Feature 05
a b ov e   Figure 1. We maintain close proximity
Creating Interiority in Darren
Aronofsky's Black Swan: An Issue of
Composition, Space, and Visual
Distortion
By Alice Vignoles-Russell
keywords: production design, mental illness on-screen, representation, composition,
cinematography, spectatorship, interiority
Darren Aronofsky ’ s B lack Swan (2010), tells
the story of Nina (Natalie Portman), a ballet dancer who suffers
a psychological breakdown when she buckles under the pressure
of performing the dual role of the Black and White Swan in
Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake. The film’s successful realization of Nina’s
interiority sets the film apart from other films depicting mental illness.
What is interiority in the filmic environment? Interiority is when
the subjectivity of a film’s protagonist is projected onto the world
in which the narrative exists. In this definition, a film that achieves
interiority is a film where it is the altered or alternative perspective of
the protagonist that is shown on-screen as opposed to the perspective
of society in the real world/the world of the film. This is not to be
confused with the simple representation of a mentally ill protagonist
on-screen. What sets Black Swan apart is that we do not simply witness
Nina’s psychological breakdown, we experience it with her. Black Swan
is an example of a film where the effects of the protagonist’s mental
illness and her interpretation of the events going on around her are
solely what is seen by the viewer. There is no stylized shorthand at
play to mark the effects of Nina’s experience as delusional. In the
32 Film Matters Fall 2015
to Nina when she is walking. Black Swan (Aro-
nofsky, 2010)
world of the film everything is as real to the viewer as it is to her.
In Black Swan, the viewer is not necessarily required to differentiate
between reality and delusion; the value of the film is that the viewer
can experience Nina’s perspective.
This article will discuss how interiority on-screen can be achieved
through the consummately subtle and consistent manipulation of
composition, space, and visual distortion, and argues that this has
been best achieved, to date, in Black Swan. The following will break
down the visual aspects of the film’s technical realization that bridge
the gap between the subjectivity of the viewer and the protagonist
and allow the viewer to accept the protagonist’s perspective enough to
experience her interiority.
In order for this to happen, it is necessary for the viewer to align
their subjectivity with that of the protagonist. It could be argued that
this is not possible; we cannot take on another person’s, especially
a fictional person’s, subjectivity. That is not what is required. To
experience interiority we need only share a character’s perspective,
a fragment of subjectivity. Subjectivity, although a process of
individuation, is effected and constructed from an individual’s
Feature 05
In this definition, a film that achieves interiority is a
film where it is the altered or alternative perspective
of the protagonist that is shown on-screen as opposed
to the perspective of society in the real world/the
world of the film.
social and shared experiences in the world.
When we discuss film we are discussing the
suspension of disbelief, allowing ourselves
for that moment to live in the world of the
film, hence we are socialized within that
world, and parts of our own subjectivity
can adapt to this. In the case of Black
Swan, a relationship is developed with the
protagonist, Nina, and her perspective is
shared with us. If we can assimilate her
perspective, interiority is realized.
Black Swan is one of few films that present
a mentally ill woman as the protagonist.
Until recently, most films that centered on
issues of mental illness looked at the subject
of the illness from the outside in, projecting
society’s norms onto the character instead
of depicting the subjective experience of
the character in society. Films like Adrian
Lyne’s Fatal Attraction (1987) depict the
character in an impersonal third person
narrative where we can observe the character
within, but at odds with, normal society
so that their perspective is never seen or
understood. Other examples, such as James
Mangold’s Girl, Interrupted (1999), show the
viewer multiple mentally ill characters in
the subculture of the asylum where they are
in the majority, but the interpreter of the
film remains connected to normal society
because the story is told in the past tense
after recovery or the protagonist is not
truly or permanently mentally ill. Finally,
there are films where normal life and
mental illness coexist, but the instance of
mental illness is flagged as delusional, using
exaggerated stylistic technique; either by
using a flashback/dream sequence that has
a completely different filmic quality or the
objects of delusion are designed to be overly
stylized or even caricature – Requiem for a
Dream (Aronofsky, 2000).
By objectifying these characters, an
opportunity has been missed to overcome
the boundary between the viewer and the
film’s protagonist. Cinema, more than any
other art form, has the power to unite the
subjectivity of the viewer and the film’s
interpreter (Silverman 21). However, film
has been slow to realize its full potential to
provide an immersive first person narrative.
The voiceover has often stood in as a proxy
for first person narrative in film, a way of
33
Creating Interiority in Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan
assigning the perspective of the story to
the owner of the voice and providing a
literary translator to mediate the audience’s
understanding (Karlyn 60). However, due to
increasing exposure to film, television, and
video content, modern audiences have a
greater ability than the generations that went
before them to interpret visual narrative.1
Thus, the first person narrative can be and
should be comprehended through what
is on-screen, without the interruption of
a literary translation through voiceover,
demonstrating the preferred mode of film
as an art of showing, not telling (Branigan).
Likewise, the modern filmmaker must be
able to manipulate the art form well enough
to sustain the visual representation of the
subjectivity of a first person narrative
