Visual Studies Commons^™

Untouchable Beauty Of Everyday Aesthetics In Wim Wenders’ Perfect Days, Nindya Galuh Fatmawati, Agni Saraswati

Paradigma: Jurnal Kajian Budaya

Wim Wenders, in his latest film Perfect Days (2023), presents an everyday aesthetic experience conveyed through a visually striking aesthetic characterized by a "peaceful" gaze. This study aims to explore the everyday aesthetics depicted in Perfect Days, which align with traditional Japanese aesthetics, specifically wabi-sabi. The analysis is framed using Todd McGowan's Cinema of Desire theory. The research employs a qualitative descriptive method to examine the subject and utilizes a Psychoanalytic approach for analysis. The findings reveal that object ‘a’ in Perfect Days is highlighted through mise-en-scène and music, as these two cinematic elements facilitate a moment of …

Star Wars And Gender In 1980s America, Melissa Ulmer

Rushton Journal of Undergraduate Humanities Research

This research paper examines the role of gender in the franchise Star Wars. With the first installment of the trilogy released in 1977, many expected this film would turn out like many before. However, the world that George Lucas created was an instant hit and continues to be today. This paper focuses on how the franchise was set apart from other science fiction films based on a defiance of typical gender roles that were prevalent in the late twentieth century, specifically focusing on the two leading roles, Luke Skywalker and Leia Organa, and employing analysis of the films, cast …

Under The Influence: New York’S Crisis Of Addiction, Exploitation, And Drug Policy Within Depression-Era Films, Simone White

Rushton Journal of Undergraduate Humanities Research

During the 1930s, New York City stood at the center of media innovation and cultural influence. It was also the center of the continuing opioid epidemic and a pivotal site for the reception and promotion of addiction films. This article argues that Depression-era films, The Struggle (1931), Narcotic (1933), and Assassin of Youth (1938), reflected economic, political, and moral anxieties surrounding drug abuse. Using National Board of Review records, studio pressbooks, and contemporary periodicals, this study examines how cinematic portrayals of addiction influenced ideologies, criminalized users, and deepened social stigma.

Adaptive Compulsion, Amanda A. Santos

Electronic Theses, Projects, and Dissertations

Adaptive

Adjective

Adap.tive ( ə-ˈdap-tiv)

of, relating to, or being a heritable trait that serves a specific function and improves an organism's fitness or survival

Compulsion

Noun

Com.pul.sion (kəm-ˈpəl-shən)

a repetitive behavior or mental act that a person feels driven to perform to alleviate the anxiety and distress caused by an unwanted thought or urge, known as an obsession.

For years we have lived in unprecedented times. From the worldwide quarantine in 2020 resulting from the pandemic, to our current US political crisis. The constant barrage of events is overwhelming and demoralizing.

The work in this gallery is a display …

Entre La Sombra Y El Lienzo: Clea Dessendre Como Modelo De Personaje Secundario Complejo, Lydia Huijbregts Jaen, Antonio Horno López

GDI. Revista de investigación de Género, Diseño e Innovación

Introducción: Este artículo analiza a Clea Dessendre en Clair Obscure: Expedition 33, explorando su versión real y la pintada en el lienzo, y su impacto en la narrativa del juego. Metodología: Se aplicó un análisis narrativo, psicológico y ludológico, integrando teorías de duelo (Kübler-Ross), socialización (Baumrind) y comunicación (DiSC) vinculadas con la jugabilidad. Resultados: Clea-Real encarna disciplina y perfeccionismo; Clea-Pintada, una proyección maternal. El gameplay conecta su psicología con la experiencia del jugador. Discusión: Las identidades paralelas muestran cómo traumas y expectativas moldean personajes complejos. Conclusiones: Clea evidencia cómo la narrativa y la mecánica se fusionan para crear …

Investigating The Relationship Between Noun Classes And Plant Folk Taxonomy In Chasu Language Of Kilimanjaro Region In Tanzania, Peter Rabson Mziray

Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences

The current study investigates the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu (G 22). The study focuses on two objectives: the first objective is to describe the plant folk taxonomy in Chasu and the second objective is to determine the relationship between noun classes and plant folk taxonomy in Chasu. Data were collected from rural villages in Same and Mwanga districts by using free listing, field interviews (jungle-walk-and-identify), and written texts containing Chasu plant names. The findings reveal that Chasu folk taxonomy reflects different ethnobotanical categories; including a unique beginner which is mmea/mimea ‘plant(s)’, and three life …

Space For New History: Stony Island Arts Bank, Seb Taylor

Digital Laboratory: Publisher of Internet Journal

The Stony Island Arts Bank (SIAB) in Southside Chicago was designed and founded as a piece of art itself, with the organizational structure being a museum of Black cultural production. This article examines how the institution constructs an epistemology of Blackness through its archival practices, community programming, and spatial claims on the South Side. Founded by artist Theaster Gates through the Rebuild Foundation, the SIAB positions institutional design as an art medium, operating in productive tension with orthodox museum methods. The permanent collections—including the Johnson Publishing Company archives and Frankie Knuckles vinyl collection—function as epistemological records of Black self-documentation unmediated …

An Interview With An Instagram Archivist: @404mph Interviews @Onlystarleft, 404mph (On Instagram)

Digital Laboratory: Publisher of Internet Journal

An Interview with an Instagram Archivist: @404MPH Interviews @ONLYSTARLEFT is a dialogue conducted entirely through iMessage, presented as both a publication and a designed artifact. Within this text exchange, the conversation navigates themes of digital preservation, authorship, and self-curation—examining how social media aesthetics transform personal experience into collective memory. @ONLYSTARLEFT reflects on the act of archiving not as static documentation but as a living, participatory practice shaped by the speed and impermanence of online culture. Formally, the project recognizes the iPhone as a cultural mediator—its interface shaping not only how we communicate, but how we perceive and construct value within …

Pathos, Fall 2025, Portland State University. Student Publications Board

Pathos

Editor: Adriana Stanzione

From Altamont To Astroworld: An Analysis Of Management Issues In Large Scale Music Festivals, Jennifer Morriss

Honors College Theses

The most common problems in music festivals can largely be broken into two categories: risks to the individual and risks on a grand scale. It is the responsibility of event managers to consider how to best keep everyone safe and maintain proper organization. Risks to the individual are often things like substance use and abuse, harm reduction, and sexual assault or harassment. Meanwhile, broad risks tend to be issues of evacuation and emergency management, crowd safety, stampedes, and casualties or violence. It is crucial to reflect on prior common safety and security issues when setting out to produce a large …

Exploring Identity Through Six-Panel Memoirs With Collegiate And Secondary Students, Ewa Mcgrail, Lisa York

SANE journal: Sequential Art Narrative in Education

Memoir writing helps to provide mirrors and windows (Bishop, 1990) into the larger human experience by conveying narratives that center on actual life experiences. While memoirs are a well-established genre in literature and literary criticism (Aronowicz, 2024; Kleinbauer, 2007), only recently have graphic novels, including graphic novel memoirs, gained popularity and respect not only among teens, librarians and educators but also among the public (Williams, 2022). In this article, we describe a six-panel memoir assignment completed by collegiate and secondary students and analyze a sampling of memoir creations by both groups of students. Specifically, we are interested in the expressions …

On Petrochemical Fantasies: The Art And Energy Of American Comics, Mike Classon Frangos

Criticism

Petrochecmical Fantasies: The Art and Energy of American Comics by Daniel Worden. The Ohio State University Press: Columbus, 2024. Pp. 171. $34.95 cloth.

The Uses Of Dramaturgical Research In Cinematic Storytelling, Asset Design, And Adaptation In Animation, Delaney L. Walker

All Theses

“The Black Hair” is a creative project that explores the convergence of cinematic adaptation, dramaturgical research, and animation design in retelling a traditional Japanese short folktale from the Heian Era. Rooted in the practice of theatrical dramaturgy, this thesis advocates for a research-driven creative pipeline by developing a culturally respectful and historically grounded approach to developing cinematic storyboards. By thoroughly examining the chronicles of history and the sociocultural context, the project seeks to foster deeper cultural appreciation while reintroducing a lesser-known narrative to modern audiences through a visual medium. The project draws stylistic and narrative inspiration from iconic Japanese filmmakers …

Film Review: Motherhood And Mathematics: Hegemonic Femininity And Deviance In Shakuntala Devi (2020), Bharat Dhiman

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

No abstract provided.

