Abstract
This article develops a methodological approach for theory-based research on the basis of media analyses. The authors argue for a combination of grounded theory and neoformalist film analysis. After a brief sketch of the two methods, the "epistemological harmony" of the two methods that makes a combination possible is first worked out on a methodological level of argumentation. This is followed by an exemplary coding of a sequence from the film "2046" to illustrate the practical application of the method.