Having graduated with an MA in Cognition and Communication from the University of Copenhagen in 2017, Tess Lankhuizen is about to defend her PhD dissertation at VU Amsterdam, examining the effects of the visual formal features of Hollywood film on audience empathy and narrative engagement. She currently works as a lecturer at the University of Amsterdam, teaching courses on media effects and media representation. Her research interests include the interplay between form, content, and audience engagement in various narrative media; the effects of minority representation in entertainment media on minority and majority audiences; and the interaction between creators and audiences in the digital media landscape.  Her area of expertise primarily focusses on film, but also encompasses animation, comics, and prose. 

Research methods

• Survey research
• Online experiments
• Content analysis
• Stylistic analysis
• Mixed methods

Current research projects

• From Frames to Feelings: Visual Form, Empathy, and Narrative Engagement in Hollywood Cinema (2018-2025)

PhD project geared at understanding the effects of the visual formal features of film (e.g., lighting, shot scale, editing) on the narrative experience of viewers.

Current cooperation

• PhD project at the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, in collaboration with the University of Leipzig and the University of Brescia (2018-2025)

BA

• Entertainment Communication
• Graduation Project

MA

• Clashing Views on Media Effects
• Representation in the Media
• Thesis