Media and Performance

This module is delivered through seminars, micro-lectures and screenings of primary media and performance texts. The classes introduce analytical approaches, through the close reading of a range of play texts, screen texts (film), and live performance and consider the extent to which traditional ways of storytelling have developed historically and in relation to the medium in which they are found. Seminars enable you to be fully interactive in the process of discussing and developing concepts to enhance understanding of primary texts and the analytic and critical approaches through which they can be understood. These concepts include: form; mise en scène; semiotics; theatricality, liveness, comedic principles and cinematography.

This module will acquaint you with the range and scope of television and radio drama and involves an exploration of a range of techniques for performing on camera or for the microphone, as well as providing knowledge of fundamental procedures and skills of studio operation.

This is a primarily practical module which focuses on creative approaches central to characterisation within naturalistic drama. You will apply Stanislavski-based approaches to performing published texts. This module will introduce textual analysis, which will develop your ability to understand and interpret theatre texts and to think critically about your own theatre practice.

The module combines both technical and creative aspects of media production as you develop a broad awareness of the range of skills required for video production, including camera, lighting, editing and sound.

Building on the skills introduced in the Production Skills module (camera operation, lighting, and editing), this module offers a deeper exploration of moving image production, from the origination and development of ideas through to pre-production, production, and post-production. It also introduces students to the roles of director and producer. As part of the module, students will write a script for a five-minute film and bring it to life through production. This project allows them to combine technical proficiency with creative storytelling while developing their ability to work collaboratively in a production environment.

Analysing Screen Fiction is designed to provide media students with a comprehensive introduction to the theories that underpin the creation, interpretation, and impact of film and television. Throughout the module, students will engage in critical analysis of iconic films and television series from different genres and time periods. They will learn to deconstruct media texts, identifying visual and narrative techniques, themes, and subtextual meanings. The module will emphasize the contemporary relevance of film and television, examining how these media contribute to discussions surrounding identity, representation, and social issues.

Students will explore topics such as diversity and inclusion, media ethics, and the impact of streaming platforms.  

Through lectures, screenings and seminars, the approaches to textual critical analysis introduced in the first year are further developed, as are your academic writing skills.

The module examines artistic movements of the 20th and 21st centuries, specifically focusing on the impact of Postmodernism across the performing arts. The module will address the specific nature of the Postmodern and its development in film, TV and theatre. The module examines artistic movements of the 20th and 21st centuries, specifically focusing on the impact of Postmodernism across the performing arts. The module will address the specific nature of the Postmodern and its development in film, TV and theatre.

This module enables you to work on a range of exercises designed to develop your characterisation, vocal expression and tonal variety in performing audio drama. You are introduced to studio equipment for recording and editing and contribute to studio management for the assignment. You are assessed on the performance and production of a recorded radio drama script.

This module highlights the central role of story and explores the aesthetic dimensions of directing and producing for the screen, alongside the decision-making and problem-solving involved in camera and lighting, sound recording, video editing, artistic resources, and time management. Students are encouraged to balance artistic and creative considerations with the practical and technical demands of production. Each week, students will view and discuss a variety of media, including television drama and film texts, analysing directorial, editing, and sound design techniques used in screen drama.

The aim of this module is to give you the skills you need to fulfil core crew roles on video production as well as learn how production techniques elevate your own creative ideas. The module emphasises the decision-making and technical problem-solving aspects of camera, lighting, sound recording and video editing, all within the context of creating an advert. 

This module is delivered by seminars and practical classes, mostly in our MediaCity studios. You will explore exercises such as performing pieces to camera, engaging with the audience, working with green screen, autocue and using studio talkback, shopping TV, vlogging, and the importance of performing with energy, clarity and correct intonation. At the end of the module, you will create a presenting showreel.  

The module explores the writing and devising of comedy. You will watch, listen to and discuss examples of a range of online, radio and TV comedy before working in small groups to create an original comedy sketch idea and to develop your own script and characters within it. This module develops student comic ability, creativity and imagination and allows you to generate material that can be applied to many other performance contexts. You may have experience of comedy, you may want to try something new – this is open to writers, performers, comedians, and anyone who wants to investigate how to devise, write and produce effective comedy material.

The aims of the module are to develop practical skills with a range of technical exercises such as hitting marks, cheating eye-lines and body angles; regulating movement in relation to the camera; avoiding dialogue overlaps, and to further awareness and interpretative skills in translating textual and sub-textual elements into effective performance to camera. 

This module is two-pronged in its approach. Firstly, it raises issues about how to approach dramatic texts in translation; secondly, it will focus upon the relationship between actor, director, and dramaturg as the central means of moving a theatre text from page to stage.

