Studies Beyond the Screen

University of Exeter students triumphed with a unique proposal focusing on research methodologies, linking into the extensive archival resource at the University’s Bill Douglas Centre for the History of Film and Popular Culture.

The University of Exeter will host the event on Saturday 25 April and is open to members of the public who register in advance.  The importance of archival research and the sources that have been used in research will be discussed at the conference by influential film experts such as Sarah Street, Ian Christie, Steve Neale and long term contributor to the BDC Peter Jewell. 

Lisa Stead, PhD and Arts and Humanities Research Council scholarship student who helped support the bid to ‘Screen’ focuses heavily on archive material such as fan magazines for her research.  By looking at fan writing as it appears on letters and poetry pages in fan magazines, she has been able to piece together a stronger sense of what female audiences had to say about the stars they adored and loathed in the 1920s.  

Lisa explained, ‘Female cinemagoers preferred American stars, whom they saw as being more glamorous and essentially modern both on and off the screen than their British counterparts. The most popular stars are those able to balance ideas of ‘New Woman’ against traditional norms of appropriate feminine behaviour; suggesting that women used these stars personas to reflect upon their own experiences of changing and conflicting ideas of contemporary femininity in twenties Britain.’

The symposium will highlight the importance of primary sources in conducting postgraduate research. Professor Steve Neale, Chair of Film Studies at the University of Exeter explained, ‘It differs from other events in being focussed on the topic of research itself though in doing so it will also highlight gaps in existing knowledge. The success of Exeter’s students in winning and devising such a valuable event is a tribute to their enthusiasm, knowledge and skills.’

Andrew Nelson, PhD film student, is confident that hearing the way in which senior academics approach their research will be beneficial to students and academics alike. He said ‘It will be an opportunity to learn more about the research activities of leading academics. Rarely do we get to hear about the process of undertaking a major research project, as opposed to the product of those efforts.’

He added, ‘The day will also give us a sense of the breadth of archival and extra-textual resources available to scholars at all levels. From trade journals and interviews with filmmakers to technical manuals and cultural artefacts like fan magazines and movie merchandise, looking beyond the film opens up new possibilities for screen studies research.’