Sam Holmans Thompson
She/Her
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About
Sam works as a researcher and project manager at the University of Kent focused on health humanities projects and the role of media, narrative, and creative practice in enhancing health and wellbeing. They hold a master’s degree in film and came to academia after an extensive career working across media and creative industries marketing, PR and events and film production for renowned global brands including National Geographic Television and Film, Discovery Networks Europe, Beggars Group and Sid Gentle Films.
Research interests
Sam is a qualitative researcher who works across disciplines using a variety of methodologies to explore lived experience. She is interested in how people engage with the moving image, with a focus on the relationships between emotion and the cinematic experience, and the role and place of the moving image in state sectors such as military, law enforcement, justice and healthcare.
Sam is currently engaging with underserved groups, using visual ethnography and creative methods to explore perceptions of and attitudes towards mental health, imaging a better future of mental health awareness, care and service provision for everyone.
Sam is also interested in concepts of indexicality, ontology of the image, and film as cultural artefact in relation to democracy and jurisprudence, particularly the narrative use of the moving image as evidence in the criminal justice system.