Peter Pugsley

Research Interests

Asian Cultural Studies Cinema Studies Culture, Gender, Sexuality Film, Television and Digital Media

APrf Peter Pugsley

Associate Professor

School of Communication, Media and Journalism

College of Creative Arts, Design and Humanities

Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.

Associate Professor Peter C. Pugsley is a former Head of the Department of Media at the University of Adelaide. He joined the Department of English, Creative Writing and Film in 2022. His central research focus is on Asian film, with broad interests in global cinema, popular culture and media. His sole-authored books are: Japanese High School Films: Iconography, Nostalgia and Discipline through Edinburgh University Press (2021);. Exploring Morality and Sexuality in Asian Cinema: Crossing Boundaries (2015, Routledge, UK) and; Tradition, Culture and Aesthetics in Contemporary Asian Cinema (2013, Ashgate/Routledge). He is co-author with Ben McCann on The Cinematic Influence: Interaction & Exchange Between the Cinemas of France and Japan (2022, Bloomsbury). His research interests also include a range of popular media forms such as television, literature and magazines. He has published book chapters and journal articles on Indian, Malaysian and Hong Kong cinema, Singaporean TV and magazines, and Chinese TV and social media.Peter currently teaches Asian Film Studies, Screenwriting, Contemporary Approaches to Cinema. From 2013-19 he taught Japanese Media Cultures (a study abroad course at Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto). He supervises a number of PhD and Masters candidates on topics related to film and popular media. In November 2021 he was elected as President of the Screen Studies Association of Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand (SSAAANZ). He is a long time supporter and presenter on community radio and occasionally writes film, TV and book reviews.

Film and television studies, with a focus on Asian cinema; Cross-cultural communications; Asian media systems; Cultural and media policy formulation; Studies of contemporary Asia; Globalisation and national identity; Australia-Asia relations; Magazine publishing in Asia; Literary translations.

 

Date Position Institution name
2017 - ongoing Associate Professor/Reader in Media University of Adelaide
2015 - 2018 Head, Department of Media The University of Adelaide
2008 - 2016 Senior Lecturer University of Adelaide
2007 - 2007 Research Fellow The University of Melbourne
2003 - 2007 Lecturer (Casual) RMIT University
2000 - 2007 Lecturer The University of Melbourne

Date Institution name Country Title
1999 - 2002 University of Melbourne Australia PhD
1997 - 1997 The University of Melbourne Australia Graduate Diploma in Education,
1993 - 1996 Deakin University Australia BA (Hons I)

Date Title Institution name Country
2003 Certificate IV in Workplace Training Victoria University Australia

