Program Overview

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BA (Hons) Creative Writing and Film Studies

Why study this course with LJMU?

• Gain a holistic view of film and filmmaking, including scriptwriting, digital film production, film history and theory
• Professional guidance and peer support to help you develop your writing, production and critical skills
• Teaching is based in the Mount Pleasant Campus and film production facilities are located in the Redmonds Building, both close to Liverpool City Centre
• Liverpool has more theatres, cinemas, literary events, arts centres, galleries and museums than any city outside London
• LJMU ranked 7th university in the UK for Creative Writing (The Times UK University Rankings 2025)
• 100% of students surveyed said teaching staff on our Creative Writing and Film Studies programme were good at explaining things and made the subject engaging (National Student Survey 2024)

About your course

As a student on the BA (Hons) Creative Writing and Film Studies at Liverpool John Moores University you will be taught by internationally published poets, novelists and film industry professionals.

The degree combines practice in screenwriting, digital film production, and other writing forms with a critical study of film and written texts. As the degree progresses, you will be able to specialise in screenwriting and produce your own scripts for short films (fiction and documentary) and longer dramas, as well as learning to write treatments and pitch your ideas to a professional standard.

This hybrid degree combines practical and theoretical work which allows students to pursue their own interests. You will explore the development of cinema worldwide, while providing you with extensive hands-on filmmaking and editing experience using our industry-standard facilities including a production studio, a green screen, digital cameras and designated editing suites. You’ll have the opportunity to create an impressive portfolio of your own. Liverpool is the second most filmed city in the UK after London and the perfect place to start your screenwriting and filmmaking career.

We receive regular visits from guests who are renowned in their fields, with recent talks from the likes of Andrea Gibb, Lizzie Nunnery, Stewart Harcourt, Jayshree Patel, Torfinnur Jakupsson, Phil Collinson and Russell T Davies.

You will have plenty of opportunities to hone your writing and production techniques. As you move through the three years of your degree programme, you’ll acquire a holistic understanding and knowledge of film. Towards the end of your studies, you will be expected to produce near-professional standard scripts and short films.

In addition to formally taught courses, there are opportunities for work-based learning, visits and trips, as well as encouraging independent research in almost any area of Creative Writing and Film Studies and in your final year you will be able to undertake an option in freelance writing and/or production.

Course modules

What you will study on this degree

Further guidance on modules

Modules are designated core or optional in accordance with professional body requirements, as applicable, and LJMU’s Academic Framework Regulations. Whilst you are required to study core modules, optional modules provide you with an element of choice. Their availability may vary and will be subject to meeting minimum student numbers.

Where changes to modules are necessary these will be communicated as appropriate.

Year 1

• Film Language (20 credits)
• Film Theory (20 credits)
• Production Skills (20 credits)
• Observation and Discovery (20 credits)
• Character and Story (20 credits)
• Language and Craft (20 credits)

Year 2

• American Cinema (20 credits)
• Film Adaptation (20 credits)
• Experimental Filmmaking (20 credits)
• Study Semester Abroad - Creative Writing and Film Studies (60 credits)
• Video Essay (20 credits)
• Documentary Filmmaking (20 credits)
• Fiction Filmmaking (20 credits)
• European Cinema (20 credits)
• Working in Film (20 credits)
• Script Development (20 credits)
• Short Fiction (20 credits)
• Poetry (20 credits)
• Creative Non-fiction (20 credits)
• Screenwriting (20 credits)
• Writing for Stage & Radio (20 credits)
• Writing in Production (20 credits)
• The Fantastic (20 credits)
• Approaching Your Novel (20 credits)

Year 3

• World Cinema (20 credits)
• Final Film Pre-Production (20 credits)
• Final Film Production (20 credits)
• Interpretation in Film (20 credits)
• Work Based Learning (20 credits)
• Advanced Script Workshop 1 (20 credits)
• Advanced Script Workshop 2 (20 credits)
• Advanced Poetry Workshop 1 (20 credits)
• Advanced Poetry Workshop 2 (20 credits)
• Advanced Prose Workshop 1 (20 credits)
• Advanced Prose Workshop 2 (20 credits)
• Digital Writing (20 credits)
• Writer at Work: Portfolio (20 credits)
• Writer at Work: Project (20 credits)
• Independent Study (20 credits)
• Creative Writing Work Based Learning (20 credits)
• Developments in Contemporary Writing and Publishing (20 credits)

Your Learning Experience

• Teaching Support
• Assessment

Excellent facilities and learning resources

We adopt an active blended learning approach, meaning you will experience a combination of face-to-face and online learning during your time at LJMU. This enables you to experience a rich and diverse learning experience and engage fully with your studies. Our approach ensures that you can easily access support from your personal tutor, either by meeting them on-campus or via a video call to suit your needs.

