Teaching and research interests: Digital video and audio production, science and technology studies, media history,
digital photography, motion-capture, interactive media, mediated performance, human-computer
interaction, theatre, video games, animation, robotics, puppetry, gender and masculinity
studies, and aesthetic philosophy.
Michael Meindl received his M.F.A. in Dramatic Media from the University of Georgia
and is currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Science and Technology Studies from Virginia
Tech. He also holds an M.A. and B.A. in Theatre Studies from Oklahoma State University
and the University of Wisconsin – Milwaukee, respectively. He has done practical and
scholarly work in a variety of areas, including theatre, film, and animation.
As a scholar, Michael focuses primarily on the relationship between media, science,
and technology. He has presented at a variety of regional, national, and international
conferences, including those sponsored by the Society for the Social Studies of Science
(4S), the Society for the History of Technology (SHOT), the Society for Animation
Studies (SAS), and the Popular Culture Association (PCA). He currently has two essays
accepted for publication. One focuses on the representation of science and technology
in both Jaws and Mythbusters and will be part of a collection of works celebrating the 50th anniversary of Jaws. The other explores the use of specific types of sources when doing history of animation
research and will be part of a special “doing animation history” issue of Animation: An International Journal. Finally, he is working on a book-length analysis of early Disney animation technology.
As a video artist, he has worked with the National Geographic Channel, providing motion-capture
services, as well as the New York Public Library and the Carnegie Corporation of New
York, filming special events (some of his footage has been shown to the United States
Congress). He has also worked on commercials and short documentaries. Through his
own production company, he is currently working on a feature-length documentary investigating
the intersection between puppetry and the LGBTQ community. Since its inception in
2014, Michael has been a judge for the International Red Dirt Film Festival held in
Stillwater, OK.