News

  • Karen Louise Smith Introduces High School Students to Communication Studies

    Thursday, December 11, 2025 | By

    A professors stands amongst a group of seated high school students

    Do we need a ‘nutrition label’ for our internet plans?

    This was one of the exercises given to prospective students on Dec. 5 at Brock University.  The Faculty of Social Sciences hosted high school students from all over the Niagara Region, giving them the opportunity to experience University learning, explore potential career paths and participate in interactive activities led by current students and faculty.

    In the session facilitated by the Department of Communication, Popular Culture and Film, Professor Karen Louise-Smith and attendees explored some of the common complaints Canadians have made about their home internet service. They then worked in groups to prototype a nutrition style label for internet plans to provide clearer information to Canadian consumers in the future.

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  • A Feature Course for Winter D3: Film Music, MUSI 3P50

    Tuesday, November 25, 2025 | By

    close up on hands playing a violin. Behind is some sheet music.

    The Department of Music is offering a course on Film Music next term & has waived the prerequisites for all students who have completed first year studies.

    Feature Course: Film Music, MUSI 3P50 – Winter D3

    Do you love watching movies and listening to music? Consider taking Film Music (MUSI 3P50) with Dr. Nina Penner, running Mondays and Thursdays from 9:00-10:20 a.m. this Winter term at MIWSFPA. You’ll study one film a week, analyzing how the music contributes to the storytelling. The focus will be on the science fiction genre, but final projects can explore any genre of film. Films included on the syllabus are Metropolis, The Day the Earth Stood Still, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Star Wars, Alien, Battlestar Gallactica, Interstellar, Arrival, and Black Panther.

    Assessment includes in-class participation, reading annotations, a presentation, and a final project, which could be a creative project such as rescoring a scene from a film. This course is open to all students in second year and above, no musical experience required. If you are interested, please email Dr. Penner ([email protected]) to request an override.

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  • The Film Production Class Starts Rolling

    Wednesday, November 19, 2025 | By

    A close-up of hands holding a film slate with info on it referring to the current scene, shot and take. In the background a group of students can be seen handling production equipment, and setting up the camera.

    After spending the last few weeks familiarizing themselves with the department’s camera, lighting and sound equipment, Andrew Martiniuk and his class of young filmmakers started shooting a scene as a crew.

    Every take required the students to work as a team.  Everyone had their part to play: gear to check, lines to learn and directions to follow.  As they moved through each setup, students found themselves drawing on the theory and history they have studied in their coursework. Film concepts were no longer abstract ideas. Instead, they became practical tools that guided the students’ creative decisions.

    With Martiniuk’s guidance, the class navigated everything from blocking actors to adjusting light levels, and they discovered how collaborative and dynamic a working set can be.

    Check out the Gallery to see the crew at work.

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  • CPCF Welcomes Prospective Students on Fall Preview Day

    Wednesday, November 05, 2025 | By

    four people, some in Brock University clothing, stand behind a table and pose for a photo. The sign behind them identifies their department programs as Buisnes Communication, Media and Communication and Film Studies

    The department was well represented at Fall Preview Day on Sunday Nov 2, as staff, faculty and student ambassadors welcomed prospective students to Brock.  The university estimates there were more than 4,700 guests — the largest draw since the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Visitors were able to speak with their future professors and peers and learn about our multi-disciplinary program and how it can set them up for future careers.  Whether they had questions about emerging AI, an ever-changing media landscape, or how a strong understanding of communication can shape success in the business world, students left with a clear understanding of how CPCF can offer the tools needed in an increasingly unpredictable world.

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  • CPCF Meets Prospective Students at the Ontario Universities Fair

    Wednesday, October 01, 2025 | By

    A man in a Red Brock University shirt gestures as he speaks to a gathering of students, professors and parents.

    This past weekend, the Ontario Universities Fair was held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. OUF is the main recruiting event for Brock University, as the two-day event draws over 80,000 prospective students and their families annually, and CPCF was well represented.

    Staff, faculty, and student representatives promoted our Communication and Film programs. It is always a great opportunity for CPCF to meet prospective students and share how our programs offer fresh, relevant ways to understand the world we live in. Department Chair Dr. Derek Foster was there to share his enthusiasm and “looks forward to seeing many more potential CPCF students at Brock’s Fall Preview Day on Sunday, November 2nd.”

    If you are interested in the programs offered by the Department of Communication, Popular Culture and Film, have a look at the courses offered here.

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  • Professor Joan Nicks Returns to the Niagara Falls Museum for the Fall Film Series

    Monday, September 22, 2025 | By

    a Woman in a white shirt and blue jeans leans against a white pillar in front of a white house and bench.

