Fade in. A grisly gunslinger exuding untapped heroism strolls through the swinging panels of a saloon to lift his head and reveal his face that was concealed by his signature hat.

In a previous sitting, Marge Simpson lifts her eyes to find her ceiling covered in muddy pig tracks as Homer parades the upside-down swine in the next room while singing “Spiderpig,” an interpretation of the Spiderman theme song. Fade out.

At first, these film genres — of Westerns and animated films — may not seem to have anything in common. However, both share undertones about environmental issues.

Robin Murray, an English professor, and Joseph Heumann, an emeritus professor in the communication studies department, viewed American Westerns and animated films using a mental lens that analyzed ecological patterns found in these genres.

Murray and Heumann have co-authored four books together, including “Ecology and Popular Film: Cinema on the Edge,” “That’s All Folks?: Ecocritical Readings of American Animated Features,” “Gunfight at the Eco-Corral: Western Film and the Environment,” and “Ankle Deep in Blood: Everyday Ecodisasters in Documentary and Fictional Films.”

Heumann, who currently part-time teaches a course on film comedy, said he and Murray have been co-authoring books for about eight years.

“Gunfight at the Eco-Corral: Western Film and the Environment,” their third book, will be released on Friday.

“We examined how these Westerns represent a variety of environmental issues like mining, cattle, buffalo, the railroad and American Indian populations,” he said.

They analyzed films from the 1920s to the present including “Shane,” “The Searchers,” “Pale Rider,” “There Will Be Blood” and “Rango.”

Murray said when they were watching the films to generate ideas, they noticed that ecological issues kept popping up such as the hydraulic mining in “Pale Rider.”

Heumann said they usually spend a year watching films and gathering research material before piecing together the first draft of a book manuscript.

“We could look at 45 works of Gene Autry but then choose four or five to focus on in particular,” he said.

Before analyzing American Western films, they wrote “That’s All Folks?: Ecocritical Readings of American Animated Features” where they examined animated films such as “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves,” “Mr. Bug Goes to Town,” “The Simpsons Movie,” “Bambi” and “The Last Unicorn.”

They also analyzed other films that used different forms of animation such as “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?” “Jurassic Park,” “Happy Feet” and “Avatar.”

Murray said they discovered different patterns that reflected different ecological movements with themes like the need toward interdependence between humans and the natural world, and a critique of humans’ exploitation of the natural world.

For example, “Bambi” criticizes humans’ approach to nature and maintains the separation between human and nonhuman nature, she said.

Murray said her interest in environmental issues stems from her lifelong love of nature.

“I have always been a Tomboy. I was in backpacking clubs in high school, and I was a girl scout until I couldn’t be one anymore,” she said. “I guess it has just been a part of who I am and has continued in different forms.”

From cowboys to cartoon characters, Heumann and Murray examined the environmental issues located under the surface in films, and they are in the process of generating ideas for their next book.

Rachel Rodgers can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].