Join us as you explore the stylistic, industrial and cultural diversities of global cinema, through the close study of films from different historical and regional contexts. Whilst developing your analytical skills you will examine variations in cinematic style, aesthetics and production modes and consider how films reflect and shape social, political and industrial landscapes.

Through lectures, screenings, readings and discussions, you will explore major cinematic movements and traditions such as:

• Silent cinema
• Classical Hollywood
• Global Neorealism
• Middle Eastern and European New Waves
• Contemporary independent filmmaking

You will also engage with key debates on:

• Film authorship
• Digital technologies
• Genre evolution
• Film circulation
• Emerging identities in cinema

By analysing case studies from mainstream and avant-garde traditions across different regions, you will gain a broader understanding of the theoretical and cross-cultural connections that shape world cinema. By the end of the module, you will have developed critical perspectives on the continuities, ruptures, and debates in film history.

Exploring the adaption of literature to film and other media, this module focuses on the adaptation of popular and ‘classic’ literary texts to such forms as theatre, graphic novels, film, television, song and games.

You will be invited to reflect on adaptation as a powerful and complex cultural process, one that interprets literature as well as adapts it.

Throughout the module you will complete a creative project that enables you to produce your own work of adaptation. This may take many forms such as written, (audio)visual, musical, digital, or three-dimensional and/or take the form of a game, production or performance, etc.

Reflect on what it means to do criticism in a post-theoretical age. This module asks what happens to literary interpretation after all its many theoretical upheavals – from Marxism and feminism to postcolonialism and queer theory. Is it time to get back to the close reading of literature? Is there still room for pleasure, appreciation and creativity in the practice of criticism? We might question whether literature, in the traditional sense, even exists anymore.

You will pose these questions in relation to a range of traditional and non-traditional texts.

Explore literary criticism as it is now and what it may yet become. You will have the opportunity to consider a whole range of major theoretical and philosophical concepts, such as:

• The body
• Race
• Gender
• Violence
• Ecology
• God
• Time
• Death
• War
• Self
• The animal

You will study a range of fascinating modern thinkers, ranging from Marx, Freud and Nietzsche, through to more recent figures such as Simone Weil, Walter Benjamin, Jacques Derrida, Judith Butler, Fred Moten, Cornel West and Sara Ahmed.

Not all professional contexts are the same – and within any organisation there are diverse people with varied backgrounds. This module focuses on enhancing your intercultural competency and cultural awareness, with a particular emphasis on ‘place-based’ learning. Considering the cultural dynamics of the North West of England and the broader UK helps us reflect upon intercultural dynamics in very different locations.

Through analysis, discussion and self-reflection you will strengthen your ability to navigate diverse workplace settings and enhance your employability in today’s interconnected world.

This module explores how drama, poetry and prose shape the shifting discourses of politics, sex, science and education across first the Tudor period (1485-1603) and then through Stuart rule and revolution (1603-1688).

You will consider how both male and female writers use a range of media to reconfigure relationships between bodies, spirits, nature, cities, nation, empire and capital. Discover the surprising ways that literary texts chart the emergence of ‘modern’ sensibilities through the struggles of both spiritual and secular reformations and civil war.

Hone a strong sense of purpose and gain the satisfaction of applying your skills and knowledge to a community, charity or student-led initiative.

Your challenge will be to take responsibility for arranging and completing a voluntary or fundraising activity—locally, virtually or during vacation periods at home. You will need to show that you have made a positive difference through this activity.

In class, you will be asked to reflect on this experience and explore the wider social impact of the work. In doing so you will build your confidence in your ability to contribute meaningfully to society through your future personal and professional path.

Explore the development of film genres in Classic Hollywood, examining how the studio system shaped genre conventions, storytelling techniques, and audience expectations. You will analyse key genres, such as Silent Cinema, Musicals, and Melodrama, considering their evolution, industrial contexts, and cultural significance.

Through screenings and critical readings, you will assess how genre films establish recurring themes, visual styles and modes of performance. The module also explores how factors such as technological advancements, audience demand and the rise of the star system influenced genre filmmaking.

By the end of the module, you will have developed a strong understanding of genre as both a creative and commercial force in Hollywood cinema, as well as essential analytical skills for further study in film history, theory, and contemporary genre cinema.

Move beyond introductory concepts to explore film theory in depth, examining how films construct meaning through form, representation, and audience engagement.

You will critically assess cinema’s relationship with artistic expression and spectatorship, engaging with complex debates that have shaped film scholarship since the medium’s inception. Focusing on advanced theoretical analysis, this module equips you with the conceptual knowledge and critical vocabulary to interpret films using semiotic, psychoanalytic, formalist, philosophical and cognitivist approaches.

You will explore key concepts such as cinematic modernism, subjectivity in film perception and cinema’s evolving relationship with philosophy. The module fosters independent critical engagement with the works of influential theorists, deepening your understanding of theoretical frameworks.

By applying these perspectives to a range of case studies, you will refine your ability to conduct detailed textual analysis. By the end of the module, you will have developed sophisticated theoretical and analytical skills essential for higher-level film study.

