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Course description

The only course of its kind offered by a Russell Group university, our intensive one-year MA Screenwriting deepens the creativity of our students, embeds professional practice, encourages enterprise and enhances employability. It prepares our graduates to forge careers in the UK and global film and television industries with confidence and flair.

As a student on MA Screenwriting you will attend lectures and participate in a range of inspiring, challenging and informative seminars and workshops. You will have regular one-to-one meetings with your tutors, access to visiting industry professionals and the possibility of an internship at a production company. Participating production companies have included Film4 ( Room, Ex Machina, The Lobster ), Wildgaze ( Brooklyn ), Number 9 Films ( Carol ), Left Bank ( The Crown ), Warp (This is England), Red Productions ( Happy Valley, Scott and Bailey ), and Hammer Films ( The Woman in Black, Let Me In ).

Over the two semesters of MA Screenwriting you will work closely with your tutors and collaborate with your contemporaries as you develop your screenwriting, pitching, story-breaking, script editing, analytical and other skills.

You will attend screenings and will regularly be required to read, analyse and discuss screenplays and television episodes. This will broaden and deepen your critical awareness of the history of - and current trends in - UK and global film and television.

You will have exposure to a range of approaches to story structure and you'll explore the generation and development of ideas, story design, characterisation, visual storytelling, genre, theme and scene construction, in depth and across both film and television.

You will develop short screenplays, a full-length feature screenplay across at least two drafts and a pilot TV episode which, collectively, will showcase your distinctive vision and professional capacities to the industry when you graduate.

The MA, as with all courses located within the Centre for New Writing, is taught by practitioners who are also experienced educators. It is an industry-focused and vocationally-oriented programme. You will receive individual career guidance and support around research, the business and finance of screenwriting, the preparation of CVs, the dissemination of your work, networking and the pursuit of entry level opportunities. Along with the possibility of an internship at a production company, there is also the possibility of a London industry day with exposure to a range of professionals including writers, producers, agents and commissioners.

Beyond MA Screenwriting, you will also be able to enjoy - and contribute to - the vibrant, diverse literary and cultural atmosphere of the Centre for New Writing, the university and of the city of Manchester itself.

Career opportunities

This course is designed to train graduates to work in the UK and global film and television industries.

Some will work as professional screenwriters, while others may take up other media and writing positions.