Bachelor of

Creative Arts (Film and Television)

This unit has been designed specifically for those students whose professional goal is to be a cinematographer. Students will be required to investigate the application of ultra-high definition digital camera systems to the creative realisation of a motion sequence to industry standard. Students will be required to experiment with the technical elements of production, integrating knowledge and skills to create a cinematic film experience. Students will need to consider their role as cinematographers and how they can use the affordances of film production tools to visually enhance a story with appropriate expression.  

Prerequisites: FTP203 (Camera & Lighting 1), FTP302 (Camera & Lighting 2)

This unit expands on the knowledge and skills developed in Screenwriting 1. This unit introduces a more sophisticated range of writing tools and techniques, as well as the challenges of writing in collaboration, for an audience, to a budget. This unit will be delivered as a series of workshops designed to simulate professional screenwriting environments and projects. Key to this unit is the work students will do to develop their understanding of the market for their writing, and how to balance creativity with the cost of production (from locations to cast, art department, wardrobe, stunts and VFX/post production elements).

Prerequisite: FTP206 (Screenwriting 1)

This units builds on FTP206 Screenwriting 1 and FTP307 Screenwriting 2 by offering students the opportunity to complete an original 45-page script for the screen.  

Screenwriting 3 - Long Form aims to prepare advanced students interested in writing longer scripts for the screen, with the professional skills to develop, write, take-on board professional and peer feedback and complete re-writes of an original screenplay. 

This unit seeks to further enhance students’ writing skills and prepare them for a career in the screen industries by building upon the short film scripts students will have written in FTV206 Screenwriting 1 and FTV307 Screenwriting 2, along with scripts they may have written for FTV208 Production Project 1 (Documentary), FTV422 Digital Producing and FTV316 Major Project Development. 

This unit’s key objectives are: 

1.  Asset-Building.  Successful students will complete this unit having written a first draft longform script which they can further develop after graduation - and to subsequently pitch to professional producers and directors… as well as submit to state funding agencies, studios or other benefactors for further drafts. 

2. Craft Development.  This unit will give students the tools and skills to refine and enhance their writing skills, previously developed in short form, through specialist lecturer advice and feedback, peer review and re-writes.   

Students will develop skills and knowledge in script writing, editing, and receiving and giving constructive feedback as part of the rigorous development process.  

Students are responsible for making sure they understand all material covered in this unit outline. Students can seek clarification on any aspect they are unsure about from the lecturer or Head of Department. 

Prerequisites: FTP206 (Screenwriting 1), FTP307 (Screenwriting 2)

This unit provides students with the opportunity to develop advanced theoretical and practical knowledge of key post production practices, including editing, sound production, colour grading and colour correction.  Students continue to engage with a range of software on different projects to explore advanced editing, colour correction and special effects.

Prerequisites: FTP202 (Post Production 1)

It all starts - and finishes - with the Producer. The Producer is the driving force for all screen productions, setting the goals and steering the creative, financial and administrative processes. The role starts well before pre-production begins and continues (often for many years) after the final product is delivered. 

This unit will build on the foundation knowledge gained in FTP201 Producing 1, to provide students with advanced producing techniques to equip them as emerging Producers upon graduation.

These new skills will include experience at applying for both development funding and production funding from state agencies - along with the essential documentation to accompany these applications (e.g., options & rights agreements, scheduling, budgets, finance plans, HOD agreements, distribution agreements and marketing plans)

Producing 2 will also explore the world of official co-productions: the countries with whom Australia has signed treaties or MOU's and examples of subsequent productions... and the "devil in the details" of making a co-production a reality.  

Prerequisite: FTP201 (Producing 1)

This unit offers students the opportunity to understand the collaborative nature of creating and producing broadcast and film title designs, station identities, social media advertising elements and graphics for the screen.  During this unit students develop skills and knowledge in the process involved in responding to return briefs & creating projects from pre-visualisation to effective realisation.  Students also gain hands-on experience with colour grading & correction, and develop and finalise motion graphic sequences for inclusion into their own major projects, helping build a professional portfolio and showreel for prospective employers.

Prerequisite: FTP202 (Post Production 1)

This unit follows on from Major Project: Production as the students’ films enter their final phase. A student’s ability to apply conceptual knowledge and creative and technical skills will be tested through the post production processes of a major production project or slate. Processes will include the rough cut edit, fine cut, music composition, sound editing, sound design, colour grade sound mix, incorporation of credits and online delivery. Throughout the trimester, there will be some directed classes, but most weeks, students will attend scheduled post production meetings with their fellow post crew and lecturer. It is expected that this class will appeal primarily to the producer, director, editor and possibly sound designer of a Major Project Production.

