CFP Disney: A Companion (1/1/2026)

Disney: A Companion

deadline for submissions:
January 1, 2026

full name / name of organization:
Lorna Piatti-farnell and Simon Bacon

contact email:
lpfarnell@gmail.com

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/07/26/disney-a-companion

The editors invite abstracts for a forthcoming edited volume entitled Disney: A Companion, which will offer a comprehensive critical exploration of The Walt Disney Company’s cultural, historical, aesthetic, political, and industrial significance. The Companion is intended for the Peter Lang Genre Fiction and Film Companion series (https://www.peterlang.com/series/gffc), and aims to bring together a wide range of interdisciplinary perspectives that interrogate Disney’s enduring legacy and its evolving role in global media and culture.



Since its founding in the 1920s, The Walt Disney Company has shaped not only the animation industry but also broader cultural discourses around childhood, storytelling, consumerism, technology, representation, and national identity. Disney’s innovations in animation – from the early days of Steamboat Willie and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, to the more recent digital revolutions seen in Frozen and Encanto – have established it as a central player in the development of visual culture. However, Disney’s influence and reach extend well beyond animation, and its characteristic fairy-tale narrative set ups. They encompass live-action films of different genres, television, comics, theme parks, corporate acquisitions and partnerships (including Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm, and 20th Century Studios), streaming platforms, and merchandising. Disney has not only contributed to the development of the animated film as we know it, but also arguably shaped how generations of audiences have experience transmedia storytelling on a wider scale. All of these aspects of the ‘Disney phenomenon’ form a complex conglomerate deserving of sustained scholarly attention across disciplines and contexts.



Taking this as a point of departure, this Companion seeks to engage with Disney not merely as a brand or an entertainment company, but as a key site for creative, cultural, social, historical, political, and industrial negotiations.



Topics might include, but are not limited to:

• Aesthetics and Technologies: techniques and styles in traditional, digital, and hybrid animation; evolution of character design and character identities; Disney’s visual storytelling strategies; evolving digital technologies; collaboration with and influence on other studios; audio-visual and industrial considerations, including the use of music and songs; critical approaches to the aesthetic, industrial, and cultural category of the ‘Disney film’.
• Franchises, Adaptations, and Transmedia Storytelling: convergence culture and the evolution of serial storytelling within the Disney empire, including Disney+ and the Disney Channel; case studies on the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, and beyond, through a Disney lens; transnational reimaginings; paratextual materials, fan practices, remix culture, and counter-discourses surrounding Disney texts.
• The Body and Embodiment: how bodies are animated, idealized, and regulated in Disney media; discourses of beauty, physical transformation, and anthropomorphism; disability, and the relationship between the body and mental health in Disney narratives; body transformations and the construction of the self.
• Representations of ‘Good and Evil’: ethical boundaries and moral binaries within the Disney multiverse; constructions of heroes and villains, and the virtues/values associated with them; politicised understandings of purpose and goals; magic and witchcraft as central Disney tropes; monsters and the monstrous.
• Race, Ethnicity, and Representation: critical approaches to racial and ethnic portrayals in Disney films and television; Indigeneity and complex representations of ‘Otherness’ within Disney properties.
• Gender and Sexuality: changing depictions of femininity and masculinity; Feminist critique and queer readings of Disney narratives; gender performativity in animation and live-action; representation in the Disney Princess franchises and beyond; LGBTQI+ representation in both Disney texts and Disney fan communities.
• Ecology and the Environment: environmental critique within Disney films; corporate practices and environmental considerations; Disney parks and environmental discourses.
• Historical Perspectives: Disney's role in the development of the American film industry; propaganda and nationalism in wartime productions; corporate history and its intersections with broader historical events.
• Consumerism, Childhood, Nostalgia, and Fandom: the commodification of childhood and family entertainment; Disney’s influence on children’s culture and education; nostalgia and intergenerational fandom; critical explorations of ‘Disney adult’ fan communities; Disney cosplay and fan-narratives (including fan-vids, fan-fiction, and beyond); Disney and pedagogical discourses.
• Merchandise, Toys, and Marketing: audience-specific merchandise lines, including critical considerations of ‘Disney Princesses’ products and properties; rare items, collectibles, and exclusivity; branding and marketing strategies in diverse international contexts; Disney parks and the consumer experience.
• Creativity, the Cultural Industries, and Globalization: Disney’s global reach, including localized content and international reception; considerations over creativity and intellectual property; the cultural impact of Disney properties as creative channels; Disney properties, including theme parks, as cultural institutions in the transnational landscape.