An Exploration Of Elderly Representation & Stereotypes In Animation, Tyler Kidd

All Theses

In the world of animated features, supporting cast members are often reduced down to simple character traits in order to give the audience a simple idea of their personality or role in the story, or to support the creation of a work that is easier to understand for people of all ages. However, this can often result in the application of negative tropes that do not reflect kindly on those being depicted. The elderly are a group that often get caught in these stereotypes, being depicted as wrinkly, clumsy, overweight villains. While you can still find many positive portrayals in …

A Queer Feminist Response To The Racist Reception Of Halle Bailey’S The Little Mermaid: Misogynoir And Anti-Fan Facebook Users In Vietnam, Trung M. Nguyen

Journal of International Women's Studies

This essay examines the ways anti-Blackness is manifested in Vietnam through Facebook anti-fans’ reactions to Disney’s The Little Mermaid (2023) starring Halle Bailey, a Black American actress, in the role of Ariel. Analyzing the racist and colorist remarks within Facebook users’ comments and posts about the movie and utilizing misogynoir as the main concept of critique, the author demonstrates the phenomenon of anti-Black misogyny in Vietnam and focuses on the “I’m not racist, but…” trope. Uncovering the queer history of Hans Christian Andersen’s work, this essay adopts a queer feminist lens to defend the filmmakers’ choice to depict Ariel as …

Representasi Cancel Culture Di Korea Selatan Dalam Film Pilot (2024), Sharfina Rahmanita Adani, Amelia Burhan

Multikultura

Cancel culture is a social phenomenon that occurs when an individual receives public backlash due to actions or statements considered to violate social norms. This phenomenon has become increasingly prominent in South Korea, attracting attention in its highly collective and responsive digital society, which has led to its portrayal in various media works. One such work is the film Pilot (2024), which tells the story of a famous pilot's reputation falling after a gender-biased comment of his spread widely online and drew public scrutiny. This study aims to analyze the representation of cancel culture in the film Pilot (2024) using …

Studium Punctum: Politik Citra Putin Dalam Foto Саммит Стран Брикс 2024 / Sammit Stran Briks (Ktt Brics 2024), Dyah Hayu Permatasari Wahyuningsih, Banggas Limbong

Multikultura

This research takes a data corpus in the form of visuals provided by five Russian digital news channels with a focus on the image of Vladimir Putin as the leader of Russia at the BRICS Summit congress in Kazan in 2024. The author will analyze five online news channels from Russia published between October 23, 2024 and October 25, 2024 with headlines related to the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan. The method used in this research is a descriptive analysis method. Through this research, the author will explain the meaning contained in the visualization of these online news as a …

Review Of Comic Books, Special Collections, And The Academic Library, Nicholas Wantsala

Journal of Contemporary Archival Studies

Comic Books, Special Collections, and the Academic Library is a pioneering scholarly work by Brian Flota and Katie Morris that documents the integration of comic books into archival special collections and academic libraries. This book, inspired by the donation of Flota's father's extensive comic collection to James Madison University, traces the growth of comic books as scholarly resources and library holdings. Featuring contributions from 35 scholars across 20 chapters, it explores key questions such as the value of collecting comics and their role in library instruction. The essays, enhanced with suggestions for further reading and informative footnotes, offer a comprehensive …

The Absence Of Female Representation In Film Bambang (2022): The Male Gaze And Lacanian Objet Petit A, Brigitta Winasis, Rias Antho Rahmi Suharjo

International Review of Humanities Studies

The discourse of the male gaze in popular culture constructs ideal standards of femininity deemed attractive based on traits and physical appearances that are desired by men. The film Bambang (2022) is an example of media that employs the male gaze as an exclusive tool to present female characters. By applying the mise-en-scène analysis method in film studies, this article explores the problem of female characters representation that is reduced to be desired objects through the concepts of Laura Mulvey's male gaze and Lacanian objet petit a. This article finds that Bambang (2022) utilizes objectifying dialogue by the two …

