Film Production
WPQ3From concept to Cannes.
Step behind the lens and into a world where your creative vision becomes reality. Our BA (Hons) Film Production programme puts equipment in your hands from day one, giving you unprecedented access to professional kit year-round – not just for assignments but for your own creative projects. You'll collaborate with acting students, work in authentic production teams, and graduate with multiple films in your portfolio to showcase your skills. With guidance from practicing lecturers and connections to prestigious festivals like Cannes, you'll develop both the creative and professional identity that have helped our graduates land roles on productions from Star Wars to Game of Thrones.
Course overview
At Winchester, we've reimagined film education to mirror the realities of the industry itself. We believe in learning through making – and making mistakes – which is why we prioritise extensive hands-on experience over traditional classroom teaching.
What sets our approach apart is the combination of creative freedom with professional discipline. You'll have access to equipment throughout the entire year, allowing you to experiment, take risks, and develop your unique voice as a filmmaker. Our community-centred approach means first-years work alongside third-years in our shared multimedia workspace, creating a collaborative environment where knowledge flows freely between peers.
You’ll be exposed to the entire production ecosystem. Our one-of-a-kind large-scale production module places you in teams of 24, mirroring industry practice where you'll take on specialised roles like script supervisor, first AD, or grip. This practical understanding of how film sets function gives Winchester graduates a significant advantage in industry.
As part of the School of Creative Performance and Production, you'll work directly with acting students, composers, and other creative practitioners. This interdisciplinary approach reflects how the industry actually operates and gives you experience directing performers, coordinating creative teams, and solving production challenges in real time.
Throughout your journey, you'll be guided by lecturers who are active filmmakers, bringing current industry practices and connections directly into your learning experience. These connections extend to prestigious opportunities like walking the red carpet at Cannes Film Festival and learning from Oscar-winning producers and BAFTA-winning sound designers who visit as guest lecturers.
What you need to know
Course start date
September
Location
On campus
Course length
- 3 years full-time
- 6 years part-time
Apply
WPQ3
Typical offer
112-120 points
Fees
From £9,535 pa
Course features
- Get unmatched access to professional kit for extensive periods year-round, giving you freedom to create beyond your assignments
- Graduate with a full portfolio of work showcasing your experience
- Be a part of industry-authentic production teams with up to 24 -person crews and specialised roles.
- Pitch for real paid client briefs through Winchester Creative Sparks throughout your degree.
- Curate and produce your own film festival, working with external filmmakers and building industry connections.
- Learn from evolving modules that incorporate cutting-edge developments like AI filmmaking.
- Partner on projects with international film students from Portugal to Australia.
- Walk the Cannes red carpet: Gain access to the film industry's premier festival through our established partnership.
Course details
Your Winchester film journey transforms creative passion into professional expertise through a carefully designed progression that emphasises practical experience alongside targeted theory. With an 80/20 split, you'll develop both the creative and technical skills needed for industry success.
Your learning experience combines lectures and seminars with extensive practical workshops. What makes our approach distinctive is how we integrate theory into practice – instead of writing traditional essays, you might create video essays that demonstrate your understanding while building your production skills. This practical orientation extends to assessment, where your on-set performance in specialised roles is directly observed and evaluated by our filmmaker-educators.
Year 1: Creative Discovery
Your first year is all about experimentation across every filmmaking discipline – not to make you a master of all trades, but to help you discover where your talents and passions truly lie. Many students arrive wanting to direct but discover they excel at sound design or cinematography once given the chance to try. You'll immediately begin shooting and editing, taking equipment back to your halls and filming over weekends to build your technical proficiency through constant practice.
Year 1 (Level 4): Timetabled teaching and learning activity*
Teaching, learning and assessment: 240 hours
Independent learning: 960 hours
Year 2: Specialised Development
As you progress, you'll begin focusing on your areas of interest while taking on more complex projects. You'll work with real-world clients, collaborate with acting students, and have opportunities to participate in our international collaboration programme with film schools across the globe.
Year 2 (Level 5): Timetabled teaching and learning activity*
Teaching, learning and assessment*: 312 hours
Independent learning: 888 hours
Year 3: Professional Integration
Your third year includes both a final year film project and an optional innovative large-scale production experience, where you'll work in authentic production teams of 24 students. You'll also programme your own film festival, work with corporate clients, and explore cutting-edge industry developments through our responsive emerging practices curriculum. Throughout this year, you'll refine your specialist skills while enhancing your employability through real-world projects.