    Over 10 years ago, CPCF’s Adjunct Professor Joan Nicks was approached by the Niagara Falls History Museum to program a public film series, and today it is still going strong. Professor Nicks curates two series a year, one in the fall and one in the winter. On September 25th, the newest series begins with “Borders – Crossing the Line North and South.”

    Each series has its own theme. This fall, it is “borders” and how particular genres, from westerns to crime films, characterize border themes. Professor Nicks explains that it “fits today’s social and cultural currents of unstable borders, something people in the Niagara Region understand directly.”

    Every film receives an introduction from Professor Nicks, followed by a lively discussion with the audience. “Museum audiences are very engaged,” Professor Nicks explains. “Many are regulars from the get-go. Some are first-timers discovering a particular series (and, in some cases, the Museum) for the first time. What they all share is an appetite for a special movie-going experience.”

    The first film in the series is The Grey Fox (Phillip Borsos, 1982). The film is about an aging stagecoach robber who crosses into British Columbia to rob trains and finds romance. For the full line-up and to purchase tickets, check out the Museum’s website. Films are free with a museum membership or $5 at the door.

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  • Professor Anthony Kinik Participates in Terry Fox Run

    Wednesday, September 17, 2025 | By

    A man in running gear holds a small sign that says "Dear Terry I'm running for Dad". There are other participants and a start/finish banner behind him.

    On September 14, 2025, CPCF professor Anthony Kinik participated in the Terry Fox Run in St. Catharines, Ontario. A tradition for Professor Kinik, he runs in honour of his father, John Kinik. He explains that his father “started jogging in his 30s as part of the jogging craze of the 1970s, continued running for nearly 40 years after that, and… instilled a love of jogging in me when I was just a kid.”

    The goal for this year was $2,479. Professor Kinik explains, “My father died of cancer 17 years ago. This year, he would have been 87 years old. As a result, my personal goal was to raise $2,479 (17 × 87 + 1,000).”

    However, this year’s run had additional meaning for Professor Kinik. He recently became the director of the Centre for Canadian Studies at Brock University. “Canadian icons like Terry Fox are an important part of our curriculum, so it made sense to start a team to honour him and his remarkable Marathon of Hope, and to further help with the cause.” CANA is the code used for Canadian Studies courses, so the team name is “Yes We CANA.”

    A huge congratulations to all involved. Not only did Yes We CANA end up raising over $3,500, but Professor Kinik also surpassed his personal goal, raising over $2,500.

    If you would like to donate or get involved with the Terry Fox Foundation, [click here].

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  • Congratulations to our new CPCF graduates!

    Wednesday, July 02, 2025 | By

    Brock University CPCF graduate Chloe Pasco in a graduation gown and holding a bouquet of flowers, standing next to Associate Professor Anthony Kinik.

    Congratulations to all the CPCF graduates who crossed the Convocation stage this spring!

    Your passion, dedication and hard work have paid off. We are so proud of all that you’ve accomplished during your time at Brock University, and we can’t wait to see where your next adventure takes you.

    Check out the full 2025 Spring Convocation gallery on the Brock University Facebook page.

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  • 2025 CPCF Spring Courses

    Friday, February 28, 2025 | By

    Students walking outside on Brock University's main campus.

    Whether you want to jump on the fast track to graduation, reduce next year’s course load, satisfy a program requirement or pick up an elective, Brock’s Department of Communication, Popular Culture and Film is offering Spring courses to help you advance your area of study and explore topics of interest.

    Course Spotlight: Nonverbal Communication (COMM 2P96)

    ONM – ONLINE MIXED

    How much of what we’re thinking and feeling is communicated without saying a word? In this course, you’ll decode the hidden language of nonverbal cues and gain greater insight into how people manage conversations and relationships across the channels of communication that escape our everyday attention.

    • Examine how body language, facial gestures, clothing, tone of voice, proximity and other nonverbal cues convey emotions and intentions.
    • Develop a deeper understanding of how you can tap into the power of nonverbal communication to support your personal and professional pursuits.
    • Explore how nonverbal communication influences significant moments such as job interviews, first dates, boardroom negotiations, courtroom trials and police interrogations.

    Recommended for Business Communication and Media Communication students looking to fulfill a third year COMM 290+ requirement.

    Prerequisite(s): COMM 1P91 and COMM 1P92 (COMM 1F90) or permission of the department. Please email [email protected] to request permission.

    This course may also be of interest to students in Sociology, Psychology, Political Science, LawPlus and Business.

    Other Spring CPCF Courses

    • FILM 1F94: Introduction to Film Studies

    Learn more about our Spring COMM courses and FILM courses.

