Ryan David Briggs is a PhD candidate in Media Studies. His research and teaching focus on media industry studies, Hollywood film and television history, and contemporary independent cinema. His dissertation project, “The Canary in the Hollywood Coal Mine: Mid-Range Movie Death and the Decline of the Film Business,” provides a recent periodization and historicization of Hollywood from 2005 to 2020. It highlights the significant negative impacts that industrial transformations had on non-blockbuster filmmaking in this period. This study explains how the film industry found itself in an unsustainably lopsided situation almost a full decade before the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked further havoc and argues that Hollywood’s transformation during the late 2000s and 2010s resulted in less originality, fewer films reflective of audience’s lived realities, and a less stable industry overall for filmmakers and film workers. Ryan's original research can be found in the South Central Review and The Velvet Light Trap.  

Prince Adablah, a filmmaker from Ghana, West Africa, earned his undergraduate degree from Kenyon College (Ohio), where he specialized in film and photography. In his diverse portfolio of short films, he often tackles themes of self-help and mental health, reflecting deep personal and societal insights.
Driven by his experiences in both Ghana and the U.S., Prince is dedicated to exploring the African diaspora, immigration, and cultural identity. His work strives to bridge cultural divides and shine a light on the varied experiences within African communities.
With a profound interest in African history and culture, Prince's filmmaking is aimed at inspiring global audiences and deepening the understanding of African narratives in a global context.

Born and raised in Mexico City, J.Manzo is a filmmaker and educator committed to authentic creative expression through cinema. He holds a BA in Media Arts and has worked as a Director, Cinematographer and Colorist.
Manzo spent half a decade at Spy Hop Productions, a Salt Lake City based NPO, working with hundreds of young filmmakers, helping them tell some of the most provocative, and personal stories through high-quality filmmaking.
During his time as a teaching artist, Manzo continued to write, direct and produce many short films winning several awards and professional accolades.

Alexis Cabrera is a Mexican-American Director from Dallas, TX who holds a BFA in Film/Video from the University of Texas at Arlington.  Having spent the last 7 years in and out of the film industry, they’ve regained new focus and passion in visual and narrative storytelling. As both a second-generation immigrant and a trans femme individual, she has a focus and passion for social justice advocacy for immigrant and queer people of color.  Alexis hopes to use the tools of film and media production to tell engaging and impactful stories for those who have gone voiceless, exposing truths that society has yet to see.

Xinyue Wang is a PhD student in media studies at the University of Texas at Austin. She holds an MFA in film from the Beijing Film Academy and a BA in English from the University of Science and Technology Beijing.

Her research interests encompass two aspects. She focuses on the intersection of critical media industry studies, trauma studies, and feminist film studies, with a special emphasis on both the on-screen and off-screen contexts of female-authored genre film and television, particularly in horror, crime, and science fiction genres. Aside from that, her research interest lies in the connection between haptics technology, immersive narrative media, and female pleasure through feminist STS, affect theory, and feminist media studies. Her work is forthcoming in Screen Bodies (Vol. 9.1).

Shianne Salazar is a first-generation Trinidadian-American writer, director, podcaster, and wardrobe coordinator from South Florida now based in Austin, Texas. Across mediums, her content explores the relationship between African diasporas and contemporary culture through a variety of genres and tonal approaches.

Area of Focus: Coming of Age, Gender Representation, Black Life

Ryan Darbonne is a filmmaker, editor, and stage director whose work passionately explores Black identity. He is a three-time recipient of the Austin Film Society grant and has won several B. Iden Payne awards for his stage work. Other notable achievements include co-founding Austin’s first Black improv troupe, participating in the 2019 AFS Artist Intensive, and editing on the Netflix animated series Castlevania: Nocturne.

After being out of school since 2009, he's excited to return to academia in pursuit of an MFA in film production.

Micheal is originally from the Piney Woods region of Texas and holds a B.S. in Radio-Television-Film from the University of Texas at Austin. In his studies, Micheal focuses on the representation and roles of women in the music industry by studying music videos and other music media. In addition, he has interests in music streaming culture, global media industries, and emerging media markets. Micheal enjoys spending time with friends and crate digging in his free time.  

Professional Links & Recent Works 

• LinkedIn: Yenny Kang