Course Overview

Study at a world-leading centre of research and teaching in film history, theory, and criticism. Deepen your knowledge of the history of cinema and gain an understanding of the power of filmmaking and representation. In this MA in Film Studies, you’ll gain a critical perspective on the industry as you explore the social and cultural history of film and filmmaking and the national and global importance of cinema.

Our world-leading expertise spans British, US and global cinemas, popular genres, and feminist interpretations of media. One of the longest-established centres of learning in Film Studies, UEA’s academics are among the most respected around the world for their research and teaching.

These areas of expertise will bring your studies at UEA to life. You’ll learn about British cinema, genres and industry trends, and its history and heritage--how it has developed and what makes it globally respected and recognised around the world today. You’ll also take a critical look at gender and film, discovering the women filmmakers who have shaped a ‘counter cinema’ that spans the globe. Optional modules allow you to focus on key topics, which might investigate particular genres, social and cultural issues, or facets of the industry or film heritage.

Throughout your studies, you’ll find our excellent facilities support your ambitions. The celebrated East Anglian Film Archive is home to thousands of films and TV programmes and amateur home recordings, dating back as far as 1896—and is available to you to explore, and to inspire your own unique research project perhaps. UEA has close links with the British Film Institute in London, and also the Norwich Film Festival, right here in our city. With production companies located in this region, and good links to the capital, you'll be learning in a dynamic and well-connected centre of the media industries.

Graduates of our Film Studies MA course possess impressive expertise, with in-depth knowledge of film and the film industry, and its place in society and the global economy. You may have ambitions to develop your career in the industry, to become a writer, producer, or director, and this course will equip you with critical powers as well as an understanding of cinema. You may choose to take your transferable communication, teamworking, and self-management skills into a career in marketing, advertising, the charity sector, or other business pursuits. Alternatively, you may wish to pursue an academic career, and the MA will give you the grounding you need to go on to PhD research.