Course summary

Lancaster’s joint German Studies and Film degree is taught by the Department of Languages and Cultures in conjunction with Lancaster Institute for the Contemporary Arts (LICA). Your German Studies programme enables you to acquire high-level language skills while gaining a thorough understanding of the country’s historical, cultural, social and political background in a global context. In Film, you’ll examine cinema’s aesthetic, social and political importance in the context of an increasingly visual and media-orientated culture, while also investigating the intersections between contemporary art, theatre, design, sound and film. Your first year comprises an exploration of the German language and its cultural context as well as an introduction to Film Studies and the core module, ‘Modernism in the Arts’. Alongside this, you will study a minor subject that complements your degree. Building on your language skills in Year 2, you will study the culture, politics and history of Germany and Austria in more depth, as well as selecting modules which are international in scope and promote a comparative understanding of Europe and beyond. You will combine these with the modules ‘Critical Reflections’ and ‘Hollywood and Beyond: Global Cinema’. Spending your third year abroad in a German-speaking country gives you the opportunity to develop your language proficiency while deepening your intercultural sensitivity. You can study at a partner institution or conduct a work placement. In your final year, you consolidate your German language skills, and study specialist culture and comparative modules, such as ‘Contemporary Cities in Literature and Film’. You will also choose film modules such as ‘Apocalypse Then: New Hollywood Cinema’, ‘Silent Cinema’ or ‘Media and Performance’. Beginners Languages Studying a language from beginners level is somewhat intense in nature so we only allow students to study one language from beginners level. Please bear this in mind when looking at our first year module options. If you apply to study a degree with a language from beginners level, your optional modules will only include higher level languages and modules in other subject areas.