Angelique Nairn
Biographic Data
| ID | 3919395 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Angelique Nairn |
| GIVEN NAMES | Angelique |
| FAMILY NAME | Nairn |
| SIGNATURE | NAIRN A |
| AFFILIATIONS | Auckland University of Technology |
| ORCID | 0000-0001-5609-2627 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 26 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 3 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 26 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2017 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
The limits of disruption
Artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI are increasingly framed as transformative forces in film production, particularly visual effects (VFX). Yet current debates often overstate their replacement of creative labour or integration into final-pixel production. This article examines how AI is understood, evaluated, and constrained in contemporary VFX practice through qualitative analysis of twelve interviews with VFX practitioners and twent…
Should Death Do Us Part
Conceptualising Immortality The meaning and pursuit of immortality has long occupied a central place in philosophical, religious, and cultural discourse (Buben; Kar; Rosenthal; Nairn). At its core, immortality refers to the continuation of existence beyond the limits of material death, often understood as the endurance of an intangible identity such as the soul, consciousness, or personal essence (Andrade). In contemporary digital culture, this e…
Exploring the Multiverse in Media and Culture
In recent years, the multiverse has become one of the most prominent narrative frameworks in contemporary film, media, and popular culture (Booth). Once largely confined to speculative physics and niche science fiction, the idea that multiple parallel realities coexist has moved decisively into the mainstream, shaping blockbuster cinema, television storytelling, gaming worlds, and digital fan cultures. From superhero franchises to experimental in…
The Datafication of the Soul
The human desire to survive death is not new. Religious traditions, philosophical systems, memorial practices, and popular culture have long offered ways of imagining continuity beyond biological life, whether through heaven, reincarnation, ancestral presence, symbolic immortality, or cultural remembrance (Bhargava; Cave; Iglesias et al.; Lifton; Nairn; Nairn and Matthews). What is changing, particularly in the age of artificial intelligence, is …
Crafting the Grotesque
Introduction Special effects (SFX) makeup has long been a powerful tool in the world of performance, used to transform, distort, and reimagine the human form in service of storytelling. From the eerie creatures of horror to the fantastical beings of science fiction, prosthetic makeup plays a crucial role in shaping the visual language of genre media. The American television show Face Off (2011-2018) brought this behind-the-scenes artistry to the …
An exploration of the impression management and dialogical potential of arts organisations
Creating and maintaining mutually beneficial relationships between organisations and their publics is at the core of public relations practice. Social media has created new opportunities to nurture these relationships through mediated interactions. Ideally, if organisations and publics participate in these interactions with a dialogic orientation, they are likely to have an authentic relationship.Arts organisations globally, however, are known to…
Parental pressure, puberty, and red pandas
Creative goods like films are interpreted based on personal and cultural experiences. This study focuses on audience reviews of Pixar’s Turning Red, analyzing how people attribute values to the film’s portrayal of girlhood and motherhood. Using thematic analysis, two main themes emerged: “It Feels Realistic,” where reviewers find the film authentic and relatable through their own experiences and identities, and “Not Age Appropriate,” criticizing …
Are people's Covid-19 attitudes discriminatory or justified? A thematic analysis of New Zealander's responses to the pandemic
The rise of Covid-19 as a global pandemic in 2020 quickly disrupted nations across the world and heralded extensive media coverage. The coverage explored the consequences of those that become infected and the effect of the virus on nations afflicted by Covid-19's spread. Here in New Zealand, the discussion of the virus and its effects occurred across a range of social media platforms, including the comments area for articles posted by The New Zea…
The Artificial
Orvell noted that despite the evolution of society, imitation and authenticity function as “compass points” that guide meaning-making and retain potency as humans continue to negotiate the real and the unreal in society (ix). Describing the natural and the artificial, Birnbacher contended that, simply put, it is the difference “between what has ‘become’ and what has been ‘made’” (2): the view is that if something exists independent of human inter…
The Actotron
Introduction – The Advent of the Actotron Imagine a movie production where leading actors are not bound by human limitations, and digital entities render every emotion, movement, and line with breathtaking precision. This is no longer a conceptual idea but is becoming more possible with the increased integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into screen production activities. Essentially, we are at the dawn of the Actotron era. These advanced v…
To Perform or Not to Perform
This article explores narratives of how COVID‐19 impacted the performing arts sector, by drawing on interviews with creative workers in Aotearoa New Zealand. Despite the late exposure to COVID‐19 and the adoption of an elimination approach that afforded opportunities for performing arts to continue to varying extents between 2019 and 2022, cultural workers in Aotearoa New Zealand, as with their overseas counterparts, experienced significant and c…
The Magic of Media and Culture