Year Citation
2025 Zou, H., & Pugsley, P. (2025). River Road as Eco-Cinema: Framing China’s Yugur Ethnic Minority Through Religion, Identity and the Environment. Quarterly Review of Film and Video, 1-21.
DOI
2023 Pugsley, P. C. (2023). Brushed in Light: Calligraphy in East Asian Cinema. HARVARD JOURNAL OF ASIATIC STUDIES, 83(2), 5 pages.
DOI
2022 Nguyen, N., Cally, G., Walter, B., Edward, P., & Pugsley, P. (2022). The role of technological knowledge in the pedagogical integration of film in disciplinary teaching at universities. Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 19(3), 1-17.
DOI Scopus3 WoS2
2022 Boucaut, R., & Pugsley, P. C. (2022). Publics of interest and the death of the critic on Australian TV. Media International Australia, 194(1), 3-16.
DOI Scopus1
2021 Pugsley, P. C., & Ali, S. (2021). Activating Bollywood buzz: Promoting Indian film superstars in supporting roles. Studies in South Asian Film & Media, 13(1), 19-37.
DOI Scopus2
2020 Pugsley, P. C., & Pongiyannan, D. (2020). Progressive Moralities: Introducing New Discourses of Gender and Sexuality in 1990s Tamil Film Songs. New Review of Film and Television Studies, 18(2), 20 pages.
DOI Scopus3 WoS2
2020 Pugsley, P. C., & Nakamura, A. (2020). The vulnerable nation in Japanese cinema: subservience and salvation in Hitoshi Matsumoto’s Dai Nipponjin [Big Man Japan]. Journal of Japanese and Korean Cinema, 12(1), 36-52.
DOI
2019 Dore, P., & Pugsley, P. C. (2019). Genre conventions in K-pop: BTS’s ‘Dope’ music video. Continuum-Journal of Media & Cultural Studies, 33(5), 580-589.
DOI Scopus17 WoS12
2016 Pugsley, P., McCann, B., & Pongiyannan, D. (2016). Rajinikanth and Brando: carnivalesque performances of two aging superstars. Studies in South Asian Film and Media, 8(1), 27-45.
DOI
2016 Pongiyannan, D., & Pugsley, P. (2016). Tamil talk shows: maintaining tradition in the new public sphere. Global Media and Communication, 12(2), 161-175.
DOI Scopus1 WoS1
2016 Pugsley, P., & McCann, B. (2016). Female protagonists and the role of smoking in Chinese and French cinema. Asian Cinema, 27(1), 59-83.
DOI
2013 Pugsley, P. (2013). The female protagonist and tobacco imagery in Spinning Gasing: a new aesthetic in Asian cinema. Continuum, 27(6), 799-811.
DOI WoS1
2011 Pugsley, P., & Khorana, S. (2011). Asserting nationalism in a cosmopolitan world: globalized Indian cultures in Yash Raj Films. Continuum, 25(3), 359-373.
DOI Scopus8 WoS5
2010 Pugsley, P. (2010). Singapore FHM: State values and the construction of Singaporean masculinity in a syndicated men's magazine. Asian Studies Review, 34(2), 171-190.
DOI Scopus8 WoS7
2010 Sima, Y., & Pugsley, P. (2010). The rise of a 'Me Culture' in postsocialist China: Youth, individualism and identity creation in the blogosphere. Gazette (Print Edition), 72(3), 287-306.
DOI Scopus58
2008 Gao, J., & Pugsley, P. (2008). Utilizing Satire in Post-Deng Chinese Politics: Zhao Benshan Xiaopin vs. The Falun Gong. China Information, 22(3), 451-476.
DOI Scopus16
2007 Pugsley, P., & Gao, J. (2007). Emerging Powers of Influence: The Role of the Anchor in Chinese TV. Gazette (Print Edition), 59(5), 451-466.
DOI Scopus12
2007 Pugsley, P. (2007). At Home in Singaporean Sitcoms: Under One Roof, Living with Lydia and Phua Chu Kang. M/C Journal, 10(4), online-n/a.
2007 Pugsley, P. (2007). Sex and the City-State: A Study of Sexual Discourse in Singaporean Women’s Magazines. Asian Journal of Communication, 17(3), 231-245.
DOI Scopus3
2006 Pugsley, P. (2006). Cultural Studies in China. China Journal, 56, 202-203.
DOI
2006 Pugsley, P. (2006). Constructing the hero: nationalistic news narratives in contemporary China. Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture, 3(1), 78-93.
2005 Pugsley, P. (2005). Literary text as cross-cultural exchange: the selection of Australian literature for the Chinese book market. Asian Studies Review, 29(4), 383-393.
DOI Scopus4
2004 Pugsley, P. (2004). Manufacturing the Canon: Australia in the Chinese Literary Imagination. Journal of Australian Studies, 83(83), 89-103.
DOI Scopus1

Year Citation
2022 Pugsley, P. C., & McCann, B. (2022). The Cinematic Influence Interaction and Exchange Between the Cinemas of France and Japan (USA ed.). Bloomsbury Academic.
Scopus1
2021 Pugsley, P. C. (2021). Japanese High School Films: Iconography, Nostalgia and Discipline. Edinburgh, UK: Edinburgh University Press.
Scopus1
2015 Pugsley, P. (2015). Exploring Morality and Sexuality in Asian Cinema: Cinematic Boundaries. United Kingdom: Ashgate Publishing.
Scopus4
2013 Pugsley, P. (2013). Tradition, culture and aesthetics in contemporary Asian cinema. United Kingdom: Ashgate Publishing Limited.
DOI Scopus12

