Study Film Studies in Europe

This master's program provides an interdisciplinary framework for critically analyzing texts, films, and visual media. Students engage with key theories in narratology, adaptation, critical theory, and cultural analysis, supported by seminars on literature and visual culture. The program includes academic writing, a practical training component, and elective courses in film culture, digital media, and art history. Through an advanced seminar structure and final thesis, students develop strong analytical and research skills applicable in academia, media, or the cultural sector.

To apply for this master's program, candidates must have a bachelor’s degree and provide proof of English proficiency (e.g., IELTS 6.5, TOEFL iBT 92, PTE Academic 62, or Cambridge 169+). The admission process includes a written part and an interview, totaling 100 points. Applicants must submit a statement of research interests (30 pts, min. 21) and a 10-page writing sample (30 pts, min. 21). Only those meeting both minimums are invited to the interview (40 pts, min. 28). The evaluation focuses on academic background, research alignment, motivation, and analytical and writing skills. Interviews may be recorded for identity verification.

This master's degree is the only program of its kind in the country to offer an English-language qualification in film studies, combining theoretical and practical training to prepare students for careers in academia as well as the broader cultural and entertainment sector. It runs with two specializations, Film Theory and Filmmaking, over four semesters.

Both specializations share a foundational curriculum, beginning with an introduction to film studies and continuing into a comprehensive film history sequence, a choice between film theory or textual analysis, and coursework in film analysis. Depending on the specialization, students also take either a professional writing course or a research methodology course during this shared foundation.

Students in the Film Theory specialization gain a general overview of the history and theory of film alongside a critical understanding of the mechanisms and genres of popular film culture, with an emphasis on academic and critical writing. They explore different periods of Hungarian and world film history and various theoretical approaches and genres, developing skills in reading theoretical texts and interpreting films. Elective coursework spans further film history, film theory, and audiovisual culture, along with research seminars, project seminars, professional writing, and practical workshops, supported by required academic writing coursework and consultation sessions with an assigned adviser.

Students in the Filmmaking specialization gain hands-on experience across the creative production process, including screenwriting, directing, editing, cinematography, and production. Elective coursework includes an introduction to filmmaking, practical courses in directing, screenwriting, cinematography, editing, and production, coursework on production fundamentals, and practical workshops, which can be fulfilled through an internship at a film industry company. In the second semester, students write a brief academic paper before beginning a collaborative creative thesis project, supported by project development coursework and consultation sessions with an assigned adviser.

Film Theory students complete an independent research thesis that interprets screen media through relevant theory and the international scholarly literature, defended in a combined oral examination covering film history and theory. Filmmaking students instead complete a portfolio-based thesis combining a creative film or media project, a written essay on its background, and a working diary of the creative process, discussed in detail during their final oral examination. In both cases, the final degree grade combines the thesis grade with the result of the oral examination.

Faculty include active researchers involved in international and local projects, and filmmaking courses are taught by industry professionals. The department regularly organizes conferences, workshops, and screenings, in which students play an active organizing role, and maintains exchange partnerships with roughly a dozen institutions across Europe. Film Theory graduates go on to academic research or further doctoral study, or work as film and communication teachers, critics, and experts, including positions in film and media archives or national cultural institutions. Filmmaking graduates go on to produce content such as music videos, commercials, video blogs, or short films, working for production companies or in distribution and exhibition roles, with examples including line producers, screenwriters, and cinematographers.

Applicants must hold a bachelor's degree or equivalent, with full credit given for degrees in liberal arts or in motion picture and visual representation studies with a media specialization. Applicants with degrees in other fields are evaluated individually and must demonstrate at least 30, and ideally 50, credits of prior coursework in areas such as film history, film theory, filmmaking, philosophy, literary theory, the history of the social sciences, or art and cultural theory, supported by transcripts and course descriptions. Film Theory applicants must also submit a brief research proposal outlining their intended research project, while Filmmaking applicants must submit a link to an online portfolio of previous creative work, such as still or moving images, other digital media, or a sample screenplay.

English is the language of instruction throughout, and non-native speakers must demonstrate at least B2-level proficiency (CEFR), with preferred minimum scores of 72 to 94 on the TOEFL iBT, 6.0 on the IELTS, or 100 on the Duolingo English Test.

Applicants must submit an application form, secondary school certificate, an official copy of their completed bachelor's degree, a transcript of records, a CV, and a motivation letter of no more than 500 words, along with a valid passport copy; documents not originally in English require an official translation. Admission includes an online interview focused on the applicant's motivation, conducted in English, with final rankings based on a combined evaluation of academic performance and interview results.

This master's degree develops the analytical skills needed to study literature, film, and visual culture as interconnected forms of meaning rather than as separate disciplines. Delivered jointly across two institutions, the program draws on expertise in literature, film studies, art history, and visual culture, allowing students to approach cultural questions from multiple perspectives within a single, coherent course of study, taught through small, seminar-based classes centered on interpretation, argument, and independent analysis across historical and contemporary contexts.

The two-year program moves from shared theoretical foundations toward increasingly independent research. Core seminars introduce key concepts in cultural theory and analysis, such as culture, nation, power, space, gender, and memory, alongside a seminar tracing major thinkers in critical theory and the social analysis of images, from historical philosophy through to contemporary visual and cultural studies. A dedicated course examines the relationship between words and images across the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, while a sequence of interdisciplinary seminars approaches literary texts, films, and visual culture through thematic lenses that vary by year, such as dystopia, ecocritical approaches, memory and trauma, or postcolonial studies. Additional coursework introduces narratology and film analysis methods and their practical application, along with a seminar on adaptation across media that considers literary, film, and video game adaptations in relation to historical and cultural context, authorship, and genre.

During the second and third semesters, students take part in practical training organized in collaboration with cultural institutions and international literary, art, and film festivals in the host city, designed to support their research interests and critical engagement with cultural institutions rather than to provide vocational training. At the end of the second semester, students submit a thesis research proposal and select a supervisor, and the fourth semester is dedicated entirely to writing the thesis within a dedicated master's seminar, culminating in a public thesis defense.

Students benefit from a compact, culturally rich host city with an extensive network of literary, film, and visual culture institutions and festivals, allowing archives, exhibitions, screenings, and public debate to inform coursework and research alongside academic study. Close engagement with faculty supports the development of individual research interests from early in the program, within an international student community whose diverse backgrounds contribute to a comparative approach to the study of culture. The program is research-centered, providing a strong foundation for students who wish to pursue doctoral study, while also equipping graduates with the interpretive and critical thinking skills relevant to a range of careers requiring cultural judgment and the ability to work with complexity.

Applicants must hold a completed bachelor's degree or equivalent qualification and provide proof of English proficiency. Admission is decided through an entrance exam consisting of both written and oral components. The written component requires a one- to two-page statement of research interests and a ten-page writing sample, either an excerpt from the applicant's bachelor's thesis or, if no thesis was written, academic essays completed during their studies or published scholarly articles; if the original writing sample was not written in English, applicants must submit an English translation, which does not need to be notarized.

Applicants are assessed on a points scale across three components: the statement of research interest, worth up to 30 points with a minimum of 21 required; the writing sample together with previous academic performance, also worth up to 30 points with a minimum of 21 required; and an interview, worth up to 40 points with a minimum of 28 required. Only applicants who meet the minimum thresholds on the statement of research interest and writing sample are invited to the interview stage, which is conducted online before an examination board of at least two members and evaluates the applicant's motivation and clarity of goals, their ability to develop and refine a research plan, their analytical ability, and their oral communication skills. Final admission is based on the combined score across all three components.