De Vente A Alemania, Pepe A ¿Te Has Venido A Alemania, Pepe?: Aspectos Económicos Y Culturales De La Emigración En Dos Generaciones Distintas, Daniel López Fernández

Homage to Alexander von Humboldt: Travels to and from Spain Throughout the Centuries / Homenaje a Alexander von Humboldt: Viajes hacia y desde España de todos los siglos

En Vente a Alemania, Pepe, el epónimo protagonista decide seguir el camino de muchos de sus compatriotas y abandonar temporalmente España con la intención de ganar más dinero en el extranjero, una esperanza que se ve pronto frustrada. Décadas más tarde, la crisis económica que comenzó en 2008 parece haber dado lugar a una repetición de este capítulo tragicómico de la historia española. No obstante, existen diferencias notables entre ambas generaciones. La migración actual atañe a una generación muy distinta de la que se marchó en los años sesenta y setenta. Se trata, en muchos casos, de inmigrantes con una …

Through The Glass Darkly: Cross-Cultural Collaboration And The Experimental Adaptation Of Shakespeare, James Thompson

Staff Scholarship - Australia & Dubai

Through the Glass Darkly is an experimental Australian-Indonesian film adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth, employing fragmented narratives, hallucinatory imagery, and cross-cultural spiritual frameworks to explore violence, guilt, and moral corruption. The project emerged from a collaboration between Australian and Indonesian film professionals and educators. Drawing on trauma cinema aesthetics and Indonesian mystical traditions (Kebatinan, Rangda masks), the adaptation structures itself around five vignettes: prophecy, murder, hallucination, retribution, and washing. The filmmaker employs a "heuretic" research methodology, prioritizing exploration over interpretation, to create a hybrid cultural text that interrogates Western canonical literature through postcolonial perspectives while navigating censorship through international collaboration.

Reveltion Perth International Film Festival Academic Conference 2025, James Thompson

Staff Scholarship - Australia & Dubai

The Revelation International Film Festival conference invites vibrant discussions and debates, exploring creative practice and praxis, and the theoretical surrounds of contemporary cinematic and screen culture.

Revelation stands as Australia’s exclusive international film festival integrating academic discourse within its renowned screening program. Our mission extends beyond screens, sharing compelling discoveries with audiences across the country and beyond. Embracing a pivotal role in fostering film discourse and analysis, Revelation is a cornerstone in Australian cinematic dialogue.

Under the auspices of SAE University College Perth, the academic conference took place at the SAE campus 116-120 Roe St.  Northbridge, Perth, Western Australia.

The …

Terror: The Dark Aesthetics Of Technology, Klaus Schnitzer

LASER Journal

Why is one drawn to the sleek shapes of missiles, fighter planes and massive bombers whose bellies can unleash formidable destruction?

There is an undeniable beauty in designs that once were the epitome of engineering and technology - the equivalency of speed, agility and precision. But this aestheticization of weapons of mass destruction cannot blind one to the ultimate purpose of these sleek objects, be it aggressive or defensive.

Aproximaciones A La Cultura Contemporánea: Un Encuentro De La Visualidad, La Narrativa, La Semiótica Y Su Didáctica, Romano Ponce-Díaz Phd, Iván Ávila-González Phd, Emilce Beatriz Sánchez Castellón Phd, Gabriel Segundo Iguarán Montiel Msc, Juan Carlos González Vidal Phd, Ximena Díaz-Santillán B.A., Andrea Alejandra Echeverría Barrios B.A, Diana Estefanía Martínez Dagnino B.A, Edgar Ávila González Phd, Diana Esperanza Álvarez Campos B.A, Aurora Mariazell Romero Martínez Msc, José Abraham Mitre Lázaro Msc

STEM for Success Resources

Este volumen reúne reflexiones críticas y propuestas analíticas que convergen en tres ejes:

La voz, la identidad y el cuerpo.

Producto de la colaboración entre la Uniguajira y la Facultad de Letras de la Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolás de Hidalgo, Aproximaciones a la Cultura Contemporánea: un encuentro de la visualidad, la narrativa, la semiótica y su didáctica articula un corpus interdisciplinario que examina fenómenos culturales actuales desde perspectivas semióticas, literarias, pedagógicas y visuales.