Year Citation
2018 Pugsley, P. C. (2018). The School Setting in Japanese Cinema. In Second Biennial Conference of the Screen Studies of Australia & Aotearoa New Zealand. Monash University, Melbourne, Australia.
2016 Pugsley, P. C. (2016). Dai Nipponjin [Big Man Japan] (2007) and the Phenomena of the Masked Hero. In Screen Studies Association of Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand. Wellington, New Zealand.
2010 Pugsley, P. (2010). Transnational media showdowns in China's olympic year. In Proceedings of 18th Biennial conference of the asian studies association of australia (pp. 1-12). www: ASAA.
2000 Pugsley, P. C. (2000). Access and Availability of Contemporary Australian Literature in the People's Republic of China: Beyond The Thorn Birds. In A Bright Prospect of Sino-Australian Cooperation (pp. 442-459). Beijing, China: Beijing (Peking) University Press.

Year Citation
2018 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film Review: Girls Always Happy. Extent: Online.
2018 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film Review: Ashwatthama. Extent: Online.
2018 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film Review: Shalom Bollywood. Extent: Online.
2017 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film Review: The Villainess. Extent: Online.
2017 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film Review: Lucky. Extent: Online.
2017 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film review: Mumon - The Land of Stealth. Extent: Online.
2017 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film Review: A Yellow Bird. Extent: ONline.
2017 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film Review: Apprentice. Extent: Online.
2015 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film Review: Bakuman. Extent: Online.
2015 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film Review: Office. Extent: Online.
2015 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Film Review: Our Little Sister. Extent: ONline.
2014 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Why Don’t You Play in Hell?. Extent: 220 words.
2014 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Lady Maiko and the art of the geisha. Extent: 350 words.
2014 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: 20,000 Days on Earth. Extent: 450 words.
2014 Authors: Pugsley P. Title: Wood Job – a rare, sweet comedy. Extent: 250 words.
2013 Authors: Pugsley PC. Title: The Look of Love. Extent: 370 words.
2013 Authors: Pugsley PC. Title: Thérèse Desqueyroux. Extent: 260 words.
2013 Authors: Pugsley PC. Title: Film Review: Chennai Express. Extent: Online.
2012 Authors: Pugsley PC. Title: The Man with the Iron Fists. Extent: 340 words.

Year Citation
2014 Pugsley, P. (2014). Liu, Jin (2013) Signifying the Local: Media Productions Rendered in Local Languages in Mainland China.
2013 Pugsley, P. C. (2013). Voci, Paola (2010) China on Video: Smaller-Screen Realities, Routledge.
2013 Pugsley, P. C. (2013). Sinha, Amresh and Terence McSweeney (eds) (2011) Millenial Cinema: Memory in Global Film, Wallflower Press.
2011 Pugsley, P. C. (2011). Aronson, Linda (2010) The 21st Century Screenplay: A Comprehensive Guide to Writing Tomorrow's Films, Allen & Unwin.
2010 Pugsley, P. C. (2010). Tan, Kenneth Paul (ed.) (2007) Renaissance Singapore? Economy, Culture and Politics, National University of Singapore. Brill Academic Publishers.
2010 Pugsley, P. C. (2010). Webber, A. & E. Wilson (eds) (2008) Cities In Transition: The Moving Image and the Modern Metropolis; Fish, R. (ed.) (2007) Cinematic Countrysides (Inside Popular Film) 2007 and; Matthews, J.J. (2005) Dance Hall and Picture Palace: Sydney's Romance with Modernity,.
2010 Pugsley, P. C. (2010). McGrath, Jason (2008) Postsocialist Modernity: Chinese Cinema, Literature and Criticism in the Market Age, Stanford University Press.
DOI
2009 Pugsley, P. C. (2009). Beckman, Karen & Jean Ma (eds) (2008) Still Moving: Between Cinema and Photography, Duke University Press.
2009 Pugsley, P. C. (2009). Chu, Yingchi (2007) Chinese Documentaries: From Dogma to Polyphony, Routledge.
2008 Pugsley, P. C. (2008). Shimizu, Celine, P. (2007) The Hypersexuality of Race: Performing Asian/American Women on Screen and Scene, Duke University Press.
2008 Pugsley, P. C. (2008). Seneviratne, Kalinga (ed) (2007) Media Pluralism in Asia: The Role and Impact of Alternative Media, AMIC, Singapore.
2008 Pugsley, P. C. (2008). Tolentino, R. B et al. (2004) Transglobal Economies and Cultures: Contemporary Japan and Southeast Asia. Brill Academic Publishers.
2008 Pugsley, P. C. (2008). Curtin, Michael (2007) Playing to the World's Biggest Audience: The Globalization of Chinese Film and TV.
2008 Pugsley, P. C. (2008). Zhen, Zhang (ed) (2007) The Urban Generation: Chinese Cinema and Society at the Turn of the Twenty-First Century,.
2008 Pugsley, P. C. (2008). Transglobal Economies and Cultures: Contemporary Japan and Southeast Asia.. BRILL ACADEMIC PUBLISHERS.
DOI
2008 Pugsley, P. C. (2008). Playing to the world's biggest audience: The globalization of chinese film and TV. UNIV CHICAGO PRESS.
DOI
2006 Pugsley, P. C. (2006). Tao Dongfeng and Jin Yuanpu (eds) (2005) Cultural Studies in China: Volume 2 of Materialising China Series, Singapore: Marshall Cavendish.

