Institute of Media Studies

Prof. Dr. Susanne Marschall

Director of the Centre for Media Competence
Editor of the open access journal "Colour Turn"

Susanne Marschall, born in 1963, is Professor of Media Studies (research focus: audiovisual media, film and TV)

>>> Chair of Audiovisual Media, Film and Television

University of Tübingen
Media Studies
Wilhelmstr. 50
Room 018
D-72074 Tübingen

 +49 (0) 7071 29-72354
Fax: +49 (0) 7071 29-5149
susanne.marschallspam prevention@uni-tuebingen.de

Office Hours

Please inquire via e-mail Erika Kahlich

 

Profile

The Chair of Audiovisual Media, Film and TV Studies is dedicated to research and teaching in the field of fictional films and documentary films. We focus primarily on pictorial design, colour and light, animation, dramaturgy, serial storytelling, and science communication. In addition to a methodological background in historical hermeneutics, media studies, cultural studies, and vision science, the chair has a strong interest in interdisciplinary research, especially in cognitive science. This has developed through a long-standing engagement with colour and visual perception and is seen as a vital empirical approach when researching topics such as film, TV, photography, and images. A combined interest in cinematic art and painting has led to the development of a strong research focus on animation, its history and its highly fascinating stylistic diversity. The field of animation offers vast uncharted research areas, which are systematically explored in the Tübingen Centre for Animation Research (ZAF: Zentrum für Animationsforschung), founded in 2013.

The Chair of Audiovisual Media, Film and TV Studies is closely connected with the Centre for Media Competence (ZfM: Zentrum für Medienkompetenz), which is also directed by Prof. Dr. Susanne Marschall. Dr. Marschall, assumed the direction of the ZfM, along with her appointment as Professor. A wide range of programs are associated with the ZFM, including Campus TV, Radio Micro Europa, Festival TV, media library as well as web-based programs such as media-bubble.de or napse.de. Previous projects include the Media-Ambassadors India-Germany (Robert-Bosch Stiftung), and BGMvital- Service centre for addressee-oriented occupational health management in SME (sponsored by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research, BMBF). The diverse film and media projects at the ZFM make it possible to systematically combine academic research and teaching with media practice (mewi-projekte). Some of the highlights of the practice-based projects include the documentary Lotte Reiniger – Tanz der Schatten (ARTE 2012, DVD absolut medien) and the two operas W – The Truth Beyond (2016) and Il Cacciatore Deluso (2017). Several exhibition projects, including SPEKTRALE (2011 Mainz) as well as Querhandeln (2014) and Menschenbilder (2015) which were developed in co-operation with the Weltethos-Institut, are other examples of practice-based projects realised by the ZFM. Last but not least, master students regularly produce high-quality graduation films that can be watched in cinemas, on TV, or on DVD.

In addition to her university engagements, Prof. Dr. Susanne Marschall is a reviewer for various research funding organisations, jury chairman for the MFG Baden-Württemberg in the areas of distribution promotion and grants for innovative cinema and cinema prizes, and also a board member of the foundation of the Deutsche Kinemathek.

Curriculum Vitae

Susanne Marschall studied German studies, comparative studies, and philosophy in Cologne and Mainz. She held a scholarship from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) from 1992 to 1995. In her monographs, papers, essays, and film reviews (Schüren, Fink, edition text+kritik, Königshausen & Neumann, Bertz + Fischer, Böhlau etc.), she covers topics such as film and TV studies, literature, theatre and cultural studies as well as visual culture. She has also appeared as a film expert in several TV and radio interviews (Filmdienst, Deutsche Welle, ARTE, SWR, HR, NDR etc.). She has also shared her expertese on colour in a TED Talk.

In 1995, Dr. Marschall obtained her doctorate with a dissertation on the theme of dance in Frank Wedekind’s Pandora’s Box and Hugo von Hofmannsthal's Elektra. Subsequently, she worked as a research associate, as an assistant professor (C1), and finally as an academic counsellor in the department of film studies and, starting at the end of 2009, in the department for journalism at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz.

In 2003, she received the teaching award of the Senate of the Johannes Gutenberg University for her excellent performance in teaching. In 2005, she completed her post-doctoral research with her monograph „Farbe im Kino“ (Colour in Cinema), which has been published in its second edition. In the same year, she conceptualised and realised the exhibition „Farb-Töne“ (Colour Tones) as part of the Summer of Culture. In addition, she had several teaching engagements, e.g. at the Hamburg Media School, the Universities of Marburg and Vienna (summer 2011) as well as the Filmakademie Ludwigsburg. In 2010, Dr. Marschall received the calls for a W3 professorship in media studies from the Universities of Tübingen and Hamburg. With the acceptance of the professorship in Tübingen, she was also appointed director of the Centre for Media Competence of the University of Tübingen.

While working at the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz, Susanne Marschall was the spokesperson of the Interdisciplinary Media Research Group, founded the University television program CampusTV and conceptualised the university's media house. She was a founding member of the Interdisciplinary Research Group for Neuroscience (in particular as a spokeswoman for the department of Visual Culture) and in the executive committee of the Center for Intercultural Studies. She was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Foundation Rhineland-Palatinate for Culture, until she accepted her position as a professor in Tübingen,.

