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Digital Media Production

BA (Hons) or BSc (Hons)

Clearing places are available on this course

UCAS code: P310

Start dates: September 2023 / September 2024

Full time: 3 years, or 4 if a work placement is chosen

Part time: up to 8 years

Location: Headington

Department(s): School of Arts

Overview
Course details
Careers
Entry requirements
How to apply
Tuition fees

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Overview

The world of digital media production has evolved dramatically, combined with rapid advances in technology. Plus, new studios and media companies are springing up everywhere. That’s creating a huge demand for graduates with technical and creative skills.

At Oxford Brookes, we give you the option of completing a BA or BSc Digital Media Production. This allows you to experiment with a wide range of media forms and keep your career options open until you know where your real strengths lie.  

On the BA you’ll cover the creative aspects of production such as directing, scriptwriting and producing. Whereas on the BSc you’ll look at the more technical side such as visual effects, animation and computer-generated 3D environments. But you don’t have to decide until the end of your second year. 

Our expert team offers a depth of experience from documentary making to cinematography and 3D modelling. They have strong links with the industry and you also have the option of a third year work placement/ internship to build on your learning. 

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Why Oxford Brookes University?

  • Explore your passions

    Experiment with the creative and technical sides of digital media production to see if a BA or BSc is right for you. Our unique structure lets you make an informed decision.

  • Stand out from your peers

    Gain hands-on experience with a placement at a company in the UK or abroad. Plus, boost your prospects with an AVID Professional certification in Media Composer Video Editing.

  • A network of connections

    Be inspired by our team of experienced lecturers from documentary to animation. And get tips from real-life practitioners in film and TV, including Good Morning Britain.

  • Get out and about

    Join us on an exciting programme of trips to places like the Aesthetica Film Festival at York and the ARRI cinematography company.

  • First-class facilities

    Make use of our 4K cinema projector, Dolby Atmos surround sound and THX certified technology for weekly screenings and film clubs. Plus, try out our pro editing suites.

  • Free language courses

    Free language courses are available to full-time undergraduate and postgraduate students on many of our courses, and can be taken as a credit on some courses.

Course details

Course structure

We do things differently from a traditional media course. For the first 2 years, you cover the same modules whether you’re on the BA or BSc. This gives you time to find out what you really enjoy and what you’re good at before you specialise.

In Year 1 you’ll be introduced to technical skills. On the creative side, you’ll be exploring different media narratives and considering how to develop a short film. 

By Year 2 you’ll design special effects, looking at immersive technologies and CGI. You’ll also respond to real-life briefs and shoot short dramas.

In your third year you’ll have the opportunity to gain hands-on experience through a professional placement year. 

Your fourth year is about preparing your final portfolio. The BSc modules cover advanced technical skills in virtual and augmented reality from entertainment and gaming to healthcare. While on the BA you’ll focus on immersive practice and interactive storytelling, and direct a live magazine news TV show.

Digital Media Production

Learning and teaching

Lectures provide you with the knowledge and understanding of the key concepts for each topic of study.

However, we put emphasis on the practical elements of the course which enable you to:

  • practise essential skills in a variety of contexts
  • build a wide set of experiences on which to reflect and develop professional expertise. 

Practical elements give you the opportunity to experiment with the technology in different environment and include:

  • laboratory sessions
  • workshops
  • seminars
  • on location filming
  • interface with external clients.

Most modules include an element of team working so you can:

  • collaborate with your peers
  • develop an awareness of your own abilities as reflected by feedback from others.

Regular lectures and feedback from visiting lecturers and industry professionals ensure that this course stays up to date and relevant.

Assessment

We've designed assessments to develop your imagination and creativity. You’ll learn technological skills, shaped by theory, that meet the requirements of the industry. We guide you through gaining a complex set of professional skills.

We provide assessment feedback in good time. We celebrate what you’ve achieved, and tell you what you need to improve.

Where appropriate we use self and peer assessment to involve you in your own professional development.

We use teamwork to assess your acquisition of personal and interpersonal skills. These are important for this degree and for most career paths in the media industry. Assessment for group work is well defined so that every student is graded fairly and contributes equally.

We also place emphasis on the development and application of research skills. Research literacy is practised and assessed in most modules on this course.

