Professor Susan Jaret McKinstry teaches and researches 19th century British art and literature. When she arrived at Carleton, Professor Vern Bailey asked her to teach a Film Adaptation course for Media Studies (then in the English department — and only Vern). Media Studies grew; that course evolved into ENGL 362 Narrative Theory, a popular elective course for CAMS majors; and her interest in visual studies has deepened. This year, she is participating in an ACM workshop on Digital Storytelling, funded by the Andrew Mellon Foundation.
In an intense two-day, hands-on workshop at Macalester College in January, participating professors each created a very short film about something important to them, using WeVideo. Next, participants will design a digital storytelling assignment, and Susan is working on one for the next iteration of Narrative Theory, which will be offered as an option for CAMS majors to fulfill a 300-level core requirement for the major starting in Fall 2016. Susan’s first film, Life’s Work, featured below, explores a true story about her research subjects (no plot spoilers here!) and explores how a meaningful narrative is created from images, words, and sounds.