In this module you will develop your own original idea for a short screenplay across the semester, writing it up from a one-line pitch, into a treatment, scene-by-scene breakdown and ultimately to a script. The script can be for any screen, platform or audience, with no limitations to cast size or location. The module examines the fundamental aspects of writing for screen: character, story, structure and dialogue. You will learn how to format your documents to an industry standard, take part in script development workshops and develop all the foundation skills for successful screenwriting. 

Playwriting offers the chance to experiment with a variety of theatre writing styles and forms. You will read and explore a series of cutting-edge 21st century plays to become familiar with the latest innovations in writing for the stage. The module covers the craft of playwriting, studying character, dialogue, narrative, form, and stagecraft. You will write a short play to put into practice the skills you have been developing. The module will also look at the business of playwriting, exploring the many professional opportunities and routes open to playwrights regionally and nationally. 

This module examines developments in the staging of Shakespeare from Elizabethan times to the 21st century. 20th/21st century developments in approaches to and presentation of Shakespeare texts will encompass both live and recorded performance. As the module progresses you will be encouraged to address particular approaches to the presentation of Shakespeare presentation (e.g. political, feminist, intercultural) by exploring the work of for example; RSC, Peter Brook, Robert Lepage and Kenneth Branagh). A range of plays are studied, with one or two plays as ‘core’ texts – one of these will usually be a text with local stage performance. As part of assessment, you will collaborate with others to perform your own interpretation of a Shakespeare scene, or give a presentation of a critically informed view of a Shakespeare play or plays.

This offers you the chance to explore the practical and creative challenges in planning and producing a studio-based TV show. This module is one of two that are based in our professional quality TV studio on our MediaCityUK campus.

The module provides you with a practical knowledge and theoretical understanding of Applied Theatre and its uses and applications as a tool for social engagement outside of conventional theatre environments.

The module does this through a work-based learning project with the Learning and Engagement teams at partner arts organisations such as The Lowry, HOME, Z Arts and DIY. During the module, you will shadow an applied theatre practitioner and co-facilitate workshops with community participants within one of these venues.

This exciting opportunity is supported with bespoke training in facilitation in taught sessions on campus and at The Lowry. 

A series of workshop/seminars will introduce you to the role of the director, using a range of contemporary and historical play texts. We will explore and apply appropriate theatrical vocabularies in order to help you develop your own directorial approach. You will also have the opportunity to lead small group work in terms of exploring and experimenting with a range of directorial approaches to both script and performers. 

The module is designed to develop skills in and approaches to the making of multimedia performance. Through practical workshops, which are underpinned by reference to key theories and practitioners in the field, you will develop skills in these areas through practical experimentation and collaborative creative work.

Through practical workshops and guided and independent textual analysis, you will learn to apply interpretative skills to the rehearsal and performance of contemporary texts. Supporting seminars will explore the vocal performance possibilities afforded by poetic and rhetorical techniques such as rhythm, rhyme, metre and repetition, drawing on examples from the selected performance texts. Seminars will also explore the physical performance possibilities with a focus on modes of status, shape change, stagecraft, animal work and psychological gesture. 

This module introduces you to the diverse styles and formats of music videos, exploring iconic examples and current industry trends, gaining hands-on experience in a professional Manchester-based studio. You will then take the role of director to create your own music video.

In this module you will undertake an individually tailored project building out from all you have learned on your degree programme with supervision from staff.  You will research relevant materials and current industry trends around your project area. This will lead into the delivery of the project itself, which will follow one of three pathways: 

Practical Project: this can be a live performance or a recorded performance (screen or audio) or a script (screen, stage or audio) or a workshop.

Dissertation: this will be a written submission taking the form of a long essay.

Industry Project: this can be a work placement or a study of an arts or media organisation. 

You will engage with a range of industry-led masterclasses and workshops, which will equip you with the knowledge of industry practices and career destinations that will benefit your employment endeavours. The sessions will also guide you in the production of specific materials, submitted for assessment in the form of a portfolio, some of which may be used directly in pursuing employment opportunities.

The module aims to broaden students’ knowledge and creativity in both crewing roles and performance for camera, while further developing their skills in pre-production, production and post-production to create original 10–15 minute dramas intended for public exhibition and potential festival submission. Delivered as a professional simulation, the module places students within a full-scale production under the guidance of a director. Alongside key production roles, students are introduced to specialist areas such as set design, hair, make-up, and costume. The overall aim is to provide an authentic experience of professional practice.