Ours is a world that seems to be shaking at its very foundations. Ideas that have shaped the way we see ourselves and the world around us – ideas like democracy, free speech, citizenship, political authority, individualism, free markets, and human rights – are contested at every turn. These ideas took their definitive modern form during a period of political and intellectual upheaval known as the Enlightenment (ca. 1650-1800). If we want to navigate our way through the chaos of today, then we need to return to the roots of our contemporary world – the Enlightenment. This interdisciplinary module explores this revolutionary period so that we can better understand our world today and bring about the world we want tomorrow. We will focus on political revolutions, on societal inequality, sickness, and control, and the dark side of technology. Graduating students often rank it among the most useful modules they've taken.

Ours is a world that seems to be shaking at its very foundations. Ideas that have shaped the way we see ourselves and the world around us – ideas like democracy, free speech, citizenship, political authority, individualism, free markets, and human rights – are contested at every turn. These ideas took their definitive modern form during a period of political and intellectual upheaval known as the Enlightenment (ca. 1650-1800). If we want to navigate our way through the chaos of today, then we need to return to the roots of our contemporary world – the Enlightenment. This interdisciplinary module explores this revolutionary period so that we can better understand our world today and bring about the world we want tomorrow. We will focus on political revolutions; on societal inequality, sickness, and control; and the dark side of technology.

Want hands-on experience of the film process, from pre to post-production? Keen to tackle technical aspects, such as framing, lighting, sound and editing? Work individually and in small groups on your own projects, covering topics like how shots are framed through to the different editing techniques that manipulate film narrative.

This module aims to introduce you to a range of critical approaches for analysing contemporary television. Looking at television from the US and the UK from the last 30 years, you will gain an understanding into the ways in which scholars have investigated and interrogated these texts through key theoretical and conceptual frameworks. The module will consider our understanding of television through key issues in production, distribution, consumption, reception and representation. The module is broken into four parts. Part one examines television as text, particularly considering the role of broadcasters, networks and platforms in creating this text. Part two examines key genres in television, such as the police procedural and the sitcom. Part three examines the ways in which ideologies, for example, gender, race, sexuality and class, are taken up in contemporary television. Finally, part four examines the future of television, considering key issues which are challenging television as a form, such as convergence culture and transmedia storytelling.

Screen adaptations of Shakespeare form a significant part of our cultural experience of his plays. Global Shakespeare on Film takes a comparative approach and unites our departmental disciplines of literature, film, drama and creative writing to examine how interpretations of Shakespeare have developed across time and cultural boundaries. We will study several adaptations of Shakespeare's plays from around the world, focusing on films in languages other than English. Through a close study of the relationship between the plays and the films, we will investigate not only what Shakespeare offers to filmmakers, but how these directors, actors, writers, and designers enhance and evolve our understanding of Shakespeare.

This module introduces you to the rehearsal processes involved in both bringing a dramatic text to life (Text into Action) and drawing on practitioner’s methodologies to devise different kinds of performance forms, from physical theatre to interactive performance (Action into Text). The module will form the foundations for understanding how plays work three-dimensionally (the journey from page to stage) and expand the boundaries of what resources theatre-makers might draw upon as a trigger to innovate inspiring live performance events.