We can't wait to welcome you to Andover College in September! 

We have created this interactive page to give you a sense of what studying Lens Based & Digital subjects, including Film Making, Photography and Creative Media Production, at Andover College is like.

Meet your lecturer Charmaine and check back in with this page weekly as she sets you new and exciting challenges to encourage your creativity and develop your skills before you start in September! 

We would love to see your ideas and results so please send them back to andoverapplicantwelcome@sparsholt.ac.uk with 'Lens Based & Digital' as the email heading!  

Make sure you also take a look at all the additional support we can provide for you at Andover College through our experienced Careers and Wellbeing teams. 

About the Course!

Welcome to Lens Based Media! Both Charmaine & Pete will be setting weekly tasks as a taster of what it is like to study subjects within this area. Lens Based Media includes A Level Film Making, A Level Photography, OCR Digital Media and our exciting new commercial course, BTEC Digital Content Creation.

A Level Film Making – want to make films, and be a part of one of the biggest growth areas in the UK, then this course is designed to help you. Understand the importance of cinematography, storytelling through imagery, the technical know how that goes with all of this, and begin to create dynamic visual storytelling through the use of colour, light, props, people and beyond.

A Level Photography – a dynamic and highly varied creative course which explores all genres of photography from Portraiture to Fashion, Documentary to Food Photography. The course relies on your individuality to decide the type of photographer you want to be. You will develop your visual understanding, explore issues, concepts and problems. You will have the opportunity to experiment with wet room, digital and surface materials.

BTEC Digital Content Creation – in the ever-changing creative industries, people are looking to enter the world of media and the commercial market in a number of different ways. From promotion of brands to promoting yourself as a viable brand we have designed a course just for you.

OCR Digital Media – our Technicals qualifications in Digital Media develops students’ core skills and understanding of the requirements of the digital media sector. Students gain hands-on experience of the production process, developing their ideas from planning, through editing and post-production, to final presentation.

Pete & Charmaine will be setting a weekly task – this will alternate between film and photo challenges. What we hope is that it will spark your interest and develop your eye ready for September – the very best visual artists and creators are constantly looking for and making work, each step taking them closer to finding out how to make visuals work!

Be practical and inventive. We understand the current restrictions means that this work must be made in the safety of your home, but we are excited to see how you can adapt and have some fun with your creativity!

Week 6: The Playlist

Week 5: Outside

Week 4: Barriers

Week 3: Inside

Week 2: Food Glorious Food!

Week 1: Introduction to 5 x 5 Challenge!

Workbook 5 x 5 Challenge

Additional Resources 

Take a look at the American Film Institute web page for interesting and informative discussions around some of the most influential films across the pond and internationally! 

We have also included their guide and 'Basic Tool Kit & Resource Guide for Young Filmmakers' below!

AFI Guidebook for Young Filmmakers

Further Resources 

Interested in learning more about the various topics you could study at college in September? Take a look at the resources collected by your lecturers below and make sure you let us know how you get on! 

Videos, documentaries and interesting commentary pieces; 

  • Trailers From Hell: online archive of past film trailers featuring commentary and analysis from a variety of familiar names! Here. 
  • Every Frame a Painting: online essays about film making - here.
  • Edgar Wright in conversation - here. 

  • VDF x Zoomed In present live lecture with photographer Iñigo Bujedo Aguirre - here. 
  • Abstract: The Art of Design – Netflix – Series 1 Ep 7 Platon: Photography 
  • Faces Places – Documentary following muralist JR

Prefer to read? Take a look at these resources; 

  • 22 Rules of Pixar - here. 
  • One of the most in depth interviews about screenwriting with Lem Dobbs, screenwriter and Film Historian - here. 
  • Strongly recommended 'Hitchcock/Truffaut' a must for ANY wannabe filmmaker - here. 
  • Unexpected stories about creativity - here. 
  • Modes of Documentary - here. 

Book recommendations: 

  • Read this if you want to take great photographs – Henry Carroll - here. 
  • Photography: The Whole Story – Juliet Hacking - here. 

Looking for more! Your lecturers have put together these two additional activities to get started with! 

Find an inspirational photographer or director – explore their work, what do you discover, how do you connect, and what do they make you want to try in your own work?

Explore manual settings on your camera – experiment with exposure – make work changing the shutter speed, aperture and ISO – learn to control how your camera functions.

Take a look at this user guide - here.

The Open University has a variety of free online courses available to work on prior to your start in September. Full catalogue available here. 

Future Learn and Coursera also have a variety of courses available. 

