Global Fandom: Julie Escurignan (France)

Game of Thrones Cosplayers, London Comic Con, October 2016

The “Game of Thrones Fans Project”: A transnational study 

My research focuses on the transmedia experience of Game of Thrones transnational fans. More specifically, it analyses the specificities of transnational fans’ material practices of fandom through the case study of the HBO television series Game of Thrones (2011-2019). In this study, I strive to examine a more holistic understanding of fandom and fan experience by looking at transnational fans and weaving together fans’ online and offline presence as part of their material practices. To do so, I rely on a mixed methodology combining qualitative and quantitative methods. I used the three main research methodologies employed in fan studies: ethnography, interviews and online questionnaires. I have also undertaken an online ethnography which has been used as secondary methodology, as well as a semiotic analysis of online platforms and merchandise. These methodologies have led to a rich and complex set of data composed of ethnographic fieldnotes, visual and textual analysis, 1954 surveys answered by fans (995 in English, 482 in French and 477 in Spanish) and 103 interviews of fans and industry professionals (93 in English and 10 in French). 

This work is transnational but, contrary to most transnational research which is centred on countries or geographic areas, here I focus on language. This ties in with the theoretical-methodological point made by Beck (2005) that in a globalized world it may be more appropriate to discard methodological nationalism. Hence, I look at Game of Thronesfandom by language rather than nationality and/or country of residence. I included in this project fans who speak English, Spanish or French. These three languages represent some of the most spoken languages in the world, thus guaranteeing that there would be a number of Game of Thrones fans speaking them and allowing me to consider fandom in a more global context. Theoretically, fans from all over the world could be reached, as long as they spoke one of the three languages. In practice, I did not reach worldwide fans, as Asian fans were mainly absent from my sample. Nonetheless, this methodological choice led to surprising discoveries. The use of Spanish enabled me to discover strong Game of Thrones fan communities in the Philippines and in Chile. Even if my online questionnaire did not reach the Filipino fans, it did reach the Chilean community who massively answered the Spanish survey, hence skewing its results toward a portion of Latin-American and Spanish-speaking fans while still representing an often under-represented fan population. Speaking French gave me access to rural French fans who do not speak any other language and are therefore left out of English-centred international research. Opening the research to non-native English speakers and fans who do not originate from Anglo-Saxon countries also allowed me to discover that Game of Thrones is a national phenomenon in Serbia: “I believe it’s one of the biggest fandoms in popular culture here. Everybody is watching it” (Serbian cosplayer).  

ame of Thrones cosplayers at HeroFestival Marseille 2016

Global practices and Local issues

I have observed striking similarities in the activities all fans engage in: most fans talk about the series with people (94-98% of them), are present online (46 to 52%) and own merchandise (17 to 21%). On the other end of the spectrum, material practices such as creative activities, cosplay, conventions and film tourism only engage between 1 and 6% of fans. These are very marginal yet visible activities in the fan community. They are also engaging activities. It therefore appears that the more engaging the fan practice, the more marginal it is amongst the fan community. No matter their origin, situation or language spoken, the activities Game of Thrones fans engage in and the proportions to which they do so are surprisingly homogenous. I believe there is a “differentiated simultaneity of experience” (Athique, 2016: 151) in Game of Thrones fans’ experience: wherever they are located, whoever they are, fans experience a similarity of experiences in relation to their universe of fandom. In terms of creativity and commodification, I have uncovered that fans reuse the visual identity created by HBO to make objects that often fill a gap in the official merchandising offer, whether it is regarding design, price or product itself. For example, the official HBO shop does not offer cosplay artefacts whereas on the peer-to-peer e-platform Etsy, fan-creators have reproduced many costumes and pieces of jewellery from the series and sell them to fellow cosplayers. Therefore, while fans value as a priority what comes from HBO, they will create the media and material absent from the official offer.

