HIGH POINT, N.C., July 16, 2012 – Dr. James Trammell, assistant professor of video production at High Point University, recently had his work, “Watching Movies in the Name of the Lord: Thoughts on Analyzing Christian Film Criticism,” published by the Journal of Media and Religion.
The publication uncovers similarities among Christian film criticism across the spectrum of diverging opinions of film and faith. Trammell argues in the publication that Christian film critics in general, from fundamentalists and evangelicals to moderates and liberals, treat “movie-going” as a transformative experience, and write their criticisms under an implied belief that movies have the power to change an individual’s life.
Trammell plans to use his research in his own classrooms as well.
“I have the opportunity to teach a first-year seminar class, titled ‘Mass Media and American Christianity,’ where we cover religious media criticism, among other topics pertaining to religion and media,” Trammell explains. “This article addresses many of the issues of Christian film criticism we’ve covered in class. Students respond well to our explorations of religious film criticism, which motivated me to write this manuscript.”
Trammell’s similar work includes a manuscript that was co-written by Daniel A. Stout from the University of Nevada, titled “Reviewing the Christian Review: Interpretive Community Critiques of a Serious Man,” that will be published in the book “Evangelical Christians and Popular Culture: Pop Goes the Gospel” in the fall.
At High Point University, every student receives an extraordinary education in an inspiring environment with caring people.℠ HPU, located in the Piedmont Triad region of North Carolina, is a liberal arts institution with over 4,200 undergraduate and graduate students at campuses in High Point and Winston-Salem. It is ranked by US News and World Report at No. 3 among Regional Colleges in the South. Parade Magazine lists HPU in the top 25 private schools in the nation. HPU was selected in the 2010-2011 list of “Colleges of Distinction,” as well as one of the top green schools in the country by the Sierra Club. The university offers 44 undergraduate majors, 40 undergraduate minors and 10 graduate degree programs. It is a member of the NCAA, Division I and the Big South Conference. Visit High Point University on the Web at highpoint.edu.
# # #
Pam Haynes
Communication Specialist
336-841-9055
[email protected]