Prerequisite: FTP425 (Major Project: Production)

This unit is for students who are interested in further exploring the role of the director in screen productions. The principles of mise-en-scène will be explored in depth, theoretically and practically, covering both formal, classic and informal staging techniques. Students will be given the opportunity to develop their knowledge of the director's 'tool box' which includes advanced visual story, shot construction, camera placement and movement, complex blocking, coverage styles in the classic continuity style as well as the use of subjective time, and poetic/lyrical approaches.

Further areas of study include dramatic tone, production design, sound design, narrative and performance editing, pre-visualisation and on-set workflows and methodologies. They can use these elements to develop and present their own developing directorial voice. 

The unit is delivered as a series of seminars, complemented with practical workshops focusing on ideation, and interpersonal communication techniques between directors and their key collaborators, including the craft of performance. 

Prerequisite: FTP211 (Directing 1)

The unit goes hand-in-hand with Major Project Production and Major Project Post Production, providing students with the opportunity to devise and collaborate on several major creative projects. These project units are designed to showcase the students’ unique skills and talents.  Ideally, the production work will become each student’s “calling card” in the industry.  Major projects can include a studio programme, short film, web series, television or feature film pilot or documentaries, but all productions can be no longer than 10 minutes. This unit is specifically aimed at Directors and Producers who will choose and scope out their projects; work to revise and edit numerous drafts of their script; devise a social media strategy for their project and directly specify their target audience; assign all major roles to their student production; and ultimately pitch their developed project to an industry panel.

Prerequisites: FTP203 (Camera & Lighting 1), FTP208 (Production Project: Documentary), FTP304 (Production Project: Short Film)

In this unit, students will be given an opportunity to develop their skills in the production of a music video to industry standard. Delivered as a series of workshops and studio sessions, this unit emulates real world practice, with the lecturer adopting the role of record company head. 

Students will be guided through the inner-workings of the music video business – the relationships between label, management, and production company, as well learning how to write and interpret creative briefs. Students will work in collaborative teams to develop their pitch for a music video. Once green-lit, students will plan, pre produce, shoot, and post produce music videos. As part of this process, students will work with their peers in other disciplines in the making of the music video.

Design is an essential element of telling stories on the screen. In this unit, students will study the art of screen design – specifically when it comes to Production Design and Costume Design. Production Design is examined through real world examples and practical exercises. Students will evaluate and create designs in categories such as space, interiors, exteriors, light, colour and set decorating for studio sets and locations. In studying Costume Design, students learn about envisaging character, working with colours, fabrics, and other materials, and collaborating with production designers, actors, and the director. Students will also work to a brief and a budget and will look to utilise their knowledge and experiences in their student productions. This unit will be delivered as a series of tutorials, masterclasses, and workshops (including for example: Special Effects Make-Up).

This unit introduces the student to the foundation principles of acting, which provide the base from which the actor begins to build their process.

This acting foundation describes freedom and availability as core principles of the actor’s process. This approach to the work requires self-awareness to identify personal limitations or habitual behaviours and to then apply preparatory techniques to enable the actor to respond to stimulus moment to moment.

Students will undertake a range of practical preparation activities and exercises to develop these core skills, as well as developing conceptual understanding of these foundation principles and how these form the basis of the actor’s work. These foundation skills will be applied through both theatre and screen performance exercises and activities.

Digital compositing is the process of combining visual elements into cohesive still and moving images and is integral for any post-production facility. Students are introduced to key areas in compositing, moving from separating and combining still images, to working with complex transparency, camera movement and computer-generated images.  These scaffolded weekly projects prepare students for a proposal and project completed in a para-professional studio environment.

Prerequisite: FTP303 (Post Production 2)

This unit introduces students to the post production principles of sound for screen and moving image. Students will focus on the use of sound as a form of creative expression and narrative structure. The unit will cover the functional aspects of sound for screen including the various delivery formats for online and platform requirements. Students will analyse the use of sound, and its emotive qualities for screen and moving image.

Prerequisite: FTP207 (Introduction to Sound Recording)

*by application only

COL401 Internship aims to provide students with an internship opportunity that has sound educational value and provides students the chance to initiate and/or develop relationships with professionals in their discipline. COL401 allows students to prepare or consolidate their know-how to work as a professional and increase their technical and creative skills base. It also allows students to explore potential areas of employment. 

In this unit the National Society for Experiential Education’s definition of “internship” is used. This is internship is a carefully monitored volunteering or working experience where an individual has intentional learning goals and reflects actively on what they are learning throughout the experience. For this reason, beside the time students spend during their internship, they will also spend self-study time. They will reflect upon their awareness of applying theory to practice during their internship, practicing their ability to evaluate situations, critical thinking, and effective communication of their decision-making. 

