Explore Culture, History & Humanities Courses

This course studies the creation and shaping Sino-Latin American relations, considering their history, economics and defence systems and areas of cooperation.

From Wicca to the Satanic Panic, and from The Wizard of Oz to Buffy the Vampire Slayer, this course looks at why the modern world now has so many competing ideas about what witchcraft is.

Want to write scripts but don't know how to start? Discover the basics of screenwriting - character, conflict and more - on this short online course that will help you shape your ideas and get your story going.



This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.

Explore the relationship between nineteenth-century society, from the Napoleonic era to the suffrage movement, and men’s and women’s fashions which witnessed constant change, restrictions, extremes and the start of the dress reform movement.

Join this one-day course to discover insights and wisdom from Chuang Tzu, one of the great founders of Taoism.

Paolo Sorrentino has been described as ‘the most promising Italian director of his generation’. This one-day course will explore the cinema of this Neapolitan filmmaker renowned for his ‘commitment to style’. We will look at a number of his films as well as his television work, and examine some of the themes that he has returned to throughout his career, for example, power, nostalgia and solitude. We will also consider his Sorrentino’s relationship with figures such as the cinematographer Luca Bigazzi and the actor Toni Servillo, both of whom have collaborated frequently with the director. So, join us in City Lit’s Cultureplex screening space for day-long immersion into the beautifully stylish cinematic world of Paolo Sorrentino.

Explore the fundamental techniques of writing for the stage in this introductory short course. Get to grips with dialogue, character, story and structure, and start work on your own play.



This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.

Explore the ever-changing statement of identity that was twentieth-century fashion through the study of key designers and significant social and political events that shaped the clothes we wore.

City Lit and the British Museum present our long-running annual event, Classics Day. This year's title is "How Ancient Greece changed the world". Anyone with an interest in classics and history will enjoy this stimulating day of lectures.

Do you want to write for an ongoing TV drama or pitch your own idea for a television series? Start your screenwriting journey on this practical short course. Examine the structure of an episodic TV drama, and explore approaches to the genre in a fun, supportive environment.

You've probably seen hundreds/thousands of films, but still wonder: how did they do that? Technique! Learn the secrets of filmmaking. Techniques such as shot composition, editing and camera movement can work together to tell a story in your own unique way. A film is made four times over: First the screenplay, which may be original or adapted. Secondly, the actual production, the direction and shooting of the film. Third, the editing. Fourth the music score. It all starts with the story, but how to tell it? Technique! What are film techniques and their effects? The camera never lies, but editing can—and the lighting hides or reveals. Are films magic or magic tricks? If I cut to a close up, I’m making a statement but did you notice the music cues? What’s the score?