UNT Theses and Dissertations - 129 Matching Results

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A shanda fur de Yehudim: Jewishness in network sitcom television.
This thesis is a cultural study of Jewishness in network sitcom television. Sources for the study included: historical film analysis, sociological studies on stereotyping and Jewish culture. The thesis studies how past forms of Jewishness impacted the current depictions of Jewishness on the television sitcom. After an introduction discussing Jewishness in general, the second chapter studies Jewishness in Vaudeville and early Hollywood film. The third chapter studies Jewishness in the first 40 years of network sitcom television. The fourth chapter studies Jewishness in the network sitcoms of the 1990s. The conclusions of the study focus on the state of Jewishness on network sitcom television at present, and ask what must be done within the industry to maintain a viable Jewish identity on network sitcom television in the future.
Side By Side: Reinventing Mother/Daughter Relationships
Beginning with mother/daughter film classics such as Stella Dallas (1937) and Mildred Pierce (1945), and moving to consider recent mother/daughter texts, Anywhere But Here (1999) and "Gilmore Girls" (2000 -), this thesis, in both its written and visual components, examines the multiple and often contradictory ways in which mothers and daughters have been represented in popular culture. Challenging the discourses that singularly stress struggle and separation, this research highlights representations that emphasize mother/daughter connection, and examines how such identification empowers mothers and daughters. This project is guided by cultural studies and feminist film theories. The first two chapters outline past and present paradigms of mothers and daughters respectively; the third chapter examines the goals and findings of the visual component.
Sights and Sounds of the Mysterious Side of Myself
This film is an autobiographical documentary which tells the story of the process of documenting the filmmaker's trip to his land of heritage. As his plans for his journey and film begin to go awry, he begins to question the entire process of trying to connect with nation and place.
Snakes Alive!
On three days in March each year, the sleepy little town of Sweetwater, Texas transforms into the rattlesnake capital of the world. Snake hunters and curious tourists converge on the town of 12,000 for the Annual Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup. On the outside of the Nolan County Coliseum, the smell of funnel cakes and hot-dogs fills the air as vendors sell snacks and souvenirs. However the real action is inside where snakes collected from all over the state lay in piles by the thousands, waiting to be sexed, milked and ultimately killed. Through interviews and observational footage, "Snakes Alive!" explores the Sweetwater Rattlesnake Roundup, those that participate in the event, and the elements that make it an unabashed West Texas tradition.
Social Networking: the Benefits of Twitter for Music Fans and Consumers
Due to the evolution of new media technologies, social networking websites have become major avenues for online media consumption. Twitter is one of many proven beneficial for online users. It is utilized for many different reasons, one of which includes music. It is then necessary to know how beneficial Twitter is for music fans and consumers. This study attempts to analyze the benefits of Twitter for music fans and consumers. Using an online survey, different gratification items are measured. Results reveal that some music fans and consumers do use Twitter for music purposes and that there is a statistically significant difference in terms of gratifications between those who use Twitter for music purposes and those who do not.
Stage and Scream: The Influence of Traditional Japanese Theater, Culture, and Aesthetics on Japan's Cinema of the Fantastic
Although widely viewed in the West, Japanese films are often misunderstood, as they are built on cultural, theatrical, and aesthetic traditions entirely foreign to Western audiences. Particularly in regards to Japan's "fantastic" cinema - including giant monster pictures, ghost stories, and "J-Horror" films - what is often perceived as "cheap" or "cheesy" is merely an expression of these unique cultural roots. By observing and exploring such cultural artifacts as kabuki, noh, and bunraku - the traditional theatrical forms of Japan - long-standing literary traditions, deeply embedded philosophical beliefs, and even more recent developments such as the controversial dance form butoh, these films, including Gojira (1954), Daimajin (1966), Kwaidan (1964), Onibaba (1964), Testuo the Iron Man (1989), and Ju-On (2002), can be placed in their proper perspective, leading to a reevaluation of their worth not merely as commercial products, but as uniquely Japanese expressions of that society's unique place in world culture.
Standing Up to Experts: The Politics of Public Education
In a small room in Austin, Texas, a group of 15 people are single-handedly deciding what is taught to the next generation of American children. The highly politicized 15 member Texas Board of Education is currently going through the once-in-a-decade process of rewriting the teaching and textbook standards for its nearly 5 million schoolchildren. Texas is also unbelievably influential on the standards that textbook publishers use as a basis for their textbooks nationwide. Over the last 10 years, the textbooks adopted by this board found their way in upwards of 65% of American classrooms. My goal is to shed light on this important issue and the key players in this process - I explain their goals, explore the scope of their influence, and delve into the personal motivations behind their actions, which will affect public education throughout the country.