Teaching is delivered via a combination of lectures, seminars, online activities, writing workshops, film screenings and production group work. We make extensive use of our virtual learning environment, Canvas, to provide course information, further reading and peer interaction.

Work-related Learning

You will have opportunities to complete professional work experience in both Level 5 and 6. The Writer at Work module in your final year also gives you a chance to step inside the writers world by pursuing your own project. This could be anything from organising a poetry festival to placing the idea for a novel with a literary agent, or planning the production of a film. Alternatively you can take up a work placement in your chosen field.

Dedicated personal tutor, plus study skills support

From the moment you begin your studies at LJMU, you will be allocated a personal tutor who will provide one-to-one support over the three years of the course. Their role is to give you feedback on how well you are progressing with your studies and encourage you to plan for your educational and career development.

Assessment varies depending on the modules you choose, but will usually include a combination of exams and coursework.

We acknowledge that all students perform differently according to the type of assessment they are given, and so you will be assessed by a combination of coursework, exams and group productions. Coursework includes essays, reviews, individual and group presentations, individual and group critical self-evaluation, logbooks, self-reflective group portfolios, research exercises, individual work-based learning reports and dissertations. Exams may be seen or unseen and may include class tests. Group productions of audio-visual artefacts include photo-storyboards, vox-pops, and factual and fictional video productions.

Your tutors will provide feedback on your assessments within 15 working days of submission and you will receive regular feedback on draft creative work submitted to workshops. We believe that constructive feedback is vital in helping you identify your strengths as well as the areas where you may need to put in more work.

93%say staff value students views and opinions about the course

Data for Creative Writing and Film Studies (Full time) at Liverpool John Moores University

100%of students say teaching staff have supported their learning well.

Data for Creative Writing and Film Studies (Full time) at Liverpool John Moores University

90%in work or doing further study 15 months after the course.

Data for courses in Creative writing at Liverpool John Moores University

Where you will study

The degree is taught in the Redmonds Building and John Foster Building, situated in the heart of the bustling Mount Pleasant Campus and Liverpool's growing Knowledge Quarter. Redmonds Building is home to high quality lecture theatres and seminar rooms, TV studios, radio suites, green screen, editing rooms and newsrooms, social spaces, and a café. It is only a short walk from LJMU's Aldham Robarts Library, which contains all the resources you will require for your studies, and is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

Career paths

Alongside the skills you will gain in writing to publishable standard and film production practice, the course equips you with an understanding of media processes that could be applied to careers in public relations, advertising, corporate communications, cultural journalism, research and the film and television industries.

Many of our graduates have gone on to work in the film and television industries as writers, directors, researchers and actors. Some have become independent filmmakers or work for companies such as the BBC, Channel 4, Envy Postproduction, FACT, Hurricane Pictures, Lime Pictures, Soapbox and Sony. Others have gone on to pursue postgraduate study at MA and PhD level or have become teachers, journalists and editors.

Student Futures - Careers, Employability and Enterprise Service

A wide range of opportunities and support is available to you, within and beyond your course, to ensure our students experience a transformation in their career trajectory. Every undergraduate curriculum includes Future Focus during Level 4, an e-learning resource and workshop designed to help you to develop your talents, passion and purpose.

Every student has access to Careers Zone 24/7, LJMU's suite of online Apps, resources and jobs board via the LJMU Student Futures website.

Tuition fees and funding

Home

• Full-time per year: £9,535

International

• Full-time per year: £17,750

Entry requirements

Please choose your qualifications below to view requirements

Grades/points required from qualifications: BBC-ABB (112-128)

Work out how many UCAS points your qualifications are worth by visiting the UCAS Tariff Calculator.

GCSEs and equivalents

• Grade 4 or grade C or above in English Language and Mathematics/Numeracy.

A levels

• BBC-ABB

BTECs

• Extended Diploma: DMM-DDM

Access awards

• Acceptable on its own and combined with other qualifications

International Baccalaureate

• Acceptable on its own and combined with other qualifications

OCR Cambridge Technical

• Extended Diploma: DMM-DDM

Irish awards

• Acceptable on its own and combined with other qualifications

T levels

• Acceptable on its own and combined with other qualifications.

You need to obtain the required UCAS points from a related subject area.

International requirements

• IELTS: 6.0 (minimum of 5.5 in each component) or equivalent English language proficiency test.

How to apply

Securing your place at LJMU

UCAS is the official application route for our full-time undergraduate courses. Further information on the UCAS application process can be found here

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