The one-year Master’s programme in Film Studies approaches the study of film as a multi-faceted phenomenon, and trains students to critically and effectively engage with important shifts in film and cinema culture.

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From celluloid to digital

The Master's in Film Studies at the University of Amsterdam is a unique one-year programme that offers a theoretically rigorous engagement with the field of film studies and visual culture. The programme approaches the study of film as a multi-faceted phenomenon, one that plays a vital and ever-changing role in contemporary digital media culture. Film Studies is situated within the internationally ranked Department of Media Studies at the University of Amsterdam, which brings together renowned scholars from a variety of media and theoretical perspectives.

Film Studies at the University of Amsterdam

• The programme invites students to engage critically and creatively with the field through a series of core courses in film-philosophy, media archaeology, and (trans)national and global audiovisual practices.
• Students also take part in intensive research seminars that explore specialized topics related to the expertise of the core film faculty. These seminars address both classic and cutting-edge subjects, ranging from neuro-aesthetics, ecology, ethics, affect, fashion, the body, and the politics of gender and identity, to classical film theory, multimodal metaphor, and the cinematic city.
• The programme culminates for each student in the Master's thesis, a major piece of independent research and writing conducted under the close supervision of a faculty member.
• Amsterdam offers the perfect setting for this programme. With its many festivals, its rich cinematic tradition, its archives, museums and cultural institutions, the city allows students to immerse themselves in a nourishing and dynamic context that continually reflects what they are studying.
• Thriving venues for film and media culture include the Dutch Film Institute EYE, the International Documentary Festival Amsterdam (IDFA), the Dutch audiovisual archive (Beeld & Geluid), the International Rotterdam Film Festival (IFFR), the Holland Animation Film Festival (HAFF), Imagine Film Festival, and the French and Francophone Film Festival ‘Plein les Yeux’, as well as many local cinemas and exhibition spaces.
• The Master's programme Film Studies is not a Master’s in film production; rather, it is a highly theoretical programme that demands a strong academic level (and commitment).

For Dutch-speaking students, we also offer a professional specialisation focusing on the Dutch media industry. The following information is therefore in Dutch.

Beroepsgeoriënteerde specialisatie

Nederlandssprekende studenten kunnen kiezen voor de beroepsgeoriënteerde specialisatie. Deze wordt gedeeltelijk in het Nederlands aangeboden, waar het gaat om research, redactie en dramaturgie voor de ontwikkelingsfase van documentaire en fictie-film. In de specialisatie werken de masterprogramma's Television and Cross-Media Culture en Film Studies samen met verschillende Nederlandse omroeporganisaties, televisieproducenten, filmmakers en filmdistributeurs.

Research Master's 

The Film Studies specialisation within the Media Studies Research Master's Programme focuses on the theoretical, philosophical, cultural and historical study of film and cinema. The intensive and selective two-year programme has been developed for students with proven ability in, and passion for, research.

Want to know more?

Reread all of the information at your own convenience in our factsheet.

Degree certificate

Film Studies is an accredited degree programme of Media Studies. After successful completion of this programme, you will receive a legally accredited Master’s degree in Media Studies and the title Master of Arts (MA).

Gepubliceerd door  Faculteit der Geesteswetenschappen