Street Chords and the Truth: A Street Level View of Country Music
Singers and songwriters come to Nashville, Tennessee because they consider it the center of the country music universe and the best place to perform their songs as they try and break into the music business. Though few ever experience success in this competitive field, artists continue to arrive in Nashville and many don't have the commercial potential that would allow them the opportunity to perform anywhere but on the city's streets. The film, Street Chords and the Truth: A Street Level View of Country Music, focuses on these interesting performers and their music. Country music has been examined by a handful of ethnomusicologists and is often called the music of everyday life. Many recognize its dependence on ordinary singing styles, common phrasings, southern accents and traditional costuming as central to its identity and critical source of its value as a commodity. While many studies have been conducted focusing commercially popular country music singers and the music industry, few studies been conducted on singers who meet all the critical criteria for country music except commercial viability. This documentary examines country music more as a critical element of cultural identity and less as a commodity.
Tactile Media: Factors Affecting the Adoption of Touchscreen Smartphones Among Consumers with Vision Loss
Touchscreen technology is on the rise as the new standard in smartphone design. But, the usability of touchscreen is hindered for consumers that lack the physical ability to navigate such devices. Two focus groups were conducted in order to identify specific uses and gratifications that people with visual impairments had when using mobile phones. Additional questions were presented to the participants to determine if touchscreen technology limited access to communication and entertainment. The responses revealed an upward trend in touchscreen smartphone adoption among the participants. These users chose to adopt touchscreen smartphones that had built-in and downloadable assistive features which contributed to user-friendly designs.
Teacher Perceptions of the Flipped Classroom: Using Video Lectures Online to Replace Traditional In-class Lectures
Advancements in media technologies have resulted in increased student usage causing teachers to struggle to be able to engage and hold student’s interest in a typical classroom. As students’ needs change, the field of education changes. One strategy that is gaining in popularity among teachers is the implementation of the “flipped classroom” also known as the “inverted classroom” or “reverse instruction” - a method incorporates technology to “flip” or “reverse” what is typically done in class with what is typically done as homework. Through teacher interviews of eight core teachers, this study attempts to discover teacher perceptions of the use of this method. Results of the study reveal that perceptions of the method are more positive among teachers who typically use lecture as a primary mode of information dissemination.
Teen ages: Youth market romance in Hollywood teen films of the 1980s and 1990s
This thesis examines the differences between teen romantic comedy films marketed to Generation X teenagers in the 1980s and Generation Y teenagers in the 1990s, focusing on the presentation of gender roles, consumptive behavior, and family. The 1980s films are discussed within the social context of the Reagan era and the conservatism of the New Right. The 1990s films are examined as continuing a conservative sensibility, but they additionally posit consumption as instrumental to achieving an idealized romance. Romantic comedy is traditionally a conservative genre, but these films illustrate female liberation through consumption. The source of difference between the cycles of teen romantic comedy is attributed to the media's attempt to position Generation Y teenagers as ideal consumers.
A Textual Analysis of the Closer and Saving Grace: Feminist and Genre Theory in 21St Century Television
Television is a universally popular medium that offers a myriad of choices to viewers around the world. American programs both reflect and influence the culture of the times. Two dramatic series, The Closer and Saving Grace, were presented on the same cable network and shared genre and design. Both featured female police detectives and demonstrated an acute awareness of postmodern feminism. The Closer was very successful, yet Saving Grace, was cancelled midway through the third season. A close study of plot lines and character development in the shows will elucidate their fundamental differences that serve to explain their widely disparate reception by the viewing public.
Theoretical and Practical Record of the Making of the Documentary Film, A Native American Dream
This textual record of the making of the social issue documentary film A Native American Dream examines theoretical and practical considerations of the filmmaker during the pre-production, production, and post-production stages. It also examines the disciplines of anthropology and ethnography in terms of modern documentary filmmaking and evaluates the film within these contexts.
"There's A Man With A Gun Over There": Cops And The Counterculture
By 1960, television advertisers recognized the economic potential of American youth, and producers were expected to develop programs to attract them, while still maintaining appeal for the older audience members. This task was to prove difficult as the decade wore on. While continuing to link the nation's cold war concerns to the portrayal of good and evil, some shows, like 77 Sunset Strip, and The Mod Squad, explored alternative lifestyles, but still accepted American values. As the 1960s developed, crime programs continued to promote American hegemony but became increasingly more open to alternative reading strategies. This study examines the strategies developed to draw a youth audience to 1960s crime programs, while also supporting the dominant ideology of American society.
