Department of Literature and Language

Department of Literature and Language

Chelsea Wessels

Chelsea R. Wessels, PhD

Co-Director, Film and Media Studies Minor | Associate Professor, English

Chelsea Wessels joined Literature and Language in 2018, after receiving her PhD at the University of St Andrews in Scotland and her MA in English from Western Washington University. As the Co-Director of the Film and Media Studies minor, she teaches courses in film history, film theory, film genres, and special topics courses including monsters in film and literature, film festivals, and feminist adaptations. Her research interests include local cinema history and archives, film distribution and exhibition, global film genres, media pedagogy, and feminist film. Currently, she is editing a handbook on popular culture and working on a book on teaching film and media. An advocate for community engagement with independent film, she has served on multiple festival juries and worked with festivals in Scotland and the United States. Along with Matthew Holtmeier, in 2023 Dr. Wessels launched the Bud Frank Cinema, with a mission to bring new and diverse film experiences to campus and the community.