1. Demonstrate foundational knowledge, concepts, and skills within film production. Knowledge & Understanding

2. Apply technical and creative methods to produce a coherent portfolio of work for film production. Application & Problem Solving

3. Use digital tools relevant to film production to support creative production. Digital Literacy

4. Reflect on your technical, creative, and professional development to enable your future development. Reflection, Personal Development & Entrepreneurship

Assessment 1: Short Non-Fiction Film Production
You will plan, shoot and edit a short non-fiction film. The film will demonstrate fundamental non-fiction film storytelling thorough the application of effective cinematograph, sound design, editing and colour grading techniques. You will work in a production crew and demonstrate a range of professional skills such as teamwork, organisation, communication, adaptability and resilience.

Assessment 2: Production File
You will compile a portfolio of materials that document each stage of the production process. The Production file will contain research, ideas generation, planning and other supportive documents created during the production of your short non-fiction film. This portfolio will document your creative practice and reflect on your learning journey, including elements such as teamwork, organisation, communication, adaptability and resilience. Further guidance on equivalent formats will be provided in the module brief.

Formative Assessment:
Midway formative feedback will be embedded within practical sessions, providing structured opportunities for feedback on work-in-progress to support student development and progression.

- The aim of this module is to develop your knowledge and understanding of the non-fiction filmmaking process. Deconstructing and analysing contemporary and historical non-fiction films, you will develop an awareness of film language, screen grammar and fundamental theories that are applied to non-fiction filmmaking.
- Aligned with industry practice, you will create a comprehensive collection of production documents. You will use these documents to communicate the creative, ethical, legal, logistical, and technical aspects of your project to staff and peers.
- During location fieldwork, you will apply theory to practice and engage with members of the public to capture the required film footage and audio for your non-fiction film. Working as a crew you will engage in creative decision-making and problem-solving, developing your teamwork and practical filmmaking skillets.
- You will be encouraged to critique your work during the post-production of your film, analysing your application of screen grammar and considering the audience in your edit decision making. Positioning your film in context, you will create a distribution strategy and marketing materials for your film.
- Presenting your final non-fiction film to staff and peers, you will reflect on your production process and your personal learning journey.

You will learn about non-fiction film production by making a short non-fiction film. You will develop, shoot and edit a short non-fiction film that will be screened to a public audience. Working in a small crew the film will be developed and shot during a field trip away from the University. You will develop a distribution strategy for the finished film and enter your work into film festivals.

Learning strategies used in this module are grounded in a student-centred approach and utilises project-based learning and authentic assessment. This means you are learning about non-fiction filmmaking by making a non-fiction film. You can hyper personalise your learning by combining your own frames of reference for non-fiction filmmaking practice with the theories and examples introduced withing the learning resources. While there is a requirement to meet a set brief your crew will have the freedom to select its own style and subject matter for the non-fiction film.

Workshops introduce fundamental theories that underpin the development of your non-fiction filmmaking practice. Filmmaking craft workshops provide a collaborative learning experience and enable you to link theory to practice.

Technical Instruction workshops introduce you to important health and safety considerations and develop your competency with the portable production equipment and specialist post-production facilities required to fulfil your assessment.

Location field work is an integral part of your learning process. Applying your creative, technical, and theoretical skills to an authentic shooting scenario, your film will be captured during a field trip.

Student crews (groups) are supported/supervised by a Production Supervisor (Lecturer) that models the industry role of an Executive Producer. This means you will receive regular formative feedback on your film production, production paperwork and employability skills, which you can use to improve your practice and work before submitting it for assessment.

Production Supervisors will continually monitor and assess your employability skills, such as, communication, working with others, organisation, participation, engagement, resilience, and adaptability. Assignments are not group marked; you will receive individual marks and summative feedback at the end of the module.

Bernard, S. C. (2022) Documentary storytelling. 5th edn. New York: Focal Press.

Bowen, C. and Thompson, R. (2018) Grammar of the edit. 4th edn. New York: Routledge.

Gordon, R. (2022) The documentary distribution toolkit. 1st edn. New York: Routledge.

Rabiger, M. and Hermann, C. (2020) Directing the documentary. 7th edn. London: Routledge.

Stark, T. (2021) The insiders’ guide to factual filmmaking. 1st edn. New York: Routledge.

Where older texts are included, they are retained as foundational texts within the discipline, remaining relevant where no more recent equivalent texts are available.

- Portable video and audio recording equipment
- Specialist Media Labs – Post-Production Editing, Sound Mixing, Colour Grading
- Library Books and Journals
- Academic Study Skills Tutors