Year 3 (Level 6): Timetabled teaching and learning activity*
Teaching, learning and assessment: 300 hours
Independent learning: 900 hours
Our approach emphasises independent learning – we want you constantly experimenting with equipment, making creative choices, and learning through trial and error.
*Please note these are indicative hours for the course.
Work Placements
Students have the opportunity to choose the optional volunteering module in Year 2.
Study Abroad
Our BA (Hons) Film Production course provides an opportunity for you to study abroad in the USA or Canada.
For more information see our Study Abroad section.
Throughout your course, you'll have opportunities for international experiences, from our study abroad options to collaborative projects with students from around the world. You'll also gain valuable professional experience through our Winchester Creative Sparks agency, which provides paid opportunities to respond to both internal and external briefs under the guidance of our experienced staff.
Teaching Hours
All class based teaching takes places between 9am – 6pm, Monday to Friday during term time. Wednesday afternoons are kept free from timetabled teaching for personal study time and for sports clubs and societies to train, meet and play matches. There may be some occasional learning opportunities (for example, an evening guest lecturer or performance) that take places outside of these hours for which you will be given forewarning.
Assessment
Our validated courses may adopt a range of means of assessing your learning. An indicative, and not necessarily comprehensive, list of assessment types you might encounter includes essays, portfolios, supervised independent work, presentations, written exams, or practical performances.
We ensure all students have an equal opportunity to achieve module learning outcomes. As such, where appropriate and necessary, students with recognised disabilities may have alternative assignments set that continue to test how successfully they have met the module's learning outcomes. Further details on assessment types used on the course you are interested in can be found on the course page, by attending an Open Day or Open Evening, or contacting our teaching staff.
Percentage of the course assessed by coursework
The assessment balance between examination and coursework depends to some extent on the optional modules you choose. The approximate percentage of the course assessed by different assessment modes is as follows:
Year 1 (Level 4)*:
90% coursework
5% written exams
5% practical assessment
Year 2 (Level 5)*:
90% coursework
10% written exams
0% practical assessment
Year 3 (Level 6)*:
94% coursework
3% written exams
3% practical assessment
*Please note these are indicative percentages and modes for the programme.
Modules
Please note the modules listed are correct at the time of publishing. The University cannot guarantee the availability of all modules listed and modules may be subject to change. The University will notify applicants of any changes made to the core modules listed. For further information please refer to winchester.ac.uk/termsandconditions
Modules
This module offers students the opportunity to gain a core understanding of the professional skills needed by filmmakers to thrive in the industry. The module starts with a particular focus on the development of ‘soft skills’ needed by students to develop their understanding of the commitment and practice needed by film crews to successfully produce a short film. The module will also support students as they gain an understanding of employment opportunities available to them within the film and media industry during their time studying at university. A variety of strategies and techniques used by early career filmmakers to gain experience within the film and media industry will be explored, such as the development of CV writing skills, the development of a professional social media presence and the processes of finding potential work experience opportunities. Additional approaches such as freelancing and starting a business will also be covered. The module aims to develop a student’s understanding of how to approach finding work opportunities within these industries and the professional skills needed to succeed within the film and media industry.
In this module, students begin by developing their storytelling and scriptwriting skills by focusing specifically on the study and writing of short screenplays. The focus will be on the analysis and implementation of narrative devices (including narrative shortcuts and use of sound), the development of story and character (and the inter-relationship between the two), and on skills in writing visually and succinctly. The module then progresses to allow students to turn their idea from script to screen as they take their screenplay and develop it into a final film piece. Students can participate in both the creative dimensions of fiction filmmaking including directing performance, cinematography and editing and the organizational dimensions of producing and production management.
This module offers you the opportunity, through intensive hands-on training, of gaining core competencies in professional cinematography and sound-recording equipment and a chosen piece of editing software for use in both drama and documentary production work. Throughout the module you will hone your skills and creativity and be tested through weekly exercises designed to foster knowledge and practical application across both drama and documentary disciplines.
This module serves as an introduction to documentary film-making. Through the exploration and experience of producing a 'cinematic documentary portrait', you will develop fundamental skills including conducting filmed interviews and creating meaning through the combination of words, images and music in the edit. Through the study of documentary film references and using their practice, this module also allows you to appreciate the social impact of documentary films and to view them from an ethical perspective.
Modules
In this module, you will examine how real-life events can be shaped into screen stories of the factual genre. A toolbox of storytelling skills will be practised, with particular emphasis on techniques for writing narration such as delivering backstory, eliciting the audience's curiosity and devising emotional cues. Guidance is also given on the early stages of project development including the identification of stories with potential, researching them, and organising a film production as a team of specialised crew roles.
