The creative energy of management research through film

Abstract

In this article I summarize and extend a keynote address given at the Nordic Academy of Management Conference, held at University of Vaasa, Finland, 2019. My concern is to reflect the goals of the conference: a combination of thriving management inquiry and a desire to explore new ways of doing things. Specifically, I ask whether a film can do or be management research. This question raises important issues regarding the limits of the rational-cognitive perspective that has generally been approached in management studies. To answer it, I mobilize empirical examples to illustrate how film can produce emotions and affective responses that are often more powerful and effective than conventional practices of academic writing. The evidence suggests that these non-cognitive responses can animate the relationship between film and research within management studies.