The Magic of Media and Culture In his book The History of Magic (2020), Chris Gosden contends that magic is a product of human connection with the universe, offering answers to questions of meaning and reality, and surviving for centuries because of its capacity for constant renewal. Furthermore, magic has been, and continues to be, tied to the activities and beliefs of a myriad of cultural groups, guiding their understandings of, for example, tr…
The Power of Chaos
In 2019, Netflix released the first season of its highly anticipated show The Witcher. Based on the books of Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, the fantasy show tells the intersecting stories of the Witcher Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill), the princess of Cintra Ciri (Freya Allan), and sorceress Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra), who is commonly referred to as a ‘mage’. Although not as popular among critics as its original book incarnations and…
Holographic Abba
In 2021, ABBA reunited, released a new album, Voyage, and announced holographic concerts featuring their digital avatars or “ABBAtars.” Using visual effects and motion capture technology, these performances create a realistic illusion without physical presence. This study analyzed reactions to these virtual musicians, highlighting concerns of ageism, undermining live music, and profit-driven motives. While the public was excited to “experience” A…
Special Issue of The Australasian Journal of Popular Culture
Notes and Correspondence
Artificial imagination
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into the visual effects (VFX) industry has significant implications for creativity, workflow efficiency and ethical considerations. AI offers benefits in automating labour-intensive tasks and enhancing creative processes, yet it raises concerns about intellectual property, job displacement and the overall impact on artistic integrity. Through semi-structured interviews with nine experienced VFX arti…
The Human and the Machine
This Special Issue, ‘The Human and the Machine: AI Hopes and Fears in Media & Society’, navigates the complex landscape of artificial intelligence (AI), presenting a spectrum of perspectives on its transformative impact. The editorial introduces key articles that explore AI’s dual nature: its potential to drive innovation and efficiency in areas like criminal justice and journalism as well as the significant ethical, societal and environmental co…
Catering to clients
Much has been made of the role artificial intelligence (AI) can have in the creative processes of advertising agencies. Not only can it be used to automate tasks and assess the success of advertising on audiences, but it can also alter the relationship between creatives and the work they produce, with computational creativity opening new opportunities to engage in creative and innovative practice. In fact, recent research has emphasized that crea…
Demon in a Dress
Introduction The term monster might have its roots in the Latin word monere (to warn), but it has since evolved to have various symbolic meanings, from a terrifying mythical creature to a person of extreme cruelty. No matter the flexibility in use, the term is mostly meant to be derogatory (Asma). As Gilmore puts it, monsters “embody all that is dangerous and horrible in the human imagination” (1). However, it may be argued that monsters sometime…
Drama at Disney
Work in creative organizations is often completed under intense working conditions. Due to the nature of the industry sector, creative workers must manage and deal with a range of factors related to their daily activities. These include multiple projects, tight deadlines and shifting schedules, to produce creative outputs that may have limited success in the marketplace. Despite the intensity of the work, the drive to create sets up conditions wh…
Chasing Dreams, Finding Nightmares
In the 2019 documentary Chasing Happiness, recording artist/musician Joe Jonas tells audiences that the band was “living the dream”. Similarly, in the 2012 documentary Artifact, lead singer Jared Leto remarks that at the height of Thirty Seconds to Mars’s success, they “were living the dream”. However, for both the Jonas Brothers and Thirty Seconds to Mars, their experiences of the music industry (much like other commercially successful recording…
Lights, Action, Naughty Bits
The sexualisation of culture has generated much debate in western discourse around its effect on the normalisation of nudity and sexual activity. The reality television show Naked Attraction has increased the dialogue around this debate after its airing, originally in the UK, and then in international territories. The show has been applauded for profiling diverse people, whether that be concerning sexual orientation, body image, gender or ethnici…
After the storm comes the sun
One of the most common motifs surrounding sports, sports teams, and sports stars is “the scandal.” One typifying feature of mediated scandals is the ease with which they can be presented as, or massaged into, an unfolding narrative. Although some research has been conducted into the initial stages of these narratives, there is significantly less that focusses on the ways in which the “transgressor” can be rehabilitated in a separate but linked pa…
Flagging a ‘new’ New Zealand
New Zealanders were presented with the opportunity to change the national flag and opted to retain the current New Zealand flag, despite arguments that it was unable to reflect national identity adequately. This article unpacks the particular version of national identity constructed in discourse in the infographic, Our Nation. Your Choice. which was released prior to the final referendum that determined the outcome of the Flag Consideration Proje…
Flagging a ‘new’ New Zealand
New Zealanders were presented with the opportunity to change the national flag and opted to retain the current New Zealand flag, despite arguments that it was unable to reflect national identity adequately. This article unpacks the particular version of national identity constructed in discourse in the infographic, Our Nation. Your Choice. which was released prior to the final referendum that determined the outcome of the Flag Consideration Proje…