throughout a film, even if that subjectivity
differs from a normative view of the world.
What sets Black Swan apart from other films
that have attempted to represent interiority
is that the film manages to sustain the
protagonist’s perspective and interiority from
beginning to end with no interruption.
Film Matters Fall 2015 ➜
In recent years, mental illness has become
much more discussed and understood in
mainstream society.2 Because film allows
us to examine and learn from situations
outside our own experiences in a safe place,
it can be a powerful tool to make difference
or “otherness” more understandable and
ultimately acceptable. This has resulted in
mainstream success for films that provide
an immersive first person look at mental
disorders that were able to show, rather than
tell, the point of view and interior experience
of their characters. Since society’s attitude
toward mental illness changed in the 1990s,
films playing on the understanding that the
viewer is prepared to accept a subjective
reality and relate to it began to be made in
greater frequency, making steps toward a
successful interior narrative. For example,
Fight Club (Fincher, 1999), Donnie Darko (Kelly,
2001), A Beautiful Mind (Howard, 2002), The
Machinist (Nolan, 2004), Inception (Nolan,
2010), and Black Swan each contributed new
techniques and approaches for dealing with
interiority on-screen.
Black Swan made a significant contribution
to this development. The director, Darren
Aronofsky, had approached the theme of
mental illness in films previously in Requiem for
a Dream and Pi (1998), but Black Swan shows a
markedly more subtle and sophisticated way
of expressing the interior experience. In both
Requiem for a Dream and Pi, the heavily stylized
realization of the films flagged mental illness
a b ov e   Figure 2. We see Nina face on when she
is looking away. Black Swan (Aronofsky, 2010)
a b ov e   Figure 3. Nina has no lines in this scene
but is present in the throughout.
Black Swan (Aronofsky, 2010)
Feature 05
throughout the film and thus obscured the
audience’s ability to relate to the characters.
These obvious visual cues for mental illness
effectively increase otherness and encourage
the viewer to objectify the protagonist.
The contrast between the stylized montage
sequences and the psychedelic hallucination
sequences of Requiem for a Dream are in
complete contrast to the approach used
in Black Swan. Black Swan succeeds in its
ability to fluidly knit together the moments
of delusion and the overall visual style
throughout the film. This approach renders
the moments where delusion does happen
much more plausible and creates a sense
of what the protagonist believes to be
happening for the viewer. This allows the
viewer to assimilate the protagonist’s state of
mind. One of the ways Black Swan is able to
achieve this is by its subtle and controlled use
of the camera as the eyes of the protagonist
and the viewer.
34
Alice Vignoles-Russell
a b ov e   Figure 4. Carole is seen from across the
street. Repulsion (Polanski, 1965)
a b ov e   Figure 5. Carole is seen from the bot-
tom of the bed at an elevated angle. Repulsion
(Polanski, 1965)
Black Swan has been compared by
filmmakers and critics alike to the work of
Roman Polanski, specifically Repulsion (1965)
(Fisher and Jacobs 1). Although Repulsion is an
early attempt at achieving interiority, it fails
to do so. The differences between Repulsion
and Black Swan demonstrate how the delicate
manipulation of filmic techniques in Black
Swan makes the interior narrative succeed.
Black Swan and Repulsion can be easily
compared for their similar thematic issues.
Nina in Black Swan and Carole in Repulsion
both experience a similar psychological
Because of the fine detail and intimacy film can
afford us, we are allowed to see both the sincere
introverted expression and the moments of extrovert
performance and interaction that a character goes
through.
Film Matters Fall 2015
development and breakdown. Both are
young, attractive women who have difficulty
coping with sexuality. In both cases, the films
suggest that repression/rejection of sexuality
leads them to their violent, devastating
breakdowns. The films share themes of male
sexual power over these women; in the sexual
advances of Nina’s choreographer and
the violent, repeated rape and molestation
of Carole. But the films have a distinctly
different dramatic effect on the viewer.
Repulsion in many ways provides a voyeuristic
look at Carole, whereas Black Swan allows
the viewer to share Nina’s breakdown with
her. This significant difference is in how the
viewer’s gaze is directed with the surrogate
eyes of the camera, which directly affects the
perspective assimilated by the viewer.
The first compositional difference between
the shooting in Black Swan and Repulsion that
stands out is how space and perspective from
the subject to the camera’s eye to the viewer’s
eye is related through the screen; first of all,
on a basic level, if we consider how Nina
becomes the camera’s subject in comparison
to how Carole is shown. In Black Swan, a tight
proximity to Nina is seen from the first shot
after the prologue until the end of the film
(Figure 1). Repeatedly, we see Nina as though
we are standing beside her or facing her
front on (Figure 2). When we are not looking
directly at Nina, her close presence is known
within the mise-en-scène on the edge of the
frame (Figure 3). The camera never leaves
Nina as she is involved in every single shot in
her story.
Contrary to this, Repulsion’s ability to
align our subjectivity to Carole’s is thwarted
by the insistence of the objectifying male
gaze within the film. Carole is frequently
framed as a wide to medium shot or a
depersonalizing extreme close-up throughout
the film. In quite literal terms, we as viewers
watch Carole from across the street (Figure
4), we stand on the other side of the room
or at the foot of her bed while she suffers
(Figure 5). Often we see her body as a sexual
object through the camera when her breasts,
legs, or waist are composed as the focal
point of the image, a body without a head
(Figure 6). The distance between the camera
and Carole as its subject creates a sense that
the viewer is following Carole without her
Feature 05 Creating Interiority in Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan

