Why study this course?

Our Film and Television Production (including foundation year) BA (Hons) degree is a four-year course with a built-in foundation year.

The course is a great fit if you want to study film and television production at undergraduate level but you can't meet the entry requirements for the traditional three-year course.

Our film production and photography courses are third in the UK for teaching quality and fourth in the UK for student satisfaction in the Guardian University Guide 2023.

More about this course

During the foundation year you’ll learn the key principles of creative practice, the conceptual process of idea development and the techniques and materials you’ll use to form your first projects.

Later in the course you’ll focus on longer projects and work on film recording, editing and sound, exploring techniques and methods that will help you achieve your creative vision. Your work-in-progress projects will be presented to students and staff regularly to prepare you for the final show at the end of the year. These presentations are an opportunity to ensure your work is progressing the way you intend it to.

The foundation year will give you the chance to explore what your specific practice might be, with the option of specialising after this initial year. This year will be share with students from other foundation year courses, so you'll get to learn about different disciplines within the School of Computing and Digital Media.

You’ll learn from tutors who are specialists in the field of film and television production, giving you an insight into the industry and its modern practices; the course also includes a work placement element.

You’ll be encouraged and supported throughout the course, with regular feedback given to ensure you are achieving your full potential.

By the end of the course you’ll have created a substantial portfolio. You’ll also get to display your work at a public screening.

You can get a taste for studying this course at London Met by taking a look at our YouTube channel of impressive student films.

Assessment

You’ll be assessed through presentations, projects, essays and your portfolio.

Fees and key information

Course type
Undergraduate
UCAS code P315
Entry requirements View
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Entry requirements

In addition to the University's standard entry requirements, you should have:

  • at least one A level (or a minimum of 32 UCAS points from an equivalent Level 3 qualification, eg BTEC Subsidiary/National/BTEC Extended Diploma)
  • English Language GCSE at grade C (grade 4) or above (or equivalent eg Functional Skills at Level 2)

We encourage applications from international/EU students with equivalent qualifications. We also accept mature students with diverse backgrounds and experiences.

If you live in the UK, you will be invited to a portfolio interview. If you live outside the UK you will be required to submit a small portfolio of work via email.

Accreditation of Prior Learning

Any university-level qualifications or relevant experience you gain prior to starting university could count towards your course at London Met. Find out more about applying for Accreditation of Prior Learning (APL).

English language requirements

To study a degree at London Met, you must be able to demonstrate proficiency in the English language. If you require a Student visa you may need to provide the results of a Secure English Language Test (SELT) such as Academic IELTS. This course requires you to meet our standard requirements.

If you need (or wish) to improve your English before starting your degree, the University offers a Pre-sessional Academic English course to help you build your confidence and reach the level of English you require.

Modular structure

The modules listed below are for the academic year 2023/24 and represent the course modules at this time. Modules and module details (including, but not limited to, location and time) are subject to change over time.

Year 0 modules include:

This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Tuesday afternoon
  • all year (September start) - Tuesday morning

This module will provide students with a number of introductory practical skills in relation to film and television production and a range of broadcast media. Through practice-based exercises aimed at introducing photographic, digital and filmmaking skills, students will begin to explore issues of, for example, editing and sound. They will also begin to reflect upon their learning, and thereby begin to develop and improve upon their future learning experience.

This module aims to:

● Introduce students to the practical study of film, television and broadcast media;

● Provide students with basic skills in photography and digital filmmaking;

● Develop students’ strategies for working in groups, collaboration and teamwork;

● Provide students with the opportunity to reflect upon their learning and develop corresponding skills;

● Prepare students for the practical study of film, television and broadcast media at Level 4.

This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Wednesday afternoon

The module is an introduction to the field of digital media as an area of practice, as culture, and as a set of structures. It is a theory and practice based module providing students with foundation knowledge and skills to effectively analyze but also produce simple digital artefacts. It allows students to develop an understanding of the wider context of digital media production but also to apply key ideas in their own production.

This module aims to:

∙Introduce students to digital media history and culture providing a foundation for further study

∙Encourage the development of critical and analytical skills through the exploration of digital practice

∙Aid the development of digital production skills through practical workshops and assessments

∙Prepare students for the practical study of digital media at Level 4.

