Inaugural Lecture - Professor Steve Rawle

Wed May 06 2026 at 06:00 pm to 07:00 pm UTC+01:00

York St John University, De Grey Lecture Theatre | York

York St John University
Publisher/HostYork St John University
Inaugural Lecture - Professor Steve Rawle
Advertisement
Dr Monster! Working at the wrong end of quality
About this Event

This event will be in person


Steve tends to focus on works with low cultural esteem. Most recently he’s spent a lot of time researching and writing about giant monsters. Behind this lies a fascination with the maligned, the marginal and things beloved by only a fraction of the public. This is a politics, a global vision and a commitment to think about how lines of connection are drawn by the least likely candidates and the ways these speak to our experiences of the world.

A lot of his publications have the word ‘transnational’ in the title. They evidence both a progressive vision of an interconnected world but also the spectres of long-standing legacies of conflict and colonialism. The least valued artworks can often be the most revealing.

Throughout this lecture, Steve will reflect on a contradictory career. While his research often looks at culturally denigrated (and sometimes downright bad) cinema, he tries to teach students how to make the best films possible. This is a passionate defence of film and media studies, that most culturally reviled ‘Mickey Mouse subject’. Imagine working at the wrong end of quality in the ‘wrong’ end of academia.



Biography:

Steve Rawle is a graduate of York St John, having received a BA in Drama, Film and Television in 1997. Subsequently, he completed a research MLitt in 2000 and received his PhD, on performance in the films of Hal Hartley, from The University of Aberdeen in 2007. He’s got a bit of experience in the TV industry, but it was never really for him. When he began studying for his Masters he always thought he’d go back to making films, but he’s never really had time. In 2007, he came back to YSJ after teaching at Aberdeen for several years.

He’s written three monographs, Transnational Cinema: An Introduction (2018), Performance in the Cinema of Hal Hartley (2011), and Transnational Kaijū: Exploitation, Globalisation and Cult Monster Movies (2022). He’s co-edited or co-written three others. His writing has appeared in Film Criticism, The Journal of Japanese & Korean Cinema, Asian Cinema, East Asian Journal of Popular Culture and The Journal of Fandom Studies. As a co-investigator of the Cinema and Social Justice Filmmaking project, he executive produced the award-winning film Cost of Living (2022). He’s currently trying to fund new filmmaking projects.

A lot of his recent writing is about Godzilla and giant monster movies. He’s recently been working with colleagues around the world to mark and reflect upon the 70th birthday of Japan’s most famous cultural export. This is the kind of thing that meant someone at YSJ nicknamed him ‘Dr Monster’.


Timings and Refreshments

This event will finish at 7.00pm and will be followed by a drinks reception from 7.00pm - 7.45pm for all attending.

Venue: De Grey Lecture Theatre, York St John University, Lord Mayor’s Walk, YO31 7EX.



Events Access & Inclusivity

At York St John University we are committed to making our events as welcoming and inclusive for as many people as possible.

If you are planning to attend one of our events and have specific access requirements, including wheelchair access, then please contact us by e: [email protected] or t: 01904 876318 and we will make every effort to accommodate you.

If you need a suitable seat reserved for you (and your companions), please let us know, preferably at least one week before the event. Sign language interpreters and real-time captioning may be requested in advance. Please contact us as soon as possible (ideally at least 3 weeks before the date of the event) if you require either BSL interpretation or captioning. We will try our best but cannot guarantee provision.

Privacy Policy

York St John University will use the data you submit in Eventbrite for the purposes of administering this event. York St John University utilises third party software for data storage, tracking, and analysis activity but your details will not be used by any of these third parties in order to contact you Any data you share with us will be used to help us improve your event experience and for event tracking and analysis activity within the University.

We will only send you important information and reminders related to the event you have booked unless you tell us otherwise. During the booking process, if you opt-in to receive emails about the latest events hosted and supported by York St John University, you consent to York St John University contacting you with relevant information.

If you no longer wish to hear from us you can opt-out at any time by changing your contact preferences via the link in emails you receive from us or by emailing [email protected].

Advertisement

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

York St John University, De Grey Lecture Theatre, Lord Mayor's Walk, York, United Kingdom

Tickets

GBP 0.00

Icon
Concerts, fests, parties, meetups - all the happenings, one place.

Ask AI if this event suits you:

More Events in York

That'll Be The Day - York - Grand Opera House
Tue, 05 May at 07:30 pm That'll Be The Day - York - Grand Opera House

Grand Opera House York

York Dungeon - Anytime Entry
Wed, 06 May at 12:00 am York Dungeon - Anytime Entry

The York Dungeon

Hop-on Hop-off York 24 Hours
Wed, 06 May at 09:00 am Hop-on Hop-off York 24 Hours

York

York Dungeon - Anytime Entry
Thu, 07 May at 12:00 am York Dungeon - Anytime Entry

The York Dungeon

Hop-on Hop-off York 24 Hours
Thu, 07 May at 09:00 am Hop-on Hop-off York 24 Hours

York

LAWN CHAIR
Thu, 07 May at 06:30 pm LAWN CHAIR

The Fulford Arms

Tom Rosenthal - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I Am
Thu, 07 May at 07:30 pm Tom Rosenthal - Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I Am

The Crescent Community Venue

York Dungeon - Anytime Entry
Fri, 08 May at 12:00 am York Dungeon - Anytime Entry

The York Dungeon

Hop-on Hop-off York 24 Hours
Fri, 08 May at 09:00 am Hop-on Hop-off York 24 Hours

York

York is Happening!

Never miss your favorite happenings again!

Explore York Events