About

I gained my PhD in film studies from Sheffield Hallam University in 2016. Prior to joining the Department of Media Arts and Communication in 2020, I lectured in film, television and media studies as an Associate Lecturer at SHU and a Visiting Lecturer at York St John University. I currently teach several modules on the BA Media and BA Film and TV Production degrees.

My research concentrates on the cultural politics of popular genres. My professional interest in genre cinema began with my PhD thesis, which aimed to construct a cultural history of the werewolf film. My last major research project was an extension of this work, which traced the metaphorical evolution of the werewolf movie from its beginnings in the silent era through to the twenty-first century. This study resulted in a monograph published by Edinburgh University Press titled Phases of the Moon: A Cultural History of the Werewolf Film (2020), which aims to challenge existing discourses on the werewolf in popular culture and establish the monster as an adaptable metaphor for our shifting cultural fears and anxieties.

Beyond my work on the werewolf, I have also published on science fiction, the Western and recessionary horror films. My current project extends my previous research on horror cinema and the Great Recession by exploring anti-capitalist themes in contemporary American horror from the financial crisis of 2007-2008 to the present. It will contend that anti-capitalist sentiments have come to the fore in horror (and particularly independent horror films produced outside of the studio system) due to an increasingly palpable disillusionment with American neoliberalism.

My interest in contemporary horror is also reflected in my work as the principal organiser of the annual Fear 2000 conference series. Established in 2016, Fear 2000 is dedicated to the study of horror media in the twenty-first century and has become a leading site for the dissemination of the latest horror studies research. In 2022, I became the co-editor of the associated 21st Century Horror book series published by Edinburgh University Press.

Additionally, I am co-convenor of the BAFTSS Science Fiction and Fantasy Special Interest Group, a founding member of the BAFTSS Horror Studies Special Interest Group and, with Dr Sheldon Hall, the co-leader of SHU's Film and Television Research Group within the Centre for Culture, Media and Society. I also regularly contribute essays and liner notes to home-video releases for labels such as Eureka Entertainment, Second Sight Films, Arrow Films and Powerhouse Films.

Teaching

Department of Media Arts and Communication

College of Social Sciences and Arts

BA Media

• News Media
• Applied Project/Dissertation for Media

BA Film and TV Production

• What is Film and TV?

Research

• Culture and Creativity Research Institute

Alignment

• Centre for Culture, Media and Society
• Film and Television Research Group

Projects

• Fear 2000 Conference Series
• 21st Century Horror Book Series

Memberships

• BAFTSS Science Fiction and Fantasy SIG(Co-convener)
• BAFTSS Horror Studies SIG (Founding Member)

Publications

Other activities

I am co-editor of the 21st Century Horror book series with Edinburgh University Press, co-convenor of the BAFTSS Science Fiction and Fantasy Special Interest Group and Founding Member of the BAFTSS Horror Studies Special Interest Group. Additionally, I am regularly asked to peer review proposals, manuscripts and articles by leading academic publishers and am frequently commissioned to write essays for home-video releases by labels such as Eureka Entertainment, Second Sight Films, Arrow Films and Powerhouse Films.

Postgraduate supervision

I welcome PhD proposals from prospective students broadly interested in horror, media genres or the politics of popular culture. I am currently supervising:

Oliver Hicks, "French Nightmares: Contemporary Horror, Culture and Historical Trauma."