Study modules

Year 1

Compulsory modules

Technical Skills

This module aims to introduce students to basic technical skills and production methods in the field of digital media production, through a range of technical demonstrations, workshops, exercises and analytical sessions.

Alongside studying technical theories, workflows and procedures, students will produce a portfolio of individual technical exercises that cover camerawork, audio and video post-production skills.

Media Narratives 1

The aims of this module are to investigate ways in which digital media communicates, exploring visual and aural aesthetics and conventions, and introducing you to critical vocabularies and analytical approaches for digital media production.

Capturing the Real

This production studio module aims to provide students with the basic professional production skills needed to initiate, pitch, research, develop and manage simple digital media productions. It introduces them to simple narrative forms, and gives them the opportunity to work in a small team to produce a factual short.

Digital Post-production

This module builds on the introductory skills introduced in Technical Skills , developing practice, and understanding in post-production, VFX, motion capture and digital modelling.

Technical demonstrations and skills workshops develop hands-on competencies in these areas, while discussions and analyses of postproduction developments and techniques explore their roles in digital media storytelling and creativity.

Digital Shorts

The aim of this double production studio module is to draw together and apply, through the creation of a digital media short, the professional, technical and creative skills acquired in Level 4. Working in small teams, students generate ideas in response to a given brief, and take them through the process of pitching, negotiation, pre-production and production to delivery and screening. Along the way, they explore a range of narrative techniques and possibilities, and reflect on producing for specific contexts and audiences.

Media Narratives 2

This module aims to build on Media Narratives 1, expanding its focus on factual narratives by exploring a broad range of narrative forms and genres, including storytelling and story experiences that are emerging within digital media. The module aims to develop your critical awareness and analytical vocabularies in relation to these areas, and to provide you with an opportunity for in-depth research and critical study.

Year 2

Compulsory modules

Filming the Fantastic

This module looks at how to plan and design visual and special effects for film, TV, immersive technologies and live event production.

It will involve studying the development of effects from early practical effects through to the latest virtual cinematography techniques.

You will experiment with traditional practical effects, motion capture and CGI to create and develop visual and special effects, know which approach and materials are the most appropriate to deliver the desired outcome, and work in collaboration with others to ensure the safe, accurate and effective execution of the effect.

Professional Studies

The aim of this module is to introduce students to concepts of professionalism within the creative industries as part of their career preparation activity. It develops the student’s consideration for employment or freelance work, including legal frameworks, financial issues and global and ethical considerations.

Drama Production

The aim of this double module is to enable students to produce, direct, shoot and edit short dramas in a range of genres by developing specialist skills in response to a series of exercises, set briefs and given scripts.

Alongside the production of a short filmed drama students will build on the skills of camera, sound and post-production introduced in Technical Skills and Digital Post-production through a series of hands-on workshops, with integrated technical demonstrations and analytical sessions where students will undertake exercises that develop their technical and creative skills in drama cinematography, sound recording and editing, visuals effects and post-production, and explore the importance of craft techniques in creative expression and digital media storytelling for drama.

Real World Production

This double module introduces students to the issues and creative challenges involved in working with clients and responding to real-life briefs.

These briefs will combine a mixture of technical and creative problems to be addressed and working in production teams comprising of both BA and BSc Digital Media Production students who will work together to develop solutions and approaches for the client using methodologies and approaches specific to their path of study.

BA students will develop skills of concept artwork, art direction and scriptwriting, drawing on learning from previous modules while collaborating with BSc students who will evidence their workflows and prototypes developed specifically to realise the brief and agreed production outcomes using the technical skills and knowledge built in previous modules

Live Broadcasting

This module trains and assesses students on the principles, workflow, techniques, theory and practice of digital live broadcasts, live events and broadcasts. Students will experience the entire workflow for a broadcast production from story development through to planning and realisation. This entails the creation and delivery of unique, original products and analysis of the implementation of the delivery process. It includes individual and team work as part of preparation for employment. The culmination of this module will be the production of a live broadcast.

