Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2021, Popular Culture

Hollywood filmmakers have recently, and dramatically, changed their depictions of women in Action Movies in the Two-Thousand-Teens. There has been a dramatic disparity between images of violent men and violent women. However, filmmakers are now giving action heroines the same attention they gave to action heroes. This thesis examines Mad Max: Fury Road, Atomic Blonde, Wonder Woman, Wonder Woman 1984, and Birds of Prey: And the Fantabulous Emancipation of One Harley Quinn to make clear much of the progress, and one or two pitfalls, these films have presented audiences with, including the use of tropes that were previously, in terms of Hollywood major motion pictures, mostly only seen in male-led Action Movies.

Committee: Becca Cragin Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Esther Clinton Ph.D. (Advisor) Subjects: Film Studies; Womens Studies

Ph.D., Antioch University, 2025, Leadership and Change

Chinook is an original screenplay about a Vietnam vet with PTSD who meets a World War II vet in a VA Home, and the screenplay takes one afternoon to unfold. This dissertation explains how Chinook came to be, with all of the processes undertaken. It begins with an introduction about the characters in the screenplay and who these characters are based on. There are several books, movies, and articles contained in this section to make the characters, events, and flashbacks of what actually happened in World War II and Vietnam. The best resources were conversations with actual veterans from either war. While these veterans may not be quoted directly, and their specific wartime experience in combat is not used, a pattern of raw courage, being in horrific battles, killing the enemy, and reluctance to relive it all emerges. Lastly is a section on Screenplay Writing which contains information on the correct format a screenplay needs to be in for a director to consider it. The Methods of Working Creatively explains the roles of many people in the field of acting and how certain people were directly responsible in the process of writing and completing Chinook. It explores the success of networking as the only method which worked to get the screenplay in perfect format, theme, and focus. There are two sections on how Chinook is unique, and then what the plan is for the future of the screenplay. The next five sections come directly from the “Beat Sheet,” the term and definition arising from networking and finding the perfect person to assist with the writing and formatting of the play so that a director will consider it. The final section of the essay contains a comparison of Chinook with ten other war movies, with how Chinook uses some of the same techniques, and identifies other procedures which would help greatly if used in the filming of the screenplay. This section uses Cinema Verite as the basis for the comparisons of each war movie to Chinook and explores how (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Carol Barrett PhD (Committee Chair); Diane Allerdyce PhD (Committee Member); Elden Golden PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Motion Pictures

Doctor of Philosophy, The Ohio State University, 2024, English

In 2008, Hollywood identified a (relatively) new storytelling strategy that I call the elegiac sequel. These kinds of films appear at least ten years after the prior entry in the franchise or series, and feature a returning cast member, usually a star who has maintained popularity in the time between films. I argue that these elegiac sequels allow filmmakers and audiences opportunities to revisit the past both within the storyworld and in the real world, using the gap between entries as a way of thinking through how the past has influenced the present. In the course of my dissertation, I write about the pre-history of the elegiac sequel starting with The Sin of Harold Diddlebock in 1947 and moving up through the start of the elegiac boom period in 2008 with the release of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. In this chapter I examine the industrial crises points at which these nostalgic films look to the past for answers about an uncertain present in Hollywood as it comes under threat from TV, cable, and streaming services, among others. The next chapter is an investigation of how elegiac sequel trailers (and, by extension, the films themselves) serve two audiences and create a heightened sense of emotional response from the core features of the elegiac sequel, namely their genre reinventions, story extensions, and the revivals of stars in beloved character roles. By studying the intensified form of the trailer, I highlight the pleasures audiences can derive from elegiac sequels in their full-length forms. Finally, my last chapter concerns the ways certain fans respond to elegiac sequels that modernize the ideas, themes, and casts with more diverse characters and actors being centered in roles that were primarily held by straight white cis men. I use the three Star Wars elegiac sequel films, The Force Awakens, The Last Jedi, and The Rise of Skywalker, to examine how some people who did not enjoy the first two films in the trilogy alongside con (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Jared Gardner (Advisor); Amanpal Garcha (Committee Member); Ryan Friedman (Committee Member) Subjects: Film Studies

