Femke De Sutter (PhD) is a researcher in the Department of Communication Sciences at Ghent University, affiliated with the Centre for Cinema and Media Studies (CIMS). She holds a Master’s degree in Communication Sciences, specialising in Film and Television Studies (magna cum laude), as well as a second Master’s degree in Gender and Diversity (magna cum laude), both obtained at Ghent University.
Prior to her doctoral research, Femke worked as a research assistant on the Horizon 2020–funded project EUMEPLAT (European Media Platforms). Her PhD research (2022–2026), funded by the Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO) and supervised by Prof. Dr. Daniel Biltereyst and Prof. Dr. Sofie Van Bauwel, examined representations and discourses of ageing, later life and older adults in Belgian cinema (1945-2022), as well as older adults’ own perceptions of these representations. The project was titled The Belgian Silvering Screen.
Her research has been published in Journal of Aging Studies, European Journal of Cultural Studies and Feminist Media Studies. In 2024, she received the Frieda Saeys Award for outstanding research in gender and media studies. Femke is the founder and current co-chair of the European Network of Aging Studies Graduate Panel and undertook a research stay at Maastricht University during her PhD.
Her research interests include ageing studies, gender and diversity, film and media representations, and audience research.
A full list of publications can be accessed here: Femke De Sutter
