The University of Cambridge has fostered teaching and research on the subject of film since the 1970s, though lectures on film topics in various faculties have been delivered to undergraduates at least as far back as the 1960s. Stephen Heath and Colin MacCabe undertook pioneering work in film studies at Cambridge in the 70s and early 80s, including a seminar on British television taught by Heath, MacCabe and Raymond Williams in 1980. Film rose in prominence as a subject of undergraduate and postgraduate study and as the object of academic research in several departments and faculties across the 80s, 90s and early 2000s.These strengths and initiatives were brought together in 2008 with the launch of the Screen Media and Cultures MPhil in 2008. Our newly created PhD degree in Film and Screen Studies grows out of this distinguished history. 

As a place to study film and screen media, Cambridge’s distinction is felt in its dedication to thinking carefully about the art of the moving image in an interdisciplinary intellectual environment. Our MPhil and PhD programmes in Film and Screen Studies grew out of and are nourished by our world-renowned programmes in Modern Languages, English, Architecture and Art History. This comparative intellectual ambience enables our students to pursue work of great rigour and startling originality. The publications of our teaching and research faculty bear witness to the vibrancy of our research culture in film and screen studies.

The Centre for Film and Screen, the home to teaching and research in Film and Screen Studies, hosts a diverse array of research seminars and other screenings and public events across the year. The University’s excellent libraries and unparalleled research culture make Cambridge a unique location for postgraduate study—rich in resources and buzzing with activity.

Cambridge itself is a cinematic city. Its architectural beauty and history have, over the years, made it an attractive location for film production, and the city is home to a thriving art cinema and numerous film festivals, including the Cambridge Film Festival. Many of the colleges of the University have film screening programmes and host visiting filmmakers. The broader culture of the University has long been associated with creativity and dynamism in the arts and continues to produce some of the most noteworthy names in the film and television industry. Our proximity to London gives our students access to one of the great film capitals of the world. Cambridge’s postgraduate degrees in Film and Screen Studies combine the wealth of the University’s humanistic traditions with innovative inquiry into the contemporary culture of the moving image.

For further information on the Centre for Film and Screen please contact its Director, John David Rhodes.