1-on-1 Mastery-Based IB Film · Taipei

IB Film, from viewing to construction.

IB Film rewards the construction of meaning through cinematic techniques, not viewing alone. Lessons build from the film vocabulary and viewing instincts students bring toward the film research, written analysis, and film theorising the IB Film assessment components, and university film and cinema studies, will demand.

Audience
IB Film content, all IB Film students at international schools
Format
1-on-1, 1 to 1.5 hours per lesson
Duration
Typically across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence
Begin
Complimentary consultation & assessment class

What Students Learn

Mastery-based IB Film at the level your child's school actually requires.

IB Film is for students who want to move past viewing and watching films toward the film research, theoretical analysis, and structured written work the IB Film assessment components reward. The program covers the full IB Film Diploma Programme Subject Guide for HL and SL. Reasoning across filmmakers and film movements, including the work of filmmakers and film theorists like Hitchcock, Bazin, Eisenstein, Wong Kar-wai, Akira Kurosawa, and the film movements that shaped modern cinematic practice across cultures and periods. Working through cinematic conventions across world cinema, including the conventions students may not have encountered through their school film practice and the comparative analytical methodology the Comparative Study component rewards. Tracing the relationship between text and screen, including how directors and performers construct meaning on screen, including how filmmakers construct meaning through cinematic techniques and how creative choices shape audience experience. Building conceptual analysis for the Comparative Study, including the development of a comparative reading across two films from different cultures and structured engagement with the comparative analysis the component requires. Developing the collaborative research underpinning the Film Portfolio, including the proposal stage, the structured reflection on group filmmaking, and the written project report the component requires. Engaging with one film theorist in depth for the Collaborative Film Project (HL students only), including the research, written report, and solo performance the component requires. Integrating theoretical frameworks with practical filmmaking work, including the theory-practice connection that the IB assessment distinctively rewards across all components. These are the skills the IB Film Textual Analysis, Comparative Study, Film Portfolio, and Collaborative Film Project (HL) test, and the foundation any university film studies, cinema studies, film production, or related course will assume.

IB Film is not advanced rehearsal. The shift is from viewing to construction. Students move from watching and discussing films to integrating film theory, research into traditions and theorists, and analytical writing with the practical work they do in school. A student who can watch and discuss a film capably is doing the practical work. A student who can research the cinematic tradition behind that scene, articulate the theoretical framework the director's choices imply, develop a comparative analysis of two films from different cultural contexts that integrates traditions across cultures, and reflect analytically on the filmmaking work is doing the construction the IB assessment rewards across the four (HL) or three (SL) components. The program closes the gap between the two.

Lessons follow Harland's IB Film curriculum, built to bring students to mastery of IB Film content as defined by the IB Diploma Programme Subject Guide. The program runs ten units across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence, with each unit closing in an assessment that mirrors IB assessment formats, including the Textual Analysis, Comparative Study, and Film Portfolio structures common to HL and SL, plus the Collaborative Film Project structure HL students additionally complete. SL students cover the three SL components and HL students cover all four, with lessons calibrated to your child's level and the components they are working toward in any given unit. Studio rehearsal, performance practice, and production work continue at the student's school, and lessons focus on the research, theory, and written components the IB rubric directly tests.

Progress shows up in places parents can see. Where your child once described what they had performed, they now articulate the cinematic tradition, theorist, or convention the performance choices drew from. Where your child once rehearsed without theoretical frame, they now connect practical work to film theory with the construction the IB rubric expects. Where the Textual Analysis, Comparative Study, Film Portfolio, and Collaborative Film Project once felt like separate writing tasks, they now feel like structured analytical exercises your child can plan, research, and write against the IB rubric.

How We Teach It

IB Film taught for understanding, with the grade arriving as a consequence.

Harland's pedagogy is content-based learning. Film research, film analysis, and the construction of meaning the IB Film rewards develop through the films, film movements, and written components your child is already working with. Assessments check whether the construction holds up when the student moves to new films, theorists, or movements alone.