The editors invite abstracts of 250-300 words on or around any of the above topics. Final essays will be 3,000 words in length.

The deadline for submission of abstracts is 1st January 2026. Please email your abstracts (together with a short bio, 150 words max) for consideration to both editors: Lorna Piatti-Farnell, lorna.piatti-farnell@sae.ac.nz; and Simon Bacon, baconetti@googlemail.com.


Last updated July 28, 2025

CFP International Congress on Fantastic Genre, Audiovisuals and New Technologies (9/21/2025; Spain/Online 11/19-21/2025)

VIII INTERNATIONAL CONGRESS OF FANTASTIC GENRE, AUDIOVISUALS AND NEW TECHNOLOGIES

deadline for submissions:
September 21, 2025

full name / name of organization:
FANTAELX

contact email:
congreso@festivalcinefantaelx.com

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/06/30/viii-international-congress-of-fantastic-genre-audiovisuals-and-new-technologies

The VIII edition of the Congress will take place on November 19, 20 and 21, 2025 in the Auditorium of the Congress Centre “Ciutat d’Elx” (Spain) (in person format), and via our website (online format). There are 3 participation options:

> Option 1: In this modality, the proposals of the Communications will follow the main thematic line of the new edition of the Congress and the Festival: Japan and its imprint on the Fantastic Genre.

> Option 2: In this modality, the abstracts will follow the generic thematic line of the Congress: The Fantastic Genre and its possible interconnection with the different platforms of culture, audiovisual and new technologies.

> Option 3: In this modality, abstracts submitted will follow the following thematic line: Visual arts and digital culture.

Accepted Communications in the Congress will include:

OPTION 1:

1) Presentation of the paper at the Congress (online or in person).
2) Certificate of Communication and Attendance.
3) Proceedings book with ISBN.
4) Academic publication in the publishing house Tirant Lo Blanch (1st in the absolute General Index of SPI) with a book chapter in Spanish and on paper with ISBN and delivery of the book on paper.


OPTION 2:

1) Presentation of the paper at the Congress (online or in person).
2) Certificate of Communication and Attendance.
3) Proceedings book with ISBN.
4) Academic publication in Ediciones Universidad de Salamanca (first quartile in the absolute General Index of SPI) with digital book chapter in Spanish with ISBN.

OPTION 3:

1) Presentation of the paper at the Congress (online or in person).
2) Certificate of Communication and Attendance.
3) Proceedings book with ISBN.
4) 4) Academic publication in Peter Lang publishing house (7th in the absolute General Index of SPI in Foreign Publishers) with book chapter in English and on paper with ISBN and delivery of the book on paper.

SUBMISSION OF ABSTRACTS

The deadline for submission of abstracts is 21 September 2025 (included).

For further information, please visit: https://www.festivalcinefantaelx.com/en/congress-call-for-papers/


Last updated July 3, 2025

CFP Edited Volume on Star Wars and Politics in the Disney Era (9/30/2025)

CFP: Edited Volume on Star Wars and Politics in the Disney Era

deadline for submissions:
September 30, 2025

full name / name of organization:
Dominic J Nardi

contact email:
dnardi@umich.edu

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/07/28/cfp-edited-volume-on-star-wars-and-politics-in-the-disney-era

This edited volume seeks to collect scholarship on the treatment of political themes and world-building in the Star Wars franchise since Disney acquired Lucasfilm in 2012. Scholars have thoroughly explored political topics in George Lucas’s works, but have paid less attention to how Star Wars projects under Disney have continued, changed, or challenged the franchise’s approach to politics. To advance the scholarship on this subject, we welcome proposals from a variety of disciplines and perspectives, including literary criticism, cultural history, political science, film studies, and fandom studies.



Possible / Suggested Topics:

We are willing to consider relevant proposals about Star Wars stories in any medium — including films, TV shows, novels, comics, and video games — published since Lucasfilm reset the Star Wars canon in April 2014. Below are some topics that essays selected for the volume might address. Please consider this list a starting point for ideas rather than an exhaustive checklist of desired coverage. 

