Research

I have been particularly active in the scholarly community, contributing research in the areas of translation, communication, participatory culture, transformative work, popular culture studies, new media studies, film and television studies, transmedia storytelling, media convergence, and Whedon studies. My interdisciplinary approach paired with my keen interest in the cutting edge makes me particularly well-suited to work with a diverse group of students and colleagues, and I have a continuing drive to be active in the scholarly community and expand my research whenever possible.

M.A. Thesis

“Rethinking Intersemiotic Translation through Cross-Media Adaptation in the Works of Joss Whedon.” Successfully defended Summer 2013.

Publications

Medendorp, Liz. “Adventurous Tales: Stories of the Sea and the City, Selections translated with introduction.” Deep Blue (2011): University of Michigan. Internet resource.

Medendorp, Liz. “Buffyspeak: The Internal and External Impact of Slayer Slang.” Fan Phenomena: Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Ed. Jennifer K. Stuller. Forthcoming. Print.

Medendorp, Liz. “The Power of the Periphery: Reassessing Spatial Metaphors in the Ideological Positioning of the Translator.” TranscUlturAl 5.1-2 (2013), 22-42. Print.

Michelet, Victor-Émile. “The Lover’s Sentence.” Trans. Liz Medendorp. Canon Translation Review (2011): University of Michigan. Internet Resource.

Various articles and blog posts on PopMatters.com

Conference Presentations

“Pop Will Eat Itself: Creative Appropriation, Cannibalism, and the Musical Mash-up.” 43rd Convention of the Northeast Modern Language Association, 2012, Rochester, NY.

“Feed the Animals: The Cannibalism of Transformative Work.” American Comparative Literature Association Annual Meeting, 2012, Providence, RI.

“Doppelgängland and the Buffyverse: Embracing the Demon Within.” Popular Culture Association / American Culture Association Conference, 2012, Boston, MA. (Panel Chair)

“Community Reinforcement Through Communication Breakdown.” University of Massachusetts, Amherst Crossroads III Conference, 2012, Amherst, MA.

“Evolving into Cheaters: The Ethics of Video Games.”44th Convention of the Northeast Modern Language Association, 2013, Boston, MA. (Panel Organizer and Chair)

“How Firefly Translates into Serenity: Measuring Success in Cross-Media Adaptation.” Popular Culture Association / American Culture Association Conference, 2013, Washington, DC.

Conference Organization

Popular Culture Association / American Culture Association Conference, 2012, Boston, MA. “Buffy Through the Looking Glass” Panel Chair.

44th Convention of the Northeast Modern Language Association, 2013, Boston, MA. “Video Games and Society” Panel Organizer and Chair.

First biennial UMass Graduate Student Conference in Translation Studies: Reading Between the Lines: Interdisciplinary Dialogue in an Expanding Field, 2013, Amherst, MA. (Co-organizer)