Technical training schedule
MA in Visual Anthropology
In the first semester of technical training, students work in teams of three, with all members of the team taking turns at shooting, sound-recording and producing/directing.
Each team works on three training film projects on topics selected for their particular relevance to ethnographic film-making:
- a technical process – max. 10 minutes' duration
- an oral testimony – max. 15 minutes' duration
- an event – max. 20 minutes' duration
Each project is preceded by intensive technical instruction and followed by collective debriefing so that students can learn from one another's mistakes as well as one another's successes. This method of instruction generally creates a strong and mutually supportive spirit amongst the students.
In the second semester, the two pathways diverge:
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Students on the Film Pathway participate in a series of technically- oriented workshops that introduce them to a range of different approaches to ethnographic film-making. Over the Easter vacation, working in pairs, they shoot a further film and then edit this in April-May.
- Students on the Sensory Media pathway participate in technical workshops on photography and sound-recording
On both pathways, the method of collective debriefing is continued.
Over the summer vacation, students on both pathways carry out practical projects:
- Students on the Film Pathway shoot and edit a 30 minute documentary that they present in conjunction with a 2500-5000 word text
- Students on the Sensory Media Pathway produce an 8-12,000 word dissertation supported by material presented in visual and/or acoustic media.
Other programmes
PhD or MPhil students who wish to acquire media skills may participate in the MA technical training for one or both semesters, provided they pay the necessary Bench Fees (currently about £500 per semester).
The Film-making for Fieldwork introductory short course consists of an intensive but abbreviated version of the first semester schedule.