Holographic Abba
In 2021, ABBA reunited, released a new album, Voyage, and announced holographic concerts featuring their digital avatars or “ABBAtars.” Using visual effects and motion capture technology, these performances create a realistic illusion without physical presence. This study analyzed reactions to these virtual musicians, highlighting concerns of ageism, undermining live music, and profit-driven motives. While the public was excited to “experience” A…
Patient Portal Advertisements
Information and communication technologies that connect patients to their healthcare providers are becoming increasingly widespread. One of these technologies is the patient portal, whereby patients can access health information and complete tasks such as messaging physicians, booking appointments, accessing educational materials, and requesting medication prescriptions. In the present study, we critically analyse advertisements to identify the h…
Flagging a ‘new’ New Zealand
New Zealanders were presented with the opportunity to change the national flag and opted to retain the current New Zealand flag, despite arguments that it was unable to reflect national identity adequately. This article unpacks the particular version of national identity constructed in discourse in the infographic, Our Nation. Your Choice. which was released prior to the final referendum that determined the outcome of the Flag Consideration Proje…
After the storm comes the sun
One of the most common motifs surrounding sports, sports teams, and sports stars is “the scandal.” One typifying feature of mediated scandals is the ease with which they can be presented as, or massaged into, an unfolding narrative. Although some research has been conducted into the initial stages of these narratives, there is significantly less that focusses on the ways in which the “transgressor” can be rehabilitated in a separate but linked pa…
Drama at Disney
Work in creative organizations is often completed under intense working conditions. Due to the nature of the industry sector, creative workers must manage and deal with a range of factors related to their daily activities. These include multiple projects, tight deadlines and shifting schedules, to produce creative outputs that may have limited success in the marketplace. Despite the intensity of the work, the drive to create sets up conditions wh…
Chasing Dreams, Finding Nightmares
In the 2019 documentary Chasing Happiness, recording artist/musician Joe Jonas tells audiences that the band was “living the dream”. Similarly, in the 2012 documentary Artifact, lead singer Jared Leto remarks that at the height of Thirty Seconds to Mars’s success, they “were living the dream”. However, for both the Jonas Brothers and Thirty Seconds to Mars, their experiences of the music industry (much like other commercially successful recording…
Lights, Action, Naughty Bits
The sexualisation of culture has generated much debate in western discourse around its effect on the normalisation of nudity and sexual activity. The reality television show Naked Attraction has increased the dialogue around this debate after its airing, originally in the UK, and then in international territories. The show has been applauded for profiling diverse people, whether that be concerning sexual orientation, body image, gender or ethnici…
Demon in a Dress
Introduction The term monster might have its roots in the Latin word monere (to warn), but it has since evolved to have various symbolic meanings, from a terrifying mythical creature to a person of extreme cruelty. No matter the flexibility in use, the term is mostly meant to be derogatory (Asma). As Gilmore puts it, monsters “embody all that is dangerous and horrible in the human imagination” (1). However, it may be argued that monsters sometime…
Artificial imagination
The integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into the visual effects (VFX) industry has significant implications for creativity, workflow efficiency and ethical considerations. AI offers benefits in automating labour-intensive tasks and enhancing creative processes, yet it raises concerns about intellectual property, job displacement and the overall impact on artistic integrity. Through semi-structured interviews with nine experienced VFX arti…
The Human and the Machine
This Special Issue, ‘The Human and the Machine: AI Hopes and Fears in Media & Society’, navigates the complex landscape of artificial intelligence (AI), presenting a spectrum of perspectives on its transformative impact. The editorial introduces key articles that explore AI’s dual nature: its potential to drive innovation and efficiency in areas like criminal justice and journalism as well as the significant ethical, societal and environmental co…
Catering to clients
Much has been made of the role artificial intelligence (AI) can have in the creative processes of advertising agencies. Not only can it be used to automate tasks and assess the success of advertising on audiences, but it can also alter the relationship between creatives and the work they produce, with computational creativity opening new opportunities to engage in creative and innovative practice. In fact, recent research has emphasized that crea…
The Magic of Media and Culture
The Magic of Media and Culture In his book The History of Magic (2020), Chris Gosden contends that magic is a product of human connection with the universe, offering answers to questions of meaning and reality, and surviving for centuries because of its capacity for constant renewal. Furthermore, magic has been, and continues to be, tied to the activities and beliefs of a myriad of cultural groups, guiding their understandings of, for example, tr…
The Power of Chaos