Once Black Swan achieves an emotional alignment to claim the story as their own and build a
relationship between viewer and protagonist
between protagonist and viewer through these that is strong enough to accept the
protagonist’s subjectivity as their own. This is
techniques, there is an opportunity to knit interiority precisely what Black Swan does.
into the film’s narrative. Once Black Swan achieves an emotional
alignment between protagonist and viewer
knowledge or permission. Just like the real or and spatial closeness with the protagonist, through these techniques, there is an
imagined men who torment her at night, we the filmmaker is allowing more emotional opportunity to knit interiority into the film’s
are stalking her, uninvited and unwelcome closeness with the protagonist. Similarly, the narrative. In tandem with the growing
in her world where she wants to be alone. In protagonist must be on-screen consistently relationship the viewer has with Nina, her
effect, we are made even more complicit with
these men when the narrative flow is often
diverted away from Carole, toward the men
in the pub, discussing her in extended, crude
sexual banter.
Following on from this is the issue of
eye-line as a proxy for eye contact. In Black
Swan, we are consistently at Nina’s eye level,
which reinforces the sense that we are with
her instead of looking at her. When we see
her face it is front on, filling the frame. When
she looks away, we can always see her eyes,
expressive and engaged with emotion. Direct
gaze is a powerful filmic device to expose
inner, truthful thoughts and feelings (Figure
7) (Rothman 69). Because of the fine detail
and intimacy film can afford us, we are
allowed to see both the sincere introverted a b ov e   Figure 6. Carole’s breasts are given as
much focus as her face. Repulsion (Polanski, 1965)
expression and the moments of extrovert
performance and interaction that a character
goes through. What Black Swan does is
consistently allow us to see these intimate
moments throughout the film.
Repulsion does not offer us the opportunity
of eye contact with Carole. Repulsion utilizes
elevated and extreme low angles to see
Carole’s face, as if we are looking down
at her. Her head tilts, her eyes look down,
and when we can see her face, we are not
granted access to the sincere moments
of her introversion because her eyes have
disengaged with us. Her direct gaze is not a b ov e   Figure 7. Nina’s face shows emotion
clearly on camera. Black Swan (Aronofsky, 2010)
open to us and as a result we cannot connect
with her or read her sincere expression.
In many shots her eyes are completely
shadowed (Figure 8). Quite simply, there is a
lack of connection between the viewer and
the protagonist that disturbs the audience’s
ability to comprehend her perspective.
The eye of the camera is essential here.
The camera is our proxy for our involvement
in the story and ability to align our
subjectivity with that of the protagonist, the
success of which depends on how our eyes
relate to the subject on-screen. In real-life
body language, proximity is a key factor in
intimacy. We naturally share a more intimate
space with those we align ourselves with.
Likewise, we make eye contact more openly
with those we relate to (Argyle and Dean
a b ov e   Figure 8. Carole’s eyes are shadowed
293). In allowing the viewer more openness and hidden. Repulsion (Polanski, 1965)

