Film Studies A Level

Applications Open: - Friday 14 November 2025

Applications Close: - 13 February 2026. Applications may be considered after this date but it is strongly advised to apply before this deadline.

Entry Requirements: - Admission to courses - This is based on your needs and staff advice, but you should be aware of these points: 1. You will need to obtain a minimum of six GCSE passes at Level 5 or above including Mathematics and English (a minimum of a grade 5 in the reformed GCSE qualifications in English and Mathematics) and grades 9-6 in their preferred A-Level subjects or nearest equivalents. 2. Subjects have clear entry requirements. You will find these under the course details or from Subject Heads.

How to Apply: - Please apply via KentChoices (Internal and External Students)

External Applicants - please click here (This form is for external candidates and parents/carers to book a slot to ask any questions about the admissions process and Sixth Form at Highsted Grammar School). Please be aware that it is first come, first served. We will try our best to accommodate your preferences but this might not always be possible).

Internal candidates - should contact their Head of Year directly.

In A Level Film Studies, students will study a range of global examples of thought-provoking cinema to develop their enjoyment, knowledge and appreciation of the medium. Candidates will explore crucial developments in the industry, particularly in Hollywood, from the advent of sound following the initial commercial success of film during the Silent Era, to the impact of the Motion Picture Production Code’s authority over appropriateness in the 1930s-1960s, to innovative uses of previously unacceptable leitmotifs in the 1960s-1990s. Students will also study the films and signature techniques of famed auteurs such as Alfred Hitchcock and Quentin Tarantino when studying global cinema, students will have the opportunity to learn about significant political context in other countries through studying Pan’s Labyrinth and City of God. From short films to feature length, from documentary to experimental, an eclectic range of forms and genres will be explored.

Film Studies enables students to explore the colourful history of cinema throughout the past century. With moving media being such a significant and sensational artistic development during the late 19th Century, the subject incorporates significant areas of historical context when considering how the medium has progressed. Students study films from a range of different cultural, political, institutional and social contexts, which aids their understanding of the wider world. Films Studies encourages students to think critically, through detailed analysis and application of a range of theoretical frameworks. The coursework component will enable students to have the freedom to demonstrate their creative skills in this medium.

Students wishing to study Film Studies at A Level should have achieved grade 6 in English Language or English Literature.