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2023, Popular Culture

This thesis explores the stereotypical image of Arabs in Hollywood films from the era of silent films to contemporary productions. It investigates the reasons, circumstances, and reactions that have shaped the stereotypical portrayal of Arabs in these films. This thesis focuses on three specific films: The Sheik (1921), from the silent movies era; Rules of Engagement (2000), prior to the events of September 11; and Syriana (2005), produced after silent movies and September 11 events. Several other films are also occasionally examined to understand the stereotypical representations of Arabs in each time period, covering the 1920s through the 2010s. This thesis uses textual and visual analysis to analyze the films and understand what the movie directors perceive as Arab culture in these movies. Therefore, the first chapter analyzes old movies, from the beginnings of the Arab characters in Hollywood to movies before the Gulf War 1990-1991. The second chapter explores the movies covering the post-Gulf War to recent times. The third chapter presents the results of academic studies and the opinions of notable American and Arab scholars and authors regarding the stereotypical image of Arabs in American cinema. The thesis shows that historical events have had the most significant impact on the portrayal of a negative stereotype of Arabs in Hollywood films. Additionally, the ignorance of Arab culture and the perception of European superiority over other nations and races created factors to this stereotype. Moreover, the absence of Arabs from the Hollywood film industry has played a significant role in the distorted and unnatural portrayal of Arabs in American cinema.

Committee: Jeremy Wallach Ph.D. (Committee Member); Kristen Rudisill Ph.D. (Committee Chair) Subjects: American Studies; Ethnic Studies; Film Studies; Middle Eastern Studies; Theater Studies

Master of Fine Arts (MFA), Bowling Green State University, 2023, Creative Writing/Poetry

In Almond Overflow & Other Stunts, groups of people and objects do actions: They make films and artworks, attempt big, ambitious business exploits, experience romance, hijack institutions and occasions, change plans, or cast off to form other groups. Water is both a space and a vehicle for events in the poems. Different characters engage the speaker in an array of dates, gigs, friendships, and memberships in which emotional connections are made. A fairly consistent speaker confronts, embraces, resists, becomes, and shifts again. A recurring character is the stunt double, who collaborates with the speaker, stands-in for his stunts, and they date on and off. Some of the actions are inspired by performance art, particularly of the 1960s and 1970s, over-the-top social media antics, action movies, and other dramatic practices. Another motif is artistic productions taking place within the poems, such as filmmaking, sculptures, installations, commercials, and edits toward meaningful excitement. Through continuous movement, the collection is interested in poems behaving as actions or stunts as well as literary constructions.

Committee: Lawrence Coates (Committee Member); Larissa Szporluk (Committee Chair) Subjects: Literature

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2022, English

A look at classic movies through a queer lens, this thesis focuses on the reasons I am interested in specific pieces of media as a nonbinary person. I explore the “problem” of my interest in queer representation that is either only hinted at or is mostly queer because of its adopted audience. Through a combination of poetry and nonfiction essays, I navigate the idea of “messy” queer representation and the ways in which it enriches the queering of film. Imperfect representation results in a deeper understanding of the imperfection of gender, gender presentation, and the constant movement of the queer person toward self-recognition.

Committee: Nick White (Committee Member); Marcus Jackson (Advisor) Subjects: Gender; Gender Studies; Literature; Motion Pictures

Master of Science (MS), Ohio University, 2021, Journalism (Communication)

This paper aims to find similarities and differences in the portrayal of female characters in seven Disney's original films and their modern remakes. With the help of qualitative film analysis, the researcher takes a closer look at five scenes per movie to filter out crucial information on whether portrayals have changed throughout the years and if so, how these changes manifest. The analysis pays particular attention to the external appearance of the female characters, their behavior and personality, their relationship with others, and their role in society. In addition to the pure analysis of the portrayal, the main message of the films is examined for differences and similarities, to determine which values and norms are transported and how these have developed over time, if this is the case. The analysis finds that some films have been adapted to modern times, showing female characters more active and independent, and not make it all about men. Nevertheless, it also becomes clear that the perfection of actors' looks is still very present, and even if external beauty is no longer as much of a theme in remakes as it is in most of the originals, one can find almost no optical flaws in the characters' appearances.

Committee: Hans Meyer (Advisor); Kelly Ferguson (Committee Member); Rosanna Planer (Committee Member) Subjects: Film Studies; Gender

Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA), Ohio University, 2021, Film

Juliana Olivo's paper, "Where have all the queer kids gone?" examines why and how queer and trans representation seem to be blooming in American television. It provides historical context and analyzes 3 popular American TV shows with breakthrough trans and queer characters.

