to declare this so that your application can be considered appropriately.
You will need to register three referees who can give an informed view of your academic ability and suitability for the course. The How to apply section of this page provides details of the types of reference that are required in support of your application for this course and how these will be assessed.
You will be required to supply supporting documents with your application. The How to apply section of this page provides details of the supporting documents that are required as part of your application for this course and how these will be assessed.
References and supporting documents submitted as part of your application, and your performance at interview (if interviews are held) will be considered as part of the assessment process. Whether or not you have secured funding will not be taken into consideration when your application is assessed.
Students are considered for shortlisting and selected for admission without regard to age, disability, gender reassignment, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy and maternity, race (including colour, nationality and ethnic or national origins), religion or belief (including lack of belief), sex, sexual orientation, as well as other relevant circumstances including parental or caring responsibilities or social background. However, please note the following:
Information about processing special category data for the purposes of positive action and using your data to assess your eligibility for funding, can be found in our Postgraduate Applicant Privacy Policy.
If you receive an offer of a place at Oxford, your offer will outline any conditions that you need to satisfy and any actions you need to take, together with any associated deadlines. These may include academic conditions, such as achieving a specific final grade in your current degree course. These conditions will usually depend on your individual academic circumstances and may vary between applicants. Our 'After you apply' pages provide more information about offers and conditions.
Opportunities for exchange are provided by the interdisciplinary communities fostered within individual colleges, which also offer you dedicated support by means of personal advisors. The Oxford Centre for Research in the Humanities (TORCH) offers a stimulating range of interdisciplinary activities.
The two main Bodleian Libraries Film Studies collections of books, journals and films are at the Taylor Institution Library and the English Faculty Library, with additional film studies books and periodical accommodated in the main Bodleian and its off-site book storage facility. The film collections are predominantly DVDs: currently the collection stands at approximately 8,000 films. All the DVDs from the major labels are acquired - Master's of Cinema, Criterion, Second Run, Artificial Eye. The Taylor Library hosts a viewing room for watching films, accommodating around six viewers and equipped with a flat screen television and Blu-ray player. There is also now a small designated area where film students can gather, sit and read the latest journals.
In addition to materials and support focused on conveying subject-specific knowledge, there is a wide range of facilities aimed at the personal and professional development of students; strengthening their existing skills and developing new skills, and preparing them for careers after they have completed their studies.
There are no compulsory elements of this course that entail additional costs beyond fees and living costs. However, as part of your course requirements, you may need to choose a dissertation, a project or a thesis topic. Please note that, depending on your choice of topic and the research required to complete it, you may incur additional expenses, such as travel expenses, research expenses, and field trips. You will need to meet these additional costs, although you may be able to apply for small grants from your department and/or college to help you cover some of these expenses.
Our guide to getting started provides general advice on how to prepare for and start your application. You can use our interactive tool to help you evaluate whether your application is likely to be competitive.
For this course, the application form will include questions that collect information that would usually be included in a CV/rsum. You should not upload a separate document. If a separate CV/rsum is uploaded, it will be removed from your application.
If any document does not meet the specification, including the stipulated word count, your application may be considered incomplete and not assessed by the academic department. Expand each section to show further details.
Academic references are strongly recommended, although one professional reference of the three required overall is also acceptable. If you are returning to study after extended periods of non-academic employment then you are welcome to nominate professional referees where it would be impractical to call on your previous university tutors.
You should think of the personal statement as also a statement of academic purpose. You should go beyond expressing an enthusiasm for film and be as specific as possible about studying film in an academic context. It is also important that you should be specific about why you wish to study film from an aesthetic point of view as distinct from other approaches to film study.
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