35 Film Matters Fall 2015 ➜

Feature 05
a b ov e   Figure 9. Nina and her Double are seen to-
gether for the first time. Black Swan (Aronofsky, 2010)
breakdown comes to a head slowly, giving
the viewer time to immerse themselves in
her subjectivity. Again, the success of this
endeavor is down to the cinematography
and visual coherence of the film. Handling
the issue of hallucinations on-screen
requires subtlety in a film’s realization;
simply deciding to incorporate hallucinatory
sequences in a film, otherwise rooted in
classically executed film techniques, would
not be conducive to creating interiority.
To this end, the cinematographer,
Matthew Libatique, used a range of different
36
Alice Vignoles-Russell
techniques to allow the narrative style of
the film to fluidly mesh with the elements
of the film that were not in line with the
viewer’s standard expectations. Libatique
consistently mimics Nina’s gaze and motion
with the camera with point-of-view shots
and handheld and Steadicam tracking in
the film. Although handheld shooting and
Steadicam, inexpertly done, can disturb the
viewing experience, in Black Swan it enhances
it. The point-of-view shot is an established
filmic shorthand for vicarious experience
commonly used in slasher films like Halloween
a b ov e   Figure 10. Nina and her reflection are
both seen with focus given to the reflection.
Black Swan (Aronofsky, 2010)
a b ov e   Figure 11. A shot that appears to be of
Nina but is actually of her reflection. Black Swan
(Aronofsky, 2010)
Film Matters Fall 2015
(Carpenter, 1978) (as described in the
documentary film The American Nightmare
[Simon, 2000]). However, in the context
of slasher films, the vicarious point-of-view
shot is used to play on the aversion of the
viewer to an “other,” monstrous antagonist,
as the viewer experiences the violent acts
of the antagonist in the first person, while
remaining emotionally aligned to the
innocent protagonist. Point-of-view shots
in Black Swan help the viewer emotionally
align themselves with Nina by initially
acting as a tool to illustrate her perception
of the distressing moments she experiences.
The only time point of view illustrates
any violent acts by Nina takes place long
after the viewer has been aligned to Nina’s
subjectivity. From the beginning of the film,
the combination of Steadicam and point-
of-view techniques capture Nina’s interior
experience. These shots also succinctly
communicate the world of dance, so crucial
to the construction of the film’s microcosm,
so that the physical exertion of her art and
the stakes of her world are clear. Prime
examples of the point-of-view shots are the
dizzying series of pirouettes Nina performs
while LeRoy barks at her and the tracking
point-of-view shots where we can see what
Nina is seeing and what she’s doing in the
mirror. These are emblematic of her life as
a dancer, but also foreshadow the pressures
of the perfectionism that drives her to self-
destruction.
The first instance of Nina’s hallucinations
demonstrates the dramatic effect created
by Libatique’s use of point of view and
Steadicam simultaneously. Nina is seen on
her way home, exiting the subway, walking
toward an exterior corridor. At this point,
we are seeing her through Steadicam; the
characteristic shake is gentle and perfectly
in rhythm with Nina, it does not distract but
rather enhances the viewer’s sense of her
walking. As we look up the hall with her in
a point-of-view shot, we see a figure dressed
in black. As the figure approaches and Nina
moves forward, we continue to move along
with Nina in rhythm with her. Already we
have a sense that we are acting as Nina. Then
suddenly we change to a point-of-view shot
from the other person where Nina is seen
as small and diminutive and we move with
them. Just as this happens, we cut back to
Nina’s view and realize that the person in
black looks exactly like Nina (Figure 9). This
effectively enables the viewer to experience
Nina’s viewpoint while already planting the
idea of the Double, not only as a motif, but
also as an uncanny persona that we are also
granted access to. The subtlety and realism of
this sequence promotes a sense of unease in
Feature 05
a b ov e   Figure 12. Nina’s reflection begins to
take on a life of its own. Black Swan (Aronofsky,
2010)
the viewer empathetic to Nina’s own feelings,
rather than an assertion of her mental illness.
As the plot progresses, the intensity and
frequency of the point-of-view shots increase.
Although there are many factors other than
camera work that contribute to the successful
realization of interiority in the film, this
example illustrates the subtlety of artistic
decision within the film.
A much more complex issue of both
composition and symbolism in the film is
the use of mirrors. According to Aronofsky,
it was a conscious decision to use mirrors,
and perfectly logical in the world of
dance where the mirror is a constant
companion and tool in the studio (“Black
Swan Featurette: Production Design”). Even
though the incorporation of mirrors required
painstaking post-production visual effects to
be done, their use in Black Swan is not only
technically impressive, but also provides a
depth and visual illusion that we have not
seen before because of the usual practical
exclusion of mirrors from film sets.
The mirror as an object provides an
interesting symbolic and psychological
implication. Lacan described “The Mirror
