This article, published in the Spring 2020 issue of NECSUS, reflects on the Indy Vinyl project, in terms of its status as a long-form piece of academic research. If you are interested in this project as an academic output, I recommend you read this article before reading the book chapter (‘Vinyl Noise and Narrative in CD-Era Indiewood‘) or watching the video essays. Alternatively, you could watch the videos as they are mentioned in the article (links to them are included in the article at appropriate points). The article abstract is below and you should click here to access the online version of the article. Click here to download a PDF.

“Sarah Barrow argues that the video essay provides a ‘viable alternative to the academic book’. This article explores that claim, considering how a video essay-based project can pursue a single topic in the manner of a monograph. The case study is Indy Vinyl, my collection of video essays and writing about vinyl records in American Independent Cinema. I argue that an approach informed by traditional scholarly values should be augmented by more exploratory thinking, when moving from written to practice-based forms of film criticism.”