Barry Langford

Barry Langford is a Professor of Film Studies in the Department of Media Arts at Royal Holloway, University of London. He holds degrees from Queens’ College, Cambridge, and Columbia University. His research focuses on critical theory, Holocaust film representations, theories of mass culture, urban studies, postmodernism, and post-classical Hollywood cinema. He has authored major works including Film Genre: Hollywood and Beyond (2005) and Post-Classical Hollywood: Film Industry, Style and Ideology since 1945 (2010). Currently, he is preparing a study titled Darkness Visible on Holocaust film.

Langford is also a professional screenwriter. His short film Torte Bluma (2005) won multiple awards, including Best Drama at the Los Angeles International Short Film Festival and Best Film at Palm Springs. He co-created the ITV drama series The Frankenstein Chronicles (2015). His work contributes to UN Sustainable Development Goals related to education and cultural preservation.

His research interests span film genre evolution, Holocaust cinema’s ethical dimensions, and the intersection of cinema with urban and postmodern themes. He has presented at international conferences, including invited talks on 'Film Genre in the 21st Century' and 'Soundscapes of Holocaust Film'.

Langford leads the Holocaust Research Institute’s academic initiatives and collaborates on projects like the Rothschild Foundation-funded 'Global Jewish Studies in/as Holocaust Studies' (2022–2026).