Course
Overview
This filmmaking, scriptwriting and digital arts course prepares you to be part of a new generation of storytellers - a creative practitioner interested in what the industry can be, not what it has been. Our rigorous multi-disciplined approach creates versatile professionals capable of crafting exceptional content for film, TV, theatre, concert, interactive and online audiences.
There are three pathways on this course:
- Film and TV Production
- Story, Script and Development
- Emerging Technology and Digital Performance
In your first year, you study all of the pathways and then from your second year you specialise to build the right set of multiple skills and knowledge to achieve a sustainable career.
In year two you select a major with two modules and a minor with one module from the pathways. In year three you study either two modules from your major area or one form your major pathway and one from your minor as well as your individual specialist project.
You can collaborate with other students (performers and those who make performance possible) to produce a portfolio of quality outputs, whether that’s films, animations, live or recorded performances or scripts. Your studies are underpinned by essential professional skills such as project management, financial planning and teamwork.
What You Will
Study
Core Ideas 1
In this module, you learn about the business side of the performing arts industry. You explore how the performing arts have developed over time and the key ideas and theories associated with that development. As part of this, you look at the financial and economic aspects and challenges of the performing arts. You also begin to develop and reflect on essential skills, which will support your future career, including personal development and business planning, collaborative working and interpersonal dynamics.
This module content is indicative.
Introduction to Filmmaking
This module teaches you all the basic skills required to make a short film. You are introduced to the main principles of using a camera to record drama and factual material, along with storyboarding and key concepts in visual storytelling. You examine the theories around film making and learn how to discuss the history of film in relation to your work. You develop microphone technique, as well as basic skills in editing and audio to produce sequences and stories. During the module, you undertake filming projects as an individual and as part of a team.
This module content is indicative.
Story, Script and the Authorship and Places of Performance
This module supports the development of your scriptwriting and story writing skills and you learn about the construction and theories of narrative and authorship. This includes narrative conventions, script layout and the vocabulary of visual and audio story telling. You also look at the roles technology and social media play in telling stories in the digital age. To help put your writing work into context, you discover the history of performance venues and explore the relationship between audience, performance space and the act of performance. Throughout the module, you produce a series of dramatic stories, scripts and create performances.
This module content is indicative.
Digital Performance – Software and Light
In this module, you receive training in how to use lighting equipment and performance-related software. You develop basic skills in lighting for performance and focus on how light and colour can be used to generate dramatic meaning. You learn how to use the main equipment used for performance lighting, including lantern types, power supply and control. You build your abilities with the core principles of CAD and the management of data and imagery using different digital tools. At the end of the module, you design and operate a light and digital performance.
This module content is indicative.
Project 1
This module gives you the opportunity to deliver your own live project. You prepare a proposal, which outlines your idea, along with clear plans for how you will use technology and how the project will be delivered. You are expected to use the skills and technology you have worked on so far. During the project, you work under the supervision of a professional, artistic mentor and collaborate with other arts practitioners. This module is full-time over five weeks and gives you the experience of working in a simulated professional environment.
This module content is indicative.
Project 2
This module provides a further opportunity to apply your technical skills and theoretical knowledge to a real, full-time project, which you devise yourself. As with Project 1, you produce a proposal to present your idea and its intended delivery. Again, you work collaboratively with other students and receive support from an artistic mentor under professionally simulated conditions. To demonstrate that you are improving your creative and project management skills, you are required to reflect on how your experience during Project 1 has impacted on your approach to this project.
This module content is indicative.
Core Ideas 2 (all students take this module)
This module focuses on the creation of performance and how this fits in with your personal ambitions. You look at how political movements have used art to communicate ideas and the ideological foundations of different art movements. This helps inform your future career planning and you learn about the practicalities of translating an idea into reality, including how to fund, run and sustain a performing arts business. You also develop your understanding in areas which support this, such as marketing and promotion and financial and project planning. This leads on to creating a business proposal and career plan.
This module content is indicative.