Stage,” the psychological issues symbolized
by the mirror and its reflection, which is
all at once the self and “other”, giving the
mirror an uncanny quality (Silverman 62).
The symbol of the mirror supports the
thematic issue of body-image, self-image,
and multiplicity that recurs in the film and is
the basis of Nina’s psychological breakdown.
Like Nina’s Double, the mirror invades
intimate spaces and is impossible to hide
from. It is this issue of the mirror that Black
Swan plays with and extends out to the viewer
to draw them into Nina’s interiority.
The mirror contributes to visual distortion
and illusion, it can make spaces look bigger
and give objects infinite multiplicity, and can
37
Creating Interiority in Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan
seem to be a portal to another world. All
of these visual distortions are explored and
manipulated to enhance the experience of
interiority throughout Black Swan. First of all,
consider the use of mirrors in the bathroom
when Nina begins to notice that she is
developing a rash. We are barely conscious
of the fact that we are actually looking at a
reflection of Nina, not Nina herself; the real
Nina is barely visible in the edge of the frame
(Figure 10). On a low level of consciousness
we are set up to never be sure of whether we
are looking at Nina or her reflection (Figure
11). This reinforces and gives complexity to
the later, more overt symbols of the Double,
which validates its dramatic effect as it plays
on a genuine uncanniness experienced by
the viewer. Finally, when we see the mirrored
image take on a life of its own, we take on
the fear Nina experiences. The camera’s
point of view takes the place of where the
real Nina should be (Figure 12). This is an
example of how the hallucinations in Black
Swan are gradually knitted into the overall
narrative, making them more plausible and
less jarring to the viewer. This promotes
the viewer’s ability to assimilate Nina’s
subjectivity as it blurs the lines between
Nina, her Double, and the viewer. While this
reinforces the viewer’s assimilation of Nina’s
perspective, the richness and realism of the
hallucinatory images on-screen distract and
encourage the viewer to accept unreal things
the same way Nina accepts them.
Following from this use of the mirror, the
image of the Double is also signalled by the
mirror, drawing on preconceived notions of
the multiplicity and alternative reality the
mirror symbolizes. When Nina begins to see
her Double clearly, the Double exists in the
mirror as a different and unsettling version of
the same image, but can we be sure of which is
the hallucination and which is the real Nina?
Film Matters Fall 2015 ➜
We can conclude that the technical
realization of Black Swan facilitates the
viewer’s ability to adopt the perspective of the
protagonist and the experience of interiority.
This is achieved in Black Swan through
portraying the protagonist as a subject, not
an object, by manipulating composition and
proximity and using visual motifs that play on
the viewer’s subconscious fears. Once this is
achieved, it is possible for the viewer to accept
the protagonist’s interiority.
By successfully realizing interiority on-
screen, film as a medium can finally portray
mental illness without objectification while
also exploring an underdeveloped mode
of visual storytelling. By manipulating the
viewer’s subjectivity and achieving interiority
on-screen, as we see in Black Swan, the
filmmaker has an opportunity to fully realize
the power film has to unite object and
subject. Black Swan has successfully realized
interiority through subtle and masterful
control of narrative visual storytelling.
/end/
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\ Cinema. Bloomington: Indiana UP, 1997. Print. The Virgin Suicides. Dir. Sofia Coppola. Perf. Kirsten
Fatal Attraction. Dir. Adrian Lyne. Perf. Glenn Close, \ Dunst, James Woods, Kathleen Turner. Pathe,
Michael Douglas. Paramount Pictures, 1987. Film. Ouweneel, Arij. Freudian Fadeout: The Failings 1999. Film.
\ of Psychoanalysis in Film Criticism. Jefferson, NC: \
Fight Club. Dir. David Fincher. Perf. Edward Norton, McFarland, 2012. Print. Wise, Damon. “Darren Aronofsky Talks Black
Brad Pitt. Twentieth Century Fox, 1999. Film. \ Swan.” Empireonline.com (n.d.). Web. 30 Sept. 2013.
\ Pi. Dir. Darren Aronofsky. Perf. Sean Gullette. <http://www.empireonline.com/interviews/
Fisher, Mark, and Amber Jacobs. “Debating Black Protozoa Pictures, Inc., 1998. Film. interview.asp?IID=1167>.
Swan: Gender and Horror.” Film Quarterly 65.1 \ \
(2011): 58–62. Print. Psycho. Dir. Alfred Hitchcock. Perf. Anthony Zacharek, Stephanie. “Black Swan Takes Its Own
\ Perkins. Shamley Productions, 1960. Film. Hifalutin’ Hokum Way Too Seriously.” Review.
Fox Searchlight. “Black Swan | Fox \ Movieline.com. 2 Sept. 2010. Web. 20 Sept. 2013.
Searchlight.” Fox Searchlight. 23 Feb. 2012. Web. Rain Man. Dir. Barry Levinson. Perf. Dustin \
30 Sept. 2013. <http://www.foxsearchlight.com/ Hoffman, Tom Cruise. United Artists, 1988. Film.
blackswan/>. \
\ The Red Shoes. Dir. Michael Powell. Perf. Moira Notes
Freud, Sigmund, David McLintock, and Hugh Shearer, Anton Walbrook, Marius Goring. General
Haughton. The Uncanny. New York: Penguin, 2003. Film Distribution, 1948. Film. 1. Due to the increasing penetration of film and
Print. \ video media into daily life since the mid-twentieth
\ century and its exponential increase since the

