Contemporary Approaches to Screen Studies

Undergraduate | 2026

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Area/Catalogue
MDIA 3008
Course ID icon
Course ID
201038
Level of study
Level of study
Undergraduate
Unit value icon
Unit value
6
Course level icon
Course level
3
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Inbound study abroad and exchange
Inbound study abroad and exchange
The fee you pay will depend on the number and type of courses you study.
Yes
University-wide elective icon
University-wide elective course
Yes
Single course enrollment
Single course enrolment
Yes
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Note:
Course data is interim and subject to change

Course overview

The study of cinema as a field of scholarly inquiry affects the way films are studied, and the language of film criticism more generally. This course surveys a range of critical approaches to film that help define the meaning of cinema: from critical race studies, queer theory, contemporary feminism, ecological theory, and indigenous studies, on to neo-formalism, affect theory, and the emergence of slow cinema. Screening films in concert with important essays that have reshaped the field of cinema studies in recent years, the course provides the essential ingredients to develop an informed, intelligent contemporary approach to film.

Course learning outcomes

  • Critically analyse a range of films that demonstrate the evolution of film criticism and theory over the last 20 years
  • Engage with, critically analyse and evaluate a range of secondary sources and theoretical perspectives that have advanced the critical understanding of cinema in the last 20 years
  • Develop and conduct independent research projects on issues in contemporary cinema
  • Write critically and theoretically informed analyses of films in relation to theoretical and critical methodologies and communicate effectively with classmates
  • Use technologies as appropriate to complete assessments

Prerequisite(s)

N/A

Corequisite(s)

N/A

Antirequisite(s)

N/A