Optional modules

Work Placement

Year 3 (optional placement year)

Optional modules

Career Development Placement

The aim of this module is to develop the professional profile and professional confidence of a student through experiential learning opportunities and engagement with external organisations by undergoing work placements, internships and industry experiences. It aims to enable students to manage their own learning and self-direction through identifying opportunities that align to their disciplinary ambitions, situating their practice in a professional context.

Year 4 (or year 3 if no placement)

Compulsory modules

Preparation for Final Production Portfolio

The aims of this module are to enable students to undertake a period of in-depth planning for their final production portfolio in semester 2.

In close consultation with their tutors, students initiate, research and negotiate ideas for their project work, before forming into production teams in readiness for moving into production at the start of the Final Production Portfolio module (DIGP6021).

Final Production Portfolio

The purpose of this double module is to enable students to undertake an intensive period of self-directed production for the projects that they have pre-produced in Preparation for Final Production Portfolio.

Students complete, deliver and screen portfolios of work that demonstrate the professionalism, innovative thinking and mature team-working that they have acquired during their studies throughout the course

Creative Media Enterprise

The aim of this module is to support students in the development of their career management and planning towards a future in the digital media production sector. It aims to nurture the development of enterprising attributes and a reflective approach to identifying their future aspirations and areas for development. Confidence is a key competency this module aims to enhance through networking with professionals and communicating within a team.

Critical Study

The purpose of this module is to build on the critical, contextual and self-evaluative work that has been developed throughout the course by providing students with a supportive, structured environment in which to develop an extended critical study.

Virtual Worlds

BSc Digital Media Production

This module examines the relationship between the real and virtual within the realms of digital media.

You will examine the different contexts in which VR, AR and XR can be utilised from, entertainment and gaming through to industrial applications and healthcare.

Through a series of lectures, workshops and prototyping and testing where you will explore concepts, methods, processes, and tools to create a virtual (VR), augmented (AR) or an XR (extended/ mixed reality) environment and look into concepts such as the development of a new storytelling axion for immersive technologies and the similarities and differences between traditional modes of audience engagement and how to build local and global agency into your work to enable this.

Development Studio: Technical

BSc Digital Media Production

The aims of this double module are to extend students’ technical skills by enabling them to explore a progressive range of equipment and technologies, and to develop their awareness of experimental practices and emergent forms in digital media to develop the individual specialist skills required to complete their Final Production Portfolio module (DIGP6021) in Semester 2.

This module is compulsory for all students on the BSc (Hons) Digital Media Production as their exit award and focuses on the more technical aspects of digital media production including advanced production methodologies in film and TV production, visual and special effects, motion capture and the role of the Special Effects Supervisor, Technical Director, the Digital Image Technician (DIT) and the Digital Intermediary (DI).

Immersive Practice

BA Digital Media Production

This module aims to explore the ways in which immersive practices combine existing and emerging techniques to redefine the relationships between practitioners, audiences and artefacts. Students will consider the impact of co-creation/participatory practices, interactive storytelling modes and user agency on producing immersive work for diverse audiences. They will develop an understanding of the emotional and psychological dimensions of immersive work, and engage with the ethical

Advanced Production Skills

BA Digital Media Production

This module consolidates television production skills that students have already gained in the ‘Live Broadcasting Module’ by applying them in a simulated broadcast TV News environment. The module trains and assesses students on the advanced principles, workflow, journalism, techniques and practice of digital state-of-the-art broadcast TV newsroom. This includes scriptwriting, producing, filming, editing, graphics, directing and broadcasting. Students will experience the entire workflow for a broadcast TV production - from story development through to the planning and realisation of two live broadcasts.

The final products will be a unique, original live magazine news television show and a debate show involving live guests. Analysis of the implementation of the deliverance process, both as an individual and as a team will be Included. Feedback will be weekly, as a group, peer to peer and individually.

Please note: As our courses are reviewed regularly as part of our quality assurance framework, the modules you can choose from may vary from those shown here. The structure of the course may also mean some modules are not available to you.

Careers

Throughout the course we focus on giving you first-hand experience of what a career in digital media production will be like. Brookes Creative highlights opportunities on the job board and advertises live client briefs.

Recent graduates have gone on to work for major television companies and post-production facilities including:

  • BBC
  • HBO
  • The Discovery Channel
  • Framestore. 

Others have gone on to further study at the National Film and Television School, the London International Film School and the New York Film School or moved into research and development for companies like Google.