• Everyday heroes and weapons of the weak in Rogue One and Andor
• Political idealism in The High Republic multimedia project
• Magical weapons to identify rightful rulers in Rebels, The Mandalorian, and The Book of Boba Fett
• Luthen’s accelerationism in Andor
• Links between the Empire and organized crime
• Post-conflict justice in the Aftermath and Alphabet Squadron novels
• Information warfare and propaganda, including the Star Wars Propaganda artbook
• Political parties in Bloodlines as a commentary on American polarization
• Star Wars Visions and Ronin as non-Western perspectives on politics in Star Wars
• Mistreatment of veterans in Rebels, The Bad Batch, Andor, and Obi-Wan Kenobi
• Transplanetary corporations and the military-industrial complex
• Income inequality and the donor class in The Last Jedi
• Pre-Mor Authority and the Empire’s use of contractors
• Political dynasties and/or cults of personality
• How political debates during the 2010s and early 2020s affected responses to the Sequel Trilogy
• Interconnections between the State and carceral institutions
• Tensions between political and religious institutions
• Nemik’s manifesto as political rhetoric

Submission and Contact:

Interested authors should email the following to sweede01@luther.edu and dnardi@umich.edu by September 30, 2025:

• 300-500 word abstract of your proposed chapter;
• Contact information - name, email address, and any institutional affiliation;
• Resume/CV for each author/co-author (in any format).

Selected authors will be notified by November 1, 2025, and will be invited to contribute a first draft of a full-length chapter by May 4, 2026. Essays should be between 5,000-7,500 words.



About the Editors

Derek Sweet (sweede01@luther.edu) has been a professor in the communication studies department since 2005, focusing on the topics of rhetoric and public address. Some of his course topics include Public Address, Advanced Public Address, Rhetoric of Everyday Life, Rhetoric of Spirituality, and Media & Popular Culture. He also coedited The Transmedia Franchise of Star Wars TV (Palgrave 2020) and wrote Star Wars in the Public Square (McFarland, 2015).

Dominic J. Nardi (dnardi@umich.edu) is a political scientist who researches the depiction of politics in science fiction and fantasy. He coedited and wrote chapters for The Transmedia Franchise of Star Wars TV (Palgrave 2020), Discovering Dune (McFarland 2022), and Studio Ghibli Animation as Adaptations (2025). He received his PhD from the University of Michigan and teaches at George Washington University.


Last updated July 28, 2025

CFP Adaptation and Terry Pratchett--Essay Collection (10/31/2025)

Adaptation and Terry Pratchett--Essay Collection

deadline for submissions:
October 31, 2025

full name / name of organization:
Anne Hiebert Alton & William C. Spruiell

contact email:
anne.hiebert.alton@cmich.edu

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/06/03/adaptation-and-terry-pratchett-essay-collection

We invite proposals for an edited collection of essays on Adaptation and the work of Terry Pratchett. The book proposal will be submitted to Palgrave Macmillan or Bloomsbury Academic’s Perspectives on Fantasy series in the Spring of 2026.

Perhaps best known for his 41-book Discworld series, Terry Pratchett was also the author of numerous other works of fantasy and science fiction. While enormously popular during his lifetime, since his premature death in 2015 his works have only grown in critical statue, with several scholarly articles, books and book chapters, and collections of essays appearing in the last decade.[1] However, none have paid extensive attention to the multitude of adaptations of Pratchett’s works. Spanning areas including drama, film (animated, live-action, and CGI), spoken word recordings and performances, graphic and musical arts, and games (video, RPG, and board), these many and varied adaptations embody Linda Hutcheon’s notion of remediated narrative: the “repetition without replication” that brings together “the comfort of ritual and recognition with the delight of surprise and novelty” (7, 173).[2]

Ideally this volume will include essays that discuss a variety of types of adaptations, as well as showcase not only Pratchett’s Discworld novels but also his other works, including Nation, the Johnny Maxwell series, the Bromeliad trilogy, The Carpet People, various short stories, and perhaps Good Omens. Topics might focus on such areas including, but not limited to, the following:

Theoretical issues: 

• Adaptation, Interdisciplinarity, Reception, Inter-semiotic translation, etc.Is Pratchett’s work intrinsically adaptable? Is there something about it that makes it particularly appealing to experience through adaptation?
• Are some Pratchett works more adaptable than others?
• Given that adaptation necessarily involves change, are there patterned aspects or common threads for what Pratchett adaptations focus on (fidelity debates aside), regardless of mode?
• How do Pratchett adaptations work? How might they change the experience of the source text, and through that the ground on which any further interpretation is based?