Project 3 (all students take this module)
As with Project 1 & 2 in Year One, this module allows you to apply your technical and analytical skills to a creative project of your choosing. By this point, you are expected to demonstrate a more advanced level of working and develop your idea with an audience in mind. Again, your idea should bring together the use of technology and your professional knowledge and skills. The emphasis on collaboration and working as a professional practitioner continues, as does the need to evaluate your practice and identify areas for improvement.
This module content is indicative.
Project 4 (all students take this module)
Following on from Project 3, this module gives you a further opportunity to create and pitch an original project, which incorporates the skills and knowledge developed so far on the course. During the project, you continue to work in a professionally simulated environment with students from our performance and making performance possible courses and support from an artistic mentor. You are required to reflect on lessons you have learned from previous projects, and how you will use your experience from this project in future work.
This module content is indicative.
Multi Camera and Studio Creation (Film & TV Pathway module)
This module builds on the camera, sound, and post-production techniques you focused on in Year One and you learn how to put them into practice in a TV studio. You also look at the nature and significance of different roles and communication process in a studio environment. You explore communication, mass media and audience reception theory and incorporate these into your work. During the module, you create a short programme or film, which is produced in the studio. You also examine a contemporary industry issue related to your practice.
This module content is indicative.
Location Filming and Sound (Film & TV Pathway module)
In this module, you continue to develop your camera, sound and post-production skills and apply them to location filming. You consider the different technical needs of location filming including light, sound and image capture and the different technical solutions available. You learn about the core equipment components of location and outside broadcast units. You also discover how visual and audio technique impact on an audience’s experience of a story and look at visual narratives and character presentation. Finally, you produce a short programme or film on location and explore an industry issue, which is relevant to location work.
This module content is indicative.
Writing for Camera and Audio (Creating Content Pathway module)
This module helps develop your writing skills for specific mediums. You learn how to analyse narrative forms, devices and technicalities used in dramatic writing and the specific considerations for camera and audio. You also focus on how to evaluate audiences and performance conventions and apply this to script production. Your work in this module includes adapting an existing text and creating short original pieces for camera and audio to a given brief. You may be working as part of a team of writers, as well as in negotiation with students from our making performance possible courses and the module tutor.
This module content is indicative.
Devising and Collaborative Live and Digital Performance (Creating Content Pathway module)
In this module, you consider the role of technology in performance and explore the difference and connections between digital and live performance. You also look at the role of performance in communities and the factors which influence collaboration on creative projects. You investigate the reasons for practitioners moving towards group and collective approaches in the making of performance and away from traditional roles. Following on from this, you collaborate with others to devise a performance, which explores the boundaries between live and digital performance. You then create a podcast, which examines your devised work.
This module content is indicative.
Digital Performance – Software, Coding, DIY Technology (Digital Practices Pathway module)
This module develops your understanding of software available to performance practitioners. It offers a foundational grounding in coding and the different coding languages available. You focus on the basic engineering of components to create operational systems and learn about low-cost technologies to create your own processes and effects in performance. You continue with the digital software skills developed in Year One and how to enhance existing software packages through additional coding. You also experiment with hardware components to create systems. You create an exhibit for a technology exhibition and a short performance using your own technology and different software packages.
This module content is indicative.
Digital Performance – Motion Capture and VR (Digital Practices Pathway module)
This module introduces you to the core operation of VR and motion capture, including the key equipment and packages used. You learn about the possibilities for these increasingly popular tools and the technical and scientific principles behind them. You also explore the nature of audience engagement and reception of VR and motion capture and the experiences they are capable of producing. You work on group projects to produce a separate VR and motion capture experience and produce an essay on the significance of this technology in performance.
This module content is indicative.
Core Ideas 3 (all students take this module)
This module continues to develop your business skills related to your future career as a creative practitioner. You study cultural theory and debates around performing arts criticism and examine a range of arts business case studies. This enables you to identify these concepts in practice and consider your own work in the context of the performing arts. You then create a professional graduation portfolio, which showcases your projects and all of the practical skills you have developed during the course. In addition to this, you participate in a mock interview or meeting to prepare you for meeting the industry.
This module content is indicative.
