Film Programming and Curating

A first of its kind, this MA Film Programming and Curating explores the diverse ways in which films are selected and presented to an audience. Studying in the heart of London, one of the world’s leading media hubs, this course takes full advantage of its location to help you build professional networks, visit various sites of exhibition (from galleries and museums to film festivals and cultural centres) and learn about contemporary film programming and curatorial practice.

The course encourages independence of intellectual thought and spirit, and offers a historical, intellectual and conceptual understanding of film programming, curatorial practice and moving image culture. The curriculum involves:

• theories of spectatorship, the audience and the changing conditions of film reception
• sites of exhibition and the architecture of the filmic experience
• the role of the archive, film canons and the exhibition of great collections
• the practicalities involved in programming a film and locating audiences for it.

This daytime course provides a strong academic foundation, relating the latest theoretical thinking to critical practice. It combines this with site visits across London (including the ICA and BFI), as well as providing placements at leading cultural institutions and film centres, including LUX. You will have the opportunity to participate in programming initiatives with organisations as diverse as the Korean Cultural Centre UK and other film centres around London.

Our teachers are internationally distinguished academics, while visits from cultural practitioners will introduce you to experienced film programmers, curators and art practitioners. Making full use of the opportunities offered by our proximity to London’s vibrant film culture, this course provides a first step towards building a career in film programming and exhibition, or for further research into the cultures of curating and curatorial practice.

• Birkbeck was ranked as one of the top four universities in the UK for its Art and Design research in the 2021 Research Excellence Framework.
• The award-winning Birkbeck Cinema is central to the course, where most of our classes take place. The cinema is equipped with 35mm and state-of-the-art DVD projection, which offers you an opportunity to experiment with programming and watch films in the best possible conditions. Located in central London, in the heart of historic Bloomsbury, Birkbeck is within easy reach of cinemas and galleries, as well as facilities such as the British Film Institute and the British Library.
• You will receive accreditation, sponsored by Birkbeck, to the BFI London International Film Festival.
• The Birkbeck Institute for the Moving Image (BIMI) runs a busy, intellectually stimulating programme of events, including conferences, screenings and film-related events of all kinds, which students on this course are more than welcome to attend. You will have the opportunity to participate in and attend the Essay Film Festival, jointly run by BIMI and the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA), with free admission to events hosted at Birkbeck.
• We offer a number of bursaries for postgraduate students.