University of Westminster, founded in 1838 as the Royal Polytechnic Institution and recognized as the first polytechnic to open in London, is a public university serving 22,040 students through its main campus in Regent Street, central London, and additional campuses in Fitzrovia, Marylebone, and Harrow. Operating under the motto “Dominus fortitudo nostra” (The Lord is our Strength), the university achieved university status in 1992 and has established itself as home to “one of the best-known film courses in the world, with an international reputation for its academic and practical teaching.” The institution’s historic Regent Street Cinema, where the Lumière brothers delivered the first film performance to a paying UK audience in 1896, has earned recognition as “the birthplace of British cinema,” making Westminster a uniquely significant institution in the development of film education and cinema history.
Originally established as the Royal Polytechnic Institution in 1838 to provide “practical knowledge of the various arts and branches of science connected with manufacturers, mining operations and rural economy,” Westminster evolved through several incarnations including the Polytechnic-Regent Street (1881), Polytechnic of Central London (1970), before achieving university status in 1992. The institution pioneered numerous innovations including the first public photographic portrait studio in Europe (1841), the world’s first permanent projection theatre (1848), and the famous “Pepper’s ghost” effect (1862). Today, Westminster operates through three colleges and 12 schools encompassing around 65 departments and centres, including the Communication and Media Research Institute (CAMRI), and maintains its commitment to developing “thinking filmmakers who have something to say to, and about, the world” through comprehensive programs including Film BA Honours, Film Television and Moving Image MA, Business of Film MA, and Television Production BA Honours.