Project 5 (all students take this module)
As with previous Project modules, you originate a creative project and focus full-time on its delivery over five weeks. At this stage, your project work and ideas are expected to be at professional standard and your proposals should be fully considered and developed to the point where they would be able to attract funding. Your project should be linked to your own development needs, as well as being capable of engaging an audience. You continue to work in collaboration with other students to research and deliver your ideas and critically reflect on your overall process.
This module content is indicative.
Project 6 (all students take this module)
This module follows on from Project 5 and provides further opportunity for you to put your skills and knowledge of technology into practice. Again, you are responsible for developing the idea for your creative project, using collaboration to prepare and deliver a finished, professional standard piece of work. You explore how what you have learned from Project 5 has been applied to this new project and consider how this latest experience will influence your future projects.
This module content is indicative.
Individual Specialist Project (all students take this module)
In this module, you propose, develop, and execute a project, which enables you to extend a chosen specialist skill or area of particular interest linked to your chosen pathway. With your future career in mind, you undertake critical self-reflection to identify your own personal development needs, as well as opportunities within the performing arts industry. You are expected to present a well-reasoned and complex argument for your project. In delivering your project, you demonstrate professional standards both in terms of technical execution and your overall approach.
This module content is indicative.
Live Event and Broadcast Creation (Film & TV Pathway module)
This module provides experience of delivering a live event using film and TV techniques. In your practical work, you adapt the skills you have developed in studio and location filming to the broadcast of a live event or performance. You learn about different models of live event and broadcast and their commercial considerations. You look at the working practices and technical configuration for live event production and the roles needed for successful delivery. You explore the theoretical and critical perspectives related to live and digital activity and the relationship between live events and recorded and live digital imagery.
This module content is indicative.
Post-Production Technology and Techniques (Film & TV Pathway module)
Through this module, you develop high-level skills in designing and manipulating audio and image in the post-production process. You focus on audio post-production techniques such as automated dialogue replacement (ADR), Foley, sound effects (SFX), and mixing to and for vision. You learn how to use sound design techniques for stereo and multi-channel audio for image. In visual effects (VFX), you develop skills such as compositing, basic CGI and animation, integrating post VFX and live action and colour grading. You produce a practical portfolio including examples of visual effects work and post-produced audio for existing film.
This module content is indicative.
Cross Platform Performance and Perspectives (Creating Content Pathway module)
In this module, you learn about the wide range of communication channels available to artists and writers and create a cross-platform piece of performance. Areas covered include social media, websites, video hosting sites, projection, live events and the spaces where these take place. You explore the audiences for these various channels and consider how you can bring together different audiences by combining different platforms to communicate ideas and stories. You also look at how critical thinking in performance studies informs contemporary performance practice in this area.
This module content is indicative.
Spoken Word (Creating Content Pathway module)
This module examines different forms of poetic writing for live performance and supports you to develop your own approach to spoken word creation and presentation. You learn about different genres of spoken word including rap, hip-hop, storytelling, theatre and jazz, rock, blues and folk music and their social and critical contexts. You examine the techniques and features used, such as rhyme, repetition, improvisation and word play. This enables you to distinguish between different styles. You deliver a spoken word project in which you are encouraged to consider collaborations with musicians, digital artists and film makers.
This module content is indicative.
VR and Immersive Audio (Digital Practices Pathway module)
This module builds on the VR module in Year Two. It focuses on the design, acquisition and creation of audio-visual elements and approaches to VR and immersive audio. You examine areas including the nature of sound localisation and immersion, techniques for 3D audio capture, 3D camera systems, approaches for recorded VR media and its integration with live performance. You look at interactive and immersive theatre and the role of new technologies. You identify the potential for VR and immersive audio within a specific sector of the creative industries and propose and deliver a mixed reality project.
This module content is indicative.
Digital Content Design for Interactive Performance (Digital Practices Pathway module)
In this module, you produce a professional-standard piece of digital interactive performance work from conception to evaluation. You look at the different types of digitally produced content used in performance to inspire your work and develop your idea. Your project could be a standalone performance piece or content, which interacts with a live performance such as digital scenic imagery or scenic elements. You incorporate a mixture of the skills developed in previous modules. This could include sourced or live video footage or filmed sequences, hand drawn elements and digitally created art, photographic stills or montage, among others.
