MA in Contemporary Art and the Moving Image
London, United Kingdom
DURATION
1 Years
LANGUAGES
English
PACE
Full time, Part time
APPLICATION DEADLINE
09 Mar 2025*
EARLIEST START DATE
Sep 2025
TUITION FEES
GBP 31,600 **
STUDY FORMAT
On-Campus
* first application deadline
** UK students: £14,500 per year | International students: £31,600 per year
Introduction
The Contemporary Art and the Moving Image MA is a collaborative master's degree offered jointly by King’s College London and the Courtauld Institute of Art.
This innovative course explores the past and present of visual culture and the moving image in art. As film, video, and digital media continue to influence and shape contemporary art, you’ll engage with this evolving discipline through perspectives provided by art history, film and media studies, exhibitions, and curatorial practice, among other fields. You’ll cover artists' moving image practices, experimental cinema, contemporary cinema, and digital art, and examine these through various disciplinary and geographical lenses.
You’ll also benefit from our prime location in the heart of London, placing you within easy reach of key cultural institutions such as BFI Southbank (and the BFI Library), Tate Britain, Tate Modern, the Institute of Contemporary Art, and the Hayward Gallery.
Key benefits
- Taught jointly by the Department of Film Studies at King’s and the Courtauld Institute of Art, bringing together King’s expertise in film studies and critical theory with the Courtauld’s dedicated specialisms in art history, conservation, and curation.
- The Courtauld is ranked 4th in the world for the study of Art History. King’s ranks top 5 in the UK for Arts and Humanities education (QS World University Rankings by Subject 2024).
- You will be a part of small group teaching and site visits, and art tours, and you’ll study writing from across different forms of art.
- Be located in the dynamic heart of central London, with close proximity to the ICA, BFI, and Tate and an active schedule of site visits to galleries, museums, and other institutional venues.
- Acquire a deep knowledge and understanding of historical, theoretical, critical, and practical frameworks from the intersections of modern and contemporary art, film studies, curation and related fields.
- Take part in visits to exhibitions and museums, and undertake a Virtual Exhibition project.
- Graduate with the skills and knowledge to navigate and contribute to this dynamic field and necessary for a wide range of careers in film and arts and cultural sectors, or further academic study.
- Have access to The Courtauld’s Research Forum, the Modern & Contemporary Research Colloquium, King’s Film Studies Research Forum, and other specialist research activities.
- Be part of a friendly and supportive learning environment with a diverse and inclusive curriculum.
Course essentials
This Contemporary Art and the Moving Image MA is a collaborative master's degree offered jointly by King’s College London and the Courtauld Institute of Art. This partnership grants you access to a diverse range of experts from both prestigious institutions, enriching your learning experience. You’ll also have the opportunity to choose from an exciting list of optional modules, with teaching provided across both partners. On the Contemporary Art and the Moving Image MA, you’ll become part of an exceptional academic community. You'll benefit from the combined expertise in both film and art, with specialisations spanning both disciplines. This breadth of knowledge is particularly advantageous when it comes to your dissertation. You'll be empowered to explore a research question that most interests you, supported by academics who are leaders in their fields. The programme is designed to help you develop critical approaches and research skills, enabling you to work with a variety of sources and methodologies.
Duration: 1 year
Admissions
Curriculum
Structure
Courses are divided into modules totaling 180 credits. Students will take 50% of modules at the Courtauld Institute of Art and 50% of modules at King’s College London. Both institutions are centrally located on the Strand in London.
Required modules
Required Modules (150 credits) You are required to take:
- London Film Cultures (30 credits)
- Moving Image Art Histories (30 credits) (30 credits)*
- Critical Debates (15 credits)*
- Examining Exhibitions (15 credits)*
- Dissertation (60 credits)
*Modules offered by the Courtauld Institute of Art. All other modules are taught at King’s College London.
Optional modules
Optional Modules (30 credits) You are required to take 30 credits from a range of optional modules, which may typically include:
- Media Aesthetics
- Topics in American Cinema
- Thinking Cinema
- Critical Media Practice
- Topics in Global Cinema
- Topics in European Cinema
- Topics in Asian Cinema
- Media, Space and Place
- History, Society and the Screen
King’s College London reviews the modules offered on a regular basis to provide up-to-date, innovative and relevant programmes of study. Therefore, modules offered may change. We suggest you keep an eye on the course finder on our website for updates. Please note that modules with a practical component will be capped due to educational requirements, which may mean that we cannot guarantee a place to all students who elect to study this module.
Program Tuition Fee
Career Opportunities
Employability
MA Contemporary Art and the Moving Image students will develop:
- an in-depth grasp of the study of contemporary art and the moving image, and the intellectual, political and institutional issues raised by its study;
- familiarity with a substantial body of moving image and media art, and associated critical literature and scholarship;
- historical and theoretical frameworks of interpretation for contemporary art and the moving image;
- advanced research, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
This knowledge base and skill set aims to prepare students for careers in film and moving image curation, arts and cultural management, film distribution, film and moving image criticism/journalism, and film and media education. Students may also choose to pursue academic careers through further study at PhD level.