Dr Andrew Stubbs-Lacy - University of Staffordshire
We're delighted that Dr Andrew Stubbs-Lacy has had his work The Talent Management of Indie Authorship: From American independent cinema and short “films” to pay-TV and streaming published by Edinburgh University Press.
Through case studies such as the Coen brothers, Cary Fukunaga, and Spike Jonze, it explores the cultural, social, and industrial implications of screen authorship and auteur brands, and maps the careers of such figures in relation to screen media convergence as well as race, gender and class.
"As a longtime fan of American independent film and prestige television, I have long been fascinated by the people who are credited as the creators, who promotional materials and critics seductively describe as individual geniuses. Understanding that screen media projects are created collaboratively and involve networks of people working within different industry conditions, I set out to demythologise the concept of the genius autonomous filmmaker, or indie auteur, by shedding light on the roles played by talent intermediaries - producers, talent agents, and talent managers - as they contribute to constructing their clients' and collaborators' brands to help sell a range screen media productions."
"I love teaching at University of Staffordshire because every day I get to interact with students and colleagues who are as inquisitive as I am. As someone who did his undergraduate BA at Staffs, I recall the passion that I had for independent film especially, and how my lecturers encouraged me to think more critically about the works that I enjoyed. With this book, I hope to encourage readers to think more critically about the construction of individual brands and to better understand the interconnected nature of the screen media industries."
Dr Stubbs-Lacy's work is available to purchase here.
Dr Andrew Stubbs-Lacy
A senior lecturer at the University of Staffordshire, Dr Andrew Stubbs-Lacy has always been very passionate about film and media and feels very fortunate to have a job where he can share that passion with others. Dr Stubbs-Lacy has spent almost a decade researching the screen media industries with a focus on independent cinema, streaming, authorship, branding and talent management, and draws on his research to expand his students' understandings of these industries. He loves the films of the Coen brothers, Richard Linklater and Ava DuVernay, as well as series such as Mad Men and The Wire, which his students know only too well!