This module currently runs:
  • autumn semester - Thursday afternoon

You will gain the basic skills required to write clear, grammatically correct and concise journalistic copy across a range of media platforms. Practical skills will be taught by examining good journalistic practice across all platforms, including social media. Interview skills will be taught through reporting tasks. These will be set within the context of current affairs and ongoing media debates. This module aims to:

  • Equip students with the ability to write copy to a publishable standard with no factual or grammatical errors;
  • Aid students in using sources to construct clear and accurate factual written articles
  • Develop research skills across printed, electronic and primary sources.
  • Improve understanding of grammar, punctuation and spelling
This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Wednesday morning

This module will provide students with an introduction to the study of the mass media and facilitate development of key academic research and writing skills. The module is organised around five blocks each of which introduces debates and discussions about one aspect of the study of the mass media, leading to a short assessment exercise.

The module is designed to facilitate the transition into undergraduate study by encouraging critical engagement and the development of basic academic skills and competencies.

This module aims to:

●Introduce students to key debates in the study of the mass media to provide a foundation for further study.

●Encourage the development of critical and analytical skills through guided study and coursework preparation

●Encourage the development of key academic writing, reading and research skills and competencies

●Prepare students for the practical study of media and communications Level 4.

This module currently runs:
  • spring semester - Tuesday morning

Studying on this module will provide you with the practical skills to create journalistic copy across a range of media platforms. Practical skills will be taught by examining best practice across print, broadcast and online, including social media. Interview skills will be taught through reporting tasks. These will be set within the context of current affairs and ongoing media debates. This module aims to:

  • Equip students with the ability to write copy to a publishable standard with no factual or grammatical errors;
  • Aid students in writing headlines for print as well as crafting web headlines and tweets suitable for online and social media;
  • Develop research skills across printed, electronic and primary sources.
  • Develop social skills needed for interviews and vox pops.

Year 1 modules include:

This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Monday morning

This module introduces students to key theoretical approaches to film, forming a basis for future study through the Film Studies film course.

Students will learn how to apply these approaches through independent textual analysis, developing an understanding of the relationship between text, theory and the wider study of film.

This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Wednesday morning
  • all year (September start) - Friday morning

A highly practical module in which students learn the fundamentals of short film, drama and documentary filmmaking. Students will work on a range of projects both individually and in teams to gain a broad understanding of film and television production. By the end of the module the student will have completed a showreel of films and developed skills in preproduction, production and postproduction techniques.

There will be an emphasis on professional practice such as how to work with cast and crew in a safe an ethical way.

This module is studied alongside and in combination with MD4002 Film and TV Production.

This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Wednesday afternoon
  • all year (September start) - Friday afternoon

A highly creative module in which students devise and develop concepts for their film and TV projects. The module will give an introduction to the commissioning process and will include input from industry professionals.

Students will be required to research, pitch and develop treatments, storyboards and scripts following industry guidelines and legal frameworks.

Students will learn about approaches to short film, drama and documentary storytelling via screenings, discussion and practice.

The module will provide an insight into the paperwork and planning required for different production roles.

Personal development, reflection and evaluation on the productions will also be a key element.

This module is studied alongside and in combination with MD4001 Film and TV Practice.

This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Tuesday afternoon

This module introduces students to the history of film and television from 1895 to the present.

It explores key developments, movements and trends in countries such as Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Japan, Sweden, Japan and America, including the ‘cinema of attractions’; the emergence of narrative cinema; stardom; the development of sound; film as propaganda; the Hollywood studio system; animation and European art cinema. Specific case-study and examples will be used to examine the history of film and television within broader cultural, industrial, political and social contexts. Attention is primarily given to feature films, but documentary and experimental films in both feature and short-length will also be screened and considered.

Year 2 modules include:

This module currently runs:
  • spring semester - Tuesday morning

This module develops students’ critical abilities in the analysis of film & television forms and texts, the circumstances of their financing, production, distribution and exhibition in the economy and society. It considers the role of different film and television production models, and encourages students to apply what they have learned from this analysis. The module provides an insight into the role of marketing, public relations and other promotional activities in the film and television industries. It also develops the ability of the student to critically evaluate the film and television labour market, and situate their own filmmaking practice within this framework. Alongside this critical approach, students construct an online presence as part of their professional portfolio, applying concepts and perspectives derived from the module both to examples from the wider industry and their own filmmaking practice. Students also analyse a particular professional career path as part of module.

The module provides an industry and employment-oriented perspective on the field for students across Film and Television Production and Film and Television Studies, providing a counterpoint to the personal creative aspects of film and television production in studio modules, and building on the critical and analytical elements of earlier modules in L4.

This module aims to:
• To outline film & television industry structures and current industry opportunities.
• To acquaint students with key economic and institutional developments in film & television with particular emphasis on Britain.
• To understand current trends in the media industry towards transmedia (when media content is created to be used across a range of media platforms such as computers, mobile phones and other mobile devices).
• To encourage students to link such critical research and study to their own practice.

