Course Catalogue

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This course will explore how the past is depicted in film and television. It considers debates in the study of history over how the past might be represented and how history has been portrayed in audio-visual form.

10 x 1hr lecture

10 x 1hr seminar

Mandatory screenings may be scheduled depending on the requirements of the course.

Available to all students fulfilling requirements for Honours entry into Film and Television Studies or Creative Arts and Industries, and by arrangement to visiting students or students of other Honours programmes who qualify under the University's 25% regulation.

None

None

Essay (1500 words) (40%)

Essay (2500 words or 7 minute video essay) (60%)

Reassessments are normally available for all courses, except those which contribute to the Honours classification. Where, exceptionally, reassessment on Honours courses is required to satisfy professional/accreditation requirements, only the overall course grade achieved at the first attempt will contribute to the Honours classification. For non-Honours courses, students are offered reassessment in all or any of the components of assessment if the satisfactory (threshold) grade for the overall course is not achieved at the first attempt. This is normally grade D3 for undergraduate students and grade C3 for postgraduate students. Exceptionally it may not be possible to offer reassessment of some coursework items, in which case the mark achieved at the first attempt will be counted towards the final course grade. Any such exceptions for this course are described below. 

The course aims to:

■ assess the ability of film and television to both document the past and produce representations of past events

■ consider the ways in which cinematic and televisual representations of historical events shape our understanding of the past

■ familiarise students with various theoretical approaches towards the study of the past and its audiovisual representation

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ identify and discuss the conventional strategies of representing the past on film and television

■ demonstrate the connection between cinematic and televisual representations of the past and more general understandings of historical events

■ make use of, and reflect critically upon, different theoretical approaches towards the study of the past

■ pursue critically informed arguments about screen representations of the past through writing and/or videographic study

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.