Film Studies (JH)

B.A. Honors Bachelor Degree (NFQ Level 8)
4 Years Full-Time
30 Places
CAO Points 533-613 (2023)

Overview

What is Film (JH)?

Why do films affect us the way they do? Why did the introduction of sound change film forever? What do we mean by ‘independent cinema’? What is a digital story world? These and many more are the questions that Film asks students to consider in small-group lectures and seminars. In addition, over the course of your degree you’ll be encouraged to respond creatively to critical issues via projects, presentations, short films and video essays, as well as to develop your screenwriting skills to see if you have a fresh vision to share with the world around you.

Do you enjoy…

  • Watching and analysing a wide range of films from around the world?
  • Formulating opinions and arguments about film and media culture?
  • Expressing your ideas critically and creatively in words and images?

    Film: The course for you?

    If you dream of becoming the new darling of Hollywood, and of immersing yourself in the practicalities of film production, then this is not the course for you. Film at Trinity is built on strong academic and intellectual foundations – core courses include the history of Hollywood filmmaking, introduction to Non-Western cinemas, aspects of European cinemas, Irish cinema and theories of the digital image. You will also be introduced to basic screenwriting and filmmaking, using the format of the writers’ room, and exploring the potential of the smartphone to create mini-dramas. You will study documentary theory and follow this up by making a short documentary film. In third and fourth year, you will build on the fundamentals you have learnt through more advanced options, while always maintaining a balance between critical learning and practical outputs.

      Film at Trinity

      Film students are encouraged to collaborate with other students in the School through shared learning modules and facilities. Equally, students of Film are heavily engaged in DU Film Society and in the student-run film journal, Trinity Film Review. Our students regularly attend film festivals, including the Berlin Film Festival and the Venice Film Festival, and organise screenings and film events.

      Our ‘In Conversation’ series of public talks offers students the opportunity to attend talks by leading practitioners. Participants to date include: Lenny Abrahamson, John Butler and Emer Reynolds.

      Graduate skills and career opportunities

      In 2019, Film formed an Industry Advisory Panel. The members of this panel are: Lenny Abrahamson, Aoife Duffin, Gavin Fitzgerald, Paddy Breathnach, Alan Gilsenan, Ed Guiney, Neasa Hardiman, Katie Holly, Lucy Kennedy, Helena Korner, Claire McGirr, Niall McKay, Maeve O’Boyle, Marian Quinn and Ken Wardrop. The panel is available to offer career advice to students and to give talks on careers in the industry. Not all students may wish to enter the film industry (and our graduates will all take further training before being industry-ready), and many have gone on to careers in writing, journalism and marketing, as well as to advanced study.

      A degree in Film offers career opportunities in many areas of the television industry; television; journalism; digital media; reviewing and criticism; arts administration; advertising; marketing. Recent graduates of Film Studies at Trinity have gone on to be involved in the film industry in a number of ways, from directing feature length films to editing, scriptwriting, production and administration. A number of our graduates have gone on to further study in film and associated areas. This degree also offers opportunities in the many general areas open to arts graduates, such as administration, teaching, civil and public service.

      Your degree and what you’ll study

      First and second years

      In first and second year, you will study the following subjects: Introduction to Film Analysis; American Cinema from the Silent Era to the 1930s; American Cinema from the 1930s to the 1960s; Introduction to European Cinemas ;Introduction to Non-Western Cinemas; Introduction to Digital Media; Ireland and the Cinema; History and Practice of Visual Analysis; Fundamentals of Filmmaking; Introduction to Screenwriting; Introduction to Editing; Introduction to Film Theory and Criticism; The Film Soundtrack; and Documentary Theory and Practice.

      Third and fourth years

      In third and fourth year you will study Digital Storyworlds; Contemporary Non-Western Cinemas; Film Theory and Criticism; Melodrama; Russian Cinema; Screening Irish-America; Transnational Cinemas; New Hollywood Cinema,; Cult Cinema; British Cinema; History and Practice of Visual Analysis; Film Costume and Fashion; Post-Revolutionary Iranian Cinema; Writing for the Big Screen; Writing for the Small Screen; Advanced Editing; Creative Film Practice; and Practical Documentary.

      Film students are assessed by a combination of essay, assignment, project, class participation and presentation. In their final year, students will create a screenplay or video essay with an accompanying theoretical rationale of 4,000 words.

      There are QQI/FET routes available for this course. Please see www.cao.ie for details.

      Click here for further information on modules/subject.

      Study abroad

      Film has Erasmus exchanges with universities in France (Paris and Rennes) and Germany (Freie Universität). Students regularly participate in Non-EU exchanges (at UCLA, USC, University of British Columbia and others). For more information on study abroad destinations and requirements visit: www.tcd.ie/study/study-abroad

      Course Details

      Awards

      B.A. Honors Bachelor Degree (NFQ Level 8)

      CAO Information

      CAO Points 533-613 (2023)

      Number of Places

      30 Places
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      Course Options

      Joint Honours Film can be studied in conjunction with the following subjects:

      TR311 Drama Studies

      TR312 English Studies

      TR320 Music

      TR324 Modern Language (French, Irish, Italian, Spanish)

      TR325 History

      Course Fees

      Click here for a full list of undergraduate fees.

      Apply

      To apply to this course, click on the relevant Apply Link below

      EU Applicants

      Read the information about how to apply, then apply directly to CAO.

        Non-EU Applicants

        Advanced Entry Applications

        Read the information about how to apply for Advanced Entry, then select the link below to apply.

        Get in Touch

        filmstds@tcd.ie

        Website

        www.tcd.ie/creativearts/disciplines/film

        Register Your Interest

        Register your interest in studying at Ireland’s leading university, Trinity College Dublin, the University of Dublin.

        Register Your Interest

        Film at Trinity provides an in-depth and broad curriculum. One of the greatest things about Film is how small the class sizes are, this means many tutors and lecturers have the time to meet your needs and provide guidance on a one-on-one basis. With the demands of university lecturing, not many other universities provide such a helpful thing.

        Daniel McFarlane

        Graduate

        There is so much to say about my time as a Film student at Trinity, but I think the most important thing is just how much I enjoyed it. In Film, being surrounded by both my classmates’ and teachers’ love of film, the impossibility of making a life in film became possible. I think when you study something you love a B.A. goes from being a requirement for gainful employment, to a really transformative experience.

        Matthew McInerney-Lacombe

        Graduate from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts and winner of the Outstanding Writing for the Screen, Graduate award. Matthew sold his first screenplay, Spring Offensive, to Fox Studios.