This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Monday morning

This practical filmmaking module offers students the opportunity to learn through engagement with a series of practical film and screen-based project briefs that embrace current trends within film and television production.

Briefs can change from year to year, adapting to new and emerging practice in a way that encourages students to work at the cutting edge, preparing them for entry into the industry as it is today.

Project briefs can engage with a variety of formats and genres including (but not limited to): Fiction film, Documentary, TV Studio, Interactive and VR, Experimental Film, Live Client-Led (these projects might be competitions, live briefs from external organisations or self-generated projects around themes).

At the end of this module the student will have completed a portfolio consisting of up to four films. They will work with others in a collaborative way and will begin to work in more defined specialisms (Directing, Producing, Cinematography, Sound design and recording, Editing and Post Production). They can choose to work in different specialisms across different projects.

The module aims are to allow students to experiment, working across a variety of genres in a range of different specialist roles. To encourage ambition and originality, to create an environment within which they are willing to take creative risks. To introduce industry practice and skills and to begin to merge their technical skills with their creative ambitions.

This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Monday afternoon

This module develops skills, tools and methods for future film production work.

Taught alongside (and in integral relationship with Film and TV Practice 2), students learn through engagement in a series of practical film projects designed to further develop relevant skills and approaches to production. At the end of this module the student will have a diverse portfolio that incorporates a range of production related works and a narrative of the working practices they have engaged with.

Briefs can change from year to year, adapting to new and emerging practice in a way that encourages students to work at the cutting edge, preparing them for entry into the industry as it is today.

Projects engage with a variety of formats and genres including (but not limited to): Fiction film, Documentary, TV Studio, Interactive and VR, Experimental Film, Live Client-Led (these projects might be competitions, live briefs from external organisations or self-generated projects around themes).

The assignment portfolio briefs for this module can include (but are not limited to):

Short film scripts
Teaser trailers / trailers
Pitch presentations
Pitch packs
Films and screen-based works (usually more experimental / individual / formative film or screen-based works compared to film briefs that may appear in the atelier module)
Television studio scripts
Documentary pitch packs and research material
Critical reflection

The portfolio is designed to inform, be closely related to (and also a window into) the process of making films.

The module aims are to allow students to experiment with film ideas and concepts, working across a variety of production genres. To encourage ambition and originality, to create an environment within which they are willing to take creative risks. To introduce film and TV industry concepts and terminology and to begin to merge their ideas and process with accepted industry practice. Students will develop their ability to turn ideas into viable film or screen-based projects, creating plans based on previous practice-based experiences. They will build on their ability to describe and appraise their work and will develop their critical insight.

This module currently runs:
  • autumn semester - Thursday afternoon

This module explores Hollywood cinema by exploring both key moments in its industrial development as well as by positioning Hollywood filmmaking as a national cinema affected by America’s culture and politics. Examining the history of Hollywood from the beginnings of the studio system to the contemporary industry, students will consider the development of an industry and its filmmaking practices, its relationship to wider cultural and political moments, as well as some of the films which define the shifting patterns of Hollywood cinema.

This module aims to:

• Provide students with an historical overview of the development of Hollywood cinema
• Develop students’ knowledge of key industrial moments and their significance
• Develop students’ understanding of Hollywood cinema as a national cinema
• Enable students to critically analyse Hollywood film in relation to American culture and politics

This module currently runs:
  • spring semester - Thursday afternoon

This module explores Hollywood cinema by exploring key issues in relation to stardom, genre and authorship. Using extended case studies in relation to both themes and comparative examples, the module both considers the significance of both films and personnel in relation to Hollywood history, and critically explores the importance and problems of these approaches to the study of Hollywood cinema. Students will consider ideas of representation from the classical era to contemporary film and television depictions of Hollywood. Issues in relation to industry and culture will additionally be critically explored.

This module aims to:

• Develop students’ understanding of key approaches to the study of Hollywood cinema
• Enable students to explore these approaches through extended critical analysis of case studies
• Develop students’ abilities in comparative critical analysis of various examples of film and television representation
• Consider key approaches and case studies in relation to the Hollywood film industry and American culture.

This module currently runs:
  • autumn semester - Wednesday afternoon
  • autumn semester - Wednesday morning

This module provides an opportunity to study the art and craft of screenwriting via the short film. Screenwriting differs from other forms of creative writing because the screenplay is a vehicle for a production team to create a film. It requires a combination of visual imagination and engineering to create a good screenplay. Students need to learn the clues which enable an audience to follow the story via character creation and use of action, choice of locations, the tone, the use of genre and narrative pattern of their story. Via a mix of film analysis and writing their own script, students will have a basic grounding in this element of film production.

