LIAS Kolloquium: Fan Edits As Queer Insistence
Liz Schoppelrei, LIAS Fellow
25. Nov
In the winter semester 2026/27, the LIAS Colloquium will open its doors to the university community for the first time. The Fellows will present their current research projects, offering insights into the questions, methods and perspectives that shape their work. The weekly colloquium provides a space for focused exchange on the diverse research projects pursued at LIAS. All members of the university community are warmly invited to discover the programme and engage with the Fellows’ research.
Date:Wednesday, 25 Nov, 2026, 12:15-1:45 p.m.
Location:Campus | Central Building C40.530
This project takes up viewer/creator agency in speculating queer possibilities in the absence of explicit canonical confirmation. Building upon remix studies, I analyze several TikTok “fan edits” of the American police procedural dramas Criminal Minds and Criminal Minds: Evolution. These short-form video montages imagine a romantic relationship between the characters Emily Prentiss and Jennifer Jareau. Fan edits serve as a crucial site of queer insistence and queer speculation. Unlike fan fiction, fan edits are far more restricted in the raw materials a creator might draw upon—after all, there are only so many clips from the TV show to work with. Yet, within these limitations, creators carefully curate queer, lesbian, and/or bisexual versions of this romantic relationship as well as diverse relationship dynamics and possible backstories.