Committee: Lindsey Martin (Advisor); David Colagiovanni (Committee Member); Erin Schlumpf (Committee Member) Subjects: Film Studies

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2020, Popular Culture

While much of the focus of past textual analysis of films within the superhero genre has focused on characterizations of heroes, visual iconography, and the logistics of filming or framing a scene, academia has vastly overlooked the necessity of a film's soundtrack, not only as a basic narrative tool and genre locator, but as a means to further understand how a cultural perception of the material is being reflected by the very musical choices presented on a score. While there has been an influx of research focusing on how a culture perceives its heroes – in this case superheroes – during times of great change within a society (either politically, socially, economically, or culturally; for example, the terrorist attack on American soil on 9/11/2001), I have found there to be a lack of research involving how the musical themes of superheroes reflect our cultural views and feelings at a specific point in time. This phenomenon is in need of further research because there is a need to understand how a culture's perception of this change can be reflected in musical themes found in a film's musical score. The following thesis is an investigation of the soundtracks belonging to superhero films and television shows in order to examine the cultural shifts in the perception of superheroes in America. I will observe this musical phenomenon in relation to major historical events, by way of using a post-9/11 lens, textual analysis of the music scores, and various camera angles and acting cues that are choreographed to the music found in the original soundtracks. This thesis is a case study examining this methodology, showing a dramatic cultural perceptual change reflected in the scoring of musical themes and songs via a thorough examination of the evolution of superhero soundtrack music within the realms of DC Comics' Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman characters.

Committee: Jeffrey Brown (Advisor); Esther Clinton (Committee Member); Jeremy Wallach (Committee Member) Subjects: Film Studies; Music

BA, Kent State University, 2017, College of Business and Entrepreneurship, Ambassador Crawford / Department of Marketing and Entrepreneurship

From the feared warrior and noble savage to the Indian princess and helpless squaw, American Indians have fallen into constructed stereotypes on film. These constructs, which began with the arrival of Europeans to the New World, eventually formed the 'Hollywood Indian,' a culmination of the Native stereotypes represented throughout American film. Many are familiar with the cultural wrongdoings of Western-era films, but where does the Hollywood Indian live in our modern-day films? How do the films impact society? In this paper, I analyze American Indian representations in film - and their societal impacts - from 1990 to present. I argue the era, despite its faults carried from earlier Western films, caters to a consumer-driven period for authenticity.

Committee: Donald Thacker (Advisor) Subjects: Business Administration; Cultural Anthropology; Film Studies; Marketing; Native Americans

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), Bowling Green State University, 2016, American Culture Studies

While popular movies are often overlooked in film studies, the action-adventure genre in the 1980s has drawn considerable academic attention. The consensus among the literature is that a conservative backlash (spurred on by Ronald Reagan's two terms in office) against a resurgent equality movement gave rise to hypermasculine movies like First Blood and Predator and hypermasculine stars like Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone. While this still holds true, a closer look at the movies and the era reveals a much more nuanced picture. A thorough examination of the culture, the movies, and the male bodies on-screen in the 1980s—through the lens of affect theory, cinematography, and spectacle, among others—uncovers a number of significant cultural phenomena that have the potential to shape future academic work. This study not only elucidates and reconstructs the conception of filmic spectacle to include the male body on-screen, it also identifies two types of male bodies on-screen in the 1980s—the muscle-bound, aesthetically spectacular body and the lithe, kinesthetically spectacular body. Additionally, this study argues that filmic spectacle (as experienced by viewers) is actually made up of two discrete dimensions, a physical dimension composed of massive scale and explosions and a physiological one composed of affect and emotion. Unpacking spectacle in this way ultimately produces a number of new tools for film scholars while reimagining, in a significant way, American culture in the 1980s, the action-adventure movies of the decade, and the greater cultural currents in the Reagan era.