Asian Film Studies

Honours - Film Theory & Thesis Workshop

Contemporary Approaches to Cinema

Japanese Media Cultures (Study Abroad course with Ritsumeikan University, Kyoto)

Screenwriting

Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
2025 Principal Supervisor Godzilla, the Schrödinger's Cat of the Box Office: How the Godzilla franchise is perceived both as and as not a blockbuster. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Zandalee Lavelle
2025 Principal Supervisor Godzilla, the Schrdinger's Cat of the Box Office: How the Godzilla franchise is perceived both as and as not a blockbuster. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Zandalee Lavelle
2024 Co-Supervisor A Rising Class-Consciousness: The Evolution of the 'Eat the Rich' Phenomenon in Contemporary Cinema Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Eva Nicolaou
2024 Co-Supervisor A Rising Class-Consciousness: The Evolution of the 'Eat the Rich' Phenomenon in Contemporary Cinema Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Eva Nicolaou
2023 Co-Supervisor The use of three-dimensionality and flatness in the films of Isao Takahata Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Idris Matthaeus Kellermann Williams
2023 Principal Supervisor Noir Aesthetics in East Asian Cinema Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Kristian Glenn Ramsden
2023 Co-Supervisor A feature documentary screenplay about two icons of Australian choreography collaborating on a new dance work inspired by dance heritage archives. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Joshua Tyler
2023 Co-Supervisor A feature documentary screenplay about two icons of Australian choreography collaborating on a new dance work inspired by dance heritage archives. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Joshua Tyler
2023 Co-Supervisor The use of three-dimensionality and flatness in the films of Isao Takahata Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Idris Matthaeus Kellermann Williams
2023 Principal Supervisor Noir Aesthetics in East Asian Cinema Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Kristian Glenn Ramsden
2022 Principal Supervisor English in K-pop: A multilevel analysis of K-pop and the strategic use of English in the face of Western pop culture hegemony Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Megan Sarah Moon
2022 Principal Supervisor English in K-pop: A multilevel analysis of K-pop and the strategic use of English in the face of Western pop culture hegemony Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Megan Sarah Moon
2019 Principal Supervisor The Revolution Will Be Televised: Audio-visual content in the era of streaming and “peak TV”. An investigation of industry change, content trends, and globalisation post the digital revolution Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Miss Philippa Elizabeth Violet Dore
2019 Principal Supervisor The Revolution Will Be Televised: Audio-visual content in the era of streaming and peak TV. An investigation of industry change, content trends, and globalisation post the digital revolution Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Philippa Elizabeth Violet Dore

Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
2022 - 2025 Principal Supervisor The Power of ‘Bollywood’: How Indian Cinema Bridges Cultural and Socio-political Divides between India and China Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Yanyan Hong
2021 - 2024 Co-Supervisor HALLYU AND ITS EFFECTS ON THE COMPLEXITIES OF ASIAN AUSTRALIAN IDENTITY Master of Philosophy Master Full Time Miss Sophia Helena Mei Ling Fluin
2020 - 2024 Principal Supervisor Representations of Optional Romance in AAA Role-playing Games: Love, Lust and Limerence Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Amy Matilda Brierley-Beare
2020 - 2023 Principal Supervisor Oscar Bait: Exploring Links Between an Academy Awards Institutional Persona and Perceptions of Oscar-Worthiness Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Robert Penn Boucaut
2020 - 2024 Co-Supervisor Media Mimicry - How ‘Mimic Vlogs’ Emulate User-Generated Content in Online Stories. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Caitlin Anne Adams
2019 - 2021 Principal Supervisor Beyond the Tree of the Living-dead: A Rhizoanalysis of Japanese Cinematic Zombies Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Guillaume Christophe Patrice Vetu
2018 - 2023 Co-Supervisor FROM MEDIA USERS TO MEDIA-ENHANCED KNOWLEDGE CREATORS: IDENTIFYING ISSUES WITH INTEGRATING FEATURE FILMS AND TELEVISION SERIES INTO UNIVERSITY TEACHING Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Dr Ruby-Ngoc Nhu Nguyen
2017 - 2021 Principal Supervisor Representations of Women in Pakistani Cinema: Role, Image, and Characterisation Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Nazia Hussain
2017 - 2022 Principal Supervisor Design Cultures in Conflict: An Analysis of User Experience Design Standards in Social Media Smartphone Apps Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Dr Sami Dannaoui
2015 - 2018 Principal Supervisor Western China on Screen: Cinema and Urban Exploration as Thirdspace Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Hongyan Zou
2012 - 2014 Principal Supervisor Discourses of Film Terrorism: Hollywood representations of Arab terrorism and counter-terrorism, 1991–2011 Master of Philosophy Master Full Time Jay William Reid
2012 - 2015 Principal Supervisor Strong Weibo, Smart Government: Governmentality and the Regulation of Social Media in China Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Bei Guo
2010 - 2015 Principal Supervisor Media in China: Constructing a 'War Narrative' in Natural Disaster Coverage Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Weimin Zhang
2010 - 2015 Principal Supervisor Voice and Representation: A Postcolonial Approach to Higher Education Promotional Media And The International Postgraduate Student Experience Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Part Time Ms Lalitha Velautham
2010 - 2013 Principal Supervisor Cinematic Charisma as a political gateway in South India: The case of Tamil Nadu Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Dhamu Pongiyannan
2010 - 2014 Principal Supervisor Social Media in China: Empowerment through Subversive Pleasure Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Minghua Wu
2010 - 2013 Principal Supervisor The Dialogical Processes of Vernacular Mediation: New Media and the Karay-a Ethnic Group of the Philippines Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mrs Mariane Umali

Date Role Research Topic Location Program Supervision Type Student Load Student Name
2021 - 2021 Co-Supervisor Gaming social media in China The University of Adelaide Media Masters Master - Xiaohan Peng

Date Role Board name Institution name Country
2021 - ongoing President Screen Studies Association of Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand c/o Monash University Australia
2018 - ongoing Vice-President Screen Studies Association of Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand c/o Monash University Australia
2009 - 2012 Board Member Australian Writers' Guild - SA Branch - Australia

Date Role Membership Country
2015 - ongoing Advisory Board Member Media Advisory Board - The University of Adelaide Australia
2014 - ongoing - Editorial Board Member - Journal of Magazine & New Media Research (the official journal of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, USA). United States
2008 - ongoing Member 3D Community Radio Australia
2006 - ongoing Member ANZCA Australia

Date Role Editorial Board Name Institution Country
2020 - ongoing Consulting Editor New Voices in Japanese Studies The Japan Foundation, Sydney Australia
2013 - ongoing Member Journal of Magazine & New Media Research - United States

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