This module develops both directorial and cinematographic skills, acquired from Level 4 study, to inform creative authorship and technical camera operation. The module explores the attributes of a film’s Director and Cinematographer and their relationship with other heads of departments during a film’s production. Through both taught sessions and workshops with active industry professionals, designed to advance students’ key core skills in direction, mise-en-scene, lighting and cameras, students will learn the craft and skills needed to become and/or work with a Director and Cinematographer during the production of a film.
This module begins with the development of your understanding and practical execution of location sound recording. After an introductory overview, you will study the specifics of location sound recording in the film-making process through technical workshops and practical exercises. The module then progresses to develop a deeper understanding of the practical, theoretical and historical practices and aspects of cinematic editing both as a technical skill and as a narrative convention.
You examine specific areas of editing through lectures and workshops focusing on areas such as montage, editing of moving images for film and media industries, colour grading and delivery. In the final stage of the module, you will develop and hone your skills and understanding of post-production sound design including sound mixing, foley, ADR and sound effects.
In Semester 1 students can choose EITHER Option Module A or Option Module B
Option Module A: Producing Practices
This module provides students with a ‘live’ project element to develop entrepreneurial, communication and networking practices appropriate for the film industry. Students work to investigate a range of industry practitioners and producing practices ranging from project organisation through to budgeting, promotion, and distribution. Producing Practices provides students with the skills necessary to take an existing screenplay or film concept and develop it to be ‘production ready’. The module requires students to take part in or research a film industry event in which they can develop their entrepreneurial, producing and networking skills and engage with a range of local and/or global filmmakers, producers, distributors, and exhibitors.
Option Module B: Screenwriting: Adaptations
This module is designed to allow students to explore critical and theoretical issues surrounding the process of adaptation for film and television through practical engagement with that process. Using analysis of existing adaptations, consideration of and experimentation with a range of ‘adaptable’ materials and through the origination and development of a single-authored short, adapted screenplay, students will gain a comprehensive working knowledge of the possibilities and pitfalls of adaptation and the skills necessary to reimagine existing stories in cinematic terms. A formative task affords tutor feedback on project progression.
In Semester 2 students can choose EITHER Option Module C or Option Module D
Option Module C: VFX Production
This module develops understanding of how advance post-production techniques are deployed in the modern film production process. Using a wide range of post-production applications, you will create a short film sequence utilising and demonstrating post- production techniques. Seminars and workshops will explore examples of post-production techniques in current use and provide historical context to improve understanding. This module will equip students with advanced skills in post- production appropriate to entry into the film and media production industries.
Option Module D: Digital Distribution
In this module students research and discover how current and emerging social media platforms can be utilised to enhance the promotion of a film project. Students will be introduced to the shifting landscape of film distribution and its reach to a global audience. Students will put their knowledge and skills into practice by effectively constructing a professional promotional online marketing campaign for a film project. This optional module works to develop personal ideas and online processes to construct a professional promotional online marketing campaign for a film project.
Modules
At this stage of their academic journey, students will have a strong idea of which role within the film industry they want to pursue after university. This module provides students with the chance to produce a short film, either one documentary or one drama that they feel will demonstrate their creative identity, professional conduct and gained specialist skillset whilst also developing their portfolio of work. Students will also explore any areas for professional development that need to be targeted to make them ready for a life working within the film and/or media industry in their chosen role(s). The module will culminate with an exploration of post-study employment opportunities for students. The module aims to provide students with a realistic knowledge of the current employment
possibilities within the film industry and develops the important aspects and understanding of industry requirements needed for graduate entry into the film industry. Professional and current practitioners will advise and tutor students on seeking and securing work within a particular sector, ones that complement skills acquired during the Film Production degree.
This module provides students with a historical overview of the main technological, social, and institutional changes in the fields of film and TV and will challenge students to relate the legacy of these developments to contemporary practices. Students will then progress to explore a variety of contemporary emerging approaches to filmmaking. From emerging social movements to the practical application and understanding of how filmmakers can use new and existing technologies. This module aims to develop a student’s confidence and creativity towards particular research areas, whilst also encouraging them to apply their theoretical and practical filmmaking skills to challenge conventional cinematic approaches used to tell stories.