In addition, she took part in media practice and media didactics activities; for example, in the conception of numerous school projects as well as the management of the Rhineland-Palatinate promotion of young talents for film and new media. Her commitment to PUSH projects such as the Children's University, the Science Market and most recently the City of Mainz's application for the title City of Science is aimed at opening up and spreading a network of media studies. In 2011 Susanne Marschall curated the exhibition „Spektrale“ as a lighthouse project for the City of Science.

In 2012 the alumni magazine UNICUM BERUF awarded Susanne Marschall the title „Professor of the year“. The media scholar was honoured in the category „Humanities, Social Sciences and Cultural Studies“. Nationwide, almost 800 university teachers had been nominated for the title by students, colleagues and employers. A jury chaired by Professor Klaus Landfried, the former president of the German Rectors’ Conference, elected the award winners in four academic fields. Susanne Marschall won the competition because of her intensive mentoring of young scholars in career planning, the development and realisation of ambitious practice projects, placements in internships and entry-level positions as well as the advancement of start-ups.

Marschall, Susanne (2019): "Filmwissenschaft". In: Werner Nell, Marc Weiland (Eds.): Dorf: Ein interdisziplinäres Handbuch. Stuttgart: Metzler, 2019, pp. 62-68.

Marschall, Susanne (2018): "Exotismus". In: Kunst- und Ausstellungshalle der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Bonn und Deutsche Kinemathek, Berlin (Ed.): Kino der Moderne. Film in der Weimarer Republik. Dresden, Sandstein, pp. 112-117.

Marschall, Susanne, & Werner, Annette (2017): "Grundlagen der Farbforschung". In: Gesprächsstoff Farbe. Beiträge aus Wissenschaft, Kunst und Gesellschaft. Scheurmann, K., Karliczek, A. (Ed.). Köln: Böhlau Verlag.

Marschall, Susanne (2017): "Farbe und Animation". In: Gesprächsstoff Farbe. Beiträge aus Wissenschaft, Kunst und Gesellschaft. Scheurmann, K., Karliczek, A. (Ed.). Köln: Böhlau Verlag.

Marschall, Susanne (2015): "Bewegung(en) auf dem Tricktisch – Lotte Reinigers Metamorphosen und Tänze im Kontext der Avantgarde". In: Blattner, Evamarie et al. (Eds.): Animation und Avantgarde: Lotte Reiniger und der absolute Film. Tübingen, pp. 55–69.

Marschall, Susanne (2015): "Somewhere inside the rainbow – Musicals in Technicolor". In: Stiftung Deutsche Kinemathek (Ed.): It´s GloriousTechnicolor. Publikation zur Retrospektive der Berlinale. Berlin, pp. 72–87.

Marschall, Susanne, & Bieberstein, Rada (2014): "Indiens Kino Kulturen – Geschichte, Dramaturgie, Ästhetik", Marburg

Marschall, Susanne, Bieberstein, Rada, and Schneider, Kurt (2012): DVD “Lotte Reiniger – Tanz der Schatten”. In Zusammenarbeit mit ARTE DEUTSCHLAND. absolut Medien / arte EDITION

Marschall, Susanne (2012): "Monomythos und transkulturelle Synthese – Immersion am Beispiel von Avatar". In: Jahrbuch immersive Medien. Marburg, pp. 123–127.

Marschall, Susanne, Liptay, Fabienne, and Keazor, Henry (2011): "FilmKunst. Studien an den Grenzen der Künste und Medien". Marburg.

Marschall, Susanne (2011): "Non finito - zur Renaissance des Fragments als Phänomen des Medienwandels". In: Kunsthochschule für Medien (Ed.): off topic. Unterbrechen/wiederholen. Köln, pp. 14-21.

Marschall, Susanne (2005): "Farbe im Kino". (2nd ed. 2009). Marburg.

Marschall, Susanne, Bauer, Matthias, and Liptay, Fabienne (2008): "Kunst und Kognition". München.

Marschall, Susanne (2006): "Indien". In Filmkonzepte 4. München.

Marschall, Susanne, & Liptay, Fabienne (2006): "Mit allen Sinnen - Gefühl und Empfindung im Kino". Marburg

Liptay, Fabienne, Marschall, Susanne, and Solbach, Andreas (2005): "Heimat - Suchbild und Suchbewegung“. Remscheid

Marschall, Susanne, & Witzke, Bodo (1999): "Wir sind alle Menschenfresser - Georg Stefan Troller und die Liebe zum Dokumentarischen". Norderstedt

Marschall, Susanne, (1996): "TextTanzTheater", Eine Untersuchung des dramatischen Motivs und theatralischen Ereignisses "Tanz" am Beispiel von Frank Wedekinds Büchse der Pandora und Hugo von Hofmannsthals Elektra, Frankfurt am Main

Marschall, Susanne, (1991) "Mythen der Metamorphose – Metamorphose des Mythos bei Peter Handke und Botho Strauß." Mainz