Photo courtesy of Sarah Beth Miller

Media critic, Salon assistant editor, and A.V. Club contributor Scott Eric Kaufman died Monday after a long illness. Kaufman had a doctorate from the University Of California, and taught classes about Game Of Thrones, Doctor Who, Mad Men, and Batman. After he left those brick-and-mortar institutions, he founded the Internet Film School feature here at The A.V. Club, where he displayed a singular ability to distill a property through screenshots with both humor and thoughtful analysis. Kaufman kicked off the feature with a post on the importance of framing, which cited The Godfather Part II. His meditative column on Louie’s Lynchian and dreamlike qualities was among the most notable, but all of Kaufman’s Internet Film School entries are worthwhile reading. They can be found here. Highlights include Kaufman’s balanced take on how film and media stack up against each other, as well as the Coens’ art of misdirection in The Hudsucker Proxy.


A few days before his death, a GoFundMe campaign was been set up to help Kaufman’s family with his medical bills. You can donate to the fund here.

[via Matt Zoller Seitz, and a tip from reader Brian Holbrook]