Frequently tutored by a revered member of the independent Myanmar film scene, this three-week course is compulsory for all YFS students enrolled on the School’s three-year study programme. It is designed to give emerging filmmakers the ability to distinguish between different editing methods in documentary and/or fiction filmmaking and to understand how editing can be used to build a film’s intensity.

The course analyses both classical film dramaturgy and current developments in contemporary World Cinema. It also provides a window on contrasting film cultures and different kinds of filmic expression around the globe.

After an opening series of lectures on character and emotion, the tutor deconstructs a classic or contemporary documentary or fiction film and places its structure and cinematic elements on a timeline for the class. The students then work in groups to deconstruct another film in the same manner, with the selection of films specifically chosen to ensure there is a contrast of country of origin, dramaturgy and filmmaking techniques.

The students investigate the characters, plot, theme(s), dialogue and meaning of their allotted film, undertake a scene-by-scene analysis and create a timeline of its events and the audience’s emotional response. Each group reports their findings to the class and the tutor leads further discussion about their analysis.

Take a look at how this course works in the film About the 2018 How Films Work: Film Analysis course below.

Films recently analysed on the course include:

• Cria Cuervos by Carlos Saura (Spain, 1976)
• In the Mood for Love by Wong Kar-Wai (Hong Kong, 2000)
• Like Someone in Love by Abbas Kiarostami (France-Japan, 2012)
• 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days by Cristian Mungiu (Romania, 2007)
• 3-Iron by Kim Ki-Duk (South Korea, 2004)
• Rosetta by Luc Dardenne and Jean-Pierre Dardenne (France/Belgium, 1999)
• I Don’t Want to Sleep Alone by Tsai Ming-Liang (Malaysia/Taiwan, 2006)