38 Film Matters Fall 2015

Feature 05 Creating Interiority in Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan

advent of the Internet, it is necessary to develop

visual literacy to participate in society (Croteau
and Hoynes). Cognitive science and neuroscience
have proven that early and increased exposure to
visual media enhances the brain’s ability to perceive
meaning in narrative visual media both intellectually
and emotionally. As a result, there is a greater

➜
capacity for visual literacy and comprehension
in society, as whole and visual narratives can be Author Biography
interpreted more efficiently (Smith). Alice Vignoles-Russell is a first-class
2. For example, there was a significant increase honors graduate of Design for Stage
in the number of clinically treated and diagnosed and Screen. Her dissertation won
psychological problems throughout the 1990s. IADT’s Thesis Award for Academic
Excellence. She is currently working
At this time there was also a move toward
as an Assistant Art Director in the film
deinstitutionalization of the mentally ill that and television industry. She continues
resulted from the availability of effective drug to pursue research interests in design,
treatments. Effectively, this change in social representation, and feminist film theory.
policy toward community care and a reduction in
social stigma toward mental illness made mental
illness more visible, recognized, and discussed in
mainstream culture. See Appignanesi 2–9.
Mentor Biography
Elaine Sisson is Senior Lecturer at
Institute of Art Design and Technology.
She wrote Pearse’s Patriots: The Cult
of Masculinity at St. Enda’s (Cork
University Press, 2005) and, with Linda
King, essays on Irish design history:
Ireland, Design and Visual Culture:
Negotiating Modernity 1922–1992 (Cork
University Press, 2011). She co-founded
the Graduate School of Creative Arts
and Media, offering taught doctorates for
creative practitioners. Research interests
include modernism and design, and the
phenomenology of acting.

Department Overview
The National Film School at the Institute
of Art Design and Technology offers
graduate and postgraduate training
in courses related to the film industry,
including filmmaking, production,
animation, modelmaking, and visual
communications. As part of the National
Film School, the BA Design for Stage
and Screen is the only degree course
in Ireland to offer training in costume
design, production design, and make-up
and prosthetics design.

39 Film Matters Fall 2015 ➜

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