Film and History with Year Abroad

Film and history is a combination that asks two interconnected questions: what can we learn from the history of cinema, and what can film tell us about the past? As an art form, film has documented, interpreted, and shaped public understanding of historical events from its earliest days. As a commercial and cultural industry, it reflects the societies that produce it.

History, meanwhile, gives us the critical tools to understand film in its context and to evaluate cinema's claims about the past with appropriate scepticism. Together the disciplines develop a richly layered understanding of both moving images and the human record.

At the University of Southampton, this four-year full-time degree includes a year abroad that adds genuine depth to the experience. You will examine film from a variety of perspectives: as popular art, as big business, and as a cultural record of how societies understand themselves and their pasts. You will study history across periods and places, developing the close reading of primary sources and the historiographical awareness that serious historical work requires, and you will learn to see films with a critical eye, understanding how they work as cultural objects and historical documents simultaneously.

A typical entry tariff of 136 points applies.

You will develop skills in historical research, film analysis, critical argument, essay writing, and the ability to engage seriously with complex evidence in both visual and textual form. These are capabilities with wide professional application beyond the arts and humanities.

Graduates from film and history programmes go on to careers in education, the heritage sector, arts administration, broadcasting, journalism, publishing, the civil service, and the creative industries. Many also pursue postgraduate study in film studies, history, or cultural policy, particularly those drawn to research or specialist professional work. The year abroad adds both breadth and employability to what graduates can offer.