Associate Professor
Biography
John Chua has written, produced and/or directed documentaries for PBS and the BBC. In 2007, while a Senior Fulbright Scholar teaching at Moscow State University’s School of Journalism, he witnessed how citizen journalists and activists were transforming political debates in Russia. Subsequently he trained and worked with citizen journalists in the Middle East and Asia and produced for The Guardian.
He has co-written two Russian feature-length 3D animated films, Space Dogs (2010) and Space Dogs 2: Moon Adventures (2014). The former was screened in 140 countries and at the International Space Station. It was dubbed into 40 languages and won a ‘Golden Eagle’ award for best animation from the National Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences of Russia.
Faculty Research
Selected Publications
Chua, John. “Hell is a Failed State.” Sexual rights and the internet. Ed. Alan Finlay. South Africa: APC and Humanist Institute for Development Cooperation, 2015.
Chua, John. “ICTs and the fight against female genital mutilation in Iraq.” Women’s rights, gender and ICTs. Ed. Alan Finlay. South Africa: APC and Humanist Institute for Development Cooperation, 2013.
Chua, John. “Something Borrowed, Something New: Ye Ban Ge Sheng (Song at Midnight) and the Cross-Cultural Reinterpretations of Horror in Twentieth Century China.” Asian Cinema. (Intellect Press) 16:2. 2005.
Chua, John. “Two cases of corruption in a nation divided.” The internet and corruption: transparency and accountability online. Ed. Alan Finlay. South Africa: APC and Humanist Institute for Development Cooperation, 2012.
Awards
Recipient of Senior Fulbright Scholar grant, IREX grant, and California Council for the Humanities grant. Other notable awards: winning PBS’s TTC About Women and Girls Film Festival and co-writing the animated feature film which won Russia’s Golden Eagle Prize.
Filmmaking
Narrative fiction: writer of animated feature films in the Space Dogs franchise distributed by Sony, Universal Studios, TF1, etc.
Documentary feature and short films: directed or produced films released by PBS, History Channel Israel, Guardian Media, Al Jazeera, BBC Arabic, and Gravitas Ventures/ProSieben.
I teach on:
Film Studies and Communications
Some of the courses I teach:
COM 4100 – Intro to Intercultural Communications
COM 4200 – Introduction to Visual Culture
FLM 4200 – Introduction to Film Studies
COM 5120 – Adaptations: Lit And Cinema
COM 5205 – Cultural Theory
Research Clusters:
International Visual Arts Cultures
The Study of the State, Power and Globalisation
Research Interest & Expertise:
Research interests include citizen journalism, international cinema, documentaries, animation, gender and human rights.