Modes 

•  How do the potentials of different forms/modalities (or languages) interact with Pratchett’s texts – do they encourage adaptation into some forms at the expense of others? Do they affect the choice of what to adapt beyond what the economics of sales figures would suggest?
• What characteristics of Pratchett’s texts pose particular difficulties or challenges for adaptation, or (conversely) enable interestingly expanded possibilities for meaning in the new form?
• How do results from particular adaptations vary between modes/forms?

Roles of participants

• What kinds of roles do various participants in Pratchett adaptations – the initial author, the adaptor(s), the performer(s), the designer(s), the collaborator(s), etc. – play?
• What contributions might or should they make or be expected to make?

Treatments of specific source texts and their adaptations

• How are Pratchett’s works transformed through adaptation? What happens to the source text’s story as a result of adaptation?
• What are some of the contrasts between various adaptations of the same source text – e.g. Guards! Guards! comic book vs. stage play vs. television series vs. game(s); or The Amazing Maurice musical vs. CGI film; or Small Gods graphic novel vs. BBC radio drama vs. instrumental music rendering – into different modes, and why/how do these matter?
• If, as Sanders suggests, adaptations “highlight often perplexing gaps, absences and silences within the original” (126), what gaps can be identified in Pratchett adaptations and how do various adaptations engage with these gaps?[3]

Deadlines/Timeline: Proposals of a maximum of 500 words, along with brief author bios, should be sent by Friday 31 October 2025 to Professors Anne Hiebert Alton and William C. Spruiell via email at anne.hiebert.alton@cmich.edu. Notification of acceptance will be sent by 31 December 2025. Please send any questions to the same address.



[1] In addition to numerous articles, other published work includes Daniel Lüthi’s monograph Mapping a Sense of Humor: Narrative and Space in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld Novels (2023); book chapters in Caroline Webb’s Fantasy and the Real World in British Children’s Literature (2015) and Andrew Rayment’s excellent Fantasy, Politics, Postmodernity: Pratchett, Pullman, Miéville and Stories of the Eye (2014); and at least six collections of essays: Discworld and the Disciplines: Critical Approaches to the Terry Pratchett Works (ed. Anne Hiebert Alton and William C. Spruiell, 2014); Philosophy and Terry Pratchett (ed. Jacob Held and James South, 2014); Discworld and Philosophy: Reality is Not What It Seems (ed. Nicholas Michaud, 2016); Terry Pratchett's Narrative Worlds: From Giant Turtles to Small Gods (ed. Marion Rana, 2018); Terry Pratchett’s Ethical Worlds: Essays on Identity and Narrative in Discworld and Beyond (ed. Kristin Noone and Emily Lavin Leverett, 2020); and Power and Society in Terry Pratchett’s Discworld: Building a Fantasy Civilization (ed. Justine Breton, 2025).

[2] Linda Hutcheon, A Theory of Adaptation, 2nd ed., Routledge, 2013.

[3] Julie Sanders, Adaptation and Appropriation, 2nd ed., Routledge, 2016.



Last updated June 8, 2025

CFP NeMLA 2026 Panel Session: The Murder and Its Afterlife: Regenerating the Wicked Witch (9/30/2025; Pittsburgh 3/5-8/2025)

NeMLA 2026 Panel Session: The Murder and Its Afterlife: Regenerating the Wicked Witch

deadline for submissions:
September 30, 2025

full name / name of organization:
Noah Gallego, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona

contact email:
noahrgallego@gmail.com

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/06/12/nemla-2026-panel-session-the-murder-and-its-afterlife-regenerating-the-wicked-witch

send submissions to https://cfplist.com/nemla/Home/S/21574.

