We will explore the uncertainties inherent to working processes that rely on an openness to the people and situations filmed, and to the unpredictable course these may take. We will also engage in a series of readings of key works of literature, engaging with the encounter.

We often think of documentary filmmaking as being organic, “in the moment”, and impromptu. And this is all, of course, true. But there is also a huge amount of prep work that needs to be done in order to turn a film idea into reality. In this course, we’ll go through the whole pre-production process in detail, from research, casting, proposal writing, and taster-tape making through to funding and pitching. The course is aimed at new and emerging producers and directors, with a focus on presenting creative independent documentary film formats. Students are encouraged to prepare a real or hypothetical film to develop and “pitch” during the course. This course will leave students feeling enabled to take the next step with their film ideas and with a thorough understanding of how rigorous planning and preparation can lead to a better film.

Led by Dr. Catalin Brylla, Principal Lecturer in Film and Television at Bournemouth University, this course is targeted towards documentary practitioners who are either preparing, shooting or editing their documentary, scholars who want to analyse or use documentary as a research methodology, and people who are simply passionate about non-fiction films. Keeping the balance between theory of practice and the theory in practice, each session will include discussions of how concepts relate to formal considerations in documentary filmmaking. Participants will also learn how to critically frame their film practice in order to produce thought-provoking films that have social and cultural implications.

This 8-week intensive course is open to those from varying backgrounds (completely new or with some experience) to come together and feel a sense of community telling stories about a place, space or group that connects to a sense of home. Using technology and software already available (such as your smartphone or a camera you may already have), you will learn how to create compelling documentary stories that you can continue to work on after the course.

Militant Cinema & Activist Film focuses on the concepts and techniques of filmmaking, film viewing and dissemination as forms of political action. Through an analytical study of key histories, texts and audio-visual material spanning a multitude of militant film movements from around the globe, the course contextualises its programme within a contemporary political reality, preparing you to engage with the global injustices and atrocities of the 21st century.

You will be introduced to the latest manifestos and the most radical concepts of militant moving image praxes of today, spanning movements from Syria to Hong Kong. In addition, the course features essential texts and discussion on the topics of international law, human rights, and contemporary genocide, incorporating reading, discussion and awareness of key legal frameworks to provide students with effective planning and preparation for their own activist endeavours, or simply for a foundational understanding of political movements and their audio-visual manifestations.

The practice of making new films from recycled fragments of old ones opens exciting opportunities for revisiting past events. Crucially, it also allows audiences to reflect critically on the histories of image-making. 

This course will explore the ethical questions that confront makers and audiences alike when recordings are ripped from their original context and re-appropriated to new ends. We consider the problem of archives that contain images that dehumanise their subjects, as well as the creative strategies used by artists and filmmakers to produce ethical reworkings of materials associated with our troubled pasts.

This online course explores the role of sound in challenging the way we remember, archive and exhibit micro-histories. Covering theoretical, ethnographic and arts-based approaches to sonic archiving, participants will develop skills to discuss, record and display alternative archives that challenge colonial forms of knowledge production.

Led by Dr Barbara Knorpp, ‘Visual Anthropology and the City’ looks at documentaries on the city starting from the city symphonies of the 1920s to the video diaries of Jonas Mekas in New York and James Benning’s style of ‘Slow Cinema’ in Los Angeles. Urban anthropology has fascinated journalists, photographers and policy-makers since the emergence of the Chicago School in the 1920s. Ethnography and long-term research facilitated deeper insights into the everyday lives of urban neighbourhoods that were often associated with violence, crime and housing problems. Cinema and photography have also since their inception engaged with the urban, and their development is deeply entwined with that of the modern metropolis. We are interested in films, photography, and writings that look at modernity, subcultures, non-western cities, regeneration, urban elites, domestic space, social movements and urban architecture. Those taking this course will have the chance to hear about, watch and discuss films, photography and writings on the subject.