The associate professor of cinema and television arts will research and revise a new edition of his widely used multimedia textbook, exploring how artificial intelligence and mobile-first workflows are shaping digital storytelling education.
Vic Costello, associate professor of cinema and television arts, has been awarded an Adrienne A. Livengood-Baker and Greg Livengood Faculty Summer Fellowship, recognizing the strength of his proposed research and supporting his scholarly work this summer.
The endowed fellowship, awarded through Elon University’s Office of Faculty Research & Development, provides an $11,000 stipend to support faculty scholarship. The award offers dedicated time for research and creative activity while recognizing the demands of teaching, mentoring and experiential learning during the academic year.
Costello’s project will contribute to the fourth edition of “Multimedia Foundations: Core Concepts for Digital Design,” which is under contract with Taylor & Francis and scheduled for publication in 2027. The revised edition responds to rapid changes in the media landscape, particularly the rise of generative artificial intelligence, mobile-first content creation, and the growing creator economy. His work will focus on developing two new chapters centered on AI and emerging technologies, as well as mobile media production and cross-platform workflows.
A widely adopted, peer-reviewed textbook, “Multimedia Foundations” also serves as a required text in Elon’s COM 2200 course, a foundational class in digital design and storytelling within the School of Communications. The current edition spans more than 500 pages and includes hundreds of illustrations, reflecting its blend of conceptual and visual instruction.
Costello said the fellowship will allow him to build on that foundation while incorporating emerging tools and ethical considerations that are shaping the future of media production.
“I am deeply grateful to Elon University and to Adrienne A. Livengood-Baker and Greg Livengood for their generous commitment to faculty research and scholarship,” he said. “This fellowship provides the time and resources to pursue meaningful work while enabling deeper exploration of emerging AI platforms and media technologies as they reshape creative workflows in digital storytelling. It also affirms the value the university places on inquiry, innovation and academic excellence.”
The Livengood-Baker Faculty Summer Fellowship is made possible through the generosity of Adrienne A. Livengood-Baker P’09 and Greg Livengood ’09, whose endowed gift reflects a commitment to advancing faculty excellence and scholarly engagement at Elon University.