Year 1
| Semester 1 |
| The Craft of Screenwriting |
| Podcasting |
| Visual and Material Culture |
| Film History & Theory |
| IADT Connect |
| Semester 2 |
| Film Genre – Hollywood to Horror |
| Climate Communication |
| Cinema & Sound |
| Exploring Material culture |
| Episodic TV Drama |
DL864 BA (Hons) Film Studies
* Subject to Validation
This Film Studies degree for people who want to think critically about film and write it – combining academic depth with practical creativity and opening a pathway to professional screenwriting.
This Film Studies degree for people who want to think critically about film and write it – combining academic depth with practical creativity and opening a pathway to professional screenwriting.
At Ireland’s National Film School (NFS), you will study in a creative environment alongside directors, writers, and producers – benefiting from IADT’s FilmEU alliance that connects you with leading European film schools. What makes this course unique is its blend of critical thinking and creative practice: you’ll not only interrogate film as culture, but also learn how to write for the screen, pitch ideas, and develop your own projects.
This programme is an ideal foundation for anyone with ambitions in screenwriting. Around a quarter of the course is dedicated to practice-based modules, where you’ll write scripts, workshop ideas, and develop an understanding of what makes stories work on screen and in podcasts. These modules sit alongside research and theory, giving you the dual skills of critical analysis and creative storytelling.
And if you want to take your writing further, this BA provides a clear progression route into Postgraduate study – including the MA in Screenwriting at IADT – where you can refine your craft and take your projects to industry level.
What will I do?
- Learn the craft of screenwriting. Develop original ideas, write for film and TV, and practice pitching – all in a supportive, workshop-based environment.
- Research through practice. Use your creative projects as a form of inquiry: explore how stories reflect and shape culture, identity, and politics.
- See film as a cultural force. Analyse genres, movements, and global cinema to understand how film challenges and reshapes society.
- Trace the future of storytelling. From silent cinema to streaming and AI-generated content, you’ll explore how new technologies continually transform the screen.
- Build transferable skills. Whether writing scripts, presenting ideas, or conducting research, you’ll graduate with the creative and critical toolkit to thrive in media and the arts.
What modules will I study?
What will I be able to do when I graduate?
Graduates go on to careers in:
- Film & TV: production, development, and screenwriting
- Media & Journalism: research, criticism, and reporting
- Digital & Social: content creation, strategy, and storytelling
- Arts & Culture: curation, programming, and cultural research
- Communications: PR, public affairs, and brand storytelling
For aspiring writers, this course also provides a potential pathway into the MA in Screenwriting at IADT – the next step in turning early scripts into industry-ready projects.