I had been a devoted teacher before lightning struck in the form of Tania Modleski’s book.
As soon as I had my Ph. D. degree in hand, I began a teaching career, while I wrote during the time I stole from sleeping and squirreled away by refusing social obligations. Classrooms were almost always places teeming with life, hope, and achievement for me and my students. Some who have deeply influenced my work still shimmer brightly in memory–while a few continue to be a part of my life. But if I am in many ways a born teacher, it\’s writing and intellectual sleuthing–along with my husband, children, and friends–that form the core of my being. I ditched my tenured position as a professor in 2004 to write full-time. But I haven’t ditched my interest in how students learn on the university level in the United States. I am currently writing World on Film, a textbook with a revolutionary approach to teaching international film to English-speaking students, under the aegis of Wiley-Blackwell, with the editorial support and encouragement of Jayne Fargnoli. My new freedom also allowed me to accept an invitation to be an Associate Editor at Cineaste.