The Screen Studies major will provide an opportunity for students to undertake interdisciplinary study within a recognised field. The major is designed to encourage student engagement with the key areas which fall under the banner of Screen Studies, in particular film and television. The major exposes students to critical theories and research methodologies germane to the study of screen texts, and to facilitate the development of knowledge and skills necessary for an Arts graduate.

Many of the units included in the Screen Studies major can be taken as electives by students not completing the major.

THE MAJOR

To complete a major in Screen Studies (minimum 100%) you need to complete 25% level 100 BA units including at least one of:

•  HEA104 English 1B, or

•  HEJ102 Journalism, Media and Communications 1B.

Students may take both units as the prerequisite for the major if they wish. Students taking only one of these units may take the remaining first year unit from any other discipline in the Faculty of Arts.

No unit can count twice as part of two different majors. A student taking a major in Screen Studies plus a major in English must complete HEA103, HEA104 plus HEJ102.  Students taking a major in Screen Studies plus a major in Journalism, Media and Communications must complete HEJ101, HEJ102 plus HEA104. 

A major in Screen Studies includes the core units:

•  HES202/302 Film Theory, and

•  HES203/303 Film Movements and Genres.

At second and third year level, students complete a minimum of 50% electives (four 12.5% units) offered by Schools within the Faculty of Arts.

FIRST YEAR UNITS

HEA104 English 1B

How do literary and film texts represent the world today? Through a series of modules that focus on popular fiction, literature and film, this unit introduces students to a variety of critical frameworks through which texts can be read. Students who successfully complete this unit will have built knowledge of specific theoretical terms such as race, nation, gender and genre, and developed core skills on which to base further studies in English.

 

HEJ102 Journalism, Media and Communications 1B

Introduces the interdisciplinary field of media studies. Students gain a foundation in key concepts, methods and theories in the study of media, communication and culture. Topics include: the history of media and communication theory, media structures and institutions; media industries and organisations; media texts and genres; audiences and 'effects'; media and identity (class, gender, race, age); and the media and public interest. Students are encouraged to apply the theoretical vocabularies and skills of analysis covered in this unit to specific examples and to think critically about the role the mass media plays in contemporary societies such as Australia.

SECOND AND THIRD YEAR UNITS

CORE UNITS

Semester 1:

HES202/302 Film Theory

This unit aims to provide students with the skills to develop theoretically informed arguments in response to films. Film Theory is organised around three modules: "The Shot" introduces students to key aspects of film form and style; "The Narrative" explores narratological questions of film structure and authorship; "The Context" encourages students to critically analyse films using a range of theoretical approaches and methodologies.

HES202/302 Film Theory Unit Outline 2008

 

Semester 2:

HES203/303 Film Movements and Genres

This unit explores the major movements and genres in the history of film. It situates Hollywood and Independent films within a range of historical, theoretical and cultural contexts as a way of interrogating the way films make meaning. It aims to provide students with an understanding of the key movements and genres in film studies, an appreciation of the history of filmmaking practices and an ability to read film contextually.

HES2033/303 Film Movements and Genres Unit Outline 2008

 

 

ELECTIVE UNITS

Most elective units in the Screen Studies major rotate, which means that units such as Screen Shakespeare and Writing Script will not be available next year, but may be offered the following year.

The following 200/300 level elective units will be offered by the School of English , Journalism and European Languages in 2008:

Semester 1:

HEA210/210 Cinema, Costumes and Sexuality

This unit interrogates the representation of gender and sexuality in film. Through a series of genre-based modules (musicals, film noir, period films), students will be encouraged to consider the role costumes play in film style, narrative structure and the construction of categories of gender and sexuality. The unit introduces key aspects of feminist film theory including: the relationship between genre and gender, the representation of bodies and desire, the logic of the "gaze" and the dynamics of spectatorship, and the impact of clothing on identity.

HEJ229/329 Youth Media

This unit introduces students to a range of approaches from media and cultural studies to examine the relationship between youth and the media. The unit is structured around three modules. The first examines theoretical approaches to youth and media. The second focuses on the representation of youth in news media and popular culture. The third module examines current issues such as the take-up of new media by youth.

Practical journalistic exercises also give students a critical understanding of the forces operating within these three areas and the impact of youth on a range of media forms and industries including, news, soap opera, popular music, film, reality TV, blogs, mobile phones, video gaming, and the Internet.

 

Semester 2:

HEJ224/324 Television Theory

This unit explores television in its wider cultural and social context by focusing on the theories and history of the medium. Through close textual analysis students will analyse the relationship between television and its audience. They will consider questions of gender and genre and develop an understanding of television's vital role in the public sphere. An introduction to how television works, how televisual research can be conducted and an appreciation of the relationship between conceptual theory and industrial practice, through examples from speakers in the industry, will also be provided.

 

The following 200/300 level cross-listed units will be offered by the Faculty of Arts in 2008. A maximum of 25% of these units are permitted to count toward the Screen Studies major.

Semester 1:

FSE 258/358 The Moving Image*

FSE260/360 3D Modelling and Animation*

HMJ334 Japanese Film*

HGA273/373 Mass Media and Contemporary Societies*

Semester 2:

FST215/315 Experimental Art and New Technology*

HAF227/327 Contemporary Representations of Gender*

HEG204/304 The Golden Age of German Cinema*

HMJ340 Japanese Literature in Film*

HTC228/328 Celluloid Empire: Rome on Film*

*Some units have special prerequisites. You will need to check with the relevant School for permission to take these units.

Full details of units, majors, courses and degrees are available online at http://www.utas.edu.au/courses