Bachelor of Creative Arts
Course code/s: ABCA Melbourne
Creative Arts is an exciting cross disciplinary degree, bringing together media: screen+sound, theatre and performance, and writing (including creative writing, screen writing and writing for the media). BCA students explore the creative arts through critical, imaginative, and performative approaches to one or more areas of creative arts practice as well as expanding their critical thinking through a choice of electives. The Bachelor of Creative Arts course has a central core of dedicated subjects in which students develop creative writing skills, explore creative arts experimentally, and build research and production skills. It also offers subjects from the disciplines of English, Theatre/Drama/Performance, and Media: Screen + Sound as well as others offered at the University.
This three-year degree consists of 360 credit points, 120 credit points at each year level for full-time study, part-time is also available. Besides choosing subjects from those listed, students either focus their degree around one of the areas of creative writing, media arts, and theatre and performance or they combine subjects from two or three of these areas.
First year (120 credit points)
In their first year students study
- One core subject, CRA1ECA - Exploring Creative Arts
- three compulsory first-year subjects, HUS1PWR, DRA1PBP and MSS1EMA
- two first-year subjects which can be selected from list A below,
- two first-year elective subjects offered by the faculty or anywhere in the university (pre-requisites permitting).
| Teaching period | Subject name | Subject code |
|---|---|---|
| Core Subject | ||
| TE-SEM-1 | Exploring Creative Arts | CRA1ECA |
| Compulsory subjects | ||
| TE-SEM-1 | Professional Writing: words in action | HUS1PWR |
| TE-SEM-2 | Exploring Media Arts | MSS1EMA |
| TE-SEM-2 | Process Based Performance | DRA1PBP |
| List A | ||
| TE-SEM-1 | Introduction to Screen + Sound | MSS1SSA |
| TE-SEM-2 | Text, Criticism and the Visual | ENG1TCV |
| TE-SEM-1 | Theatre Knowledge and Practices | DRA1TKP |
| TE-SEM-2 | Introducing Literature: the short story | ENG1ILS |
| TE-SEM-2 | Working with Words | MSS1WWW |
Second year (120 credit points)
In their second year students study
- the core subject, CRA2VER - Versions: Thinking through Creative Arts,
- the compulsory second-year subject, VPA2EVA - Exploring Visual Arts (available from 2014)
- four, second-year subjects from list B below,
- two, second-year elective subjects which can be selected from list A, the Faculty or anywhere in the university (pre-requisites permitting).
Students should check the availability of the following subjects by clicking on the subject code.
| List B | ||
|---|---|---|
| Teaching period | Subject name | Subject code |
| TE-SEM-1 | Gothic Literature and its Children | ENG2GOT |
| TE-SEM-1 | Modern Drama and Acting Identity | DRA2MOA |
| TE-SEM-1 | Music in Theatre | DRA2MIT |
| TE-SEM-1 | Screenwriting Project | CST2ADS |
| TE-SEM-1 | Soundtracks: Film & Popular Music | MSS2SFM |
| TE-SEM-1 | Theatre Production | DRA2TPR |
| TE-SEM-1 | Theatre, Stages and Spaces | DRA2TSS |
| TE-SEM-1 | Twentieth and Twenty-first Century Australian Literature | ENG2TAL |
| TE-SEM-1 | Writing Nonfiction Scripts | MST2WFV |
| TE-SEM-1 | Writing Poetry | ENG2WRP |
| TE-SEM-2 | Applied Theatre | DRA2APT |
| TE-SEM-2 | Intercultural Performance | DRA2IPF |
| TE-SEM-2 | Narrative Analysis | ENG2NAA |
| TE-SEM-2 | Screen Criticism | CST2FCR |
| TE-SEM-2 | Screenplay/Soundplay | MSS2SSP |
| TE-SEM-2 | Shakespeare in Performance | DRA2SIP |
| TE-SEM-2 | Shooting Shorts for Screen Productions | MST2SCV |
| TE-SEM-2 | Theatre and Theory | DRA2TAT |
| TE-SEM-2 | Writing Fiction | ENG2WFI |
Third year (120 credit points)
In their third year students study
- the core subject, CRA3SHF - Creative Arts Shopfront (available from 2014)
- the compulsory subject, CRA3CPR - Creative Arts Project (available from 2014)
- four, third-year subjects from List C below,
- two, third-year elective subjects which can be selected from the faculty or anywhere in the university (pre-requisites permitting).
Students should check the availability of the following subjects by clicking on the subject code.
| List C | ||
|---|---|---|
| Teaching Period | Subject name | Subject code |
| TE-SEM-1 | Australian Drama from 1955 to the Present Day | DRA3AUD |
| TE-SEM-1 | Documentary & Production | MSS3DOC |
| TE-SEM-1 | Five Shakespeare Plays | ENG3FSP |
| TE-SEM-1 | Gothic Literature and its Children | ENG3GOT |
| TE-SEM-1 | Music in Theatre | DRA3MIT |
| TE-SEM-1 | Screenwriting Project | CST3ADS |
| TE-SEM-1 | Soundtracks: Popular Film & Music | MSS3SFM |
| TE-SEM-1 | Theatre Production | DRA3TPR |
| TE-SEM-1 | Theatre, Stages and Spaces | DRA3TSS |
| TE-SEM-1 | Twentieth and Twenty-first Century Australian Literature | ENG3TAL |
| TE-SEM-1 | Writing Nonfiction Scripts | MST3WFV |
| TE-SEM-1 | Writing Poetry | ENG3WRP |
| TE-SEM-2 | Drama Project | DRA3PRO |
| TE-SEM-2 | Screen Criticism | CST3FCR |
| TE-SEM-2 | Shakespeare in Performance | DRA3SIP |
| TE-SEM-2 | Theatre and Theory | DRA3TAT |
| TE-SEM-2 | The History of the Novel | ENG3NOV |
| TE-SEM-2 | Writing Fiction | ENG3WFI |
| TE-SEM-2 | Media Production Television Studio | MST3MPT |
Honours
The honours program is designed to provide students with an opportunity to develop skills, which will prepare them for further academic study or for work in specific fields and industries involving creative writing, writing for screen and sound and theatre production.
Students are selected into honours at the end of their third year. Prospective students should make their interest known to the Creative Arts Honours Coordinator by November for commencement in semester one or in early June for commencement in second semester.
The normal requirement for selection is consistently high performance (at least a B average) in the creative arts subjects.
The Bachelor of Creative Arts honours year allows students to:
- incorporate more than one discipline i.e. Creative Arts 4, or
- concentrate on one discipline i.e. Media: Screen + Sound 4, English 4 or Theatre and Drama 4.
Creative Arts 4
The course consists of:
- fourth year subjects in any combination from Media: Screen + Sound and Theatre and Drama and English to the value of 60 credit points
- a thesis which consists of a negotiated practical project in script writing, creative writing, performance or production which explores a research question, and
- a 5000-word exegesis to support the thesis.
Students wishing to concentrate on one discipline should check the requirements for honours in the discipline and areas of study under the Media: Screen + Sound, English or Theatre and Drama section of this Handbook.
For further information about creative arts, please contact the School of Communication, Arts and Critical Enquiry by email at mediascreensound@latrobe.edu.au or by telephone on (03) 9479 2616.