Camp aesthetics are generally extreme, exaggerated and showy and always involve an element of mockery. Camp can be defined as the purposeful and ironic adoption of stylistic elements that would otherwise be considered bad taste. For instance, “camp” is considered a queer aesthetic because of its traditional use in many queer cultural products. While it is impossible to completely define “queer aesthetics” there are certain styles and modes that are more often employed in queer art. Queer aesthetics typically challenge conventional ideas of what is thought to be universally true. Forms: Does a media product rely on “queer aesthetics”? Is it concerned with queer issues? Although cultural products in this category may not be overtly queer in theme, some auteurs find ways of inserting queer issues into their mainstream productions through more subtle references such as Singer’s use of the coming-out trope in X2 or Ball’s deployment of the contemporary vampire myth in True Blood. The works of television and film creators such as Alan Ball ( Six Feet Under and True Blood), John Waters ( Hairspray), John Cameron Mitchell ( Shortbus, Hedwig and the Angry Inch), Clive Barker ( Hellraiser, Gods and Monsters, Dread) and Bryan Singer ( House, Superman Returns, X-Men and X2) fit into this category. Web sites, films, magazines and other cultural products made by out queer people can usually be defined as being queer media. Auteurs: Has this media product been created by queer people? Benshoff and Sean Griffin, in their book Queer Cinema: the film reader, elaborate three general criteria for identifying cultural products as queer: Auteurs, Forms, and Reception.
Because of this shift, seriously engaging with and thinking about the images we consume has become more important than ever. With the exception of the most simplistically supportive or bigoted representations, there is room for much discussion and debate in determining a positive or negative LGBTQ presence. One of the most difficult things about approaching film and television’s use of queerness is that there will rarely be a single verdict on any given cultural product.