Film Studies and Creative Writing with Foundation Year

Film studies and creative writing are disciplines that illuminate each other. Film studies approaches cinema as an art form and a cultural institution, examining how films construct meaning through image, sound, and editing, how they reflect and shape the societies that make and watch them, and how economic and industrial forces influence what gets made. Creative writing develops your ability to produce your own work in prose, poetry, screenwriting, and other forms, cultivating a distinctive voice alongside technical craft.

The combination encourages you to think both as an analyst and as a practitioner, reading works closely while also making your own.

At Keele University, this four-year full-time programme begins with a foundation year before progressing to three years of combined study in film and creative writing. You will analyse film across a range of genres, styles, cultural and historical contexts, examining global cinema as well as mainstream and independent traditions. The creative writing strand develops your craft in screenwriting and literary forms, building a portfolio of work across different modes and genres.

The programme is taught by experienced lecturers with links to industry partners, giving you insight into professional practice in both film and writing. You will have the opportunity to take work placements, gaining direct experience of how the creative industries operate. The typical entry tariff is 120 UCAS points.

Graduates of film studies and creative writing move into a broad range of creative and cultural careers. Screenwriting, scriptwriting for television and radio, fiction and non-fiction writing, journalism, editorial roles in publishing, and work in the film and television industries are all natural routes. The critical and analytical skills developed through film studies are valued in arts administration, cultural policy, education, and communications roles.

Many graduates build portfolio careers that combine writing practice with related employment. Some continue their studies at postgraduate level, pursuing MFA or MA programmes in creative writing, film studies, or media.