Media and Information Literacy Repository – South Asia

This article examines film literacy initiatives in Spain operating outside formal education systems. By analyzing 65 organizations involved in cinema pedagogy, the study identifies the canon of films and directors promoted to students in non-formal educational contexts. The findings reveal a dominance of North American and French cinema, limited representation of Spanish national cinema, and an absence of films addressing Spain’s historical memory. The study highlights the cultural implications of film education practices and questions the diversity and inclusiveness of cinematic literacy promoted within Spanish educational initiatives.

This article examines the dual role of cinema as both entertainment and a source of intellectual and cultural learning. Focusing on Morocco, it argues that the widespread consumption of films has encouraged a consumerist approach to cinema, limiting its educational potential. The paper advocates the inclusion of film studies in Moroccan educational curricula to develop critical viewing skills and a constructive cinematic culture. It emphasizes the importance of teaching audiences, from an early age, how to critically select and interpret films in order to encourage informed, reflective, and culturally aware film consumption.

This study explores the role of cinema and audio visual media in strengthening disaster literacy and risk communication in Indonesia through a systematic literature review. The findings show that films, documentaries, animations, and digital media effectively communicate disaster awareness, preparedness, and mitigation practices. Cinema functions not only as an educational tool but also as a cultural medium that fosters empathy, collective awareness, and community engagement. The study highlights the potential of audiovisual media in disaster education, participatory governance, and social resilience while identifying gaps in evaluating long-term behavioural impacts.

This article examines film literacy in Europe through the findings of the 2012 European Experts’ Study on film literacy. It discusses two approaches to film education: as a universal cultural entitlement and as a tool for developing film audiences. Based on research across 32 European countries, the study explores film education practices, the cultural significance of cinema, and the relationship between film literacy and media literacy. It also reflects on the opportunities and limitations of digital technologies in shaping contemporary film education and audience engagement.

This study highlights the growing importance of emerging literacies in contemporary education, particularly film literacy. It argues that teachers must develop new skills to address the demands of a digital and information-rich society. Film literacy is presented as a multidisciplinary and multicultural form of literacy that enables critical interpretation of visual languages and media texts. The paper emphasizes the need to integrate film literacy into higher education to strengthen semiotic understanding, critical thinking, and communication skills required for navigating complex media environments in the 21st century.

This study discusses the “Physics in Films” project developed to increase student interest in physical science through the use of popular films. The programme integrates scientific concepts with movie analysis across various genres, including superheroes and pseudoscience. Findings show that film-based teaching improves engagement, flexibility in instruction, and understanding of scientific principles. The project demonstrates how cinema can serve as an effective educational tool to reduce science illiteracy and make complex scientific concepts more accessible and engaging for students.

This study examines the impact of a film literacy programme conducted in six European Union countries to improve students’ understanding of cinema and attitudes toward European films. The findings reveal limited changes in film preferences but significant improvement in students’ knowledge of film production and cinematic expression. Attitudes toward national and European cinema became more positive, although programme outcomes varied across cultural contexts. The study highlights the importance of culturally sensitive approaches in developing effective cross-cultural film literacy programmes.

This paper explores cinema as a universal visual language with its own grammar, conventions, and techniques of meaning-making. It argues that understanding film requires both visual and aural literacy, similar to how print literacy requires recognition of linguistic patterns. The study examines cinematic language, editing, and emotional communication in film narratives.

Children, Film and Literacy examines the relationship between children’s engagement with film and the development of literacy practices. Becky Parry argues that films provide imaginative and narrative spaces through which children construct identities, participate in storytelling, and develop understandings of narrative structure and visual language. Drawing on research conducted in schools and children’s everyday cultural experiences, the book highlights how film influences play, communication, and creative expression.

The dynamics of digital communication literacy today cannot be separated from technological advances, also every person or institution/government or other private institution is always faced with the development of human resources. Moreover, related to the planned production, this shows the ability to process marketing propositions and advertisements, both commercial advertisements and public service advertisements (PSA) in the midst of strengthening communication literacy itself. This research was conducted using descriptive qualitative research methodology, namely digging up data by direct observation, and interviews with those who can be used as data sources. The purpose of this research is to provide a clear description of the Effect of Marketing Promotion on Public Service Advertising on Strengthening Digital Communication Literacy, as well as to contribute ideas to policy makers and other researchers in the future, thereby providing significant benefits to these problems.

This study looks at how Public Service Announcements (PSAs) affect students at University Malaysia Sarawak's Faculty of Education, Language and Communication (FELC) in terms of cyber wellness and digital citizenship (UNIMAS). An online questionnaire was used to gather data from 82 undergraduate students as part of a quantitative study design that used a descriptive survey approach. Students' exposure to PSAs, attitudes, social norms, and digital activity were all examined using descriptive statistics and multiple regression analysis. The results indicate that students exhibit good digital citizenship behaviors and a high degree of awareness of cyber wellbeing. Students' digital conduct was found to be strongly influenced by attitudes about social norms and cyber health. However, exposure to PSAs by itself did not significantly alter behavior, suggesting that PSAs have an indirect impact on behavior through social influence and internal views. The most popular platform for coming across PSAs was found to be TikTok. This study offers information for creating more successful initiatives to promote cyber wellness among college students.

While health communication campaigns seek to encourage and promote healthy behaviors, they are not always successful. Health communication efforts may fail for several reasons, such as viewers experiencing excessive freedom threats and reactance. This study (n = 201) proposes and demonstrates that descriptive norm appeals in health PSAs can indirectly lead to enhanced behavioral intentions toward the message advocacy via reducing perceived freedom threats, inhibiting psychological reactance, and improving message credibility. However, this serial mediation was only found for message viewers with relatively low media literacy skills – precisely, who did not show considerable critical thinking toward media content. For participants who reported a high level of critical thinking toward media content, the use of descriptive norm appeals did not decrease freedom threats, nor did it indirectly affect behavioral intentions. The findings of this study contribute to the theory of psychological reactance and norms-based research. Both theoretical and practical implications are provided for health communication scholars and practitioners.