Photographs from student project “Kōjō Moe Photo Zine,” (Lilly Rizvi, 2020)
What is the East Asian Media VIP?
This is a 50-minute weekly seminar group that is run like a Japanese “zemi,” or graduate seminar. Students produce a research project or creative project on a topic related to East Asian media, broadly defined. This could be a translation of a Chinese short story, an analysis of Japanese films, a short documentary on social movements in Okinawa, etc. Transnational, comparative, and collaborative projects are welcome; there is also camera and sound equipment available for media projects. The group meets weekly to discuss assigned readings and to discuss project progress. At the end of each semester we will host an Asian Media @ Tech Symposium to present our projects to the wider community. Here is a feature on our VIP, which won 2nd Place in the 2021 VIP Innovation Competition “People and Environment Track” with Natalie Mueller’s project, “Race to the Lunar World: Human vs. Machine Translation.”
What is a VIP?
A VIP or Vertically Integrated Project is a way for students from the undergrad to graduate levels to work with a professor on ongoing, collaborative, and interdisciplinary research.
What kind of projects do we do?
Student projects include Japanese fantasy and science fiction translations, a comparative study of cross-cultural reception of Chinese science fiction, a thesis on Japanese ceramics, and a digital zine exploring the Japanese photography art form, “kojo moe,” or “factory affect.” Faculty projects include an anthology on New Asian Fantasy, the Global Media Fest, and Hivemind: Global Speculative Fiction. Students are invited to enquire about helping with the faculty projects if interested. Please click here for some examples of student projects.
How do I apply?
Undergraduates apply here. Graduates apply here. If you have any other questions, please contact the faculty lead, Amanda Weiss.