Join us as we explore how cinema constructs, reinforces and challenges ideas of gender, race and ideology through global examples. You will engage with key theoretical frameworks, including feminist and queer film phenomenology, psychoanalysis, Marxism and postcolonial theory, to critically examine how films reflect and shape social and political structures.

Through screenings and readings, you will analyse the work of women filmmakers, Third Cinema movements and representations of race and identity across different cultural and historical contexts. The module considers how film style, narrative and spectatorship contribute to ideological meaning, encouraging you to question dominant perspectives in mainstream and independent cinema.

By the end of the module, you will have developed critical tools to analyse cinema through multiple theoretical lenses, deepening your understanding of film as a site of ideological negotiation. This module provides essential skills for further study in film theory, global cinema and cultural analysis.

You are invited to collaborate in an interdisciplinary team with other students as you explore major global challenges such as climate change, inequality or emerging technologies.

Throughout the module you will examine how the humanities, arts and social sciences contribute to understanding and addressing complex issues. Classroom discussions and activities focus on the process of identifying problems and considering innovative, ethical responses, while helping you to consider and articulate the relevance of this work to your personal and professional development.

Gain an immersive, hands-on experience in filmmaking, where you will develop, produce and complete a short dramatic film while following industry-standard practices. Through specialised workshops, you will receive training in:

• High-end cameras
• Professional sound recording and mixing
• Grip equipment
• Post-production workflows
• Colour grading
• Editing

Collaboration is central to this module. At the start, all students will write a short script, with the group selecting two to pitch before producing one as a collaborative project. You will take on a key creative role—such as Writer/Director, Producer, Cinematographer, Art Director, Sound Recordist, or Editor—while also supporting another production in a technical role. Through this, you will gain essential experience across multiple aspects of filmmaking. As a group, you will also create a production booklet, to document the film’s development.

Alongside practical work, you will reflect on your learning and the production process, evaluating creative and logistical challenges. By the end of the module, you will have developed essential technical and collaborative skills, preparing you for professional and independent filmmaking.

Explore how ideas can be developed into real-world projects with lasting value. Through hands-on collaboration and problem-solving, you will develop innovative projects, learn how to bring ideas to life and explore ways to sustain them.

Whether you are working in a team or individually, you will be encouraged to experiment with different approaches to making a difference in artistic, cultural, social and community spaces.

The years of Queen Victoria’s reign (1837-1901) saw great social, political and cultural transformation. Changing social conditions, extraordinary scientific breakthroughs and the emergence of new technologies all altered the ways in which Victorians thought about themselves and their environment. The literature of the period responded resourcefully to the turbulent circumstances from which it emerged.

In this module, you will examine a wide range of Victorian writing, including novels, short fiction, poetry, drama and non-fictional prose and will explore and interrogate all the complexities of the Victorian age.

This module will allow you to spend the year working in a graduate-level placement role in the industry or sector that interests you most. Throughout the year, you will build an awareness of what is required in the professional workplace whilst developing a range of transferable skills.

During the module you will reflect on and critically analyse: your own career readiness, the ongoing development of your self-awareness in terms of skills and professional knowledge, and your understanding of current workplace practices and professional etiquette.

Our Careers and Placements Team will support you during your placement with online contact and learning resources.

Your degree culminates in an in-depth, self-directed research project that draws on both disciplines. You will propose a topic based on your own interests and work closely with one of our academic team as your project supervisor. They will support you in refining your research focus, developing your methodology and confirming the structure of your final submission.

You may choose to complete a traditional written dissertation based on research you have carried out independently, or opt to carry out a practice-based project - such as a short film, screenplay, or other media work - accompanied by a critical reflection.

The module will develop your skills in independent research, sustained critical analysis and, where appropriate, creative exploration. By the end, you will have produced a substantial piece of work that demonstrates advanced conceptual thinking, originality and effective project management. Your project work will show that you are ready to embark on a career in the cultural, creative or media industries, or to progress to postgraduate level study.

What happens when radically different forms of art meet? How do these fused forms change our understanding of the world? We will draw on material from different periods and continents, to explore works of art where, for example, film meets history, poetry meets philosophy, fine art meets sociology, religion meets fiction, and theatre meets politics.

How might we engage with the implications of environmental transformation locally, nationally and globally? Where do we have agency and capacity to intervene?

This module brings together a range of perspectives—historical, political, philosophical and cultural—to explore the nature and severity of the effects of the climate crisis on our world.

This hands-on module uses engaging workshops to explore Experimental Cinema and discover how it challenges mainstream narratives and disrupts traditional modes of spectatorship.

Through a combination of critical discussions on selected films and hands-on creative experimentation, this module challenges you to rethink film form beyond conventional storytelling while encouraging you to bring your visions to life through practice.

You will study key movements and approaches, starting from the historical avant-gardes – the influence of artistic movements like Dada, Surrealism and Structuralism- to contemporary artists’ moving image.

By the end of the module, you will have developed a critical and practical understanding of experimental cinema, gaining experience in challenging the boundaries of film aesthetics and spectatorship. Emphasising creative risk-taking and critical inquiry, this module encourages an expanded approach to filmmaking that transcends conventional modes of production and exhibition.

