Digital Film Production - BSc (Hons)

Working as part of a team is the accepted modus operandi of film production, and gaining experience of the collaborative process is an invaluable asset that you can take into your professional career. This module provides you with an understanding of the planning and execution of a studio production with particular focus on short-form drama. The module provides opportunities for intellectual and creative development through the application of technical knowledge and production processes to the creation of high quality digital film productions.

This module investigates the process of screenwriting and provides opportunity for you to explore this process in preparation for your final year production. Furthermore, it contributes to development of the wider key skills required for employment, through in-class activities, assessments and background research.

The program on which this module is delivered combine the study and usage of audio visual technologies and content management systems utilized in the creation of a range of content which can be delivered to a variety of platforms. As the Film and Television industries have moved to filebased workflows, new roles and practices have come into existence to manage data in reliable and consistent ways, and ensure the safe replication, storage and migration of the ‘digital negative’. This vital link between production and post is currently filled by increasingly skilled and knowledgeable crew members, for whom the title Digital Image Technician has been officially recognised.

The module is an opportunity to learn and critically reflect on the skills of collaboration by enabling you to create an interdisciplinary project with students from complementary disciplines, or with academic staff. Collaboration is a vital employability skill within the Creative Industries and this module allows you to develop these skills, making use of University facilities and with the support of academic staff.

This module focuses on the post production element of filmmaking. Specifically areas concerning editing techniques, compositing, audio finishing, colour correction and grading to aid narrative. You will learn both the technical skills of audio and video editing as well as the grammar and structure that belong to the art in order to become better storytellers.

This module will explore the fundamental concepts involved in conducting technical engineering research. It will explore the international standards and theories underpinning engineering testing and analysis. From this module you will gain knowledge to distinguish and appraise technology and understand current technical limitations, thus underpinning studies for your final year technology project and enhancing your routes into technical employment.

This module is designed to provide you with the opportunity to undertake a credit bearing, 40-week Professional Placement as an integral part of your Undergraduate Degree.

The purpose of the Professional Placement is to improve your employability skills which will, through the placement experience, allow you to evidence your professional skills, attitudes and behaviours at the point of entry to the postgraduate job market. Furthermore, by completing the Professional Placement, you will be able to develop and enhance your understanding of the professional work environment, relevant to your chosen field of study, and reflect critically on your own professional skills development within the workplace.

With your crew working as an independent production team, this module seeks to develop your existing skills and further prepare you for the world of professional production. It provides an opportunity to collaborate in a negotiated screen project that will typically be (though not confined to) a single-camera drama or documentary. Designed to give you a real-world experience, you will be adopting industry-standard practices to complete your work and will be guided by industry practitioners. However the suitability of the project - and your involvement in it - is key. This will be determined by a proposal-review-approval system, where the production team (or ‘company’) will seek development advice from a team of Executive Producers in order to plan, produce and exhibit a moving image production.

The purpose of the module is to enable you to undertake a sustained, in-depth and research informed project exploring an area that is of personal interest to you. In agreement with your supervisor, you will decide upon your topic which will take the form of a practical outcome (artefact) with accompanying contextual material. The main consideration when choosing your topic is that it must be aligned to the programme you are studying, and you should consider the relevance of this topic to your future academic or professional development.

At this level, you will be expected to work independently but you will receive additional one-to-one support from your supervisor, who will be familiar with your chosen topic area. As you progress on the module, extra support will be available and this may take the form of group seminars, workshops and online materials that will help to develop your project. 

The aim of this module is to transfer and and develop your existing skills into a Virtual Production workflow. Virtual Production is an approach that uses real-time tracking and game engines to perform post-production in real-time during the production phase and has been used in many feature films including The Lion King, The Mandalorian, Avatar, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, Guardians of the Galaxy, War of the Planet of the Apes and Game of Thrones, as well as numerous high-end television shows. Virtual Production is frequently referred to as the future of a certain type of filmmaking.

As you prepare to graduate and apply for work in your chosen field within the screen industries the importance of a strong Portfolio and/or Show Reel cannot be overstated. You will engage with a selection of live industry briefs to create work that meets the client's specifications and from which sections of the finished productions can be used to augment the portfolio you will have been developing since Year One. Each week a professional from the industries with which your course is aligned (or one closely adjacent) will give a guest lecture / presentation detailing a particular sector - or role within a sector - for your consideration as a possible professional future. There will also be the potential for micro-placements following successful graduation.