Courses

FdA/BA (Hons) Costume for Theatre, TV & Film

Key Information
  • Award

    Foundation Degree, FdA / Bachelor of Arts with honours, BA (Hons)

  • Application process

    Interview

  • Duration

    Two years (full-time), with the opportunity to apply for a one year BA (Hons) top-up

  • Academic year

    22 September 2025 – 10 July 2026

  • Application deadline

    28 February 2025 (16:00 GMT)

     

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Course overview

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This practical course prepares you for a career creating and supervising costumes for theatre, television and film. You’ll have opportunities to construct costumes for several of the School’s professional-standard theatre productions and will work off-stage running a wardrobe department. You’ll craft costumes for a range of contrasting productions, both period and contemporary, with opportunities to explore particular techniques.

Course highlights

  • Practical, career-oriented training in costume-making and supervision for theatre, television and film
  • Hands-on experience constructing costumes for the School’s professional-standard theatre productions
  • Development of diverse costume-making skills, from basic techniques to advanced specialities, like millinery, corset-making,  body padding and stretch wear.
  • Opportunities to work on-location for film shoots produced by the School’s film department
  • Training in costume supervision, including organising fittings and maintaining continuity files and costume ‘Bibles’
  • Collaboration across various departments, mirroring the professional environment of a producing company
  • Celebrate the end of your training, with a graduate exhibition attended by industry professionals, facilitating networking and future employment opportunities
  • Professional placement in second year of FdA  for up to three weeks; extended industry placement in BA top-up year for up to five weeks.

Course structure

Over the two years of the FdA programme, you’ll develop a variety of costume-making skills, from basics such as fastenings, buttonholes, seam finishes and pattern cutting, to specialist techniques such as dyeing, distressing, ruffs, tailoring, corset-making and millinery. The supervisory element of the course includes costume supervision for theatre, costume assisting, organising fittings, working backstage  and maintaining a costume ‘bible’.

You will also work on a small BOVTS film shoot familiarising yourself with all of the roles within a costume department, understanding continuity and creating a costume continuity file. Throughout the course, you will work to given designs, drafting, fitting and then making for and dressing the School’s public theatre productions which take place at theatre venues across Bristol. The School’s film department produces short films throughout the year, giving you the opportunity to work on-location at a variety of film shoots.

BA (Hons) top-up year: The BA (Hons) in Costume for Theatre, Television and Film is a top-up option available to students who have successfully completed the FdA programme at BOVTS. During this additional year, you’ll have a proposed body of work to complete, as discussed as part of the informal application process for the BA Hons top up year as well as completing more industry placements potentially up to five weeks during the year. You will also complete a ‘show ‘ make for one of the school’s public productions and work on a small BOVTS film project with the MA Screen Actors. 

Career pathways

Training at the School is vocational and career-orientated, and our professional-standard productions are the result of collaborations across various departments. School productions reflect the working environment of a professional producing company, providing you with excellent preparation for your future career. At the end of the FdA or BA course, you’ll display your work at a graduate exhibition which will be attended by industry professionals, where you can build up a network of contacts for future employment.

The costume department has enjoyed an outstanding employment record; potential graduate employers often interview students in their final year of training. Recent graduate employment includes: freelance contracts with Pinewood, Longcross and Elstree Studios; the costume workrooms and dye and breakdown departments of major Netflix dramas; making and supervising for productions at Bristol Old Vic, Tobacco Factory Theatres and Scottish Opera; and full-time positions of the likes of Angels Costumiers and Cosprop, two of the UK’s major costume houses; and trainee positions on many high end TV dramas shot all over the UK.

Students relaxing outside of the School
The School is in a beautiful part of Bristol, overlooking a huge park called the Downs. We sometimes take advantage of our close proximity to the Downs during the summer term, practising fight and dance routines, or voice or singing classes! Dan Hall, BA Professional Acting student