A student working on the Textual Analysis works on it with their teacher, building the research that connects a world film tradition or convention to its historical context and contemporary practice. A student working on the Comparative Study works on it with their teacher, developing a conceptual reading of a selected film and structured responses to the comparative analysis structure. A student working on the Film Portfolio or Collaborative Film Project works on it with their teacher, building the research and written analysis that frame the practical filmmaking the student undertakes at school.

IB Film students arrive with two layers under the surface. The score pressure is real. The May or November exam session matters for university plans, particularly for students aiming at film studies, cinema, media studies, English literature, media studies, or any field where the construction of meaning through cinematic techniques carries forward, and most students know it. But beneath the score pressure is a specific cognitive challenge that defines the IB Film assessment. Rehearsing capably is not the hard part. The hard part is researching film traditions and theorists rigorously, articulating film analysis on the page, sustaining written analysis across the Textual Analysis, Comparative Study, Film Portfolio, and Collaborative Film Project (HL), and connecting theoretical frameworks with practical work the IB rubric expects. The 1-on-1 format gives teachers room to slow down where the film-theory ground is unfamiliar, and to keep the work rigorous without losing the student's engagement with film itself. Skill and construction develop together. Neither moves far in isolation.

The format also lets teachers calibrate within the program's structure. A student fluent with practical filmmaking work but uncomfortable with film theory gets pushed toward the research the assessment will ask. Which tradition, theorist, or convention frames the choices in your performance, and why. How does this cinematic tradition connect to the theorist whose ideas your Collaborative Film Project engages with. What does the Comparative Study ask you to argue, and what theoretical framework supports your concept. A student strong on film research but weak on the sustained written components the IB Film requires gets work calibrated to the rubric's expectations. That means refining the structured analytical writing the Comparative Study expects across its four questions, integrating research evidence with cinematic reasoning, organizing the Textual Analysis, Film Portfolio report, and Collaborative Film Project report against the assessment criteria, and writing against the rubrics the IB assessment uses.

IB Film has multiple assessment components, all coursework portfolio submissions with no sit-down written exam. SL students complete three components: the Textual Analysis (a written analysis of up to 1,750 words on a 5-minute extract from a prescribed film, worth around 30 percent at SL), the Comparative Study (a recorded multimedia presentation of up to 10 minutes comparing two films from contrasting cultural contexts plus a list of sources, worth around 30 percent at SL), and the Film Portfolio (a 9-minute film reel demonstrating three production roles plus a written reflection on the processes and lessons of up to 1,750 words, worth around 40 percent at SL). HL students complete all three of those plus the Collaborative Film Project (an original 7-minute film made within a team in one specified production role, plus a 2,000-word project report, worth around 35 percent at HL with the other components reweighted accordingly). Harland's 1-on-1 IB Film program supports students through every stage of the research and written work, with explicit acknowledgment that the film production, on-set practice, and collaborative filmmaking happen at the student's school. Teachers help students choose research and analytical focuses that fit both the rubric criteria and the depth each component requires, develop the film analysis the IB assessment expects, work through the structured written components against the assessment criteria, and connect theoretical reasoning with the practical work students bring from school. The film production work sits at school per the IB Film program design, and Harland's role is the research, film analysis, and written portfolio work that turns practical filmmaking into strong IB Film submissions.

Curriculum and Alignment

A structured curriculum keyed to the IB Film Subject Guide.

IB Film at Harland follows a structured curriculum keyed to the IB Film Diploma Programme Subject Guide for HL and SL. A student who completes the program has demonstrated mastery of IB Film content as the IB Subject Guide defines it.

Harland's IB Film runs ten units across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence, with research, written analysis, and portfolio preparation integrated rather than appended. Most school IB Film courses balance studio rehearsal with written components, with the written work often happening alongside or after rehearsal. 1-on-1 lessons don't lose time to group pacing or mixed-ability instruction, so the written components get the depth they need without taking time away from the practical work students continue at school. The time saved goes into the construction the IB Diploma assessment rewards.