Discover cinema as a dynamic socio-cultural institution, exploring how films are circulated, exhibited and received. You will analyse the role of mediators such as programmers, distributors and critics, as well as the spaces where films are consumed and preserved, including cinemas, festivals, archives and digital platforms.

Focusing on both historical and contemporary perspectives, the module considers how film cultures evolve within local and global contexts. Examples may include:

• The introduction of movie theatres in colonial settings
• The rise of multiplexes
• The role of film festivals in shaping regional industries

You will also explore how exhibition and distribution shape audience engagement and film heritage.

By the end of the module, you will have developed advanced research, analytical and communication skills, enabling you to engage critically with film institutions and cultural industries. This will prepare you for further academic study or careers in film curation, distribution and exhibition.

Examining the evolution of film genres in a global context, this module focuses on the ways contemporary filmmakers innovate within established and classic genre traditions. You will analyse key genres such as Science Fiction, Horror and Comic Book films, considering their artistic, industrial and technological developments across different cinematic traditions.

Through case studies, you will explore how genre conventions adapt to national and transnational influences, addressing topics such as digital effects and world-building, genre hybridity and the role of franchises in global media. The module also considers how streaming platforms, audience reception and fan cultures shape contemporary genre filmmaking.

By the end of the module, you will have gained an advanced understanding of modern genre as a dynamic cinematic form. You will be equipped with critical and analytical skills essential for further research or careers in film criticism, curation and media industries.

This module examines the evolving structures, practices, and challenges of film industries across different historical and global contexts. You will explore key industrial processes such as censorship, marketing, promotion and sustainability, while also engaging with major film movements that have shaped contemporary cinema.

Through case studies, you will analyse how national and transnational film industries adapt to technological, economic and political shifts. Topics may include digital cinema, green production initiatives and the role of institutions such as the BFI in shaping industry standards. The module also explores movements like Hong Kong and New Wave cinemas, assessing their impact on filmmaking practices and global circulation.

By the end of the module, you will have developed a critical understanding of the forces shaping film industries, equipping you with analytical skills applicable to film production, distribution and policy. This module provides a strong foundation for further study in film culture and industry practices.

Both the Gothic and science fiction emerged in response to the 18th century ‘age of reason’ and the Western world’s investment in logic and progress. The Gothic explores the terrors of the past and its return while science fiction imagines alternative futures; in doing so, both voice the concerns of the present.

You will study both classic literary texts and contemporary film and other media. Exploring what the Gothic and science fiction each do, rather than what they each are, you will consider how these genres address some of the most pressing questions facing contemporary Western culture.

What are the possibilities and pitfalls of community and citizen action, voice and agency? This module uses interdisciplinary case-studies to critically examine collaboration with communities.

You will participate in activities such as a mock citizens' assembly, visit local community groups and hear different points of view from a range of guest speakers on concepts like power, race, gender, class, affect and justice.

Explore postcolonial literature across a wide historical span. Your study will move from the explosion of new national literatures in the era of decolonisation through to contemporary writing that interrogates the legacies of racism and imperialism in our globalised world.

You’ll read exciting major writers who defined the emergence of African, South Asian and Caribbean literature in English in the middle of the twentieth century. You’ll also encounter today’s new voices, grappling with the afterlives of empire.

Cutting through all our thinking will be the question of how literature serves, in Ngugi wa Thiongo’s phrase, as a means of 'decolonising the mind'.

What do we understand by queerness? Looking back at earlier interpretations, we imagine how queerness might evolve—how it might be lived, felt and understood in the future.

You will explore queer futures from a range of perspectives and viewpoints, while examining both feminist and queer theory, as well as queer media and cultural texts and material relating to areas such as activism, politics and healthcare.

Study key texts and contexts from a short but remarkably intense period of literary history. Encompassing the work of writers such as Wordsworth, Blake, Keats and Shelley, you will explore the role of nature, the imagination and the sublime. You will also consider the emergence of the Gothic tradition and examine the interactions between literary and politics in a turbulent era of revolution and change.

Ben Jonson claimed of Shakespeare ‘he was not of an age but for all time.’ This module, however, examines Shakespearean drama and poetry in its own time and as a platform in which early modern debates about agency and government, family and national identity, were put into play. The stage was and is a place in which questions of gender, class and race, gain immediacy through the bodies and voices of actors.

By examining texts from across Shakespeare’s career, you will explore their power to shape thoughts and feelings in both their own age and in ours. You will consider how, in the past and in the present, Shakespeare’s texts exploit the emotional and political possibilities of poetry and drama.

As part of your assessment for this module, you may opt to take part in a full-scale public performance of one of the plays we have studied; this is usually staged at Lancaster’s spectacular medieval Castle.

Who does technology benefit or harm, and what should its role in society be? This module examines the social and ethical issues surrounding the development of modern technologies and their use in the modern world, with a vision to shape our future relationship with technology.

How do ideas understand, transform and conserve the world? In this module we will study examples of powerful ideas such as the nation, free speech, liberation, the free market, culture and nature. We will use case studies to help us explore the relationship between analysis, imagination and practice.