Visual Anthropology MA

This course provides training in practical audiovisual skills combined with the study of visual and sensory anthropology. It is delivered by the Granada Centre for Visual Anthropology

When applying, prospective candidates MUST choose between 2 pathways; Ethnographic Documentary with Film (EDF) & Ethnographic Documentary with Sensory Media (EDSEM). Semester 1 is the same for students on both pathways. It includes intensive hands-on training in ethnographic documentary, modules on the history of ethnographic film & theoretical issues of visual perception/representation. In Semester 2, the pathways diverge. Students on the EDF pathway undertake further film training, whilst those on the EDSEM pathway undergo practical and intellectually-oriented training in other visual & aural media, including photography, sound recording, moving images, art, etc. The kind of practice-based exercises that the students on this pathway may engage in are shown on the following page.

Over the summer, all students carry out a practical field project. EDF students make a documentary film and write a `companion text'. EDSEM students conduct an original piece of ethnographic research & write a dissertation developed around one or more media presentations, which can be photography and/or sound recording, film, drawings, an art project. In principle, students may carry out their field projects anywhere in the world, provided they present a well thought-out proposal. Some students have gone to the most distant locations (Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan, Japan, Brazil), whilst others have chosen topics closer to home in Manchester (asylum seekers, a local beauty parlour, the gay cruising scene).

Recruitment is highly international: roughly one third of students are from the UK, a third from the European Union & the remainder from countries outside Europe. The course is taught by anthropologists who are also film-makers and/or other media practitioners, complemented by highly qualified audiovisual staff. Additional workshops are conducted by visiting professionals, including film-makers, photographers & sound recordists.

Prospective candidates should be aware that this is a 13-month course.  It extends beyond the conventional 12 months because, on the EDF pathway, access to the equipment for editing the final film is staggered over a 4 week period, from mid-August, with some students starting in mid-September and not ending until around 5 October. The assignment of editing time slots in the stagger is reached collectively and by consensus. When consensus is not achieved, the placement is decided on a random basis. Students who for any reason need to complete by the end of a 12-month period can apply beforehand  for places at the beginning of the stagger. Students on the EDSEM pathway, who are not affected by the use of editing facilities, will have an earlier submission deadline. In any case, students on both pathways often delay their departure from Manchester until mid-October in order to participate in the Graduation Exhibition (EDSEM) and Film Screenings (EDF). These events are organised by the students themselves and are not a compulsory part of the programme but they have become a traditional rite of passage that the GCVA encourages and supports.

Academic entry qualification overview:

UK 2:1 Honours degree (or overseas equivalent) in social or cultural anthropology. Those with related backgrounds are also encouraged to apply.

Applicants should indicate via the further information field on the on-line form which of the 2 pathways they wish to be considered for: Ethnographic Documentary with Film or Ethnographic Documentary with Sensory Media.

English language:

IELTS - overall score of 7, including 7 in writing with no further component score below 6.0

TOEFL IBT - overall score of 100 with 25 in each section.

TOEFL code for Manchester is 0757

Scores are valid for 2 years.

For students who require a Tier 4 visa to study in the UK, your test score is valid for 2 years preceding the date that your CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies) is issued.  CAS statements will be issued from June-September 2013.

For example;

Test taken on or after 1 June 2011 - CAS issued June 2013 = Score is VALID

Test taken before 1 June 2011 = Score is INVALID

Please note that CAS statements are issued only when all conditions of the offer have been satisfied, PDF copy of passport received and the offer accepted.

Applicants from certain countries MAY be exempt from having to provide an IELTS or TOEFL score.  Please email us for advice.

Other international entry requirements: We accept a range of qualifications from different countries. For these and general requirements including English language see entry requirements from your country.

The course combines conventional lectures and seminars with practical 'hands-on' instruction. Except for the final dissertations, students work in teams when producing practical projects and thereby develop team-working & presentational skills as well as technical and artistic expertise. Each team presents its work to the class and receives feedback from fellow students as well as instructors. In this way, students can learn from each other's successes as well as failures, generating a strong sense of camaraderie.

Click here to see the current course handbook giving details of the module options.

During both semesters, students on both pathways normally take ONE 30-credit module involving practical hands-on projects and TWO 15-credit lecture- or seminar-based modules on more theoretical, methodological or substantive ethnographic topics. The latter are each assessed by means of a 4000-word essay. The practical modules are assessed by various combinations of a portfolio of project work and an accompanying written text.

Overall structure of programme

In the first semester, students on both pathways normally take exactly the same course units. It is only in the second semester that the pathways diverge:

Semester 1

Most students normally take the following:

- Ethnographic Documentary: an intensive hands-on course in which students work in teams of three to make 3 films: on a technical process, an interview and a social event.;

- Anthropology of Vision, Memory and the Senses: lecture course on a broad range of theoretical topics;

-Screening Culture: lecture course on the history and diversification of ethnographic film-making.

Students with a limited background in social or cultural anthropology may be expected to take a general introductory course unit.

Semester 2

-EDF students carry out further cinema projects on the course Beyond Observational Film;

-EDSEM students attend the course Documentary and Sensory Media in which they undertake photographic and acoustic projects and engaged in intellectual debates on the use of non-textually dependent media to carry out and to represent ethnographic research.

-Students on both pathways also take Image, Text, Fieldwork, a course that requires them to conduct a short ethnographic experiment in the city of Manchester.

All students also normally follow a series of workshops and seminars intended to prepare them for the fieldwork-based projects that they are expected to carry out over the summer vacation.

Summer Vacation - Final Projects

-EDF pathway- Research, shooting, editing of a 30-minute documentary film, plus Companion Text of 2500-5000 words.

-EDSEM pathway - An original piece of ethnographic research, presented in a text of 8-12,000 words, developed around photographs and/or sound recordings, a film, an art project.

Read more.

Although the course offers training in ethnographic documentary film-making, a genre that has a direct relevance to a university career in social or cultural anthropology, graduates of the course have also applied these skills in a broad variety of other film-making contexts. These include secondary and further educational institutions, museums, development agencies, advertising, television and the feature film industry. 

In addition to technical skills in camerawork, sound recording and editing, this course also trains students in a broad range of transferable skills that are applicable to a variety of careers. These include the development of team-working and presentational skills, as well as the interpersonal skills required to carry out ethnographic fieldwork and an awareness of the legal and ethical issues raised by this research activity.

The generic skill of presenting an argument in conjunction with developing an engaging narrative that underlies all good ethnographic documentary film-making can also be applied in a broad range of media and not only the audiovisual media. Graduates of this course have applied these narrative skills in contexts as diverse as journalism and the writing of novels.  

Since it began in 1988, there have been over 300 graduates of the course, from all corners of the globe. The bonds established between students as a consequence of the strong ethos of collaboration encouraged by the collective teaching methods are often carried over into post-graduation life.  Many graduates have continued to work with one another for many years after leaving Manchester. Due to the international nature of the student body, these links stretch all over the world.

School of Social Sciences

See: School Disciplines

Contact name: Janet Smith

Telephone: +44 (0)161 275 4471

Facsimile: +44 (0)161 275 2450

Email: pg-soss@manchester.ac.uk

Website: www.socialsciences.manchester.ac.uk/disciplines/socialanthropology/visualanthropology/