This module content is indicative.
How You Will
Study
-
Lectures
-
Seminars
-
Productions
-
Group Work
-
Masterclass
-
Independent study
How You Will Be
Assessed
You will be assessed through practical and written work. You have regular opportunities for project based learning where you work full-time and collaborate with other students, working in professional conditions to devise and deliver your own projects that grow in complexity as you progress. As well as your practical projects, you undertake a large scale research project which connects to your future career. At the end of each year, you create a portfolio to demonstrate your work.
Practical/written work ratio
60% practical work / 40% written assignments
Validated By:
Our
Facilities
Sennheiser TV Studio
The Sennheiser Studio is equipped for UHD multi-camera productions with broadcast production cameras and Canon cine zoom lenses, an array of KinoFlo variable LED lighting fixtures, a large 16m curved green screen for compositing and visual effects work and a dedicated fibre optic network.
Gallery and control room
Adjacent to the Sennheiser Studio, the gallery and control room is equipped with vision mixer, consoles for remote controlling lighting, cameras, playback, recording, communications, streaming and teleprompting. Monitoring is achieved using three 50” UHD screens. Largely equipped by Blackmagic Design, it is fully integrated, highly versatile and has extensive digital network capabilities able to provide routing options throughout our facilities.
Grading suite
This acoustically treated digital lab is a finishing space that enables highly accurate grading, final correction and monitoring to take place before films and visual media are exported. It runs DaVinci Resolve Studio (which is used extensively throughout the industry) on EIZO monitors that are 98% colour accurate alongside a large 65” UHD display for viewing and screening work. The grading suite is a highly controlled environment with adjustable ambient lighting - with a colour temperature of neutral daylight.
Live sound studio
Includes a Calrec Brio 36 desk that supports both live mixes from the studio or working with streamed or pre-recorded media from other parts of LIPA through dedicated fibre optic network, along with comms, radio MIC controls, audio playback facilities and Neumann monitoring speakers.
Surround sound studio and voiceover booth
Recording and mastering suite with 7:1 surround. The suite runs Avid Pro Tools S3 processor and console with Neumann monitoring speakers. Positioned alongside is a fully acoustically insulated voiceover booth for voice, ADR and Foley work.
Cameras and location kit
Loanable equipment for location shots includes, Sony, Cannon 4K, Blackmagic 4K, 6K and 6K Pro Pocket Cinema, and Red Komodo 6K cameras; Sennheiser wired and wireless microphones; Tascam and Zoom audio recording equipment; VIVE, Oculus and Meta VR headsets; camera stabilisers, and Xhiyun and DJI gimbals.
Motion Capture Suite
Our motion capture suite has an 18-camera array and support for virtual camera systems and VR headset preview. The Optitrak system is capable of allowing full body capture of three performers at up to 240 fps.
Media Edit Suite
Our post-production ICT suite is equipped with 13 27” Apple iMacs with the latest i9 processor. These computers all run Adobe Creative Cloud as well as a range of other post-production and design software including DaVinci Resolve and QLab. Our post-production facilities also include a grading suite which has high accuracy UHD monitoring for editing and colour grading.
George Harrison Workshop Studio
Seating up to 120 people, The George Harrison Workshop Studio is a fully equipped experimental performance space that offers creatives and performers a ‘blank canvas’ for productions. As well as immersive and promenade performances, it can also host more traditional theatrical productions with a variety of stage and audience configurations. The George Harrison Workshop Studio is also used as an exhibition, rehearsal, and teaching space.
The Paul McCartney Auditorium
The PMA is the largest of LIPA’s performance spaces and is a traditional proscenium arch theatre. It can seat an audience of around 350 people and has flexible seating arrangements and staging configurations.
Each year over 30 performances take place in the PMA. These include shows that make up part of LIPA’s season of public performances, providing Sound Technology students with the opportunity of working on large-scale, fully realised drama, dance, and musical theatre productions as well as a two week-long music festival.
