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 Film Theory, and
• HES303 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 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 Film Theory Unit Outline (2009)
HES202/302 Film Theory Unit Outline (2008)
Semester 2:
HES303 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.
HES303 Film Movements and Genres Unit Outline (2009)
HES203/303 Film Movements and Genres Unit Outline (2008)
ELECTIVE UNITS
Most elective units in the Screen Studies major rotate, which means that units such as Cinema, Costumes and Sexuality, Popular Fiction: From Page to Screen and Youth Media will not be available in 2009, but may be offered the following year.
The following 200 and 300 level elective units will be offered by the School of English , Journalism and European Languages in 2009:
Semester 1:
HEA220 Screen Shakespeare
Through cinema and television Shakespeare's plays have been delivered to a world-wide audience that is much larger and more disparate than stage performance could ever reach. This unit will examine some of the many ways Shakespeare has been adapted for the screen by reading selected plays alongside their film adaptations. Key issues to be explored include the relationship between the language of Shakespeare and the visual language of film, the differences between stage and screen, the varying attitudes to "Shakespeare" that inform film and TV adaptations, and the ways in which screen Shakespeares reflect contemporary perspectives and preoccupations.
HEA319 Representing Australia
This unit provides an opportunity to analyse how Australia is represented in contemporary writing and film. Through a series of modules that identify common issues across prose, poetry, narrative film and documentary, the unit encourages students to critically analyse texts within their national context. Key issues will include: the construction of race, theories of place, class and gender politics, and ethnicity. The unit uses methodologies from both literary and film studies in order to map a complex picture of Australia's contemporary culture. Note: this unit is offered by Distance Education.
HEJ327 Media Cultures
This unit analyses the role of the media as a cultural resource. It explores the historical and cultural contexts of a broad range of popular media examples including animation, television drama and comic books and analyses the relationships media develop with their audiences. Students will gain both an understanding of how media industries operate as cultural industries and the societal impact of these cultural formations.
HEJ328 New Media
This unit introduces students to the theories and practices around new media. It explores the factors (economic, social, political and cultural) which influence the development and use of new media through gaming culture, online communities, interactivity, new forms of content delivery and the practices of electronic publishing. Students will gain an understanding of new media's impact on traditional media forms, how the industry works and how research into new media can be conducted.
Semester 2:
HES304 Research Project in Screen Studies
This unit gives students the opportunity to undertake supervised research on a special topic in screen studies. Intensive workshops early in semester focus on developing advanced skills in screen studies research: project conception and planning, information literacy, essay writing and presentation. Students meet regularly with a supervisor throughout the remainder of semester. Approval of the Head of School is required to enrol in this unit.
HES304 Research Project in Screen Studies Unit Outline (2009)
The following 200/300 level cross-listed units will be offered by the Faculty of Arts in 2009. A maximum of 25% of these units are permitted to count toward the Screen Studies major.*
FSE 258/358 The Moving Image
FSE260/360 3D Modelling and Animation
HMJ334 Japanese Film
HGA273/373 Mass Media and Contemporary Societies
HMC317 Contemporary Chinese Cinemas
HSE254/354 Temporal Imaging and 2D Animation
HEG212/312 Post-1945 German Film
HPA237/337 Philosophy and Film
HMJ340 Japanese Literature and Film
* All units should be offered in 2009 subject to individual School requirements. Please check with the relevant school for permission to take these units. Some units will have special prerequisites.
Full details of units, majors, courses and degrees are available online at http://www.utas.edu.au/courses
