Film Studies

Course summary

Film is one of the main cultural innovations of the 20th century and a major art form of the last hundred years. Those who study it characteristically bring with them a high degree of enthusiasm and excitement for what is a powerful and culturally significant medium, inspiring a range of responses from the emotional to the reflective. Film Studies consequently makes an important contribution to the curriculum, offering the opportunity to investigate how film works both as a medium of representation and as an aesthetic medium. The WJEC Eduqas specification is designed to introduce A-level learners to a wide variety of films in order to broaden their knowledge and understanding of film and the range of responses films can generate. This specification therefore offers opportunities to study mainstream American films from the past and the present as well as a range of recent and contemporary British films, American independent films, and global films, both non-English language and English language. The historical range of film represented in those films is extended by the study of silent film and significant film movement so that learners can gain a sense of the development of film from its early years to its still emerging digital future. Studies in documentary, experimental, and short films add breadth of the learning experience. The course is divided into a number of distinct units: 1a- Hollywood 1939-1990 1b- American Film since 2005 1c- British Film since 1995 2a- Global Film 2b- Documentary Film 2c- Silent Cinema 2d- Experimental Film 3- Extended Coursework Production