Our research strengths in film and TV include American, British and Irish, East Asian, and European cinemas, adaptation, documentary, horror, and television; and in performance studies they include applied theatre, contemporary British playwriting, site-based performance, theatre historiography, ethnography and popular culture, performance philosophy, and the monologue. Several members of the team engage with practice-as-research methodologies, including screenwriting.

We have a vibrant research culture and we value and support all our research students who make a vital contribution to the intellectual life of the University. You will be part of our community of researchers in the Humanities, with the opportunity to attend and/or contribute to a range of discipline, faculty and University-wide seminars, workshops, training and conferences. We offer formal research training events and academic seminars as well as more informal workshops where you can practise delivering conference papers in a supportive environment. Funds are available to support you in attending conferences and we encourage you to deliver papers and publish your work.

We recognise that doctoral researchers arrive with a diversity of skills and experience. Therefore, we provide flexible training and development opportunities covering a range of research-related skills, including transferable skills, research ethics and integrity (mandatory), data management, teaching skills and career planning. Your development needs are identified and agreed with your supervisory team at the start of your degree, and reviewed and updated as appropriate.

You benefit from access to our specialist film studies facilities for your research. For example, films are shown in our purpose-built film theatre The Void, which combines state-of-the-art technology with older technology, including cinema-standard 4K digital projection and two 40-year-old Westrex 7000 35mm projectors. These projectors can show both recent and rare, culturally valuable films in their original cinema format, including silent films at the correct speed. We are one of the few universities in the country that have these capabilities. You can view films as they were originally meant to be seen, an experience that cannot be replicated through home viewing alone. The Dolby 5.1 surround-sound system enhances your viewing experience.