In 2019, Netflix released the first season of its highly anticipated show The Witcher. Based on the books of Polish author Andrzej Sapkowski, the fantasy show tells the intersecting stories of the Witcher Geralt of Rivia (Henry Cavill), the princess of Cintra Ciri (Freya Allan), and sorceress Yennefer of Vengerberg (Anya Chalotra), who is commonly referred to as a ‘mage’. Although not as popular among critics as its original book incarnations and…
Holographic Abba
In 2021, ABBA reunited, released a new album, Voyage, and announced holographic concerts featuring their digital avatars or “ABBAtars.” Using visual effects and motion capture technology, these performances create a realistic illusion without physical presence. This study analyzed reactions to these virtual musicians, highlighting concerns of ageism, undermining live music, and profit-driven motives. While the public was excited to “experience” A…
Special Issue of The Australasian Journal of Popular Culture
Notes and Correspondence
Are people's Covid-19 attitudes discriminatory or justified? A thematic analysis of New Zealander's responses to the pandemic
The rise of Covid-19 as a global pandemic in 2020 quickly disrupted nations across the world and heralded extensive media coverage. The coverage explored the consequences of those that become infected and the effect of the virus on nations afflicted by Covid-19's spread. Here in New Zealand, the discussion of the virus and its effects occurred across a range of social media platforms, including the comments area for articles posted by The New Zea…
The Artificial
Orvell noted that despite the evolution of society, imitation and authenticity function as “compass points” that guide meaning-making and retain potency as humans continue to negotiate the real and the unreal in society (ix). Describing the natural and the artificial, Birnbacher contended that, simply put, it is the difference “between what has ‘become’ and what has been ‘made’” (2): the view is that if something exists independent of human inter…
The Actotron
Introduction – The Advent of the Actotron Imagine a movie production where leading actors are not bound by human limitations, and digital entities render every emotion, movement, and line with breathtaking precision. This is no longer a conceptual idea but is becoming more possible with the increased integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into screen production activities. Essentially, we are at the dawn of the Actotron era. These advanced v…
To Perform or Not to Perform
This article explores narratives of how COVID‐19 impacted the performing arts sector, by drawing on interviews with creative workers in Aotearoa New Zealand. Despite the late exposure to COVID‐19 and the adoption of an elimination approach that afforded opportunities for performing arts to continue to varying extents between 2019 and 2022, cultural workers in Aotearoa New Zealand, as with their overseas counterparts, experienced significant and c…
Crafting the Grotesque
Introduction Special effects (SFX) makeup has long been a powerful tool in the world of performance, used to transform, distort, and reimagine the human form in service of storytelling. From the eerie creatures of horror to the fantastical beings of science fiction, prosthetic makeup plays a crucial role in shaping the visual language of genre media. The American television show Face Off (2011-2018) brought this behind-the-scenes artistry to the …
An exploration of the impression management and dialogical potential of arts organisations
Creating and maintaining mutually beneficial relationships between organisations and their publics is at the core of public relations practice. Social media has created new opportunities to nurture these relationships through mediated interactions. Ideally, if organisations and publics participate in these interactions with a dialogic orientation, they are likely to have an authentic relationship.Arts organisations globally, however, are known to…
Parental pressure, puberty, and red pandas
Creative goods like films are interpreted based on personal and cultural experiences. This study focuses on audience reviews of Pixar’s Turning Red, analyzing how people attribute values to the film’s portrayal of girlhood and motherhood. Using thematic analysis, two main themes emerged: “It Feels Realistic,” where reviewers find the film authentic and relatable through their own experiences and identities, and “Not Age Appropriate,” criticizing …
The limits of disruption
Artificial intelligence (AI) and generative AI are increasingly framed as transformative forces in film production, particularly visual effects (VFX). Yet current debates often overstate their replacement of creative labour or integration into final-pixel production. This article examines how AI is understood, evaluated, and constrained in contemporary VFX practice through qualitative analysis of twelve interviews with VFX practitioners and twent…
Should Death Do Us Part
Conceptualising Immortality The meaning and pursuit of immortality has long occupied a central place in philosophical, religious, and cultural discourse (Buben; Kar; Rosenthal; Nairn). At its core, immortality refers to the continuation of existence beyond the limits of material death, often understood as the endurance of an intangible identity such as the soul, consciousness, or personal essence (Andrade). In contemporary digital culture, this e…
Exploring the Multiverse in Media and Culture
In recent years, the multiverse has become one of the most prominent narrative frameworks in contemporary film, media, and popular culture (Booth). Once largely confined to speculative physics and niche science fiction, the idea that multiple parallel realities coexist has moved decisively into the mainstream, shaping blockbuster cinema, television storytelling, gaming worlds, and digital fan cultures. From superhero franchises to experimental in…
Sociology (15 works) · Art (11 works) · Aesthetics (9 works) · Psychology (8 works) · Computer Science (7 works) · Literature (6 works) · Narrative (6 works) · Visual arts (6 works) · Law (5 works) · Political science (5 works)