Across both Semesters 1 and 2, students can choose EITHER Module A or Module B
Option Module A: Broadcast TV Production
Skills gained from the Film Production degree are transferable into lots of different industries with the closest linked industry being the broadcast TV industry. This module develops your knowledge and skillset for creating broadcast-ready content in varying formats. From exploring the deliverables needed to get a student’s projects onto Netflix to live TV studio operation, this module aims to examine how your skills can be transferred across media outputs.
Option Module B: Large Scale Production
This module provides the opportunity for you to work as part of a large film crew to make a 10-20 minute film. Roles will include, director, producer, 1st AD, DP, camera operator, 1st AC, production designer, sound mixer, boom operator, editor, colourist and sound designer. Starting with the ‘pitching’ and ‘greenlit’ process, students will be expected to work collaboratively and reliably throughout pre-production, production, and post-production in their chosen role. The module will mirror, as closely as possible, industry protocols and practices set by larger film crew productions.
AND EITHER Option Module C or Option Module D In Semester 1
Option Module C: Corporate Film
This module allows you to produce a moving-image live-brief artefact in consultation and conjunction with a live client brief. The aim is that you will make a positive and personally rewarding contribution to the regional community whilst also reflecting critically on the collaborative experience and developing practical skills needed for producing filmed content for a client, which will enhance both your employability and personal development.
Option Module D: Creative Industry Collaboration
Through collaboration with other creative practitioners this module allows students to explore industrial practice in their chosen field. This module invites students from different practical and creative backgrounds to produce unique and original works driven by specific briefs. This could include new short films, music videos, site specific performances, interactive audio-visual exhibitions and festival entries (non-exclusive). Students will create together, whilst learning how to disaggregate their roles in the creative process and how to understand their creative practice as a sum part of a whole.
AND EITHER Option Module E or Option Module F In Semester 2
Option Module E: International Collaboration
The nature of film, its industries and filmmaking movements allow it to flow across national borders. It is this transnational aspect that is the core of this module, allowing students to gain an understanding of the importance of cinema flowing across borders in the shape of ideas and capital as well as offering students an opportunity to experiment with how their filmmaking might take advantage of this international context. This module provides the context for students to engage and develop a communication hub to establish a production-based or research exchange. The aim of the module is to establish real working relationships with film communities and individuals in the country of choice, bringing a shared sense of purpose in the collaborative investigation.
Option Module F: Festivals
This module will focus on the key theoretical principles and practices associated with hosting and participating in film festivals. The module aims to prepare you for the processes needed to distribute, market and sell your films on the national and international film festival circuit. The module will also equip you with an in-depth knowledge of the workings of film festivals, what is required by applicants to film festivals and how they differ between types. You will work closely with the Winchester Film Festival throughout the module, including the opportunity to work on this annual event in a variety of roles. You will use this gained knowledge to organise and participate in an end-of-semester film festival for films made by all students in the third year. Professional and current festival organisers alongside the teaching team will advise and guide you on the organisational, fundraising, promotional and networking skills needed to deliver a successful film festival programme and event.
Entry requirements
Our offers are typically made using UCAS tariff points to allow you to include a range of level 3 qualifications and as a guide, the requirements for this course are equivalent to:
A-Levels: BBC-BBB from 3 A Levels or equivalent grade combinations (e.g. BBB is comparable to ABC in terms of tariff points)
BTEC/CTEC: DMM from BTEC or Cambridge Technical (CTEC) qualifications International Baccalaureate: To include a minimum of 2 Higher Level certificates at grade H4
T Level: Merit in a T Level
Additionally, we accept tariff points achieved for many other qualifications, such as the Access to Higher Education Diploma, Scottish Highers, UAL Diploma/Extended Diploma and WJEC Applied Certificate/Diploma, to name a few. We also accept tariff points from smaller level 3 qualifications, up to a maximum of 32, from qualifications like the Extended Project (EP/EPQ), music or dance qualifications. To find out more about UCAS tariff points, including what your qualifications are worth, please visit UCAS.
In addition to level 3 study, the following GCSE’s are required:
GCSE English Language at grade 4 or C, or higher. Functional Skills at level 2 is accepted as an alternative, however Key Skills qualifications are not. If you hold another qualification, please get in touch and we will advise further.
If you will be over the age of 21 years of age at the beginning of your undergraduate study, you will be considered as a mature student. This means our offer may be different and any work or life experiences you have will be considered together with any qualifications you hold. UCAS have further information about studying as a mature student on their website which may be of interest.
If English is not your first language, a formal English language test will most likely be required and you will need to achieve the following:
-
IELTS Academic at 6.0 overall with a minimum of 5.5 in all four components (for year 1 entry)
- We also accept other English language qualifications, such as IELTS Indicator, Pearson PTE Academic, Cambridge C1 Advanced and TOEFL iBT.