Technical Services
LIPA’s Technical Services team can help with general technical queries and booking out equipment for short-term loan. Loan equipment includes musical instruments, microphones, various recording and playback equipment, digital video and stills cameras and AV equipment.
Term-time opening hours allow you access to Technical Services from 9am until 11pm every weekday and 9am until 5pm on Saturday and 11am until 5pm on Sunday. Outside of term-time it is open on weekdays from 9am - 5pm.
Learning Resources Centre
LIPA’s Learning Resources Centre (LRC) is a specialist creative and performing arts library with an extensive collection of books, e-books, scores, CDs, DVDs, e-resources, print and electronic journals. Whether you are looking for individual songs or scripts, background research or creative inspiration, the LRC Team will be able to help. The LRC offer support sessions in ICT and study skills through subject specific lectures, as well as one-to-one and drop-in sessions, ensuring you get the most out of your study. The LRC website provides the gateway to LIPA’s online catalogue and electronic resources and includes links to a wide selection of help sheets and video guides.
In addition, LIPA’s virtual learning provision which includes Moodle, holds a variety of subject-specific learning materials, such as lecture notes, useful web links and module information. The majority of these services are available off-campus. LIPA’s integrated learning environment has a variety of study spaces, including individual and group work areas, and an open-access computer suite. Facilities include printing, copying and scanning, plus binding and laminating equipment.
A range of stationery is available for purchase to support your studies. Opening hours during term time are Monday and Wednesday 9.00am to 6.00pm, Tuesday and Thursday 9.00am to 8.00pm, Friday 9.00am to 5.00pm. The LRC may be closed for some weeks in June and is also closed during July and August.
ICT Services
LIPA's Information, Communications and Technology Department provides the infrastructure and services framework that enable students to exploit the latest information and communication developments. Industry-standard computer resources are running the latest productivity software on high specification workstations in dedicated computer suites. LIPA also has a colour A0 plotter, ideal for floor plans. All PCs are installed with Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Office & Project as standard.
There is also access to a range of additional specialist software installed on selected workstations. These include AutoCAD, Adobe Creative Cloud applications, EarMaster, Sibelius, MindManager, Vectorworks and WYSIWYG. All workstations have access to the Internet, email and other electronic resources.
There is free Wi-Fi access throughout our buildings for students and staff members via the Eduroam network which provides a world-wide roaming access service developed for the international research and education community. Specialist ICT staff are available to answer questions, give assistance and advise on ICT issues.
LIPA Bar & Canteen
As well as serving food and drink, the bar and canteen are the hub of social activity within LIPA with both spaces licensed for performances. The canteen is the venue for LIPA’s weekly gig night, The 2ube. Most Fridays the 2ube features live performances, showcasing musicians from LIPA and Liverpool’s music scene. The event is a collaboration between Management, Music, Sound Technology and Theatre & Performance Technology students.
The canteen also hosts open mic and jukebox shuffle nights, and independent student organised performances and benefit nights. The bar hosts regular quiz nights and Student Event Board parties.
The bar is open Monday, Thursday and Friday from 3pm - 11pm, and Tuesday and Wednesday from 3pm - 10pm, with extended hours for special events.
The canteen is open Monday to Friday from 8.30am – 3pm, serving food and drink at student-friendly prices.
Steve Davies
Head of Department, Filmmaking and Creative Technologies
Steve is a filmmaker with nearly 20-years’ worth of industry experience, working on documentaries and network dramas. He’s creative director of his own production company, filmcafe, which has worked with clients such as the BBC, NHS and McDonalds including unique immersive imaging systems for both ultra-high resolution markets and mobile platforms. His PhD is in virtual reality video, concentrating on user-centred approaches to media creation and consumption by exploring interactions with media in virtual environments.
Before joining LIPA, he worked in universities across Wales, lecturing in television, filmmaking, cinematography and digital media.
