Theorising Japanese Cinema
Course dates: Tuesday 06 October - Tuesday 15 December 2026
Class timetable: 10 sessions (View class timetable for Tuesday 06 October 2026 to Tuesday 15 December 2026)
Timetable data for Tuesday 06 October 2026 to Tuesday 15 December 2026
| Day of class | Date of class | Time | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday | 06-Oct-2026 | 5:00pm - 8:00pm | Birkbeck Campus, Central London |
| Tuesday | 13-Oct-2026 | 5:00pm - 8:00pm | Birkbeck Campus, Central London |
| Tuesday | 20-Oct-2026 | 5:00pm - 8:00pm | Birkbeck Campus, Central London |
| Tuesday | 27-Oct-2026 | 6:00pm - 9:00pm | Birkbeck Campus, Central London |
| Tuesday | 03-Nov-2026 | 6:00pm - 9:00pm | Birkbeck Campus, Central London |
| Tuesday | 17-Nov-2026 | 6:00pm - 9:00pm | Birkbeck Campus, Central London |
| Tuesday | 24-Nov-2026 | 6:00pm - 9:00pm | Birkbeck Campus, Central London |
| Tuesday | 01-Dec-2026 | 6:00pm - 9:00pm | Birkbeck Campus, Central London |
| Tuesday | 08-Dec-2026 | 6:00pm - 9:00pm | Birkbeck Campus, Central London |
| Tuesday | 15-Dec-2026 | 6:00pm - 9:00pm | Birkbeck Campus, Central London |
Location: Birkbeck Campus, Central London
Fees: £1615.00
RegisterCourse Overview
From silent cinema, Kurosawa’s samurai films, Ozu’s family dramas and Tanaka’s melodramas, to the New Wave’s depictions of youth, cyberpunk animation, Studio Ghibli and contemporary documentary films, in this short course we offer you a critical introduction to Japanese cinema. In teaching you about key films, directors and genres of Japan, we encourage you to think critically about cinema as art, industry and ideology, while deepening your understanding of Japanese history and society.
In Theorising Japanese Cinema you will watch and discuss at least one Japanese film per week. We will also introduce you to some key theoretical frameworks through which to analyse films, such as those of authorship and audience studies, representation of gender and ethnicity, genre conventions, transnational cinema, cinematic language and the avant-garde, and minoritised cinemas.
Films selected for this course are subtitled in English. There is no Japanese language requirement.
Assessment is via a 1500-word essay (30%), 2500-word essay (60%) and attendance, class participation, pre- and post-sessional activities (10%).
As a student on this course, you will study alongside Birkbeck students enrolled on one of our undergraduate or postgraduate courses, giving you the opportunity to network with a range of Birkbeck current students whilst you learn.
This can be taken as a standalone short course or as part of:
Fees
Students are charged a tuition fee for each short course on registering. Please view details for this course, including dates, location and fees at the top of this page. Short course fees may be subject to annual inflationary increases. For more information, please see our Fees Policy.
Birkbeck's Lifelong Learning Guarantee
If you've studied at Birkbeck before and successfully completed an award with us, take advantage of our Lifelong Learning Guarantee to gain a reduction on the tuition fee of this course.
Entry Requirements
Most of our short courses have no formal entry requirements and are open to all students.
This short course has no prerequisites.
As part of the registration process, you may be required to submit a copy of a suitable form of ID.
International students who wish to come to the UK to study a short course can apply for a Visitor visa. Please note that it is not possible to obtain a Student visa to study a short course.
How to Register
You register directly onto the classes you would like to take. Classes are filled on a first-come, first-served basis - so register early.
If you want to take more than one short course, you can select each one separately and then register onto them together via our online application portal. There is usually no formal selection process, although some modules may have prerequisites and/or other requirements, which will be specified where relevant.