Profile

Interests include film and folklore, popular culture, mythology, narrative theory, and fieldwork.

I am a folklorist and independent filmmaker. I served as the Director of the Folklore Program for over twenty years (1985-2006) at the University of Oregon, where I teach courses on film, folklore, fieldwork, video production, and popular culture.  My films and videos address the interconnection between tradition and the creative process.  They include: Inti Raymi, an indigenous Andean celebration; Kid Shoes, on young men and music; Tales of the Supernatural, an analysis of storytelling events and urban legends; Passover, A Celebration; Kathleen Ware, Quiltmaker; Spirits in the Wood; and Barre Toelken and Barry Lopez: A Conversation.  I also worked as a camerawoman for portions of Jorge Preloran’s series, Patagonia.  I have served on the Executive Board of the American Folklore Society and as the Film and Videotape Review Editor for Western Folklore and the Journal of American Folklore, and am on the board of Folkstreams (www.folkstreams.net), a website devoted to streaming folklore films.