In particular we recommend the following: 

  • Explore Film making: from Script to Screen - here. 

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  • Future Learn and University of East Anglia: An Introduction to Screenwriting: Here. 
  • Writing the Short: Write a shootable short screenplay in 5 weeks: Here. 

Ready for more... 

BBC Writersroom is running a free online 'Introduction to Screenwriting' course in partnership with the University of East Anglia and Future Learn. Have a look and let us know how you get on! 

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Our Courses: 

A-Level in Film Making (2 Years)

A-Level in Photography (2 Years) 

BTEC Level 3 Certificate/Subsidiary Diploma in Creative Media Production (1-2 Years) 

BTEC Level 3 90 Credit Diploma/Extended Diploma in Creative Media Production (1-2 Years) 

BTEC Level 3 Certificate/Subsidiary Diploma in Information Technology - Creative Digital Technology (1-2 Years) 

Meet the lecturers!

"My name is Charmaine Cook, and I will be teaching across A Level Photography and BTEC Digital Content Creation. My practice and inspiration comes from the studio and figurative work, fused with contemporary print. When we start the course in September, we will have the opportunity to make work in the studios using a range of resources. I will be finding out about your skills and talents, in order to personalise your programme to get the very best out of your creativity!"

"My name is Pete Hearn, and I will be teaching across A Level Film making, BTEC Digital Content Creation and OCR Digital Media. My film making inspiration comes from being a filmmaker myself, having made various features, and written various screenplays over the years. When the courses begin in September, I will be encouraging you to find your inner Spielbergs, your inner Edgar Wrights, your inner Patty Jenkins and beyond. Creating inspiring and imaginative work, and becoming the future for Creatives!"

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Charmaine Art & Design Lecturer

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Pete Hearn Film Making Lecturer 

Careers Guidance 

Our careers guidance aims to expand the horizons of all students enabling you to make informed career decisions in order to progress both during and after college. 

Carol is our dedicated Careers Advisor for Andover College! 

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We also have our Sun Progression Mentor Anna! 

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Anna works alongside the Southern Universities Network (SUN) to help students recognise the routes of progression available to them, and to continue their journey in education! 

We recently launched the new Careers Hub located in the College library so come and say hello to Carol and Anna! 

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Social Media 

We love to post about all our students on our platforms including their achievements, trips and excellent work - take a look at some of the highlights below and make sure you follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube! 

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Student wellbeing and support 

At Andover College we understand that starting college in these uncertain times can be daunting and we aim to make this process as simple as possible. 

We have a dedicated team that provide our students with any additional support they need including; 

  • Counselling 
  • Carer support 
  • Childcare support 
  • Confidential one-to-one services 

We have also recently introduced two new members to the wellbeing team ... Arlo and Romeo the Therapy Dogs!

Arlo and Romeo are part of the continued effort from Andover College to consistently improve on and add to provisions for students. They are based on campus with their owners throughout term.

Research has shown that students are significantly less stressed and anxious, and even have increased happiness and energy, immediately following spending time in a drop-in session with a dog present. What good boys!

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In the News!

Kimvi Nguyen, Andover College Art Technician Instructor, featured on episode 4 (Monday 18 May) of Grayson’s Art Show, on Channel 4.

Kimvi and her partner Vinny Montag submitted their work which was chosen for last night’s episode. The theme for last night’s episode was ‘view from my window’.

Kimvi said: “Instead of painting the view from our window, we thought ‘what has been our window throughout the lockdown?’. We realised it had been the view inside our fridge. We went with this idea as we had been constantly opening and shutting our fridge door to reveal the ever changing landscape of our diet, illuminated every time. We worked with a time restraint of an hour to create our submission and the final piece was made from pieces of a bed frame and a bedsheet which we constructed as a curtained window inside our fridge."

Grayson announced on the show last night that Kimvi and Vinny’s work will be displayed in his exhibition which will be created once lockdown is over. He chose their work as he thought it was a ‘beautiful and successful gesture’. It was also a fantastic birthday present for Kimvi! The Art Club Exhibition is being put together as a lasting artistic record of how people have felt together through these strange times together.

We wish Kimvi and Vinny the best of luck with the exhibition. You can watch the full episode here.

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Follow our art lecturers on Instagram to keep up with the creative content and inspiration – @kimvi_nguyen, @h_talks_creative_making, @carlie_creative_lecturer and @andovercollege_graphics

Not already applied?

Got this link but not yet applied? – Click below so you can join us in September!

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