University of Cape Town Film and Media Studies
What can I do with Film and Media?
Established in 2004, the Centre for Film and Media Studies at the University of Cape Town offers a range of courses that equip graduates with the theoretical knowledge and practical skills to embark on a career in the film and media industry. Many of our alumni have found entry level posts in the media, film, and television industries as well as in advertising, marketing, and education.
What is Film and Media?
The Centre for Film and Media Studies offers two majors as well as programmes in Film and Media Production.
The major in Film and TV Studies offers a thorough grounding in the history, theory, and analysis of Film and Television. We also encourage creativity through storyboarding and scriptwriting. The skills provided give students access to careers in academic teaching and scholarship, film journalism, film festival management, and film librarianship. A wide-ranging knowledge of Film and TV also effectively complements creative practice in screenwriting, production, and direction.
The major in Media and Writing weaves together theory and analysis of broadcast and print media with extensive creative practice. Students are trained in writing and editing for awide range of media: they may specialise in news reporting, investigative journalism, freelancing, sports journalism, advertising, documentary, writing for television (soaps and sitcoms), youth culture and the media, writing for magazines, feature journalism, and travel writing.
The six practically and creatively orientated production programmes cover film and television production; digital media and informatics; interactive media; print production; screenwriting; and broadcast journalism. All these courses provide students with basic skills and creative expertise appropriate to the medium, which will help them find internships or entry level posts in the industry. UCT has invested heavily in equipment and editing software, ensuring that students learn skills and procedures that will be directly relevant in their later careers.
While we offer as much opportunity for creativity, intellectual engagement, and practical training as we can, we also emphasise how much success in the “real world” depends on passion, commitment, perseverance, energy, and imagination on the part of the student. In choosing our production students, we take their passion and commitment seriously.
Undergraduate Courses
F=FIRST SEMESTER S=SECOND SEMESTER H=YEAR COURSE
- FAM1001F Media and Society
- FAM1000S Analysing Film and Television
- FAM2000F Writing and Editing in the Media
- FAM2003S Media, Power and Culture
- FAM2004F Introduction to the History of Cinema
- FAM2013S Television Drama: Theories and Genres
- FAM3000F The Media in South Africa
- FAM3001S Advanced Media Studies
- FAM3003S Advanced Film Studies
- FAM3005F Film in Africa
Postgraduate Courses
F=FIRST SEMESTER S=SECOND SEMESTER H=YEAR COURSE
- FAM4000W Video Project
- FAM4001W Research Essay/Project
- FAM4004S Avante-garde Film
- FAM4007F Narrative Literary Journalism
- FAM4008F Media Theory and Media Research
- FAM4009H Media Research Project
- FAM4010F Media Markets and Media Strategy
- FAM4011F/S Media Internship
- FAM4012H Media Creative Production
- FAM4013F Political Communication
- FAM4014S Political Journalism
- FAM4016S Wildlife Documentary (not offered in 2017)
- FAM4017F Advanced Television Analysis
- FAM4018S Crisis Communication in Africa
- FAM4031S South African Public Rhetoric (course availability dependent on sufficient number of registrants)
- FAM4032F Understanding Public Argumentation
- FAM4033S Writing for Television: Honours
- FAM4034S Theories and Forms of Adaptation
- FAM4036S Film and Environment
- FAM4037F Approaches to Film and Television
- FAM4038F Authorship in Cinema
- FAM4039F Documentary Film: Forms and Theories
- FAM4040F Writing for Film: Honours
- FAM5006W Minor Dissertation
- FAM5011S Media and the Public Domain
- FAM5012W Media Creative Production
- FAM5013F Advanced Media Methodology
- FAM5014S Media and National Development Policy
- FAM5015W Making the Critical Documentary
- FAM5016S Creative Non-fiction
- FAM5038S Mobile Media and Communications
- FAM5039F Approaches to African Cinema
- FAM5040S Conceptualising South African Cinema
- FAM5041F Writing for Film
- FAM5042H Theories of Screenwriting
- FAM5043S Writing for Television
- AXL4405F Visual Anthropology (Department of Social Anthropology)
Undergraduate Courses
Postgraduate Courses
Contact Us
E-mail: soraya.shaffie@uct.ac.za
Tel: (021) 650 3373
