Goldbach, Mark (2025) Methodological design for cinematic journeys: quantitative and videographic approaches to absence and presence in the representation of US immigrants in film. PhD thesis, University of Glasgow.
Due to Embargo and/or Third Party Copyright restrictions, this thesis is not available in this service.Abstract
This thesis investigates methodological design in film studies and the representation of US immigrants through a case study analysis of symbolic annihilation and narrative centrality in film. By integrating conventional qualitative film techniques with quantitative analysis and experimental videographic research, this research demonstrates the practical compatibility of mixed methods in film studies. Topically, it establishes proximity to narrative centrality as an essential element toward representational complexity and contributes several findings in this regard. First, through a unique quantitative curatorial process comparing US Census data and film data, the thesis identifies patterns of disproportionate representation of country of origin for immigrants in films from 1990-2021. Amidst broader diversification, African, Central American, and Southeast Asian immigrants remain underrepresented in leading roles while European migrants are overrepresented. Next, a videographic investigation of films through the archetypal lens established by film scholar Carlos Cortés (1990) finds that although the influence of historic stereotypes remains present in the representation of immigrants, narratively central immigrant characters are commonly depicted as multidimensional and nuanced individuals who are inextricable from the social and cultural fabric of the country. Within this analysis, I also contribute two additional immigrant archetypes – the Romantic Love Interest and the Disconnected Assimilator – to target modern conceptualizations of immigration as a generational experience and expand Cortés’ formative framework. Finally, combining all three approaches within a single holistic approach, the thesis investigates disparities in the representation of immigrant residence and contends that depictions of underrepresented immigrant cultures implicitly combat symbolic annihilation through countercultural displays of immigrant life. Here, additional quantitative analysis finds that New York and California are disproportionately depicted as the final state of residence for immigrants onscreen, with little cinematic representation of immigrant life in the Heartland and other interior regions of the United States. In this absence, the thesis reads evidence of both symbolic annihilation and representational opportunity. Using mixed methods analysis of Minari (Lee Isaac Chung, 2020) as a centerpiece in discussing the underrepresented Heartland, the thesis argues that regional specificities like religion, culture, and geographic environment add necessary nuance to the broader landscape of migrant representation by expanding the social and cultural contexts through which immigrant identities are imagined and accepted.
From a metatextual perspective, this case study reaffirms the strengths of qualitative analysis, demonstrates the practical value of quantitative campaigns in identifying patterns of presence and absence, and supports the potential exploratory value of videographic analysis in allowing researchers to restructure cinematic temporality. The theoretical contributions contained within the case study also further the discipline’s understanding of symbolic annihilation and narrative centrality in the portrayal of underrepresented communities. Within methodological debates in film studies, this thesis encourages radical pragmatism in the humanities, wherein the future of the field might benefit from diverse methodological design to complement conventional qualitative analysis. The practical execution of research in this manner redirects the conversation of methodological design toward the importance of methodological fit, emphasizing the need for flexibility and innovation in the planning and execution of film studies research to match the multimodal material of the film object.
| Item Type: | Thesis (PhD) |
|---|---|
| Qualification Level: | Doctoral |
| Additional Information: | Due to copyright issues this thesis is not available for viewing. |
| Subjects: | N Fine Arts > NX Arts in general P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN1993 Motion Pictures |
| Colleges/Schools: | College of Arts & Humanities > School of Culture and Creative Arts > Theatre Film and TV Studies |
| Supervisor's Name: | Archibald, Dr. David, Kim, Dr. Yunhyong and Garwood, Dr. Ian |
| Date of Award: | 2025 |
| Depositing User: | Theses Team |
| Unique ID: | glathesis:2025-85620 |
| Copyright: | Copyright of this thesis is held by the author. |
| Date Deposited: | 02 Dec 2025 12:16 |
| Last Modified: | 02 Dec 2025 12:20 |
| Thesis DOI: | 10.5525/gla.thesis.85620 |
| URI: | https://theses.gla.ac.uk/id/eprint/85620 |
| Related URLs: |
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