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Why pick film studies over film production for Uni?

I understand a lot more people take film studies than production.

Some people just want to study films, but in most cases I'm guessing people studying these are planning to work in that industry.

Given that, why would people choose to study theory over practical work and experience in a field where there it generally far more helpful and difficult to access?

Reply 1

Fruity Girl

My son did Film and tv production after traditional A levels - he’s working in high end TV ever since graduating but friends who did film studies not working in the industry. Go and check out the courses they vary greatly. Herts uni, Portsmouth uni and salford uni were all strong at open day.

Reply 2

University of East Anglia UG Student Rep: Danielle

Official Rep

Original post by Max Jones

Hi @Max Jones :smile:

I'm currently on the BA Film and Television Studies degree here at UEA so thought I'd answer this with my personal thoughts. I am planning on working in the industry for sure, and I think that film studies and the emphasis it can have on understanding how and why people consume certain types of media in certain ways is really beneficial and puts a lot of the production aspect into context. As far as I know, you can certainly get Film/Media based degrees that incorporate a great mix of theory and practical elements. For example, UEA have recently introduced a BA Film and Television Production course and a few of the practical modules are also available to include in the Film and Television Studies degree too. 'Writing the American Script', 'Television Studio Production', 'Film and Video Production', and 'Digital Media: Theory and Practice' are just a few of the modules that can be part of both degrees so it really is just about looking at the content of the courses and seeing which excites you the most, and for some people I guess that is the more theoretical modules such as reception studies and how media impacts culture and society etc (at least, it was for me)

I hope this is helpful and gives some insight. If you're thinking about going to uni, or are at uni and studying film in any way, I hope you have the most brilliant time! It really is such a rewarding and exciting subject to delve into!

Best wishes,
Danielle
Film and Television Studies