Conference dates: March 5-8, 2026 in Pittsburgh, PA

Deadline for abstracts: September 30, 2025

Contact panel chair for inquiries: Noah Gallego @noahrgallego@gmail.com



Upon the release of his beloved children’s classic, The Wizard of Oz (1900), L. Frank Baum introduced the masses to one of the most enduring villains of American literature: the Wicked Witch of the West. While she played a marginal role in the original book, Victor Fleming’s 1939 movie adaptation rebranded her as the main antagonist who has become an icon in western popular culture, responsible for traumatizing generations of young children. Such was the impact and intrigue of the Wicked Witch that American novelist Gregory Maguire composed a prequel speculating her origin story as the greenified, Dorothy-hating crone. In the spirit of the Broadway musical inspired by Maguire’s novel finally being adapted to the silver screen, this panel seeks to capitalize on “Wicked-mania” and solicit papers that will explore the Witch’s legacy and regeneration throughout film and beyond. Since her debut over a century ago, there have been dozens of under-examined dramatic representations beyond The Wizard of Oz and Wicked that this panel invites scholars to investigate. While on the surface, the Wicked Witch is a horror to behold, this panel seeks to uncover the even more horrific implications of her character. Scholars have claimed her and her Winkie army to be analogs of the Wehrmacht (MacDonnell 1990), a mestiza figure (McCabe 2008), a queer woman (Wolf 2008), and even a monstrous vegan (Sebastian 2022). Interested parties are welcome to expand on these themes as well as initiate new critical discourses as they pertain to the Wicked Witch. Prospective candidates are welcome, but not required, to consider representations of the witch outside of Wicked and The Wizard of Oz and examine other portrayals as in The Wiz (1974), the recovered 1976 Sesame Street episode, season 3 of Once Upon a Time (2013-14), and the film, Oz the Great and Powerful (2013).

In the spirit of the recent cinematic adaptation of the Broadway megamusical Wicked (2024) and its forthcoming companion film Wicked: For Good (2025), this session invites scholars from across the disciplines to submit proposals critically exploring the various iterations of L. Frank Baum’s infamous Wicked Witch of the West throughout the media since the first adaptations of the Oz franchise were released in the early twentieth century. Interested parties are welcome to probe Maguire’s revisionist work on which the musical is based in addition to other under-examined productions featuring the green-skinned menace. Inquiries may consider themes such as: gender, sexuality, queerness, monstrosity, disability, race, ecocriticism, and class.



Last updated June 12, 2025

CFP Fan Studies Network North America (FSNNA) 2025 conference (5/16/2025; online 10/23-26/2025)

Fan Studies Network North America (FSNNA) 2025 conference

deadline for submissions: 

May 16, 2025

full name / name of organization: 

Fan Studies Network North America (FSNNA)

contact email: 

fsnna.conference@gmail.com

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/05/05/fan-studies-network-north-america-fsnna-2025-conference

Get Ready – CFP for FSNNA 2025! Call for Participation

Fan Studies Network North America Conference 2025 (virtual)

October 23-26, 2025

 

REPUTATION: Influence, Power, and Capital

FSNNA Annual Conference 2025

When fan studies first emerged as an undisciplined discipline, fandom was more of a niche activity whose practices (and even existence) still had to be explained to a general readership. Today though, fandom is a widely recognized phenomenon, a frame of reference for popular culture, and a desirable market demographic for new cultural products like music, films, and games. These broader cultural shifts are often mirrored within fandom itself: experienced fans observe that multifandom peers move from interest to interest faster, while new fans might enter fandom(s) without any knowledge of community norms. 

As participation in fandom has broadened, changing fan experiences and fan cultures, many reckon with questions about what it means to be in fandom and to be a fan today. While most seem to embrace and accept the idea that fandom can be fun, there’s a shared sense that it is also so much more. But what does that entail? Is fandom a form of activism? Slacktivism? Representation? Social justice work? Moral stance? Popularity contest? Some combination thereof?

As we consider the shifting understandings and reputations of fandom(s), fan studies has much to offer. Who holds the most influence? Who wields what kinds of power? How do social, subcultural, and financial capital intersect with grassroots activity and forms of production? And how does all of this change fandom in turn? 

As this conference enters its eighth year, FSNNA invites proposals exploring these avenues into fandom and fan studies. We are especially interested in work that considers how fan communities, activities, and works interact or engage with the reputation of fandom itself – for better, for worse, or for both. 

Submissions for the 2025 FSNNA Conference

Fan Studies Network North America (FSNNA) warmly welcomes submissions from early career researchers, graduate students, and independent scholars, as well as established scholars. (This year, we’re also offering a track specifically for undergraduate students: check out the parallel cfp HERE!) Contributions are welcomed from across disciplines, not just fan studies: we are interested in work from media studies, the humanities, the social sciences, library science, and more.

