Film Studies

Assessment

Students will be assessed in three components: Film History, Critical Approaches to Film and Making Short Films. ~ Film History will include the study of at least three US films from the Silent Era (e.g. The Mark of Zorro), 1930-1960 (e.g. Singin’ in the Rain) and 1961-1990 (e.g. ET.) Students will also study set films from two major European film movements or stylistic developments. This will be examined in a 2-hour paper and worth 35% of total A Level mark. ~ Critical Approaches to Film will further develop knowledge and understanding of key approaches to film and of narrative, genre, representation and spectatorship. Six films must be studied in depth for this component and include classics such as Skyfall, The Dark Knight Rises, The Hurt Locker, Mad Max and The Grandmaster. This will be examined in a 2-hour paper and worth 35% of total A Level mark. ~ Making Short Films is the non-examined (coursework) element and is worth 30% of total A Level mark. Students have a choice to make a 5-minute short film or a 10-minute screenplay for a short film incorporating a digitally photographed storyboard. This will be accompanied by an evaluation of the professionalism of this coursework.