| Abstract |
"Film tourism-travel associated with a movie or television show-is big business. Whether it is a filming location such as the Game of Thrones set in Northern Ireland, a newly-created themed area like The Wizarding World of Harry Potter, or the myriad of "pop-ups" that have become part of television marketing such as FriendsFest and The Seinfeld Experience, film tourism is booming. In Placing Fandom, Abby Waysdorf presents an in-depth investigation of contemporary film tourism, drawing on both fan studies and tourism studies perspectives. Its overall focus is on the tourist experience, building on previous research in that direction, but with a stronger focus on the relationship that tourists have with what they are traveling to visit. It asks, what role do film-related places play in contemporary fandom? By looking at film tourism from both the perspective of the tourist and the effects of this experience on broader fan ecologies, Waysdorf presents a more holistic understanding of film tourism today, looking at not only its appeal and meaning to tourists, but considering the structures that underlie it as it becomes a recognized, and potentially lucrative, part of contemporary fandom. Incorporating dozens of fan interviews, Placing Fandom provides case studies of today's biggest fandoms and the sites they frequent. The monograph is set apart by its comparative approach that engages with multiple forms of film tourism, from filming locations to simulated locations, frequent visitors to one-off tourists, and at the same time presents a new overarching theoretical framework for the practice"-- Provided by publisher. |