Some topics that we hope to see submissions for include (but are not limited to!):

• Capital and fandom participation: financial/economic capital, social capital, cultural capital, etc. 
• Influence in fandom: parasocial relationships, BNFs, microcelebrities, 
• Power in fandom: politics, policing, gatekeeping; who speaks, creates, listens, learns  
• Having a platform: platform migration, features, community roles, moderation
• Intersectional identities: fans, fan-creators, performers, authors, actors
• Antagonisms and Fandom: the changing language and nature of “anti-fandom” 
• Fandom during crisis: in continuing “post-Covid” era, during rise of global fascism, during online platform precarity
• Internal and external perceptions of fandom: media representations, stigmatization, celebration, misinformation

This work may focus on specific media texts (e.g., film, television, print texts/series, games, video streaming, etc.) or other fan-objects (e.g., sports, music, celebrity culture, etc.). Alternatively, it may consider specific national or regional contexts, theoretical approaches to studying fandom, investigations of fanwork genres or fan practices, and more.

Format of the 2025 Conference

FSNNA 2025 is once again a discussion-focused online conference with accessibility, interdisciplinarity, and global participation at its heart. However, based on participant feedback from previous years, we are moving towards a format that allows for longer conference presentations of roughly 10-15 minutes apiece. Essentially, you can choose one of two options. 

1. Presentation Track (Roundtable Talk + Poster)

Participants on the presentation track will be grouped into roundtables based on overlapping objects, approaches, methods, or themes. Each presenter will have an opportunity to introduce themselves and explore their work for 10-15 minutes, followed by a moderated discussion and Q&A with the audience.

Participants will also prepare a digital poster summarizing their research contribution. (More specific guidelines about poster formats will be available after submissions are evaluated.)

2. Poster Track (Poster ONLY) 

Participants on the poster track will prepare a digital poster summarizing their research contribution. They will not be assigned to a roundtable or introduce their work during a talk. 

All posters from both tracks will be available asynchronously throughout the conference in our Discord server, where attendees can post questions and share feedback.

PLEASE NOTE: As part of your application, you will be asked to stipulate which track you are applying for – presentations or poster only. Likewise, once a submission is accepted, the participation format cannot be changed (i.e., you cannot move from poster only to presentation, or vice versa).  

As in past years, we also welcome the submission of pre-constituted roundtables, which are a group of 3-5 talks that are already organized around a shared topic, text, and/or method. Please note, however, that participants in a pre-constituted roundtable must still contribute posters.

Submissions are due by Friday, May 16.

Submission Details

Ready to submit your work for FSNNA 2025? Here’s what the application form will ask for: 

• An abstract of ~300 words (include a clear explanation of your research, methods, and the project’s relevance to fan studies and fan studies scholars)
• 3-5 keywords about your poster (may include topics, texts, theories, methods, etc.)
• A bibliography of 3–5 references
• A biographical statement (~50 words)

Get Ready for the 2025 Conference!

We’re excited to consider your work for the 2025 FSNNA conference! We also encourage you to check out a new offering this year: a parallel cfp for undergraduates interested in presenting their fan studies work at FSNNA.

Still have a question? Please feel free to contact us at fsnna.conference@gmail.com.

Ready to submit your work? Visit our submission form HERE

(Or if the link above doesn’t work, copy and paste this into your browser: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdtiTvsJS6_dIOdAGyfjeVM-_i7QGwOhi3ICmLHfWfRYRrlGA/viewform?usp=sharing)

Last updated May 5, 2025

Call for Book Chapters -- Fans, Fandoms, and Tabletop Roleplaying Games (6/15/2025)

Call for Book Chapters -- Fans, Fandoms, and Tabletop Roleplaying Games

deadline for submissions: 

June 15, 2025

full name / name of organization: 

Fans, Fandoms, and Tabletop Roleplaying Games

contact email: 

fans.fandoms.and.ttrpgs@gmail.com

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/05/05/call-for-book-chapters-fans-fandoms-and-tabletop-roleplaying-games

Call for Book Chapters
on Fans, Fandoms, and Tabletop Roleplaying Games

Deadline for submissions: Sunday, June 15, 2025

Contact email:fans.fandoms.and.ttrpgs@gmail.com 

 

Editors: 

Maria K. Alberto, University of Utah

Adrianna Burton, University of California – Irvine

 

We are seeking proposals for chapters to be included in a peer-reviewed edited collection on fans, fandom(s), and tabletop roleplaying games (TTRPGs). The University of Michigan Press has expressed interest in this collection and the book proposal is currently underway. 