"They Don't Make'em Like They Used To": Cultural Hegemony and the Representation of White Masculinity in Recent U.S. Cinema
The purpose of this work is to illuminate how white male hegemony over women and minorities is inscribed through the process of film representation. A critical interrogation of six film texts produced over the last decade yields pertinent examples of how the process of hegemonic negotiation works to maintain power for the ever changing modes of postindustrial masculinity. Through the process of crisis and recuperation the central male characters in these films forge new, more acceptable attributes of masculinity that allow them to retain their centrality in the narrative.
"Time for Teletubbies": Childhood, Child Participation, and the Struggle for Meaning
The children's television program Teletubbies and its concomitant controversies are analyzed along with the media attention surrounding the program. A textual analysis is presented, including the methodologies of narrative theory, semiotics/structuralism, and poststructuralism. The context is also analyzed, using a cultural studies and historical reception approach, in order to chronicle and analyze the show's controversies and elucidate how these arguments have affected reception and interpretation of the show. Following textual and contextual analysis, a social science approach is utilized, reviewing literature and research that supports or refutes the arguments at hand. Finally, the results of a qualitative, ethnographical study are presented in order to include the child's perspectives on the show and inform the larger, cultural issues of childhood.
Tinkering with Taste: NBC's Prime Time Television Programming 1978-1986
The thesis explores how Grant Tinker's philosophy of quality programming grew into a working ideology which would serve as the basis for its rise from last place to first place in ratings and profits from 1978 to 1986. This thesis paper explores the prime time history of NBC from 1978 to 1986. The network is examined in terms of its programming history, its economic situation, and the men who presided over the entity, all within the time frame listed above. The thesis focuses on the strategies and philosophies of the three men crucial to the direction the network took during the above time frame: Fred Silverman, President of the network from 1978 to 1981, Grant Tinker, Chairman from 1981 to 1986, and Brandon Tartikoff, Programming Chief from 1980 to 1991.
Transforming the Predator: Representations of the Child Sexual Abuser in 21st Century American Visual Media
This thesis examines the ways American visual media -television and mainstream/independent cinema- has presented the narrative of child sexual abuse since the beginning of the 21st century. Due to the rise of the counterculture movement and the sexual revolution of the 1960s, a discourse for talking about child sexuality was created. By providing an opportunity to discuss children and sex, for the first time cultural products could deal overtly with child sexual abuse, rather than connotatively. In response to this new discourse, conservative ideals about child sexuality proliferated in the 1970s and 1980s that attempted to return the child to a world of purity and asexuality with all threats to this purity being monstrous. The examples discussed in this thesis highlight the ways that contemporary American visual media has responded to three decades of obsession that created a "master narrative" of child sexual abuse - something that continues to play a significant role in society.
True Bromance: Representation of Masculinity and Heteronormative Dominance in the Bromantic Comedy
This project explores the representation of white, American masculinity within the Hollywood bromantic comedy cycle. By analyzing three interrelated components (close homosociality, infantilization, and relationship to patriarchy) of the model of masculinity perpetuated by this cycle of films, this study reveals the hegemonic motives therein. Despite the representation of a masculinity nervously questioning its position within the romantic comedy narrative and the broader patriarchal structure, the results of this representation are, ultimately, regressive and reactionary. Cultural gains made concerning gender, sexuality, and race are doubled back upon in a cycle of films that appeal to regressive modes of misogyny, homophobia, and racism still present in Hollywood filmmaking, and the hegemony of white, patriarchal heteronormativity is rigorously maintained.
True Tales of the Atom
True Tales of the Atom documents the creative process in the making of the film of the same name. It describes the intent and result of each step in the filmmaking process, including esthetic, budget and technical decisions. How the inclusion of animation increased the complexity and technical demands on the postproduction. It shows the problems encountered and overcome working on a production alone. Finally, it details the successful completion primarily due to extensive preplanning. The film on which the paper is based is a non-traditional look at several little-known aspects of civilian nuclear power, with a look at the media that could have helped to shape current attitudes in the United States about the technology.
Turnabout : A Screenplay
Turnabout, a feature-length screenplay with an accompanying critical essay, is the story of Michael Houston, a successful stockbroker in his late twenties whose unlikely romantic rendezvous with a bohemian art dealer leads him to realize that finding love often begins with a soul-searching journey into oneself.
Twinmates
Twinmates is an inside look at the unique and unusual appeal of border politics in Laredo, Texas through the point of view of identical twin brothers-- A. Jaime Mendoza and B. Javier Mendoza. The documentary chronicles the Mendoza twins for a period of six years as they switch political parties, in order to get elected (Republicans turn Democrats), and use that political exposure to expand their janitorial company to the metropolitan cities of Dallas and Austin. In addition to the Mendoza twins' business and politics, the documentary also captures entertaining interactions with family and friends.