Students will also elaborate a professional plan where they explain their aspiring professional development goals and the activities that would assist them to achieve these under the guidance of their Internship Coordinator/Supervisor.  

Context

At JMC Academy, students undertake a rigorous academic program of practice-based learning, into which is embedded a range of work-integrated learning activities. To complement their on-campus learning, students are also encouraged to generate their own creative work. This unit of study has been designed to formally recognise that work. Students will have access to an e-portfolio as a presentation mode for the assessable items. The unit is placed during the final study periods of the bachelor’s degree, enabling students to collect and display their best and most recent examples of their engagement with their discipline outside of their formal study.

How it works 

Students are introduced to this unit during Trimester 1 and then again in successive study periods. Students must be invited by their Head of Department to enrol in this unit; a student will only be enrolled in this unit if the Head of Department is confident that the student can meet all learning outcomes. The e-portfolio JMC students will be given access to an e-portfolio platform at no cost as part of the Microsoft365 subscription. The platform provides students with a place to curate and display their extra-curricular activities for assessment in this unit. It is not the professional portfolio students could use COL401 Internship aims to provide students with an internship opportunity that has sound educational value and provides students the chance to initiate and/or develop relationships with professionals in their discipline. COL401 allows students to prepare or consolidate their know-how to work as a professional and increase their technical and creative skills base. It also allows students to explore potential areas of employment.

The bachelor’s degree takes two years of full-time study, depending on your chosen study mode and intake.

Graduates can pursue careers as directors, producers, editors, screenwriters, cinematographers, or content creators in film, television, streaming, and digital media industries.

You’ll gain advanced skills in camera skills, narrative storytelling, production planning, directing, lighting, post-production, live broadcast, unscripted (reality TV) and pitching ideas—while creating your own original films and series.

The course is highly practical, with most learning delivered through hands-on projects, studio work, and collaborative filmmaking experiences.

Yes. You’ll have access to industry-grade cameras, lighting rigs, sound equipment, and editing software such as the RED EPIC-W™ HELIUM™ 8K used by professionals in film such as The Last Knight and Transformers as well as television production.

Yes. From your third trimester, you can tailor your studies to suit your interests, whether that’s directing, writing, cinematography, or post-production.

A portfolio is encouraged but it is not a requirement to apply for this degree. JMC welcomes passionate applicants and offers guidance if you’re just starting out with film or creative work.

Yes. Students are supported to seek internships or industry placements during their studies to build professional networks and real-world experience.

This course is available at JMC Academy campuses in Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane, with intakes in February and June.

No, you do not need to provide any samples of work to be eligible. However, you are welcome to provide samples of work. Any scripts you’ve written, youtube clips, short films, story boards you’ve drawn, visual and written ideas for films or tv shows, and any technical experience you may have had either in school, via extracurricular activities, work experience or volunteer work.

Absolutely. You do not need to have had any experience with film equipment as we cater to all levels of experience.

Our courses are hands on and practical. Students are required to attend classes to receive ongoing mentorship, learn new skills and work with the equipment provided. We do encourage our students to use online study resources, however our courses would not be as immersive as they are without the practical component.

Yes. The JMC Academy is registered and regulated by the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA) which is Australia’s independent national regulator of the higher education sector, both public and private.

You will not need to purchase your own computer or any film gear as we have fully equipped editing suites and an equipment loan service with quality mics, lighting, cameras and a myriad of accessories available for student use.

JMC Academy is broadly recognised and accredited:

• Registered Higher Education Provider.
• Accredited by the Tertiary Education Quality and Standards Agency (TEQSA)
• Registered on the Commonwealth Register of Institutions and Courses for Overseas Students (CRICOS).
• Regulated by the Australian Skills Quality Authority (ASQA).
• Member of the Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia (ITECA).
• Nationally recognised within the Australian Qualifications Framework.

Our strong industry links also ensure that JMC Academy qualifications are recognised within the creative industries. 

Although you may want to be a film maker, it is important to have a wide range of skills when entering the industry. You will still learn about film making in great detail, however this course will provide you with a greater range of career options upon graduation. The skills learnt may be applied to film as well as television production.

You will do a range of assessments that will demonstrate your understanding, including short film making, documentaries, television commercials, music videos, live broadcasts and multi-cam, pitches and presentations, sound recording, film analysis and screenplays. At the end of the Bachelor there is project based work where you'll be able to choose your main assessment, which could be any of the above.

You'll start learning the proper way to handle the film gear in your first Trimester. Students are then assessed on their competency for handling the equipment. Once this is undertaken, students are able to loan cameras and equipment suitable for their on campus or on location shoots, projects and assessments.