My cool pals are live on YouTube for the festival here:
youtube.com/nerdsandbeyond
1/22
Join my #AcaFangirls @asinglemantear @ProfTanyaCook @drfangirlphd @PreheatingProf @CatherineinNB on the live stream for #FestivalAndBeyond
I’m tweeting cause I have a big birthday today 🎉 & family dinner so…follow along with my pals & me as we deep dive into #Supernatural
We come from different disciplines & backgrounds, one thing in common is our 💚 of #Supernatural.
I'm a trained medievalist & landscape archaeologist. I work on historic ruins, memory & place, place identity as it relates to landscapes. #FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
My PhD was in medieval Scottish monasticism & MSc (PG Masters) was in Landscape Research & Practice. Both @UofGlasgow
Hail from the Pacific Northwest, moved to Glasgow for my PhD. Lived in Scotland for over 20 years & love it here. 🏴💕
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Before we deep dive into academic discussion, Q1 to find out a little more about us: ‘Which character are you most like in #Supernatural?’ Oh boy! Wish there was 1⃣ but I'm a combo!
In no particular order: Charlie, Sam, Jody, & Crowley
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q2: How does your academic background affect how you engage with #Supernatural?
As a medievalist, am immediately drawn into concepts of Heaven/Hell, redemption, salvation, portrayals of 😈 angels, the Archangels, God, & ideas of Apocalypse. #FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q2 ⤵
From landscape perspective, drawn into how Sam & Dean relate to ideas of home, where they go & how they get there, urban v rural, motels as liminal/in-between, gateways to Heaven/Hell & thresholds to ‘the other' & place identity.
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q3: How do you connect Supernatural to your field of study/work?
I was in a bit of a slump w/ historical research so started re-watch umpteen of #Supernatural. Found I was analysing the show from a landscape perspective w/o even knowing it!
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q3 ⤵
Starting doing background research into landscapes & places in SciFi TV & discovered there was a shortage of work on this being done on this. So I thought, how can I connect my work to something I nerd out over?
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q3 ⤵
Found that #Supernatural makes a perfect study into place identity & landscapes. Currently collecting data (=re-watch time!) & analysing how Sam & Dean move between places, significance of these places, & do these places have meaning.
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q3 ⤵
My research also looks more closely at motels, The Bunker, Heaven/Hell, Purgatory, & other places, as well as how location & setting help shape places/landscapes in #Supernatural.
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q3 ⤵
Set design & filming locations play a big role in analysis. 🙏 #SPNCrew for your hard work! This makes research fun, exciting, & relevant to what set designers, location scouts, writers (& many more) create for a show. #FestivalAndBeyond #Acafangirls
Q3 ⤵
For a full list of #SPNCrew see supernaturalwiki.com/Category:Crew
🙏 also to content creators at @SuperWiki! Could not do my research w/o all that content! And I 💚 that I also get to be part of creating that content - thank you Jules!
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q3 ⤵
Another part of my research looks into the relationship between place & identity w/ Sam & Dean. Examining what role place plays in the formation of their identity –and- how places are giving meaning by the role they play ‘in’ them.
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q3 ⤵
Simply put: how places have meaning to the characters & how they interact with these places.
One analysis is how Sam relates to the concept of 'home' & how this may differ from Dean.
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q3 ⤵
The idea of home is in flux with Sam until finding The Bunker in S8. Even then, Sam still struggles w/ putting down roots. E.g. doesn’t put up posters, get as comfy as Dean does - Dean sees The Bunker as home & safety. #Supernatural
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q3 ⤵
There is so much to explore & I 💚 what I do!
Another area in my research is investigating how places are portrayed - like Heaven/Hell/Purgatory - & mapping these onto other SFF concepts portrayed in TV/ Film.
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q4: How would you like to take Supernatural into your future research?
Something I'm already doing & ongoing. Can analyse #Supernatural for hours! 🤣
All this research is in preparation for a book on Places & Landscapes in #Supernatural
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q4⤵
One big question I’m deep diving into is ‘Can an object be a place?’ That object is the car. Yes, Baby gets a whole chapter. Not only is Baby an essential part of Sam, Dean, & #Supernatural it also fundamentally shapes who they are.
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q4⤵
Rewatching S11, really began to analyse the brilliantly crafted ‘Baby’ episode written by @rthompson1138, directed by Thomas J. Wright. This was literally the KEY turning point in my research into places/ landscapes of #Supernatural.
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Q4⤵
When Sam says ‘We are Home’ in Baby this prompted a whole line of enquiry into how the car is home. Baby is the place identified as home, something we might see as a fixed place. But the car moves through places & landscapes.
#FestivalAndBeyond #AcaFangirls
Endings are hard. This session has to end. Would love to talk more about landscapes & places in #Supernatural!
Want to thank the organisers at @nerdsandbeyond for allowing me to present at #FestivalAndBeyond & to my #Acafangirls who have given me so much to think about.
@threadreaderapp