BFI Sight & Sound Film Criticism Masterclass Hosted by Pamela Hutchinson

Pamela Hutchinson is a freelance writer, critic, film historian and curator. She writes for Sight and Sound, Criterion, Indicator, the Guardian and Empire and regularly appears on BBC radio. She is also the editor of Sight and Sound’s Weekly Film Bulletin, an email newsletter. Her publications include the BFI Film Classic on Pandora's Box and 30-Second Cinema (Ivy Press), as well as essays in several edited collections.

The first session in this masterclass (Wednesday 11^th October at 5pm in LECT E) will see students watch a surprise film hosted by Niki Ashby and Paul Moody. The following week (Wednesday 18^th October at 2pm on Zoom), Pamela Hutchinson will begin with an introduction to Sight and Sound magazine, its history and what makes it distinctive. Pamela will also discuss routes into film journalism and her writing for Sight and Sound, including reviews, features, her monthly column and a weekly newsletter, film criticism and journalism. Pamela will focus on how to write for Sight and Sound: from the tone and level of analysis required, the different sections of the magazine and how to write a review (with synopsis). She will also brief students on how to pitch an article. In the session Pamela will discuss how to approach writing about the film for the purpose of the review. This session will also include the opportunity for a Q&A so students can ask questions and get under the skin of film journalism and criticism.

After the session, students will be invited to write a review of the film screened as a part of the masterclass. These articles will be given individual feedback, and the best article will be printed in the November issue of the Hillingdon Herald newspaper.

Aims & Objectives