Your digital media production degree will equip you for a variety of roles such as:

  • producer
  • director
  • editor
  • digital animator.

Or you may decide to start off as a runner at a TV company to get your foot in the door.

Whatever route you take, you’ll have developed key transferable skills rated by employers, such as communicating with others and working as a team.

Our Staff

Ms Gillian Kelly

Gillian has been a television news reporter and producer for 19 years, and is currently freelance. she now works a variety of roles, mainly for the national news. She teaches TV news, journalism, Avid, camera work and filming, live studio operation, digital media, professional practice and script writing.

Read more about Gillian
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Right

Ms Gillian Kelly

Gillian has been a television news reporter and producer for 19 years, and is currently freelance. she now works a variety of roles, mainly for the national news. She teaches TV news, journalism, Avid, camera work and filming, live studio operation, digital media, professional practice and script writing.

Read more about Gillian

Related courses

Related course
Film
Left
Right

Entry requirements

Wherever possible we make our conditional offers using the UCAS Tariff. The combination of A-level grades listed here would be just one way of achieving the UCAS Tariff points for this course.

Standard offer

UCAS Tariff Points: 112

A Level: BBC

IB Points: 30

BTEC: DMM

Contextual offer

What is a contextual offer?

UCAS Tariff Points: 88

A Level: CCD

IB Points: 27

BTEC: MMM

Further offer details

We welcome applications from candidates with alternative qualifications, and from mature students.

International qualifications and equivalences

How to apply

Application process


Full time Home (UK) applicants
Apply through UCAS


Part time Home (UK) applicants
Apply direct to the University


International applicants
Apply direct to the University

Full time international applicants can also apply through UCAS

Tuition fees

Please see the fees note
Home (UK) full time
£9,250
Home (UK) part time
£1,155 per single module
Home (UK) sandwich (placement)
£1,500
International full time
£15,200
International sandwich (placement)
£1,500
Home (UK) full time
£9,250
Home (UK) part time
£1,155 per single module
Home (UK) sandwich (placement)
£1,600
International full time
£15,950
International sandwich (placement)
£1,600

Questions about fees?

Contact Student Finance on:

financefees@brookes.ac.uk

Tuition fees

2023 / 24
Home (UK) full time
£9,250
Home (UK) part time
£1,155 per single module
Home (UK) sandwich (placement)
£1,500
International full time
£15,200
International sandwich (placement)
£1,500
2024 / 25
Home (UK) full time
£9,250
Home (UK) part time
£1,155 per single module
Home (UK) sandwich (placement)
£1,600
International full time
£15,950
International sandwich (placement)
£1,600

Questions about fees?

Contact Student Finance on:

+44 (0)1865 483088

financefees@brookes.ac.uk

Please note, tuition fees for Home students may increase in subsequent years both for new and continuing students in line with an inflationary amount determined by government. Oxford Brookes University intends to maintain its fees for new and returning Home students at the maximum permitted level.

Tuition fees for International students may increase in subsequent years both for new and continuing students. 

The following factors will be taken into account by the University when it is setting the annual fees: inflationary measures such as the retail price indices, projected increases in University costs, changes in the level of funding received from Government sources, admissions statistics and access considerations including the availability of student support. 

How and when to pay

Tuition fee instalments for the semester are due by the Monday of week 1 of each semester. Students are not liable for full fees for that semester if they leave before week 4. If the leaving date is after week 4, full fees for the semester are payable.

  • For information on payment methods please see our Make a Payment page.
  • For information about refunds please visit our Refund policy page

Additional costs

Please be aware that some courses will involve some additional costs that are not covered by your fees. Specific additional costs for this course are detailed below.

Funding your studies

Financial support and scholarships

Featured funding opportunities available for this course.

Oxford Brookes Bursary for home students Undergraduate maintenance loans for part-time UK students Undergraduate maintenance loans for full-time UK students Undergraduate tuition fee loans for UK students

All financial support and scholarships

View all funding opportunities for this course

Information from Discover Uni

Full-time study

Part-time study

Programme changes:
On rare occasions we may need to make changes to our course programmes after they have been published on the website. For more information, please visit our changes to programmes page.