“Joel Anderson’s class was therapy, transcendence, safety, duty, magic. This class made me want to take on the world and made me feel safe interrogating my own artistic process.”
— SUNY Purchase student, Spring 2021
My goal as an educator is to guide students to think critically about the world and the structures and systems that represent and shape it, developing their own confident and empathetic voices while building skills in visual culture and moving image research and creative practice. I am accomplished in teaching a wide range of media history, theory, and production courses for students of all levels, from experimental film/video production to documentary theory, environmental media, gender studies, Japanese and East Asian cinema, film programming, as well as upper level research methods and first-year learning community seminars. My work with students in the classroom and extracurricular campus events was recognized with the Student Engagement Award at SUNY Purchase, and my mentorship of first-year students supported with a Faculty in Residence Fellowship. I have gained extensive experience as an instructor at Ithaca College, The New School, and University of Rochester, as well as through invitations to guest lecture at undergraduate and graduate programs and working with community media organizations as an educator—which constitutes both a pedagogical practice and research subject. My commitment to grow as an educator has been supported by the Susan B. Anthony Institute for Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies Teaching Fellowship and pedagogical excellence is a career-long pursuit I am excited to continue striving for while pursuing a rigorous academic research agenda.
“The professor’s enthusiasm and passion for what he does is contagious.”
— New School student, Fall 2018
My research in personal documentary and community media brings a material and historical understanding to the value of people telling their own stories along with an analysis of the structural conditions of those narratives’ circulation as media forms. At a time when the value of arts education is challenged by quantitative professionalism and policies of austerity, my teaching practice stresses the urgency of media studies, critical voices, and independent artistic expression. Media literacy connects personal perception and collective vision, deconstructing assumptions around representations to better understand the histories, technologies, and systems around us. I seek to create liberatory spaces in which research and creative practice provokes questions of not what do I see, but how do I see? What is unseen that nonetheless constitutes my field of vision? These are questions that repeatedly come up in my classrooms, encouraging open-mindedness and critical thinking. Such principles, learned from mentors and developed through my study of critical pedagogy, have led to my own educational practice, in which I introduce ideas through teachable examples that open up discussion, each unit building on the class’s conceptual trajectory, and utilizing dynamic exercises that integrate relevant methodologies into students’ growing critical and creative processes. Employing these teaching methods, I work to ensure a space of trust that advances equity and inclusion in my classrooms and on campus. I regard the university not just as a site for research and teaching, but a space to contribute to long-term capacity building through service, working towards creating a more just environment.
“JNA is very knowledgable in the world of film and cinema. He regularly references his experience in documentary and Japanese cinema (working with a Japanese film festival for several years prior to becoming a professor). This is really nice because we gain insight from him and his experience outside of a college setting. In addition, JNA is exceptional [at] breaking things down, encouraging students to speak up, and connecting what students say to draw conclusions. I think our semester was full of productive, deep conversations. We are all leaving with a better understanding of cinema and film analysis.”
— Ithaca College student, Fall 2024
Courses Taught
History & Theory of Documentary (Ithaca College, Spring 2025) Syllabus
Hollywood & American Film (Ithaca College, Spring 2025: 2 sections)
Introduction to Film Aesthetics & Analysis (Ithaca College, Fall 2024: 3 sections)
Self-Documentary (SUNY Purchase, Spring 2023) Syllabus
Close Analysis (SUNY Purchase, Fall 2022: on works of Djibril Diop Mambéty and Mati Diop) Syllabus
First-Year Learning Community Seminar: Personal Documentary & First-Person Media in Community (SUNY Purchase, Fall 2022, Fall 2023) Syllabi
Environmental Media (SUNY Purchase, Spring 2022, Spring 2024) Syllabi
Cinema Studies Senior Colloquium (SUNY Purchase, Fall 2021) Syllabus
Film Programming (SUNY Purchase, Fall 2020, Spring 2024) Syllabi
“Joel’s a great professor and mentor, and has almost single-handedly taught me how to make better films.”
— SUNY Purchase student, Spring 2020
History of Film Art (SUNY Purchase, Fall 2020, Spring 2021) Syllabi
Cinema in the Internet Age (SUNY Purchase, Spring 2020) Syllabus
Introduction to Cinema Studies I (SUNY Purchase, Fall 2019, Fall 2022, Fall 2023) Syllabi
New Waves of East Asian Cinema (SUNY Purchase, Fall 2019, Fall 2021) Syllabi
Experimental Workshop (SUNY Purchase, 2018-19, 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22, 2022-23 co-taught with Prof. Ligaiya Romero, 2023-24) Syllabi
Introduction to Cinema Studies (The New School, Fall 2018) Syllabus
The Art of Film (The New School, Fall 2018) Syllabus
Introduction to Women’s Studies: Women’s Personal Cinema (University of Rochester, Fall 2015) Syllabus
“Joel is an extremely wise, kind and caring teacher. I really enjoyed his teaching style. He was able to facilitate discussions in a manner that allowed everyone to be seen and heard at their own pace. He was always available to help answer any of my questions over email and I really appreciated his fast responses and support.”
— New School student, Fall 2018
Testimonials drawn from anonymous student evaluations.
