Matthias Hausmann

Matthias Hausmann serves as Acting Chair of French and Italian Literature at the Institute of Modern Languages/Romance Studies, University of Würzburg since May 2024, succeeding Brigitte Burrichter. His academic career spans multiple German and Austrian institutions including substitute professorships at Cologne, Münster, and Würzburg universities between 2018-2024.

His educational background includes a

• 2017 Habilitation (Venia legendi in Romance Literary Studies) at University of Vienna with thesis 'Herausforderung durch den Film und Herausforderung an den Film: Adolfo Bioy Casares und das Kino'
• 2008 PhD (summa cum laude) from Friedrich-Alexander-University Erlangen-Nuremberg on 'Die Ausbildung der Anti-Utopie im Frankreich des 19. Jahrhunderts' which received the Lilli-Bechmann-Rahn-Preis

Hausmann's research focuses on the intersection of literary and film studies, particularly examining grotesque aesthetics, narrative theory, intermediality, and utopian/dystopian literature. His work frequently analyzes Latin American literature (especially Bioy Casares, Borges) alongside European traditions, with emphasis on cinematic adaptations and urban representations. Current projects explore media theory, dialogic structures, and fantastic genres across cultural contexts.

His scholarly output reveals consistent engagement with narrative innovation across centuries—from 18th century dialogues to contemporary digital storytelling—with recurring themes of spatial representation, gender dynamics in Latin American cinema, and the evolution of utopian thought. Recent publications increasingly address AI, media theory, and the grotesque in digital contexts.

Awarded the Lilli-Bechmann-Rahn-Preis for his doctoral work, Hausmann has co-edited numerous volumes including 'Visionen des Urbanen' (2012) and 'Cine global, televisión transnacional y literatura universal' (2022), demonstrating sustained international collaboration.

As an active academic organizer, he has coordinated multiple international conferences on grotesque aesthetics, utopian studies, and Hispanic cinema, while maintaining research partnerships with institutions in Argentina, Spain, and France. His teaching includes courses on Latin American literature, film adaptation, and narrative theory across German and Austrian universities.