Year 3 modules include:

This module currently runs:
  • spring semester - Tuesday morning

This module represents core self-development activities that have been present throughout the course: career and exhibition planning, promotion of student work, and portfolio. It provides practical guidance for students in how to position themselves and their work with reference to their career goals, and builds on student work in [L5.4] Level 5 FTV Professional Roles module on production models and personal promotional activity.

The module will include analysis of current trends and the changing media landscape, with a focus on diversity and representation across the industry, as well as encouraging engagement with local film organisations and activities.

Student research will inform the development of a career plan and the design of the portfolio of work (including show reel where relevant). Students will design the presentation of their work to prospective employers or funders in various formats including: CV, covering letter, website – format to be determined through the student’s research.

The module is also where students design the graduation show and other forms of exhibition through the year where relevant.

This module aims to
• afford students the opportunity to realise the career-potential of their accumulated skills, subject knowledge and understanding. The skills will include identifying and researching career opportunities, mapping the requirements and benefits of the career against their own skills and motivations and then learning about and producing the evidence that will enable them to exploit that opportunity.
• to increase students’ understanding of the interrelationship between their practice and the contexts of their profession in the creative economy, and ‘market’ for their skills.
• to empower: enabling the graduate to exploit capacity and potential to shape the job and their professional field so that they may both contribute to and create social benefit from their career.

This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Tuesday afternoon

This module allows students to explore in depth a theory or theory/practice topic of their own choice, arising out of their study at levels 4 and 5 (subject to supervisor approval). Students are supported in the development of the project via Film and Television research workshops at the beginning of the academic year and at intervals throughout. Their individual study is facilitated by a tutor assigned to the project according to subject specialism.

This module is mainly self-managed by the student with facilitation by a specialist in the chosen subject. Students’ individual work is supported by regular consultation and feedback from their tutor and peer-led workshops.

The project incorporates both formative and summative assessment. Students will present their project plan orally in a subject specific workshop and in written form to their project supervisor. The summative assessment consists of an initial 1500 word plan (15%) which includes an initial literature review and proposed research schedule, and a 7500 word final dissertation or project submission (85%).

The module allows students to produce either a dissertation derived from theoretical concerns around Film and Television, or a more practically-focused research project investigating in detail a particular aspect of the film and television production process. The latter option may include a reflective study of an element of production which is linked to students own creative practice. The subject matter of the dissertation can be theoretical, technical, or historical, should be closely related to the student’s main field of study and be complimentary to their practice.

Aims:

To enable students to initiate a specialist project of their own choosing, which draws on the knowledge, creative and practical skills and the main concepts and theories introduced at levels 4 and 5.
To allow students to consolidate and enhance their basic research methods and presentation skills.
To allow students to initiate, develop and realise distinctive and creative work in writing or in visual media.
To enable students to reflect on their own creative practice, work independently and solve problems with facilitation from tutors and peers.
To apply and further develop students’ organisational and planning skills in ways that correspond to the expectations of graduate employers.

This module currently runs:
  • all year (September start) - Thursday afternoon
  • all year (September start) - Thursday morning

This module gives honours-level students the opportunity to devise, plan and produce major films or screen-based works that bring together learning and serve as graduation films, a cornerstone of their graduate portfolios. The projects will be of a high standard yet also leave room for experimentation, enhancing skills, offering the chance for a student to define and make their mark.

At this level, the students originate their own project proposals, production schedules and brief, developing films from pitch all the way through to final exhibition, culminating in a graduation show at a major London cinema.

The projects will be a labour of love, yet the student will also be aware of the market for their work and other cultural contexts.

Film and screen-based projects can engage with a variety of formats and genres including (but not limited to): Fiction film, Documentary, TV Studio, Interactive and VR, Experimental Film, Live Client-Led (these projects might be competitions, live briefs from external organisations or self-generated projects around themes).

Students are encouraged to engage with new and emerging practice, to work at the cutting edge, preparing for entry into the industry as it is today.

At the end of this module the student will submit a portfolio that incorporates major film or screen-based work, supporting material and a reflective narrative of the working practices they have engaged with.

The module aims are to:
1. Allow students the opportunity to originate, plan and produce significant films or screen-based works to an (industry entry-level) professional standard, as a summation of honours-level study.
2. Provide students the opportunity and capacity to bring together their intellectual ideas and practical skills, learning from experimentation and through practise-based understanding.
3. Demonstrate the ability to work independently and collaboratively, working to specialist roles in line with industry practice.
4. Make critically informed work that shows knowledge of audience and industry expectations.