At the beginning of this study, I identified two elements that I thought would constitute barriers in fans’ full enjoyment of the franchise: language and geographical location. Several questions in the surveys were meant to put these hypotheses to the test and allowed me to discover that fans do not cite language as an obstacle to their enjoyment of the franchise. Geographical location, however, appears to be a barrier in fans’ experience: according to where they are, fans do not have the same access to the franchise, particularly in terms of access to merchandise, conventions, fan-dedicated events as well as community. According to fans’ accounts, places like Latin America or Israel do not host many fan events and conventions, and the official HBO shop does not ship products to Latin America and Europe anymore, making the purchase of official Game of Thrones merchandise more difficult. Some respondents underline the lack of fan community where they reside: an English-speaking fan mentioned that he would like to play more board games related to Game of Thrones “but don’t have others to play with locally”. Similarly, rural French cosplayers highlight their feeling of isolation and loneliness, stating that they do not have fellow cosplayers in close proximity and are relying on online groups and regional conventions to have a sense of community. 

Game of Thrones, access and “trivialité”

Hence, the results from this study confirm the idea of fandom as part of a globalisation process. Fan practices related to Game of Thrones are similar in most places. In addition, the online circulation of new practices (such as the live viewing of the series in bars) inform fans’ desires all over the world. Fans also expand the universe created by HBO through their creative and material practices (merchandise creation, cosplay). What truly differentiates fans’ experiences is access: financial, geographical and cultural. Indeed, not only do fans lack equal access depending on the place they reside, my research has showed that Game of Thrones core fandom is made of students and young professionals with middle to high socio-economic status originating from the United States, Australia, Europe and Latin-America. Game of Thrones is thus a successful drama but it cannot really be called a ‘popular’ one[1] in the sense that it does not appeal to all social strata, mainly leaving blue-collar workers out of its audience. Furthermore, the social acceptability of fandom greatly varies depending on culture and location: while popular culture is an accepted phenomenon in North America and the UK, even countries like France are still puzzled and judgemental about it. Beyond economic means and cultural acceptability, questions of geographical location appear central in whether or not fans will have access to a complete experience of fandom or only to partial elements of it. Despite being a globalised phenomenon, fandom doesn’t erase physical, cultural and economic borders.

 Lastly, my research has asserted, if needed be, the international popularity of Game of Thrones. This lead me to rethink the concepts of ‘mainstream’, ‘popular’ and ‘cult’ to no longer define them through a Western or national perspective: Game of Thrones is indeed ‘mainstream’ in North America, but it does not appear so in other parts of the world or from a global point of view. As such, I would like to bring forward the concept of “trivialité” developed by French Communication Studies scholar Yves Jeanneret. “Trivialité” predicates the creative circulation within society of objects, representations and practices which become “cultural beings” because of this circulation. If we consider Game of Thrones and its fandom a “trivialité” phenomenon, it allows us to account for all the changes that happen during the worldwide circulation of said phenomenon. The Game of Thrones universe takes on new meanings, gains value, develops renewed representations while circulating around the world and among fans. This can be seen in phenomena such as the use of the show’s expressions in everyday life (“You know nothing, Jon Snow!” for instance), or the appropriation of the franchise’s identity by fans through their creations (fanart, merchandise…). The idea of “trivialité” enables us to account for the circulation of this popular culture object and the changes inherent to this circulation without being bound by questions of localisation, geographical or cultural borders.

Biography:

Julie Escurignan is a Lecturer in Communication Studies at Sorbonne Paris Nord University and a Doctoral Researcher in Film and Television Studies at the University of Roehampton, London. She holds a MA in Communication Studies from the Sorbonne University, has conducted research at doctoral level at the University of Texas at Austin and at the University of Nordland, Norway, and has worked for NBC Universal International. She researches television series’ fandoms, and particularly transnational fans as well as material practices of fandom. Her thesis looks at the material experience of Game of Thrones transnational fans. She is the author of several book chapters on television hits such as Game of Thrones and Black Mirror.

Contact Details: escurigj@roehampton.ac.uk

[1] Popular is here understood as “for or involving ordinary people rather experts or very educated people” (Cambridge Dictionary: https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/popular)