In celebration of the locally produced movie Belfast being release this week, we have prepared this Spotlight on our Moving Image Arts (MIA) programme. Earlier this month we spent time with Ms. Donly who heads the Art & Design and Moving Image Arts department.  The MIA curriculum is a blend of creative and IT elements which are very practically focused giving key skills required for future work on productions and in digital media.  Student develop skills in project management, problem solving and contingency planning to name a few along side their creative development.

You will find below some of the project work our students have been in engaged in over the past 3-4 years in this Student Showreel, specially produced by Ms. Donly for this Spotlight.

You can learn more about our program on the Art and Design page and also on Instagram at ccb_art

As discussed in the interview, there have been a number of students who have achieved great success in the MIA program. Some OCs were kind enough to write to us about their experience at Campbell:

Rory Fitzpatrick (11475)  Final year of BA (Hons) Film and Television Production at Dun Laoghaire Instutute of Art, Design and Technology

Through the MIA department and the support from their dedicated staff, I learned to appreciate filmmaking and storytelling more than I ever had before. The knowledge I gained gave me a head start in the industry and has kick-started my directing career. I have just completed a year of study at FAMU in Prague, Czech Republic where I specialised in Cinematography. 

Matthew Craig (11464) Producer & Production Manager BA Digital Film Production, Ravensbourne University London

MIA is a unique course, both in its syllabus and teaching. Being a practical learner, this course was perfect for me with assessment being both on my practical work and a digital exam.

MIA focuses on teaching the practical and theory of storytelling, whilst in my current job role this isn’t something I do, my learning in MIA has impacted me greatly and aids me in my job.

Through the process of coursework, we all had to dabble in all roles and departments whilst making our final film. This gave me a great insight into many different roles and tasks of making a film and helped me decide to peruse a career in film at university!

My overall experience of MIA both at AS & A2 was amazing, being a relatively new course at the time the department delivered this flawlessly and it was great to see the school investing so heavily in bringing more arts-based learning to Campbell.

Jamie Baker (11436) BSc (Hons) Cinematic Arts, Ulster University

I shall be forever grateful that I Studied A level Moving Image Arts at Campbell. I wouldn’t have progressed into a career in media if it hadn’t been for the support of the MIA department. The teaching staff inspired me and laid firm foundations, meaning I had a solid skill set to succeed when progressing to university to study Cinematic Arts. I am now starting a new job at the BBC as a production trainee working with The Nolan Show. 

Glenn Parkinson (11835) Currently studying BA (Hons) Set and Costume Design at the Royal Conservatoire, Scotland 

In 2017, I signed up to study Moving Image Arts for A Level, which proved to be an extremely beneficial choice for so many reasons. This subject is not only for the filmmakers amongst your peers but a great steppingstone for producers, directors, scriptwriters, costume designers, sound engineers; the list is endless. The two-year course covers film history, how to use a camera, editing techniques and creating the pre-production needed to start a film. Though I am not studying film at university, the course content and the opportunity to pre plan has proven to be vital as a set and costume designer, together with the soft skills learnt; time management, perseverance, computer and software skills, organisation, forward thinking and motivation. Sometimes it can be a hard battle between your vision and the practicalities but as long as your concept is at the front of your mind, anything is possible. Studying Moving Image Arts not only made me more of a rounded creator but also taught me life skills along the way.

Callum Spence (11543)  BA (Hons) Film Production, Salford University MA Photography, Manchester Metropolitan University

MIA was a great learning opportunity for me. Through the course I was able to experience the different areas within film production. The course gave me a clearer understanding of what I enjoyed and what I was good at in terms of film making. When I went to university to do a film production degree, my A level in MIA gave me a head start and made first year significantly easier. If I hadn’t had the opportunity to do MIA I wouldn’t have discovered my passion for film and would not have considered moving to Manchester to study Film Production. I enjoyed my film production degree enormously.

Saul Devlin (11637)  Currently studying BA(Hons) Music and Sound Recording, University of York

I’d been interested in film and movie making throughout my childhood, it was fantastic to be involved in a course that let me learn the production process, and create work I could be proud of. I’ve gone on to studio sound recording in university, continuing to use creative practices I learned with MIA to assist in my productions”