 

TTRPGs are rapidly evolving, as are their players, designers, and content creators. For example, industry titan Wizards of the Coast released a new 2024 Dungeons & Dragons ruleset; Catalyst Games successfully crowdfunded a Frostpunk tabletop adaptation; and indie studios like Evil Hat and Crossed Paths continue launching new games. Meanwhile, actual play (in which players record themselves playing TTRPGs, and the recordings are released as their own media texts) has proven a booming area of interest. Actual play shows like Critical Role and Dimension 20 regularly draw tens of thousands of viewers each week; these shows are also expanding in new directions with spin-offs like live events, novelizations, and more. TTRPGs have even made it mainstream both on the silver screen, in movies like Honor Among Thieves (Paramount Pictures, 2023), and on consoles, as with video games such as Baldur’s Gate 3 (Larian Studios, 2023). 

 

Underlying all of these developments is the undeniable involvement of fans, who play a critical role in the success of TTRPGs both new and established. This edited collection will critically explore relationships between fans, fandom(s), and TTRPGs, examining how these connections impact analog gaming in both its long-standing and emerging forms.

We are interested in close readings of specific texts, in autoethnographic or personal experiences contextualized critically, and in considerations of historical or overall trends and movements, among other approaches. We invite perspectives from game studies, fan studies, and beyond; other disciplines may include performance studies, digital humanities, pop culture studies, sociology, communication, media studies, interdisciplinary work, and more. This collection is ultimately interested in exploring questions such as: who are fans of TTRPGs? How might fans relate their positionality as simultaneously TTRPG players, creators, and/or freelancers? How do TTRPGs and their producers view their fans and fandom? How do fans position themselves in reaction to industry or textual changes?

Potential topics for chapters include, but are not limited to: 

• Fan productions inspired by TTRPGs (fanfiction, fanart, fanvids, etc.) 

• Positionality of TTRPG fans and/as players

• TTRPG fan culture - in general, or for mainstream vs. indie TTRPGs

• Navigation of TTRPG fandom (as fan, creator, consumer, viewer, or other positionalities)

• Industry perspectives on TTRPG fandom

• Design for fans, fandom, and/or fan engagement

• Designers and industry professionals as fans

• Fan reactions to industry or textual changes like the Open Game License (OGL), Open RPG Creative License (ORC), new seasons of actual plays,etc.

• Fans of actual play shows 

• Education and TTRPG fandom

• Technology/digital platforms and TTRPG fandom

• Other topics related to TTRPG fans and fandom(s)

 

Please submit a 300-500 word abstract for your proposed chapter (including title, 3-5 keywords, and a 100-150 word author bio) to fans.fandoms.and.ttrpgs@gmail.com with the subject line “Chapter Proposal [Author Name].” 

 

Deadline for Abstract Submission: June 15, 2025

Notification of Acceptance: July 1, 2025

Full Chapter First Draft Submission Deadline: December 15, 2025

Last updated May 5, 2025

CFP Metamorphosis - Themed Issue of Femspec - Call for Scholarly and Creative Submissions for Issue 25.2 (8/1/2025)

 

Femspec - Call for Scholarly and Creative Submissions for Issue 25.2

deadline for submissions: 

August 1, 2025

full name / name of organization: 

Femspec

contact email: 

weinbaumbatya@gmail.com

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/04/08/femspec-call-for-scholarly-and-creative-submissions-for-issue-252.

Femspec seeks both scholarly and creative submissions for its upcoming Issue 25.2

Femspec is an interdisciplinary, peer-reviewed feminist academic journal dedicated to science fiction, fantasy, magical realism, surrealism, myth, folklore, and other supernatural genres.  Femspec publishes both academic scholarship and creative writing.

Creative writing submissions could include short fiction, poetry, or experimental forms.

For this issue, we are particularly interested in any material related to the theme of metamorphosis.  Scholarship or creative writing could potentially focus on issues of evolution, change, renewal, the coming out process, or the fluctuations of queer identity and desire.

