Working with a partner or two, you will choose a popular visual media text (TV show, movie, video game, comic, etc). Choose something that is well known and that has a community of fans. If you absolutely cannot find a fandom that you share with anyone in class, you may work alone, but you should try to find discussion partners outside of class. List your chosen partner and fandom in your blog post due September 18.
Together with your partner(s), discuss and explore how your chosen text engages with the questions around identity that we’ll discuss in class, and look at the ways that fans have responded to this. For example, have there been protests because the female characters never get any good storylines? Have viewers identified patterns in racial representation? Are there queer or trans characters that have been celebrated or critiqued? How does the show deal with disability? Go online and seek out examples of discussions, fan creative works, etc that engage with identity and summarize what you have found. Include an update about your research findings in your blog post due September 25, connecting it to our readings for class.
Before class on September 29, you and your partner should have an idea for a remix response to your chosen show. We will workshop these ideas together and explore how to turn them into reality. Prepare for the workshop by gathering the materials you think you might need for your project – we will go over how to do this in class on September 22.
You need not complete your remix project unless you are planning to make this your final project for class. Your grade for the creative exploration will be based on the blog report you write about it.
In your report, which you will write individually, you must:
• summarize the results of your fandom research, including at least four links.
• explain your remix project, including images and links to related media.
• briefly explain what progress you made during class and what steps would come next if you were planning to finish your remix.
• reflect on how, if at all, the process of developing and researching your remix idea has shifted your relationship to the fandom you chose.
• optionally, if this exercise has inspired you to further thoughts on media, culture, capstone projects, life, the universe, and everything, tell us about them.
There is no required word count for the report, though I expect that these will be longer than your weekly blogs; take as much space as you need to reflect thoughtfully on all of these areas.
Note: If you choose to create a remix for your final project, you may research a new fandom if you wish.