5. To encourage and enable students to critically appraise their own film or screen-based work, and their own specialist role within the production and / or post-production context.

This module currently runs:
  • autumn semester - Tuesday morning

This module enables students to undertake a short period of professional activity and to gain credit for their achievements. The activity can be employment, a work placement, professional training, volunteering in the not-for-profit sector, or where available, within a Virtual Business Environment within the University.

It is expected that the student should work for a minimum of 70 hours, for which they will be required to provide evidence. The 70 hours can be completed in 10 working days in a full-time mode during the summer (where available), or spread over a semester in a part-time mode. Additionally, learners may in some cases be able to utilise their existing part-time / vacation employment providing they can demonstrate that it is personally developmental and involves a level of responsibility (decided upon submission of the role details by the Module Leader).

The work based learning activity should enable the student to build on previous experiences and learning gained within their academic course and elsewhere. It should provide learning opportunities for personal development. The student is encouraged and supported in developing the ability to identify applied knowledge and skills that enhance their work performance, ensure their continued improvement and apply theory to practice as appropriate. The learner should develop improved understanding of themselves, and the workplace through reflective and reflexive learning.

  • Students will be contacted soon after they register for the module (e.g. June for those registered for October) to ensure they understand the requirements and are able to find suitable activity
  • The University must ensure that suitable health and safety requirements are in place and the work activity needs to be approved by the module team before they start the role. The suitability of the opportunities will be assessed on an individual basis.
  • Where required, students will be supported in finding suitable opportunities and with all aspects of their job search and applications. The Careers and Employability Team will work with Faculty teams to provide this support. However, it is the student's’ responsibility to obtain suitable employment, and roles cannot be guaranteed.

What our students say

"The teachers are specialists in what they teach so it has been great learning from such experts."
"Studio culture has transformed the experience for me, I really appreciate the chance to explore what my practice may be when I graduate. Teaching staff have been excellent, giving me just enough freedom to explore, but not get too lost! Excellent facilities. Excellent technicians."
"Encouraged creativity and confidence, I am much better at communicating as a result and feel more ready to launch into a professional environment. Great access to tutors who are as helpful as possible, and give good feedback."

Where this course can take you

Graduates of this course can pursue postgraduate study, or work in a variety of fields, including the creative and cultural industries, film criticism and academia.

As the hub of the film and television industries in the UK, London provides many options for students, both in organisations such as the British Film Institute, the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, and in the numerous independent production companies located across the city.

Our location (Aldgate) in London’s creative East End provides many opportunities for graduating students, both in organizations such as the British Film Institute, the BBC, ITV and Channel 4, and in the numerous independent production companies located nearby and across the city. Recent alumni include one of only three black female filmmakers to have directed a feature film that has received a nationwide release in the UK and a cinematographer who works on TV shows including League of Gentlemen and Cold Feet.

Our creative technologies and digital media graduates have gone on to exciting careers as content programmers, fashion copywriters, motion graphic designers, multimedia journalists and visual effects production assistants, radio presenters, studio runners and producers in companies such as D2 Interactive, TK MAXX, Motion Picture Company, Virtual Arts, Volant Media and We Are Capture.

Additional costs

Please note, in addition to the tuition fee there may be additional costs for things like equipment, materials, printing, textbooks, trips or professional body fees.
Additionally, there may be other activities that are not formally part of your course and not required to complete your course, but which you may find helpful (for example, optional field trips). The costs of these are additional to your tuition fee and the fees set out above and will be notified when the activity is being arranged.

Discover Uni – key statistics about this course

Discover Uni is an official source of information about university and college courses across the UK. The widget below draws data from the corresponding course on the Discover Uni website, which is compiled from national surveys and data collected from universities and colleges. If a course is taught both full-time and part-time, information for each mode of study will be displayed here.

How to apply

If you're a UK applicant wanting to study full-time starting in September, you must apply via UCAS unless otherwise specified. If you're an international applicant wanting to study full-time, you can choose to apply via UCAS or directly to the University.

If you're applying for part-time study, you should apply directly to the University. If you require a Student visa, please be aware that you will not be able to study as a part-time student at undergraduate level.



When to apply

The University and Colleges Admissions Service (UCAS) accepts applications for full-time courses starting in September from one year before the start of the course. Our UCAS institution code is L68.

If you will be applying direct to the University you are advised to apply as early as possible as we will only be able to consider your application if there are places available on the course.

To find out when teaching for this degree will begin, as well as welcome week and any induction activities, view our academic term dates.

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