COURSE OVERVIEW
Work in your own exclusive studio space to create engaging compositions for film, TV and games.
Train to create music that will emotionally drive productions across genres including fiction, animation, science and natural history and more.
Collaborate with other courses such as editing and sound design to create vivid atmospheres and aid the storytelling, graduating with a number of diverse credits.
Content Tabs
We offer a tailored curriculum adaptable to our students’ individual needs, with access to individual music suites, recording sessions with live musicians and education in business, legal and professional skills.
On graduating, you'll have the skills, knowledge and confidence to compose for film, television and games, as well as productions in multimedia and interactive programming.
COURSE FACILITIES
You will have access to your own composing cabin which will be your exclusive studio space. Our 20 composer studios are equipped with Apple Mac workstations running Logic, Sibelius and ProTools. We also have a dedicated Music Recording Studio for recording live music.
We are excited to announce this MFA course is part of an innovative slate of new qualifications from 2025/2026. Our A Fresh Take page tells you all you need to know!
In year one, you will be taught the techniques and contexts which inform writing music for the screen. It starts with an intensive process during which you will compose to a variety of exercises, each one chosen to focus on a particular aspect of film composition. Further exercises concentrate on scoring for live instruments, the combination of live and electro-acoustic elements and the integration of a limited range of sound design into film scores. You will also work on projects generated by other students at the NFTS and participate in visits from industry professionals.
In year two, activities will be dominated primarily by films and other projects including games and science and natural history, working with students from across the School. Lectures, seminars and occasional workshops will be provided alongside to clarify and expand issues arising from those projects.
There is no 'typical' student or perfect candidate who conforms to a mandatory list of qualifications.
Students normally have a degree in music. You may have a background in the arts or equivalent practical experience, with some composing experience preferred.
We look for composers with a strong personal style, a flexible approach and an intelligent feel for drama and narrative. You should normally be able to notate the music you wish to be performed acoustically, have an understanding of the main historical styles and be able to communicate with others using non-musical terms. It is essential that you have a strong and demonstrable interest in film.
International students Visa and English language requirements
If you have any questions, please email info@nfts.co.uk.
The following item(s) should accompany your online application:
- Please submit a written example of a piece of music or orchestration. There is no specific requirement in terms of genre, instrumentation, length or number of instruments. It can be a score of one of your own compositions, or alternatively an existing piece of music that you have arranged/orchestrated (pdf). We only need the conductors score (not separate parts) and no audio needs to be provided.
- Vimeo links: During the online application process, you will be provided with a link to download two film clips. You will be asked to write music for each of these clips, with sound and music track, and once completed, return to your application to provide Vimeo links (download enabled) to enable us to view the work.
Due to the time it may take you to complete the second submission, we advise you to start your application as soon as possible to access the clips so that you can return to the form with the required links, by the deadline date.
If you are invited to attend an interview, you will be invited to bring further material that may be of interest for the selection panel at the discretion of the interviewers.
Applications will close at 23:59 on the day of the deadline, shown at the top of this page.
Funding Available
The NFTS awards more scholarships and bursaries to British students, relative to the size of our student body, than almost any other educational institution in the UK. If you’re successful at gaining a place on the course, you will be contacted by our funding team with details on how to apply for one of these scholarships.
Tutors
Student Showcase
Do Not Feed the Pigeons (trailer)
2021 graduate animation
Director - Antonin Niclass
Producer - Jordi Morera
Composer - Fabio Amurri
In a coach station, around 2am, a collection of lonely and tired travellers are waiting for the coach. Somehow, in that cold and depressing place, the resident pigeons manage to create a magical connection between them for a beautiful instant.
Winner of the EE BAFTA Award for Best Short Animation 2022.
Stories of You and I (trailer)
2021 graduate science and natural history film
Director/Producer/Camera - John Davies
Associate Producer - Michelle Brøndum
Composer - Oliver Wegmuller
Stories of You and I is an open letter to the Earth, remembering a life of infatuation with nature around the British Isles. It is a touching, personal and emotional cry for environmental justice told through an intimate relationship with the natural world.
Winner of the Student Award at the Jackson Wild Media Awards.
Harp Song (trailer)
2022 graduate game
Designers/Developers/Story - Stephen Glenister, Ástráður "Ace" Ísak Lárusson
Composer - Noa Margalit
Harp Song is a narrative-adventure game set in ancient Ireland. Inspired by Irish mythology, our heroine, Clár, is pulled into an on-going war between the old Gods.
Shortlisted for the 2022 Yugo BAFTA Student Awards.
This Is Ours (trailer)
2023 graduate fiction film
Director/Writer - Simon London
Producer - Cristina Isgrò
Composer - Samuel Read
Trapped in a 1960s facility evaluating children for potential citizenship, two girls are faced with the question of human value. While their competitive conditioning sets them against each other, one’s rebellion disrupts everything and sparks a connection that neither will forget.
Graduate Success
NFTS graduates are in demand in the UK, Europe and the US, and end up working as Composers on feature films, high-end television, commercials, and a number of award-winning productions.
Graduates have gone on to compose scores that have truly earned 'iconic' status.
Recent credits include...
Paddington In Peru
Composer Dario Marianelli
Graduate Success
NFTS graduates are in demand in the UK, Europe and the US, and end up working as Composers on feature films, high-end television, commercials, and a number of award-winning productions.
Graduates have gone on to compose scores that have truly earned 'iconic' status.
Recent credits include...
Rivals
Composer Natalie Holt
Graduate Success
NFTS graduates are in demand in the UK, Europe and the US, and end up working as Composers on feature films, high-end television, commercials, and a number of award-winning productions.
Graduates have gone on to compose scores that have truly earned 'iconic' status.
Recent credits include...
Napoleon
Composer Martin Phipps
Graduate Success
NFTS graduates are in demand in the UK, Europe and the US, and end up working as Composers on feature films, high-end television, commercials, and a number of award-winning productions.
Graduates have gone on to compose scores that have truly earned 'iconic' status.
Recent credits include...
All Creatures Great And Small
Composer Alex Harwood
Graduate Success
NFTS graduates are in demand in the UK, Europe and the US, and end up working as Composers on feature films, high-end television, commercials, and a number of award-winning productions.
Graduates have gone on to compose scores that have truly earned 'iconic' status.
Recent credits include...
The Beatles - Now And Then
Strings Arranger Ben Foster (credited alongside Giles Martin and Paul McCartney)
Ben's composing credits include Happy Valley, Ridley, The Good Karma Hospital, Thunderbirds Are Go, Our Girl, Scott and Bailey
Other credits include Rocketman (Arranger, Conductor, Orchestrator), Good Omens (Arranger, Conductor, Orchestrator), Doctor Who (Conductor, Orchestrator)
Graduate Success
NFTS graduates are in demand in the UK, Europe and the US, and end up working as Composers on feature films, high-end television, commercials, and a number of award-winning productions.
Graduates have gone on to compose scores that have truly earned 'iconic' status.
Recent credits include...
Heartstopper
Composer Adi Chase