Twitter and Radio News: A Dallas-Fort Worth Case Study
This study of radio news stations adds to the field of Twitter research into broadcasters' use of this social media microblogging platform; previous research has predominantly focused on television. This case study, based on a survey with numerous open-ended questions completed in face-to-face interviews, begins to fill in data on how Twitter is being used in major market radio station newsrooms. Limited in scope, this exploratory study used answers from seven members of two radio newsrooms in trying to find out if there were stated goals for tweets; if separate, unique content was being tweeted or was content tied to the stations' on-air product; how tweets seek to increase station listenership and/or increase station website traffic; what were the most frequently tweeted topics; what hyperlinks were included in tweets for internal or external web content; and were tweets personal and/or opinionated, or kept more professional with just factual material. From a strategic management theory standpoint, there is neither a stated plan nor goals sought with these newsrooms' use of Twitter. Unique tweet content includes sending out photos which add visuals to the pictureless world of radio news and live-tweeting of ongoing news events, while complementary content is promotional to push audience members to on-air or website products. There are no analytics in place to try to determine whether the stations' listenership or web traffic increases based on tweets. Promotional teases of upcoming on-air guest interviews or news content and/or web content are the most frequently tweeted topics. Hashtags rather than hyperlinks are more often included in the stations' tweets. News personnel stay away from expressing opinions, or being too personal in tweets, but remain more objective and professional by sticking to facts which is in step with the traditional role of journalists.
Two Fingers: Michael's Struggle
This written thesis gives an account of the creative production of Two Fingers: Michael's Struggle, a twenty-nine minute documentary video that explores the life of Michael Alan Rasch who suffers from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. It explains in detail the process of pre-production, production, and post-production of the documentary. It also discuses the integration of theories applied in the documentary. Two Fingers shows that although Michael has lived with the disease almost his entire life, his perspective and attitude are more about living and enjoying life. Through it, the filmmaker intends the viewer to gain a tremendously important lesson about the human spirit.
Two for One, One for Two
The film is about three young Korean-American adults who have adapted to American society while retaining certain aspects of Korean culture in their lives. To expose their intermingled behaviors and concepts, the film combines the observational format of a documentary with an information style employing family photos, home movie recordings, and interviews with the three subjects and their families. An accompanying production report describes the research process, pre-production, production, and post-production.
Vieques: Island of Conflict and Dreams
This written thesis is a companion to a 30-minute documentary video of the same title. The documentary is a presentation of the historical conflict between the United States Navy and the people of the island of Vieques, Puerto Rico. For over 60 years the island was used by the United States Navy as a military training facility. The documentary attempts to present an analysis of the struggle between citizens of the island and the Navy. This written component presents a summarized history of Puerto Rico, Vieques and the conflict with the United States Navy. In addition, the preproduction, production and post-production process of the documentary are discussed. A theoretical analysis of the filmmaker's approach and technique are addressed and analyzed as well. The thesis's goal is to provide a clear understanding of the Vieques conflict to United States audiences who do not a familiarity with the topic. The thesis is presented from the perspective of a person who grew up in Puerto Rico.
The Vivarium Program: An Ethnographic Video Documentary Exploring the Role of the Visual Anthropologist and the Subject at the Open School in Los Angeles
This is a reflexive documentary on the Open School in Los Angeles, an elementary school which is a field research site for Apple Computer, Inc. This videotape explores filmmaker/subject relationships, media perception by children, and issues of representation. An accompanying production book describes the grantwriting process, the pre-production, production, and post-production stages, as well as theoretical implications of the documentary.
Wine & Beer
Wine & Beer tells the story of childhood friends Brian and Vic who, after spending some time apart, deal with the tensions of sexual orientation after they attempt to renew their friendship. At the beginning it seems that Vic's sexuality will not be a problem, but after the two friends hang out in a local bar, Brian realizes his hometown is not as tolerant as he is. The couple is faced with family and social concerns, which goes from the argumentative to the violent. As the main characters try to mingle with the conservative town, they soon find themselves looked upon by a small town resistant to change. This 35-minute film explores homophobia and violence in small town USA.
A Wonder Whose Origin is not Known: The Importance of the Orphan Hero in Otherworldly Film
The purpose of this thesis is to explore the importance of the orphan hero in film and his resonance with the American people. It explores the orphan and the American identities, the archetypes found in myths, and the hero in American culture. The three heroes (Batman, Anakin Skywalker, and Harry Potter) represent certain aspects of orphan heroes: the capacity for sacrifice and the need to resist focusing on oneself. The type of hero each becomes has its source in the response he takes to his orphanhood. These young men suffered great loss early in their lives, but found the strength to sacrifice themselves for others, the ultimate sign of a hero.
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