Elizabeth Ward

I am a film historian who specialises in twentieth and twenty-first-century German film, in particular East German cinema. I explore the intersections between film, politics, and society to reveal how film often opens up a space for more complicated engagements with the past and present than first meets the eye. My research frequently incorporates hitherto unknown archival documents from a range of figures—the state, the film studio, filmmakers, reviewers—to investigate the production contexts and behind-the-scenes discussions that informed the images we see on screen. You can read more about my current research projects and my publications here.

I hold degrees from the University of Cambridge (MA, MPhil) and the University of Leeds (PhD). I am a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (UK) and hold a CELTA qualification from the University of Sheffield.

I have wide experience of lecturing in German, Film, and History Departments including at the University of Leeds, the University of Hull, King’s College London, and Royal Holloway University of London. I am currently a Visiting Fellow at the Institute of Languages, Cultures and Societies at the University of London and a wissenschatliche Mitarbeiterin lecturing in English for Academic Purposes at the Europa-Universität Viadrina in Frankfurt Oder. In 2023, I will begin a prestigious Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action fellowship at Leipzig University.

I have a particular interest in developing inclusive teaching practices in the seminar room and breaking down barriers to participation. I regularly deliver talks at museums, cinemas, schools, and art centres.

Originally from the UK, I now live and work in Germany.