Opening up Research Data in Film Studies by Using the Structured Knowledge Base Wikidata

The paper shows how context-aware relational infrastructure enables non-technical disciplines to become more involved in data-oriented research practices and environments. A new Open Access journal from the field of film studies is presented that, with the help of the semantic annotation tool neonion, creates associations between its research articles and the community-database WikiData. The tool is designed to integrate seamlessly into the workflow of a film scholar while still supporting the formal structure of data annotation that is necessary in a Linked Open Data environment. By doing so the tool helps to get researchers used to the notion of structured data publication while not overwhelming them with technological concepts. In the end both publication environments - the journal and WikiData - benefit significantly. On the one hand the journal and its articles reach a broader audience, resulting in greater impact. On the other hand, WikiData receives highly profiled data that can be linked back to scientifically reliable sources.