Steve Rawle

Professor Steve Rawle is a distinguished academic at York St John University, serving as the Research and Knowledge Transfer Lead in the School of the Arts. With a PhD from the University of Aberdeen (2007) and prior teaching experience there, he bridges theory and practice through his Senior Fellowship in the Higher Education Academy.

• Education: BA in Drama, Film & TV (York St John, 1997), MLitt (York St John, 2000), PhD on Hal Hartley’s films (Aberdeen, 2007)
• Research Focus: Intersections of American independent cinema, transnational film flows, and kaiju eiga (Japanese monster movies), examining how globalization reshapes cultural narratives
• Key Collaborations: Co-investigator on the Cinema and Social Justice Filmmaking project (2023), Executive Producer of award-winning Cost of Living (2022)

His pedagogical approach challenges false binaries between film theory/practice, advocating problem-based learning and industry partnerships via the Screen Industries Growth Network. Recent publications like Transnational Monsters (2024) analyze ecohorror tropes in global crises, while Transnational Kaiju (2022) maps exploitation patterns in cult monster movies.

Scientific recognition includes:

• FOCAL International Award for Best Use of Archive in Short Film (2023)
• BATAF Practice Research Award nominee (2023)
• Multiple international conference keynotes on horror affect and digital media

As an academic leader, he supervises PhD/MRes students across topics from Hitchcock-Herrmann authorship to queer television narratives, while examining research degrees at UK institutions. His industry work includes consultancy for North Yorkshire Screen Industries (2023) and film festival programming at Aesthetica Short Film Festival.