Enter OTP
The MA Film, Photography and Media at Leeds offers a rich exploration of the creative and critical connections between film, still photography, and media, empowering you to produce your own work while interrogating the wider debates shaping visual culture. This programme suits students who are equally passionate about artistic practice and theoretical analysis, whether you’re coming from a lens-based background or a media studies context.
Curriculum Structure
Over the course of the programme, you will:
Core Study / First Phase: Dive into two compulsory modules — Cultures of Contemporary Photography, where you’ll consider the history and theory of photographic practices, and Film Theory and Practice, which grounds you in both critical cinema studies and practical film production.
Optional Modules and Contextual Learning: You’ll pick from a broad range of electives that reflect your personal and career goals — for example, Cultural Policy, International Film Industries, Film & TV Writing, or Feminism, Identity and Media.
Independent Major Project: For your final project, you can create a short film or photography work, or choose a written dissertation. You’ll also develop your research methods and critical thinking skills to support the project, fully supported by expert supervision.
Focus Areas
Film production and theory, photography practice and history, media theory, visual storytelling, cultural policy, gender and media, international film industries.
Learning Outcomes
You will build advanced creative and technical skills in film and photography, deepen your critical and theoretical understanding of visual media, and gain experience in independent research and project development.
Professional Alignment (Accreditation)
While this MA is not a vocational filmmaking qualification per se, it offers strong practical support (studio, cameras, editing suites) and is delivered by a research-active media school, helping bridge creative practice with academic insight.
Reputation
The University of Leeds is a well-respected Russell Group institution.
Graduates go on to careers in the creative industries, academia, and visual communication, bolstered by Leeds’s Careers Centre and the university’s strong links with media professionals.
When you enrol in the MA Film, Photography & Media at Leeds, you’ll do more than just read and write — you’ll actively create. You’ll be hands‑on from day one, using real film and photo gear, editing suites, and a TV studio to bring your own vision to life. With support from a highly skilled technical team, you’ll work on a major independent final project, whether that's a short film, a photography-based body of work, or even a written dissertation. The School’s 58-seat cinema gives you a space to screen, reflect, and discuss work with peers, while the university’s learning innovation hub (“Helix”) offers multimedia production studios and makerspace facilities to explore immersive and experimental ideas.
Here’s how your experience will be built practically:
Advanced Production Facilities:
58-seat cinema with Dolby Digital sound, and projection capabilities for 16 mm and 35 mm film.
44+ (or up to 80 for masters) editing suites running Avid Media Composer and Adobe Creative Cloud for post‑production.
4K colour-grading “pods” with DaVinci Resolve Studio.
TV Studio & Filming Gear:
Fully equipped TV studio with green screen, lighting rigs, and photographic flash setups.
Film‑production kit including track & dolly, sliders, Glidecam, cranes, and a photographic darkroom.
Loans service: borrow HD digital camcorders, Canon (and other) stills cameras to support your project work. Independent Major Project:
You choose between doing a short film, a photography project, or a written dissertation.
You’ll be supported through specialist modules — for instance, one core module explores creative + critical connections between photography and cinema; another covers the history and debates around photographic practice.
Critical + Theoretical Training:
Optional modules let you dive into areas like feminism in media, screenwriting, international film industries, cultural policy, and new media.
Classes are delivered through workshops, lectures, seminars, tutorials, and screenings, encouraging both group discussion and personal reflection.
Group Work & Assessment:
You’ll work collaboratively in group projects, and your assessment may include e-portfolios, group reports, creative projects, critical essays, scripts, and presentations.
Real‑World Experience:
As part of your degree, you can take part in the Global Industry Programme, a 2‑week virtual consultancy experience where you tackle real business challenges with a global organization.
Innovation, Research & Community:
Access to Helix, the university’s innovation hub — with immersive tech, multimedia production studios, and a makerspace — perfect for experimenting with cutting-edge media work.
Support from a research-active faculty whose interests span areas like experimental documentary, visual sociology, essay film, feminist media, and practice-as-research.
Library & Campus Resources:
Use of Leeds University’s libraries (Brotherton, Laidlaw, Edward Boyle) to support both your practical and theoretical research.
A bachelor degree with a 2:1 (Hons), preferably with some background in lens-based or image practice creative photography (with evidence of some critical/reflexive writing), film practice (including fiction, documentary, experimental), film studies/filmology (as long as the applicant is aware that creative practice is at least 50% of this course), English literature (if there is significant evidence of creative practice), fine art (as long as there is evidence of photographic/time-based work), media studies (with evidence of creative practice).IELTS 6.5 overall, with no less than 6.0 in any componentTOEFL iBT (Test of English as a Foreign Language Internet-Based Test): 88 overall with no less than 19 in listening, 20 in reading, 22 in speaking and 21 in writing.PTE (Pearson Test of English) Academic or PTE Academic UKVI: 64 overall with no less than 60 in each component. We cannot accept results from these tests that are over two years old at the start date of the course you intend to study.Indian Applicants - From 3 - 4 year Bachelor degree, If we ask for 2.1, you need: First class (60%)USA Applicants - If we ask for 2.1, you need: GPA 3.0SocialCommercialMarketingManagement and Enterprise
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University of Leeds
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