Standards
IB Film Diploma Programme Subject Guide for HL and SL, with the Textual Analysis, Comparative Study, Film Portfolio, and Collaborative Film Project (HL) rubrics as the cross-cutting skill framework
Materials
Harland curriculum materials, film theorist and tradition research materials, playtexts the student's school program is engaging with, and exemplar IB Film portfolio components integrated as ongoing input
Assessment
End-of-unit assessments aligned with the IB Film Textual Analysis, Comparative Study, Film Portfolio, and Collaborative Film Project (HL) assessment criteria
Reporting
Skill-level tracking against Harland's internal rubrics, mapped to IB assessment criteria

Prerequisites and What Comes Next

Where IB Film fits in your child's learning.

Before starting

IB Film is an elective DP subject and students are usually placed by their school based on prior film experience or interest. The program rewards comfortable academic reading, essay-level writing, film vocabulary, and willingness to engage with film theory alongside practical work. Students arriving with weaker analytical English fluency work through gaps in foundational analytical reading before or alongside IB Film proper.

One thing to know about scope. IB Film is a creative-portfolio subject. The film production, on-set practice, and creative production work that the IB Film program assumes happen at the student's school under the school's film teacher and film program. Harland is not an IB-authorized delivery school for IB Film and cannot serve as the school film program. Harland's 1-on-1 tutoring focuses on the film research, theoretical analysis, written portfolio components, and the connection of theory with the practical work the student does at school. The film production work continues at school, and Harland's role is the research, theoretical analysis, and structured written portfolio work the IB Film rubric directly tests.

The consultation and assessment class establishes whether IB Film is the right starting point and whether parallel work in foundational analytical reading or Academic English would help. Some students arrive needing both English-foundation reinforcement and IB Film-specific support, and the lesson plan covers what's most urgent first.

What comes after

Most students complete IB Film across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence, with portfolio components developed across the cadence and final submissions due in the May or November session. Cadence varies by entry point and component timing, with most students attending one to three sessions per week.

IB Film is graded on the IB 1-7 scale, contributing to the IB Diploma's 45-point total. After the Diploma, the film research, film analysis, and the construction of meaning through cinematic techniques IB Film develops carries directly into university film studies, cinema studies, film production, English literature, cultural studies, and any field that combines analytical writing with creative work. Students choosing IB Film as their Extended Essay subject work with their primary teacher across the research-question, methodology, and writing stages on the Extended Essay program.

The longer-term aim of IB Film support is to make itself unnecessary. The program brings students to mastery of IB Film content. Students complete their portfolio components, submit them through their school, and the program's role ends. A parent who's no longer worried about their child's IB Film work is the point of all of it.

Common Questions

Common questions about IB Film at Harland.

