Bluey And Adult Fandom: The Importance Of Play In Culture
This thesis explores the animated children’s show Bluey(2018 -), its ever-growing appeal to millennials, and the online fandom that these millennials have formed. The thesis outlines a brief history of media aimed at children and families, starting with the children’s matinees of the 1930s to children’s educational media of the 1960s through the 2000s with shows like Spongebob Squarepants (1999 -) and Shrek (2001) appealing to a broad audience of all ages. Compounding on the history of animation and family-centered media, the advent of social media allows users to revisit media they have nostalgia for, share with others, and create a community of fans known as a fandom. The concept of fandom is expanded upon through the theoretical framework of Johan Huizinga’s Homo Ludens: A Study Of The Play-Element In Culture to discuss how play positively affects people and how engaging in fandom online is a form of play that many millennials engage in. In conjunction, Thomas Ruggerio’s Uses and Gratifications Theory is utilized to discuss why people use social media, and Henry Jenkins’s work on participatory and remix culture explains how social media is used by those involved with fandom. The theories presented by Ruggerio and Jenkins are the framework for transmedia marketing. This marketing strategy is utilized by shows like Glee (2009 - 2015), which targeted millennials through encouraging engagement on social media. This marketing strategy was adopted by the marketing team at Ludi Studios for Bluey. These elements explain why millennials would be drawn to a series geared toward young children.
Bluey, Fandom Studies, Animation Studies, Film and Media Studies
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