If you are living outside of the UK or Europe, you can find out more about how to join this course by contacting our International Recruitment Team via our International Apply Pages.
2025/6 Course Tuition Fees
| UK / Channel Islands / Isle of Man / Republic of Ireland |
International |
|
|---|---|---|
| Year 1* | £9,535 | £16,700 |
Additional tuition fee information
*(UK / Channel Islands / Isle of Man / Republic of Ireland) £9,535 for the 25/26 academic year. Fees for future academic years will be determined in line with our Terms and Conditions. The fee is currently subject to a governmental fee cap for each academic year. It is our policy to charge tuition fees at the level of the cap set by the Government. If the cap set by the Government changes, then we may increase our Fees in line with governmental policy.
*(International) £16,700 for the 25/26 academic year. Fees for future academic years will be determined in line with our Terms and Conditions. We decide the annual level of increase of our Tuition Fees by taking into account a range of factors including the cost of delivering the course and change in governmental funding.
Remember, you don’t have to pay any of this upfront if you are able to get a tuition fee loan from the UK Government to cover the full cost of your fees each year.
UK Part-Time fees are calculated on a pro rata basis of the full-time fee for a 120 credit course. The fee for a single credit is £79.45 and a 15 credit module is £1,191. Part-time students can take up to a maximum 90 credits per year, so the maximum fee in a given year will be the government permitted maximum fee of £7,145
International part-time fees are calculated on a pro rata basis of the full-time fee for a 120 credit course. The fee for a single credit is £139.14 and a 15 credit module is £2,087.
Additional costs
As one of our students all of your teaching and assessments are included in your tuition fees, including, lectures/guest lectures and tutorials, seminars, laboratory sessions and specialist teaching facilities. You will also have access to a wide range of student support and IT services.
There might be additional costs you may encounter whilst studying. The following highlights the optional costs for this course:
Optional
Overseas trip
Students have the option to attend a trip to a Film Festival throughout the duration of the course. Indicative cost: £375 per academic year.
Technology
It is recommended that students purchase their own hard-drive storage at the beginning of the course. Indicative cost: 2TB devices cost £80.
Disclosure and Barring Service
A Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) clearance check may be required if you undertake a placement, volunteering, research or other course related activity where you will have contact with children or vulnerable adults. The requirement for a DBS check will be confirmed by staff as part of the process to approve your placement, research or other activity. The indicative cost is £40.
SCHOLARSHIPS, BURSARIES AND AWARDS
We have a variety of scholarship and bursaries available to support you financially with the cost of your course. To see if you’re eligible, please see our Scholarships and Awards.
CAREER PROSPECTS
Winchester film graduates stand out in a competitive industry because they've already experienced authentic production environments before they've even graduated.
Our alumni have secured positions across the spectrum of media production, including feature films like Star Wars, James Bond, 1917, and Deadpool & Wolverine, high-end television from Game of Thrones to Slow Horses to Fleabag, and broadcast television like Love Island and Emmerdale.
Many of our students go on to work across other creative outlets, including sports production for Chelsea FC and Crystal Palace FC, corporate and commercial like NBC Universal, and social media content creation for brands and high-profile individuals.
The career acceleration our graduates experience comes from our industry-focused approach, which includes:
• Direct connections to Cannes Film Festival, with access to the Film Market where production deals happen
• Workshops with Oscar-winning producers and BAFTA-winning sound designers
• Technical sessions with industry partners like Sigma Lenses and Halo Post
• Collaborations with intimacy coordinators and professional actors
• Partnerships with festivals including Bristol Encounters and Winchester Film Festival
Whether you dream of working on Hollywood blockbusters, creating compelling documentaries, producing innovative streaming content, or launching your own production company, Winchester's Film Production degree provides the hands-on experience, industry connections, and creative confidence to turn that vision into reality.
The University of Winchester ranks in the top 25 in the UK for graduates in employment or further study according to the Graduate Outcomes Survey 2024, HESA.
Pre-approved for a Masters
If you study a Bachelor Honours degrees with us, you will be pre-approved to start a Masters degree at Winchester. To be eligible, you will need to apply by the end of March in the final year of your degree and meet the entry requirements of your chosen Masters degree.
OUR CAREERS SERVICE
Read all about the short film, made by Winchester students Benjamin, Ollie, Ben and Nathan as part of their Film Production course, which won an award at the International Film Festival Manhattan.