Who is IB Film at Harland for? +
IB Film at Harland is for high school students working through the IB Diploma Programme. Most of our students fall into one of two patterns. Most are taking IB Film at school and come to us for support alongside the school program, building the film research, theoretical analysis, and written portfolio work the IB Film rewards differently from typical school film instruction. Some are preparing for the May or November submission in an intensive run-up, working through portfolio component drafts, structured written component refinement, and targeted criterion-by-criterion review in the weeks or months before the submission. Students whose situation falls outside these two patterns, including students transitioning curricula mid-DP, students at schools without strong IB programs, or students who need a more flexible curriculum than the standard IB Film program provides, work with us through Harland's Academic Coaching framework, where the curriculum is calibrated to the individual situation rather than the IB Subject Guide alone.
My child can watch films attentively but struggles with the film theory research, written analysis, and theoretical analysis the IB Film portfolio components require. Can the program help with that kind of thinking? +
This is a familiar situation. The IB Film assessment tests a kind of thinking that school viewing time doesn't always practice directly. Researching filmmakers and film movements rigorously, connecting filmmaking practice to its theoretical underpinnings, and articulating film analysis in structured written form for the IB portfolio components. Sustaining written analysis across the Textual Analysis, Comparative Study, Film Portfolio report, and Collaborative Film Project report (HL) with the construction the IB rubric rewards. We work directly on these skills, slowing down on the film-theory research the IB Film distinctively requires, on the structured written analysis the portfolio components test, and on the criterion-by-criterion alignment that distinguishes a strong response from a vague one. Most students who come to us strong on practical filmmaking but struggling on the written components close that gap by working through the rubrics explicitly, with sample component work and practice under sustained writing conditions.
What does the IB Film program cover? +
The program follows the IB Film Diploma Programme Subject Guide for HL and SL. Content covers filmmakers and film movements across cultures and periods (Hitchcock, Bazin, Eisenstein, Wong Kar-wai, Akira Kurosawa, world cinema conventions), the relationship between film language and meaning, comparative analysis across cultural contexts, film production roles, and the structured written analysis the portfolio components require. SL students complete three components: Textual Analysis (up to 1,750-word written analysis of a 5-minute film extract, around 30 percent), Comparative Study (up to 10-minute recorded multimedia presentation comparing two films from contrasting cultural contexts, around 30 percent), and Film Portfolio (9-minute film reel across three production roles plus written reflection, around 40 percent). HL students complete all three plus the Collaborative Film Project (original 7-minute film in one production role plus a 2,000-word project report, around 35 percent at HL with the other three components reweighted accordingly). Harland's program runs ten units across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence, calibrated to the framework your child's specific course route requires.
How long is each lesson and how often does my child attend? +
Lessons are 1-on-1 sessions of 1 to 1.5 hours, in person at our head office in Da'an or online. Most students attend one to three lessons per week. Harland's IB Film program runs ten units across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence. At one or two lessons per week alongside a school IB course, the program runs through the DP cycle and concludes with the May or November submission. At three lessons per week, the program covers the same content at faster pace. For students preparing in an intensive run-up to the submission, the cadence increases as the deadlines approach, typically two to four months at higher frequency. The Student Coordinator helps you choose the cadence that fits.
How are lessons scheduled, and what if we need to reschedule? +
Lessons happen on a fixed weekly slot reserved with your child's primary teacher. This protects the teacher's time and keeps a consistent rhythm for your child. If you need to reschedule, give us at least 24 hours of notice and we'll find another time when your teacher is available. Many families add classes during summer or winter vacation, either to accelerate progress or to make up for a slower term. Once a unit has started, it should be completed within a defined window. The Student Coordinator walks through the details when you enroll.
Can my child begin IB Film over the summer? +
Yes. Summer enrollment is available across Harland's IB Diploma programs, with two patterns. Students preparing for the upcoming May or November submission in an intensive run-up sometimes begin or accelerate in summer at higher cadence (typically two to three sessions per week), particularly when their portfolio component drafts are still open, when their school IB Film course pacing has fallen behind, or when the run-up to the submission needs concentrated time. Students preparing for a submission session further out (i.e., entering or partway through the 2-year DP) often use summer for a head-start block, working through film research, written component preparation, or building the prerequisite foundation before the next school year begins. The Student Coordinator helps you choose the right summer pattern based on which session your child is preparing for and where their IB Film work currently stands.
How do you measure progress? +
Progress is measured through unit assessments aligned with the IB Film Subject Guide. Harland's IB Film program is organized into ten units across the 2-year IB Diploma cadence. Each unit closes with an assessment that mirrors IB assessment formats, including the Textual Analysis, Comparative Study, Film Portfolio, and Collaborative Film Project (HL) component structures, plus the IB Film assessment rubric, and measures conceptual understanding, film research depth, structured written analysis, and the construction that connects film theory to defensible analytical claims about cinematic meaning across the unit's content. Parents receive updates after every lesson and formal progress reports when each unit ends. Skill-level tracking uses Harland's internal rubrics, which map to IB assessment criteria. Where helpful, the Student Coordinator translates this into the expectations of your child's school.
How do we begin? +
Every Harland relationship begins with a consultation, followed by a 1-on-1 assessment class. The consultation is about your goals and your child's situation. The assessment class is about how your child works in the subject. Together they tell us where to start and what kind of teacher will fit best.

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