Unit information: Portfolio / Dissertation in 2023/24

Unit name	Portfolio / Dissertation
Unit code	MUSIM0021
Credit points	60
Level of study	M/7
Teaching block(s)	Academic Year (weeks 1 - 52)
Unit director	Dr. Heldt
Open unit status	Not open
Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units)	None
Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units)	None
Units you may not take alongside this one	None
School/department	Department of Music
Faculty	Faculty of Arts

Unit Information

The 'dissertation equivalent' assessment for the MA in Composition of Music for Film and Television (MACMFTV) is a portfolio of original media compositions. Students build their media portfolio throughout the year, but the main body of work is during the summer period following completion of the taught units. The portfolio often includes collaboration with film-makers taking the MA in Film and Television in the Department of Film and Television, and with a range of other internal and external collaborators in varied forms of screen media (for instance, optionally with students creating original computer games in the department of Computer Science). Guidance on the portfolio is provided by the Programme Director or other expert tutors.

Your learning on this unit

On successful completion of this unit, students will be able to demonstrate:

1. sophisticated compositional responses to a variety of screen forms
2. nuanced choices in music selection and placement
3. advanced skill in recording, sequencing, mixing and musical post-production
4. advanced skill in the integration and delivery of the polished media product
5. sophisticated understanding of up-to-date genres, practices and professional expectations for the media composer
6. the ability to write cogent critical/descriptive prose accounts

Additionally, for the portfolio option:

A1. the ability to compose in varied musical styles and genres, at the same time as showing an original personal 'voice'

A2. the ability to create and nurture collaborative partnerships

A3. the ability to select and organise multiple elements into a compelling portfolio

Or, additionally for the film + dissertation option:

A4. critical engagement with a wide range of current literature, relevant to topic

A5. the ability to structure and sustain an extended scholarly argument, presented to high academic standards

How you will learn

Tutorials - supervision sessions. Students will discuss work in progress with tutors, collaborators and peers. They will typically make more works than are needed for the final portfolio, selecting from these to form the submission.

How you will be assessed

• a composition portfolio of productions with film or other visual elements, demonstrating a wide variety of visual and filmic styles, musical mediums and genres. The portfolio will typically comprise five to eight separate productions, and include 18-20 minutes of original musical content (ILOs 1-5, A1-A3)
• and an accompanying short commentary that sets the overall context for the portfolio and key issues for each production, such as a depiction of the project brief, collaborative processes, creative and technical decisions, musical borrowings (ILOs 2, 5, 6, A2, A3)

Resources

If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.

If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. MUSIM0021).

How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks, independent learning and assessment activity.

See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.

Assessment
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit. The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.