1. What is your name and pronouns?
Hi guys, I am Rin :) They/She.
2. What is your research interest and why?
My research interests include STS (Science, Technology and Society Studies), the history of media technology and infrastructure, and East Asian media culture. I see media as a prism through which all the messages humans create and perceive are transmitted. Elegant and comprehensive, CMS makes me feel united with all the cultural phenomena happening around the world. Hope you enjoy it also!
3. What drew you to UW?
I am a huge fan of outdoor activities. I spent an undergraduate year as a visiting student in the United States. Throughout the year, I traveled along the North American continent, and Seattle turned out to be the most beautiful of all. Who could resist living in a city where you can see both the sea and Mt. Rainier through your apartment's window? Other universities have campuses; UW has a national park.
4. What have you found most rewarding and impactful about the program so far?
What I appreciate most about UW CMS is the efforts all the people make to build up this intellectual community. I love our small grads cohort - we are a team (say hello to Connor and Mavis here)! As a master's student who is just at the beginning of an academic path, I am grateful for all the opportunities to cooperate with all our brilliant professors and senior students. I am always enriched by both their knowledge and their supportiveness. And we have the best graduate advisor in the world <3
5. What advice would you give to undergrad students considering a graduate program?
Academia is never an easy choice. For undergraduate students considering a graduate path, I encourage you to first clarify your motivation for studying CMS. Do you have a strong theoretical foundation and an academic topic that you especially wish to dig into? Would you expect to become a professor? Or an exhibition curator at film institutions? Or you, as a cinephile, are just simply interested in interpreting films? There is a wide range of choices from undergraduate minors to graduate certificates for all these different goals. Networking with faculties to share your career thoughts is also a good option.
6. What is your favorite movie and why?
My favorite movie - that is the 101 question for CMS students. Frankly speaking, I have a bunch of them. Comfort zone: Paul Thomas Anderson, John Cassavetes, Leos Carax, Alejandro Jodorowsky, and the whole 70s New Hollywood cinema. My tiny treasure recently: The Goalie’s Anxiety at the Penalty Kick (1972) by Wim Wenders. So many to name, after all...