Garrett Hartman Strpko

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My primary research rests in the sub-fields of film philosophy and film theory.

Specifically, my work is motivated by a desire to ‘re-introduce’ phenomenology and film theory. Phenomenological film theory has largely proceeded by attempting to construct a comprehensive, unified phenomenology of film. Rather than seeking such a unified theory, I use various tools and concepts from the traditions of phenomenology and existentialism to understand varieties and possibilities of cinematic experience rooted in style and narration. One current project, for instance, aims to deepen our understanding of mood and narrative cinema through the phenomenological category of stimmung.

Audie Murphy performing in his autobiographical film, To Hell and Back.

Besides this theoretical line of inquiry, I also engage in historical research related to American cinema in the postwar period. For instance, my article "Most Decorated Soldier," published in the Quarterly Review of Film and Video explores how the stardom of soldier-turned-actor Audie Murphy negotiated changing conceptions of combat trauma after WWII. I am also currently working on a project involving documentary collective Kartemquin Films and their emergence as practicioners of cinema verité in the 1960s.