Emma Conatser graduated in 2022 with degrees in English and Music from Abilene Christian University. She is interested in finding intersections between written and visual narratives, with specific attention paid to genre studies. Her undergraduate honors thesis focused on capitalist and evangelical considerations in Martin Scorsese's The Wolf of Wall Street, and she has presented similar research at various conferences on the implications of genre in both film and written literature.

Emma enjoys examining the history which shapes contemporary conceptions of genre, as well as observing the way these conceptions are at play in written and visual texts. Outside of her academic pursuits, she loves listening to music, solving the Wordle, and reading Cormac McCarthy.

Areas of interest: genre studies, post colonialist studies, and feminist studies.

Fatima is a doctoral student of media studies at the Radio-Television-Film (RTF) department. She is interested in studying the relationship between media, identity, and place for diasporas, particularly from the Middle East. She earned her undergraduate degree from Georgetown University’s branch campus in Qatar, where she began exploring questions of identity, studying media narratives of national identity, othering, and other-ness during times of conflict. She completed her MA in Communication, Culture, and Technology at Georgetown, with a focus on the intersection of media, politics, culture, and social movements. Prior to joining RTF, Fatima worked at the DC-based International Center for Journalists, a media support nonprofit, where she developed new proposals and supported programs in the Middle East.

International student from Bogotá, Colombia. MBA Candidate at McCombs School of Business, class of 2024. Bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering. Musician and music production enthusiast. Played at two of the biggest music festivals in Colombia, Festival Estereo Picnic and Rock al Parque, and won Shock’s award for best new rock artist in 2012.Attended to music business and music production courses at Universidad de los Andes in Bogotá.Worked in the airline industry for 7 years in Strategy and Operations, now looking to pivot to Media/Tech.

Sophia Abbey is a master’s student in the Radio-Television-Film department at the University of Texas at Austin and holds a B.A. in Cinematography from Emerson College. Her research interests include cultural studies, embodiment, and the intersections of media and design. Her current work explores how television programs shot in Los Angeles represent and preserve the city.