Matthew Cooper

English - Media, Cinema, and Digital Studies, PhD

BA, Media & Cinema Studies and Communication Studies, DePaul University, 2020
MA, Communication & Media with a concentration in Media & Cinema Studies, DePaul University, 2021

Film exhibition, American film history, media technology and culture, cultural nostalgia

"The Last Movie Star?: Tom Cruise and the Star-Franchise Tension in Contemporary Hollywood Cinema." In Stars and Franchises: Identity, Image and Intellectual Property, edited by Sarah Thomas and Mark McKenna. Edinburgh: University of Edinburgh Press, forthcoming.

UWM Distinguished Graduate Student Fellowship, 2023-24
UWM Frederick J. Hoffman English Writing Award, 2022-23
UWM Chancellor's Graduate Student Award, 2021-22
DePaul University College of Communication Outstanding Achievement and Leadership Award

"Pandora at 48 FPS: Aesthetics of Immersion and the Cultural Capital of New Movie Technology in Avatar: The Way of Water (2022)." Society for Cinema and Media Studies Conference, Boston, MA, 2024.
"Nostalgia for the Palace: The Reconstitution of Historic Theater Architecture in the Contemporary Exhibition Industry." Midwest Graduate Student Symposium, Iowa City, IA, 2024.
"The Last Movie Star?: Tom Cruise and the Star-Franchise Tension in Contemporary Hollywood Cinema." Society for Cinema and Media Studies Conference, Denver, CO, 2023.
"Revival, Return, and Transference: Theorizing the Franchise Nostalgia Film in Recent Hollywood Cinema." Society for Cinema and Media Studies Conference, online, 2022.
"Re-Evaluating Film Authorship: Directorial Authority in Studio-Driven Franchise Filmmaking." Midwest Popular Culture Association Conference, Chicago, IL, 2022.