Approaching Remix and Mashup: Definitions, Categories, and Criteria

Seminar paper from the year 2016 in the subject Film Science, grade: 1,0, University of Hamburg (Anglistik/Amerikanistik), course: Remix Cultures (MA Seminar), language: English, abstract: The aim of this term paper is to identify shared basic principles and aesthetics of any remix or mashup product, and to understand its related practices in the framework of remix studies. The approach of this paper thus is transmedial. It will investigate if observations in remix studies made for a specific medium can be usefully adapted to other media. In a first step, different practices will be contextualized within media history to understand contemporary remixing practices as the result of an evolutionary process. As will be shown, general characteristics for a broad definition of remix products can be derived from this approach. This is the first part of a series of papers on remix and mashup, laying the theoretical foundation for approaching any type of remix or mashup product through relevant criteria rather than fixed categories.