Committee: Theodore F. Rippey Ph.D. (Advisor); Thomas A. Mascaro Ph.D. (Other); Andrew E. Hershberger Ph.D. (Committee Member); Jeffrey A. Brown Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Aesthetics; American Studies; Cinematography; Comparative; Ethnic Studies; Film Studies; Gender; Gender Studies; Mass Media; Motion Pictures

MA, University of Cincinnati, 2015, Arts and Sciences: Communication

As we will see in this study, the use of tattoos in film has changed dramatically over the years. In Bradbury's 1969 story, the tattoos are a source of embarrassment and regret. A little more than a couple decades later in 1991, the tattoo is shown as a way to indicate an evil character. But in 2011, the tattoo is just another layer of nuance added to already complex characters. The goal of this study is to understand the way in which film makers utilize tattoos in their work. While the positive and negative associations with tattooing still exist, cinema has shown that the perception of tattoos continues to grow as complex as the characters who wear them. With that in mind, the following analysis contains reviews and dissections of nine films over the last 20 years in order to deepen our understanding of the increasingly complex use of tattoos in cinema.

Committee: Stephen Depoe Ph.D. (Committee Chair); Eric Jenkins Ph.D. (Committee Member); Heather Zoller Ph.D. (Committee Member) Subjects: Speech Therapy

Licentiate in Sacred Theology (S.T.L.), University of Dayton, 2000, International Marian Research Institute

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Committee: Johann Roten S.M. (Advisor) Subjects: Film Studies; Religion; Theology

Master of Arts, University of Akron, 2014, Theatre Arts-Arts Administration

Film making is expensive. It can be done cheaply, but to raise a film to the level of art it requires an amount of increased integrity. This can be achieved through better cameras, crew, actors, props, locations, editing, and special effects (SFX) – all things that cost money. Film making is possibly more expensive than any other art form, especially when considering that a film must not only be created, but also edited, printed, and distributed in order to reach its target audience. Without backing from a major studio, the task of fundraising for a film can be daunting, unless considering alternatives. This thesis explores and concisely presents ways in which film makers can borrow and adapt strategies from other art forms, as well as non-profit and for-profit business models, to create a diverse funding mix to finance independent films.

Committee: Kara Stewart Mrs. (Advisor); Durand Pope Mr. (Committee Member); Craig Joseph Mr. (Committee Member); Neil Sapienza Mr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Arts Management; Film Studies; Fine Arts; Theater Studies

Bachelor of Science of Media Arts and Studies (BSC), Ohio University, 2009, Media Arts and Studies

Comic book superheroes have been a part of the media landscape for decades now, from Depression-era comics to brightly colored television shows of the 1960s to the brooding graphic novels of the 1980s. Walking a fine line between escapist fun and serious social commentary, superheroes have captured the minds of readers young and old, none more so than the Dark Knight of Gotham City - the Batman. Batman has been at the backbone of the genre from its outset and continues to be as superhero movies become more important to Hollywood, in terms of content, characterization and capital gain. This paper traces the history of Batman's crossover from page to screen to see how his character has changed over time, what themes have remained central to his story and how each filmmaker has told the same story time and again while still making it fresh and "original." First, this research studies the different research methods that have been used to analyze superheroes and comic books in the past. Next, this study compares and contrasts some of the most important Batman comics and films to find what elements make the character so appealing to a mass audience. This research includes analysis and comparisons of the films Batman, Batman Begins , and The Dark Knight, as well as several well-known graphic novels like The Long Halloween, The Dark Knight Returns and Batman: Year One. Finally, this paper shows how Batman has affected other works in the comic book movie genre, particularly the adaptation of the seminal graphic novel Watchmen.

Committee: Dr. Jenny Nelson (Advisor); Dr. Arthur Cromwell (Other) Subjects: American Literature; Communication; Fine Arts; Mass Media; Motion Pictures; Personality

Master of Fine Arts, The Ohio State University, 2009, Art

Films, movies, even overly exorbitant, big budget Hollywood films can hold a place in the mind of an artist that is as significant as some of the other sources that artists often use to fuel their work. Movies are sometimes questioned in their validity or place in the studio of an artist, and I believe that for certain reasons, Hollywood films and associated ideas of fame and celebrity can provide a fruitful a place of exploration. Hollywood films, in the minds of certain individuals, myself included, provide a place for the imagination to wander, to escape from daily activities and revel in the nostalgia of childhood or memory: a place to explore the desire associated with dreams, the fame that often comes with being a celebrity, and the endurance behind the idea of work ethic that can fuel such explorations.

