Saki's PhD dissertation will explore the concept “Swedish star” and the star-making mechanism in the 40s Swedish film industry with focus on five female Swedish actresses (Viveca Lindfors, Elsie Albiin, Gunn Wållgren, Eva Henning, and Maj-Britt Nilsson). The central research topics are the media representation of these "Swedish stars", the process in which the concept was formed and the involved agencies in that process. Based on the archival research on various media texts, the dissertation will discuss, above all, conflict and/or negotiation between "Swedishness" and "internationality" in the selected actresses' stardom and interaction between Swedish theatre and cinema in star-making.