Ryan Taylor
Lecturer
Ryan has a specialist knowledge of scriptwriting, transmedia storytelling, paratextuality, convergence culture, fandom, American television, media representations of gender, horror film theory and screenwriting. Having worked in academia for over a decade, he has lectured at various universities (including The University of Southampton and The University of Portsmouth) and taught modules/topics on: Crime Television; Gender, Sexuality & Cinema; Early Hollywood; British Cinema, Horror Film; Cultures of Consumption and Screenwriting. He is also a member of the advisory board of peer reviewers for three academic journals and has written numerous articles and book reviews, along with presenting papers at various internationally prestigious conferences.
While at LIPA, and specialising in scriptwriting practice and broader topics of media theory, Ryan delivers modules on the Filmmaking and Creative Technologies programme which include: Story, Script & Authorship (Level 4); Writing for Camera & Audio (Level 5); Devised Collaborative Live & Digital Performance (Level 5); Spoken Word (Level 6); Cross Platform Perspectives (Level 6); and Core Ideas/Theories (Levels 4, 5 & 6). Throughout these modules, Ryan has been a keen advocate for workshopping and peer feedback and is especially enthusiastic about active, student-centred learning. Indeed, he believes that lecturers are not the custodians but rather the facilitators of knowledge and it is their job to encourage rather than dictate critical discourse, intellectual enquiry and creative practice. As such, he strives to create an environment of interactive exchange in which learners can discuss their ideas and, collectively, we can stitch different perspectives together to form a larger holistic understanding. Within such an environment and collaborative knowledge community, we can all investigate, debate and learn together - it is only through communal exploration and discussion that we can analyse artistic practice and develop our own skills as storytellers.
Ryan’s lectures/research interrogate social inequalities concerning race, gender and sexuality and the ways in which unequal power relations are normalised/challenged by our storytelling cultures which have never been more important as we live in a polarised world of division, fragmentation, and misinformation. However, storytelling enables us to communicate our perspectives, speak truth to power and give voice to diverse cultural experiences. Storytelling is where we can imagine a better future and bring it to life.
This year, Ryan’s key publications include:
Chapters in Edited Collections:
- Dexter: Forensic Scientists, ‘Orientated’ Audiences & the Dark Defender of the Social Order. In R. Janicker (Ed.), The Scientist in Popular Culture. Maryland: Lexington Books.
Journal Articles:
- Bryan Fuller’s Hannibal: Cannibalizing the Canon. Published in the special issue of the Journal of Screenwriting entitled ‘The New Screenplay? Emerging Screenwriting Styles, Modes, and Languages’ [expected November 2022).
Jack Condell
Visiting Lecturer
What Our
Graduates Do
This is a new course - we expect graduates will be able to work in many roles from film and television maker to writer or video projection artist.
There are also an increasing number of opportunities in virtual and augmented reality media. Theatre and musical theatre increasingly use film and projection, as do music events. Our graduates are also likely to be in demand, where pop-up events or retail business want to engage with immersive events and use of public spaces.
Educational qualifications are important but limited in what they can tell us about you.
Your natural ability, your fit with what and how we teach, your growth and your potential are also key factors in our admission process. We can’t evaluate these solely on your educational achievements, so no matter which course you are applying for, we look for the following attributes on your application and at the interview stage.
-
"“This is the sort of forward-thinking course I would encourage for students wishing to acquire the skills necessary to realise their imagination on screen. The content addresses much of what we need to know in the industry right now to keep innovating in entertainment.”"
Jon Driscoll
Olivier Award-winning projection designer
Additional Costs
As part of this course, there are likely to be some additional costs that are not included within your tuition fees. We will send you more detailed information about books and equipment we’d like you to bring after you accept your offer. Many of the costs suggested below are optional. We’ve also included information about cost of living expenses in Liverpool in this section.
Trips and training courses
As part of the various modules on the programme, some class trips may be offered to help support your learning. Some of these will form part of the curriculum but most will be important additions to your work. Some trips may be free or subsidised but you may be required to cover some costs yourself. Please allow up to £100 for these throughout the year.
Seeing shows
You should see live performances as often as you can. This is not compulsory, but it will help your development as a creative practitioner. Trips to the theatre and live events are not covered by your tuition fees, so you'll need to cover these costs yourself. We are occasionally offered a limited number of free or discounted tickets for shows in the city. We also encourage you to see LIPA shows. We offer discounted student tickets to make this as affordable as possible.