    Registration opens March 5!

    For more information or to register for Brock’s Spring/Summer courses, visit brocku.ca/springsummer

    Categories: News

  • Jennifer Good examines how a “turning it off” approach to climate change could help the climate, Canada and you.

    Wednesday, January 31, 2024 | By

    finger on light switch plate

    This article written by Jennifer Good, Associate Professor of Communication, Popular Culture and Film, originally appeared in The Conversation.

    The challenge for climate change communicators a couple of decades ago was conveying what the research was showing: that the burning of fossil fuels was altering the planet’s climate. That communication played a vital role in facilitating the current widespread understanding that the climate is changing and it is a crisis

    There remains, however, a fundamental communication challenge in moving the focus from consuming different kinds of energy to facilitating a revolution of consuming less. Recent electrical grid events in Alberta offer a compelling case study.

    On Jan. 13, 2024, extreme cold hit Alberta — the coldest in half a century. As people turned up their thermostats to stay warm, Alberta’s power grid was put under immense strain. To avoid taking pressure off the electrical grid with rolling blackouts (rotating half an hour power outages throughout Alberta), the Alberta Emergency Management Agency sent an alert to all Albertans.

    This unprecedented use of the emergency system, the first of what would be four alerts, asked Albertans to turn off unnecessary electricity — lights, electrical appliances and devices — and use “essentials only.”

    Albertans responded. Within minutes of the initial emergency alert being issued, demand on Alberta’s power grid decreased by 150 megawatts and continued to fall. Alberta has an estimated generative capacity of around 16,330 megawatts..

    Because many people and some businesses voluntarily switched off appliances and other electrical devices that were not needed, there was no need for the rolling blackouts.

    Switching off

    The brief experience of turning off highlighted a couple of things. First, that people are willing to change behaviours when asked. Second, the behaviour change, for some, was positive. As one Albertan posted on Reddit

    “Our kids made a game out of it. Showered with a candle in the bathroom, we had one small light to read books, ALL the lights off in and outside the house, no TV obviously.”

    Another poster on the same Reddit thread offered that their 10-year-old excitedly asked that all the lights and TV be turned off and added: “It looks like the alert does work.”

    In the aftermath, the news has focused on critiques of Alberta’s current energy generation and how to facilitate growing energy output in the future as fossil-fuels continue to be phased out. Politicians and experts wondered how the grid could be more robust and fail-safe so that there is no need to ask people to turn things off.

    Critiques of solar and wind were also quickly offered as were the benefits of new power generation such as Alberta’s Cascade Power Project — a 900 megawatt natural gas-fired plant — and increased energy generation flexibility.

    But what if the opportunity in Alberta’s power grid struggles is not about producing different kinds of energy but consuming less?

    Looking beyond supply

    The January cold wave is a critical moment to reflect upon the status quo and reimagine a system that values consuming less, not producing more.

    Alberta’s electrical grid alerts gave us a glimpse, for a few hours, of a topic largely absent from climate communication: we are consuming too much of everything. We must use and consume less. Less energy, less stuff. We cannot consume our way out of this crisis.

    We must consume less, and Albertans proved that this is not only possible but can even be a positive experience.

    It is also important, in the depths of an unprecedented cold-weather event, to not lose sight of the fact that globally 2023 was the warmest year on record “by far” — beating 2016 (the previous record-setting year) by .15 degrees Celsius (also a record).

    The 10 warmest years on record — since 1850 — have been in the past 10 years and this changing climate is causing extreme wildfires, tornadoes, cyclones, drought, flooding, heat and cold. Here and around the world lives and habitats are indiscriminately being destroyed. This is our emergency alert.

    A new normal

    Shifting to turning off and reducing consumption patterns for individuals, businesses and industry will be incredibly hard. The global economy, and related jobs, are built on consuming more. But the climate crisis, as well as growing inequality and ecosystem destruction, will make status quo levels of consumption increasingly untenable.

    The Alberta Emergency Management Agency sent emergency alerts asking people to turn off because the alternative would have been mandatory rolling blackouts. Asking people to turn off voluntarily allowed Albertans to respond with thoughtfulness, dignity and agency.

    We, collectively across Canada and around the world, are in an emergency. The climate crisis is upon us and we have a choice. We can delay structural change and await the extreme climate crisis consequences. Or we can demand that government and industry implement the systemic changes required to avert (or at least mitigate) this catastrophe.

    Regardless, the lessons from Alberta are clear. We could all try “turning off” from time to time — saving money, helping the planet and perhaps reconnecting with friends and family. That, if nothing else, could be a benefit worth championing.

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