A través de una estructura rizomática, el libro desborda los límites tradicionales de los campos académicos para ofrecer una cartografía flexible de lectura, en la que …

Medst 343w - Nonfiction Forms (8 Week Async Section), Ash Marinaccio

Open Educational Resources

In this course, we will explore how various forms of nonfiction storytelling represent reality and shape our understanding of the world. Over the semester, we will examine how “the real” is represented across different mediums, including theatre, film, photography, and literature. Through critical readings, case studies, creative exercises, and Brightspace discussions, we will examine the intricate interplay between truth, ethics, form, and authorship in documentary and nonfiction works.

The course is divided into five units. The first unit introduces foundational questions of ethics, authorship, and cultural responsibility in nonfiction storytelling. The following units focus on specific forms: documentary theatre, nonfiction …

Intersectional Realities, Multi-Dimensional Films: Reading Julie Dash's Illusions As An Activist Text, Amelia Morrison

University Honors Theses

This paper reads Julie Dash's 1982 film Illusions as an activist text, which challenges dominant cinematic and historical narratives through its Black feminist perspective. It explores the cinematic and narrative devices that Dash uses--including the weaving of fantasy and history, the strategic use of period aesthetics, and masking--to expose and subvert the mechanisms of white supremacist and patriarchal hegemony within Hollywood. Drawing on intersectional feminist theory from scholars like Kimberlé Crenshaw, Patricia Hill Collins, and bell hooks, alongside cinematic theory, this analysis demonstrates how Illusions critiques the historical erasure of people of color from United States cinema and history. By …

Beyond The Meadow: Exploring The Violence And Dynamics Of Power In Watership Down Through Critical Animal Studies And Cinematographic Lens, Marwa Hussein Abdelfattah

Arts and Design

This paper aims to analyze the 2018 Netflix miniseries adaptation of Richard Adams's classic novel, Watership Down, using Critical Animal Studies and a Cinematographic lens. The analysis focuses on its visual storytelling through the camera angles, lighting, and character representation. Adams’ novel was adapted three times. The first two animated versions were horrifying to the extent that one of them was banned. The most recent version used Computer-Generated Imagery (CGI) technology to be more friendly. The CGI version toned down explicit brutality while maintaining the novel's darker themes. Unlike the two previous versions, the CGI focused on inferred violence and …

Theatricality Of The Ephemeral: Media Of Surplus And Spectatorship In Liang Dynasty (南朝梁, 502-557) Palace-Style Poetry And Hou Hsiao-Hsien’S A City Of Sadness (1989), Yingyi Wang

Comparative Literature M.A. Essays

This essay focuses on the mediation of spectatorship experience by “ephemeral media” in Liang Dynasty (南朝梁, 502-557) palace-style poetry and Hou Hsiao-hsien’s film A City of Sadness (1989). Drawing from Alexander Galloway’s “the interface effects” in new media studies, I investigate how the diegetic “ephemeral media” in these two texts, such as dust, candlelight, silence, and writing, function as opaque interfaces that complicate spectatorship. I examine spectatorship experience from the angle of ephemeral media by looking at how they direct spectators’ attention from the world of representations to processes of mediation. Transplanting Xiaofei Tian’s notion of the “surplus” in her …

Cultural Shadows: Vampires And The Shifting Fears Of The West, A Creative Exploration Of Vampire Media And Its Reflection Of Evolving Social Anxieties, Tasha Sayre

University Honors Theses

Cultural Shadows: Vampires and the Shifting Fears of the West is a creative-critical thesis that explores vampire media as a reflection of evolving social anxieties in Western culture. Focusing primarily on film and television, with reference to key literary texts, this study examines how the vampire figure is used to articulate and dramatize recurring societal fears—particularly those surrounding women's sexuality and autonomy, queer identity, and class-based inequality. Through close readings of influential vampire narratives, the thesis demonstrates how these stories mirror cultural tensions and moral panics, transforming the vampire into a symbol of both fear and fascination. Drawing on gender …