The Story of Film and Cinema
At a Glance
- Classroom course (South Kensington)
- Tuesdays 18:00 - 20:00
- 8 weeks | October - December
- Starts 21 October 2024
- Fees from £144
- Tutor: Dr Liam Creighton
Enrol-by Date
- 7 October 2024
This course is for everyone who has ever watched a movie that has left them asking questions.
We can all ‘read’ movies instinctively, but when reflecting on the emotional experience of a film we can often struggle to find the words to explain what we felt, or more often, to describe what it was the film actually did to make us feel that way. And of course, sometimes films use familiar visual language to tell us bafflingly strange tales that challenge our skills of interpretation. This course is here to help you get more out of your experience of the movies by understanding the medium, how it developed and how it continues to change.
Each week Liam will screen a short film by an influential filmmaker, or from a key moment in cinema history ranging from the documentary beginnings of the medium through the French New Wave to CGI Sci-Fi animation and beyond. After the screening you will unpack the film, explore the social, historical and cinematic context, learn about key filmmaking techniques, and figure out how these factors combine to make meaning.
The tutor will provide readings to give some context before each session. Lecturers’ slides, additional reading material and suggestions of feature-length films linked to the week’s short film/s will be provided for further independent study after the class to allow students to dig deeper into the films and filmmakers at their own pace.
By the end of the course you may fall for a genre of film that you had previously assumed was not for you of discover forms of cinema that you haven’t encountered before. Moreover, you will have learned how to ‘read’ movies in a way that will allow you to extract even more enjoyment from streaming binges and trips to the picture house.
No previous knowledge of film studies or film history is required.
Class Recordings
These classes are not recorded
Attendance Certificate
Successful completion of this course leads to the award of an Imperial College attendance certificate
Terms and conditions apply to all enrolments to this course. Please read them before enrolment
Course Information
Course Programme
Course Programme (may be subject to some modification)
- Week 1 – The Birth of a Medium: Early Cinema to Agitprop
- Week 2 – The French New Wave & François Truffaut
- Week 3 – British Free Cinema: Documentary and its relationship to fiction
- Week 4 – Power, Powerlessness and the City
- Week 5 – Surrealism and Absurdism
- Week 6 – Science Fiction, Time, Memory and the Moving Image
- Week 7 – Acts of Appropriation: Remakes, Intertextuality & Queering the Cowboy Movie
- Week 8 – Beyond Photographic Reality: Sci-fi, Animation, CGI
Your Tutor
Liam Creighton is a writer, film director and academic. He writes and directs voices for narrative computer games, has developed feature film projects with the BBC, BFI and Film London, and is currently developing TV projects for coproduction with European partners.
His academic research at the University of Kent focuses on cinematic representation of everyday and ‘middling’ places, while his creative research explores the blurred lines between science, spirituality and pseudoscience.
Besides teaching at Imperial College London on the Science Communications programme, he also teaches at New York University (NYU London).
Course Fees and Rate Categories
| Weeks | Standard Rate | Internal Rate | Associate Rate | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Early Bird: £241 Full price: £268 |
Early Bird: £144 Full price: £160 |
Early Bird: £190 Full price: £211 |
||
| All fee rates quoted are for the whole course. Early Bird rates are available until the end of 30 September only. Part-payments are not possible. | |||||
Rate Categories and Discounts
Standard Rate
- Available to all except those who fall under the Internal Rate or Associate Rate category.
Internal Rate
- Current Imperial College students and staff (incl. Imperial NHS Trust, Imperial Innovations, ancillary & service staff employed on long-term contracts at Imperial College by third-party contractors)
- People enrolling under our Friends & Family scheme
- Alumni of Imperial College and predecessor colleges and institutes, including City & Guilds College Association members
- Students, staff and alumni of the Royal College of Art, Royal College of Music and City, UAL and the City and Guilds of London Art School
- Students, staff and Governors of Woodhouse College and the IC Mathematics School
Associate Rate
- Austrian Cultural Forum staff
- Co-operative College members
- Francis Crick Institute staff, researchers and students
- Friends and Patrons of the English Chamber Orchestra
- Friends of Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens
- Friends of Leighton House/ Sambourne House
- Friends of the Royal College of Music
- Harrods staff
- Historic Royal Palaces staff
- Lycee Charles de Gaulle staff
- Members of the Friends of Imperial College
- Members of the Kennel Club
- Members of the London Zoological Society
- Members of the South London Botanical Institute (SLBI)
- Members of the UK Council for Psychotherapy (UKCP)
- National Health Service (NHS) employees
- Natural History Museum staff
- Residents of postcodes SW3, SW5, SW7, SW10 and W8
- Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea Council staff
- Royal Geographical Society staff
- Science Museum staff
- Staff of Exhibition Road Cultural Group (Discover South Kensington) organisations
- Students (non-Imperial College)
- Teachers and other staff of UK schools
- The American Institute for Foreign Study
- Tutors and other staff of institution members of the Association of Colleges
- Tutors and other staff of other universities and higher education institutions
- Victoria and Albert Museum staff
Late enrolment
It is possible to enrol on many of our adult education courses after the course has already started. For non-language courses this is subject entirely to agreement by the tutor. For language courses it is subject to agreement by the language coordinator conducting level assessment. If you want to join a course late do bear in mind there might be work you will need to catch up on, particularly in language courses.
Friends and Family Scheme
This course is eligible for allowing Imperial College students and staff to share their discount with their friends and family.
Term Dates 2024-25
| Weeks | Autumn term | Spring term | Summer term | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Week starting 14 October to week ending 14 December 2024 (no class on TBC)* | n/a | n/a | ||
| *This is a 1-term course | |||||
Enrolment Process
Enrolment via the blue booking link is open. Early-bird discounts are available until the end of 30 September 2024
Enrolment and payment run through the Imperial College eStore. When enrolling:
- Do check on the drop down menu above called "Course Fees and Rate Categories" to see if you are eligible for a discounted rate and also do make sure you select that rate when enrolling on the eStore
- If you are a first-time eStore user you will need to create an account before enrolling. You can do this by entering an email address and password. This account can then be used for any future enrolments via the eStore.
When you have enrolled you will be sent the following email notifications:
| What is sent | When is it sent | What does it contain | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Payment confirmation | Is sent straight away following submission of your online application |
|
|
| 2. Enrolment confirmation | Is usually sent within 10 working days. Please treat your payment confirmation as confirmation that your applicant details and payment have been received |
|
|
| 3. Programme information | Is usually sent on Friday late afternoon the week before term starts |
|
|
|
|||
Any Questions?
If you have any questions about the academic content or teaching of this course please contact the Course Tutor, Dr Liam Creighton, l.creighton@imperial.ac.uk
If you have any questions about your enrolment or payment processes please contact the Programme Administrator, Christian Jacobi, eveningclass@imperial.ac.uk