Portfolio
At the end of Year Three you are required to create a professional standard portfolio. There are inevitably printing and binding costs associated with this task, but most people see it as an important investment for their future career.
Project work
While developing some of your projects, you may incur costs related to transport or accommodation. This will depend on the nature of your projects and the research you wish to carry out in order to produce them.
Cost of living
Wherever you choose to study, you'll have to budget for accommodation and other everyday living expenses, such as food and bills.
Liverpool represents great value for students. Accommodation costs are low in comparison with other places in the UK, particularly the South East. The city's shops and entertainment venues also have lots of student discounts.
We’d recommend completing a simple budget plan to predict your income and outgoings. This should include accommodation, bills, insurance, TV licence, food, laundry, clothes, books, travel and socialising. How much you'll want to spend on a lot of these is completely personal.
There is lots of advice available online about budgeting,:
- UCAS budget calculator is a great tool to help you balance your in-comings and out-goings.
- SaveTheStudent provides useful information on student money resources, including loans, budgeting, and scholarship sources.
Most UK students will be able to take out a maintenance loan to assist with living costs and there are some grants available. We also offer some bursaries. To find out more, please see Student Finance and bursaries.
Because our courses are intensive and we have a busy season of student performances, options for part-time work during our teaching periods can be limited. However, many of our students gain flexible part-time work, in performance venues, shops, restaurants and bars. We also provide casual work opportunities for our students ranging from stewarding work on our productions to working with young people to help us widen access to our courses. The long summer break is when many of our students choose to work.
Additional Costs
As part of this course, there are likely to be some additional costs that are not included within your tuition fees. We will send you more detailed information about books and equipment we’d like you to bring after you accept your offer. Many of the costs suggested below are optional. We’ve also included information about cost of living expenses in Liverpool in this section.
Trips and training courses
As part of the various modules on the programme, some class trips may be offered to help support your learning. Some of these will form part of the curriculum but most will be important additions to your work. Some trips may be free or subsidised but you may be required to cover some costs yourself. Please allow up to £100 for these throughout the year.
Seeing shows
You should see live performances as often as you can. This is not compulsory, but it will help your development as a creative practitioner. Trips to the theatre and live events are not covered by your tuition fees, so you'll need to cover these costs yourself. We are occasionally offered a limited number of free or discounted tickets for shows in the city. We also encourage you to see LIPA shows. We offer discounted student tickets to make this as affordable as possible.
Portfolio
At the end of Year Three you are required to create a professional standard portfolio. There are inevitably printing and binding costs associated with this task, but most people see it as an important investment for their future career.
Project work
While developing some of your projects, you may incur costs related to transport or accommodation. This will depend on the nature of your projects and the research you wish to carry out in order to produce them.
Cost of living
Wherever you choose to study, you'll have to budget for accommodation and other everyday living expenses, such as food and bills.
Liverpool represents great value for students. Accommodation costs are low in comparison with other places in the UK, particularly the South East. The city's shops and entertainment venues also have lots of student discounts.
We’d recommend completing a simple budget plan to predict your income and outgoings. This should include accommodation, bills, insurance, TV licence, food, laundry, clothes, books, travel and socialising. How much you'll want to spend on a lot of these is completely personal.
There is lots of advice available online about budgeting,:
- UCAS budget calculator is a great tool to help you balance your in-comings and out-goings.
- SaveTheStudent provides useful information on student money resources, including loans, budgeting, and scholarship sources.
Most UK students will be able to take out a maintenance loan to assist with living costs and there are some grants available. We also offer some bursaries. To find out more, please see Student Finance and bursaries.
Because our courses are intensive and we have a busy season of student performances, options for part-time work during our teaching periods can be limited. However, many of our students gain flexible part-time work, in performance venues, shops, restaurants and bars. We also provide casual work opportunities for our students ranging from stewarding work on our productions to working with young people to help us widen access to our courses. The long summer break is when many of our students choose to work.
