Breckland School

Film Studies

‘Now more than ever we need to talk to each other, to listen to each other and understand how we see the world, and cinema is the best medium for doing this.’

Martin Scorsese 

Curriculum Intent 
Studying film as an art form exposes young people to different voices, different cultures and different ways of seeing the world. Film is a powerful medium for communicating the experiences and themes that young people can relate to and recognise as part of their own lives. Broadening our exposure to a variety of filmmaking styles and techniques gives rise to a greater appreciation of the human condition and helps young people to better understand themselves and others. Film Studies enables discussion and debate about cultural, social and political issues that have shaped history and influenced generations of audiences and filmmakers. Studying film creates more tolerant, empathetic, and socially aware young people who are able to discuss, analyse and critique films in order to appreciate the technical craft and messages conveyed. 
Powerful knowledge in Film Studies 
Through the study of film, students are taught to understand and analyse how the elements of film form, such as cinematography and editing, are used to convey messages to the audience. They learn to deconstruct the technical elements of film and consider the authorial intent as well the impact these elements have on their audience and their response to the text.   In addition to the grammar of filmmaking, students are taught about the significant contextual factors that impacted on each film’s production, narrative, characters and themes. This ranges from understanding the political and social context surrounding the 2011 London riots and the subsequent representation of young people shown in Attack the Block, to the cultural and religious context impacting on the treatment and representation of women in Saudi Arabian society in the film, Wadjda.  Students’ knowledge and understanding of genre conventions is utilised in the production of their own screenplay, allowing them to apply their experiences to the creation of their own work. 
Curriculum Features 
Students study six films across the two-year course and these texts cover a variety of filmmaking styles and institutional production processes. Key developments in US film are studied through the films, Rebel Without a Cause, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and Little Miss Sunshine. Global film is explored through Slumdog Millionaire, Attack the Block and Wajda.  The non-examined assessment takes the form of a screenplay, where students demonstrate their creativity as well as their knowledge and understanding of genre conventions studied during the course.