Film Dissertation: Recommendations on Developing a Topic

Topics for dissertations have no limits: indeed, you can study whatever you are interested in. Writing a film dissertation can be also very fascinating: a film can be studied from different perspectives. In this article, we discuss peculiarities of developing a film dissertation topic.

The Essence of Film Dissertation Writing

First of all, it is important to have a clear understanding of the purpose of film dissertation writing. When you write your film dissertation, it is important to switch thinking from being a movie fan to being a researcher. The “like/dislike” dimension is appropriate for movie reviews, but not for a film dissertation. Your task is to develop a research question about a movie, to do a research and to present research results to a reader.

Thus, your film dissertation topic should have academic significance and imply fulfilling an investigation.

Choosing a Film for a Film Dissertation

Another important component of work on a film dissertation is choosing the film itself. At this stage, your choice is not limited. You may choose any film that you are interested in, from an art house movie to Terminator. It is more important not to limit yourself to discussing the phrase “I’ll be back” and to find an interesting and significant question to study. 

Developing a Research Idea for a Film Dissertation

After you have made a decision about a film you are going to study, you should choose what exactly you want to study about a movie. For example, you can discuss:

1. A director’s interesting approach to delivering the main idea of a movie
2. Peculiarities of a script
3. Special effects
4. Reflection of modern reality in a movie
5. Comparing two movies according to a given criteria
6. A certain phenomenon in a movie etc