Media / Film Studies

Film is one of the main cultural innovations of the 20^th century and a major art form of the last hundred years. Being film literate in our 21^st century is a vital skill for any young adult; those of us who teach this subject offer our sixth form students an in-depth knowledge and understanding of film as a powerful historical, socio-cultural and politically significant medium.  This department focusses on developing a student’s advanced academic skills set including critical thinking and analytical skills, research skills and academic writing capability.  We nurture and direct a student’s creative talents and enable the individual student to gain a broader world view through the variety of films selected for study.  Film Studies consequently has the potential to make an important contribution to a student’s academic and personal understanding of the world regardless of the pathway that they choose to take when they leave our Sixth Form.

This department has an open-door policy: teachers make themselves available for one-on-one tutorial advice throughout the working week; the editing room affords access throughout the teaching day for practical production support related to component 3 of the specification, personal projects and competitions.

The department consists of two fully qualified teachers both of whom have a specialist knowledge of Film Studies, as well as a background in English and Media Studies.  We adapt our teaching according to a student’s individual ability and needs – to offer ambitious academic challenge whilst being aware of the individual learning needs of each student – revisiting knowledge and assessing a student’s individual understanding to enable each student to reach their true potential. Students are further supported by a Media Technician, a Film Producer in his own right who supports our students through every stage of the practical process of film making as a component of the A-Level course.

Most importantly, we believe that students enjoy, engage and thrive in their Film Studies lessons because this long-standing department, known for its outstanding results, offers a true passion for the study of film.