Committee: Laura Lisbon (Committee Chair); Amy Youngs (Committee Member); Suzanne Silver (Committee Member) Subjects: Fine Arts

Master of Arts, Miami University, 2011, English

This thesis examines the rhetoric of film from both theoretical and pedagogical perspectives. It provides a summary of prior scholarship on film in composition classes and film as rhetoric, and, from that foundation, builds a series of theoretical heuristics on the rhetoric of film. This theoretical section relies mainly on Mikhail Bakhtin's theory of dialogism and on classical rhetorical theory attributed to Aristotle, Cicero, and others. Provided, also, is a close rhetorical reading of the movie Blade Runner, which demonstrates how this theory might be applied to specific films. Finally, this paper discusses the uses of film in rhetoric-based composition curricula, providing two sample writing assignments that integrate film and rhetorical theory.

Committee: Cynthia Lewiecki-Wilson PhD (Committee Chair); Jason Palmeri PhD (Committee Member); John Heyda PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: Composition; Film Studies; Pedagogy; Rhetoric

Master of Arts, Case Western Reserve University, 2010, History

In the twentieth century, social scientists criticized both the motion picture and comic book industries for their impact on the young. In Our Movie Made Children (1933) Henry Forman summarized studies by the Motion Picture Research Council and the Payne Fund that explored the sometimes harmful influence of popular films on children. Similarly, in Seduction of the Innocent (1954) psychiatrist Fredric Wertham drew on his own clinical work with troubled youth to link comic books to juvenile delinquency. The two books shared many similarities in tone, style, method, intent, and content, but received divergent responses from reviewers, academics, policymakers, and general readers. Those disparities resulted from various factors, including differences in age composition (and political power) of the audiences for movies and comic books, the varying effectiveness of each industry's own pre-existing self-censorship organization, and broad changes in American society and culture between the 1920s and 1950s.

Committee: Daniel Cohen PhD (Advisor); Renee Sentilles PhD (Committee Member); John Grabowski PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: American History; American Studies; History; Mass Media; Motion Pictures

Master of Arts (MA), Bowling Green State University, 2011, History

This is a comparative study between the film industries of Nazi Germany and the United States in World War II. I examine the governmental influence on the cinematic industries and how that affected the people. I also show that the Nazi government had more influence than is generally thought over the United States and the film industry in Hollywood. The emigres that had to flee the Nazis brought new ideas to Hollywood, creating new genres of film. The use of Government documents, diaries, memoirs, films as well as secondary sources are the major sources. The government documents were obtained from the Motion Picture Artists Association Archive, and deal specifically with the Office of War Information. The OWI created rules for filmmaking in the war years and oversaw many productions, including Army training films. The diaries are those of Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels, and I include an appendix of statements he made regarding films. In looking at certain emigres and stars in both Hollywood and Germany, I use autobiographies and biographies detailing the lives of the famous in the pertinent years. Many of the secondary sources are previously written works about the creation of cinema, Hollywood history and the German cinematic industry. I use many films to illustrate the ideas that were being expressed to the public, as well as entertaining the people. I specifically use the film Casablanca to illustrate the importance of the fleeing emigres from Europe to the United States, and how so many of these actual emigres being cast in the film made it stronger. The results of my study include that both governments were heavily involved in the cinema in the time of war, creating guidelines that must be followed, and heavily censoring everything. The Nazis copied Hollywood films and ideas after Germanizing them, and the Hollywood took exiled cinematic workers from Europe. The exiled actors, directors and writers brought a new creativity with them that gave birth to Fil (open full item for complete abstract)

Committee: Beth Griech-Polelle PhD (Committee Chair); Rebecca Mancuso PhD (Committee Member) Subjects: American History; European History; History; Modern History

Master of Arts, University of Akron, 2010, Communication

Within U.S. culture the image of the female killer has long been a subject of both curiosity and fascination. Popularly appearing in noir tales for generations and shocking the public whenever real-life murders involving a woman occurs, the female killer is a sensationalized idol that both entertains and frightens, yet is often misunderstood. Using ideological criticism, this thesis will analyze four films that feature female killers as their lead characters (Thelma and Louis, Basic Instinct, Monster, and Death Proof) to determine what common themes emerge among the films as well as how they reflect various worldviews that the U.S. culture has of the female killer. All four films upon their releases garnered controversy and have gained notice by critics and scholars alike for the portrayals of their female leads. Among particular interests will be how the female killer is portrayed in the movie, the relation of the female killer to her victims, and her background story or upbringing leading to the female killer's murders.

Committee: Mary Triece Dr. (Advisor); Therese Lueck Dr. (Committee Member); Kathleen Clark Dr. (Committee Member) Subjects: Communication; Rhetoric