MA-PG Dip Soundtrack Production: Sound Design for the Screen
ObjectivesThis course provides great value to those wishing to enter the film and television industry as sound designers. It equips them with the skills and understandings which allow them to compete on more than an equal footing with other similarly motivated professionals by training them not only in the craft skills and intellectual practices they will require, but also in the legal, professional and philosophical strategies which will help them in their careers. A key feature of the course is the collaboration of sound designers with other students from a range of courses within the Bournemouth Screen Academy. These include Cell Animators, Fiction Directors, Documentary Makers, Editors and Composers. An extremely potent collaboration is with computer animators working at the National Centre for Computer Animation. Sound Designers work on a variety of projects which are distributed widely, especially at festivals. When first established in 1997, this course was the first of its kind in Europe. Throughout this period of successful operation, it has continued to offer a unique range of activities and learning opportunities for Sound Designers. This course provides sound designers with the specialised skills which enable them to produce soundtracks for film, television and related multimedia industries. The course is made up of a combination of lectures, workshops and one-to-one individual seminars. Students aim to develop both the craft skills as well as the underlying aesthetics and theoretical component which would shape their learning.
Entry requirementsTraditionally, our students have had a background in media production or other related disciplines such as performing arts to degree level, and have been looking to gain specialist skills which will help launch their career. However, an increasing number of students are practitioners who, having worked in the broadcasting industry, recognise that gaining additional professional qualifications will open up new and exciting career opportunities. The most important pre-requisite is a keen interest and a demonstrable potential in sound design. We therefore may consider students without a degree, those who can demonstrate they have been involved in production, music or sound recording.
Academic titleMA/PG Dip Soundtrack Production
Course descriptionProgramme Content
Production Practices
– (70% of the student’s time is spent in practical activities) This activity transcends and links all other units. Students develop technical and creative competencies by undertaking projects generated by lecturers and ‘real’ production activity within the School.
Theory
– This unit draws together a range of narrative forms and genres, exploring their history and development in a variety of media from the ancient world to the present day. It explores the role of semiotic systems, considering how we make meaning, and how suspense is created and sustained. It also examines traditional genres of story-telling, and discussing how these have developed into the TV, film, radio and interactive narrative forms of the modern electronic media.
Professional Development
– The aim of this unit is to develop critical awareness and in-depth understanding of the industrial, technical and legal determinants of different production stages.
Collaborative Projects
– Students will engage in projects generated by other courses, in particular those from Screen Academy partners. This unit specifically deals with group work as a key skill.
Project
– The Project takes the form of a piece of work which requires the students to integrate practical and theoretical perspectives of the preceding units, and manifest these into a composition project that is supported by a contextual analysis.