To submit work for consideration, please review Femspec’s submission guidelines at the following link: SUBMISSION GUIDELINES | Femspec

The submission form is located at the following link: Submission Form | Femspec

Please note that in order to submit work to the journal for publication, you must be subscribed to the journal; please click on the following link for subscription information: Subscribe | Femspec

The deadline for submission for Issue 25.2 is August 1st, 2025

Last updated April 10, 2025

CFP War in Fantasy (8/31/2025; British Fantasy Society Journal)

 

War in Fantasy

deadline for submissions: 

August 31, 2025

full name / name of organization: 

British Fantasy Society

contact email: 

bfsjournal@britishfantasysociety.org

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/04/07/war-in-fantasy.

In this special issue of the BFS (British Fantasy Society) Journal we take a hard look at War in Fantasy. Conflict, from skirmishes to mass battles, tavern brawls to planet-wide apocalypses, is a staple of Fantasy: The Battle of the Five Armies in The Hobbit, The Last Battle in Narnia, The War in Heaven by Charles Williams, and Lyra Belacqua’s fight against death and the consciousness-stifling strictures of the Magisterium, are a few examples. In Warhammer 40K, which expanded the original Fantasy table-top wargame into the far future, we learn ‘in the grim darkness of the far future there is only war.’ There are very few large-scale Fantasy texts that do not acknowledge the impact of war in some way, whether through invasion, siege, massacre, colonisation, spoils of war, legacy, or trauma. Protagonists and places are scarred by it. Narratives are often prominently ante-, para-, or postbellum. Powerful weapons – key to victory or defeat, depending on whose hands they fall into – their acquisition and mastery, are the MacGuffins that drive plot. But does the prevalence of conflict in Fantasy normalise violence and even perpetuate it, or does it offer a useful mirror, allowing us to have a perspective on real-world conflict, narrativize trauma and learn to overcome it? Articles on any of these aspects are welcome. Here are some suggestions:

• The influence of the First World War on Tolkien’s Middle Earth.
• Early depictions of war in taproot texts such as Beowulf.
• Changing depictions of warfare in 21st Century Fantasy.
• Warfare between the human and the other-than-human.
• Hidden, supernatural wars.
• The depiction of non-western cultures in Fantasy warfare.
• Portrayal of marginal figures in warfare, e.g., scavengers; servants; animals.
• The impact of warfare on urban and rural settings in Fantasy.
• Magic in warfare.
• Historical influences on depictions of warfare in Fantasy, e.g. armour, weaponry, tactics.
• Parleys, peace treaties, truces, ceasefires, and the cessation of conflict.
• The aftermath of war in Fantasy texts.
• Valkyries, Morrigans, and other psychopompic figures in warfare.
• Visions in conflict and haunted battlefields.

Submissions should be clearly titled as follows: SURNAME_TITLE_BFSJOURNAL_CFP_WINTER2025. A 200-word abstract and 100-word author bio should be included. Work needs to original, previously unpublished, and referenced using the Harvard author/date system. The editor retains the right to edit any submission, and contributors must be willing to address any editorial suggestions within good time. Publication is expected December 2025.

• Deadline for ABSTRACTS: 31st August 2025.
• Deadline for ARTICLES (if abstract is accepted): 31st October 2025.
• Send to The Editor: bfsjournal@britishfantasysociety.org
• For submission guidelines: https://britishfantasysociety.org/get-in-touch/bfs-journal/

Last updated April 10, 2025

CFP Special Issue: AppleTV+ and Science Fiction--EXTENDED DEADLINE (5/21/2025)

 

Special Issue: AppleTV+ and Science Fiction--EXTENDED DEADLINE

deadline for submissions: 

May 21, 2025

full name / name of organization: 

Science Fiction Film and Television

contact email: 

projectscifi.appletv@gmail.com

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2024/12/07/special-issue-appletv-and-science-fiction-extended-deadline.

Special Issue: AppleTV+ and Science Fiction 

Guest Editors: Burcu Kuheylan, Milt Moise, Nicholas Orlando

contact email: projectscifi.appletv@gmail.com

EXTENDED DEADLINE—Abstracts due May 21, 2025 

In this special issue of the journal, editors seek scholarly articles that contextualize and critique AppleTV+ and its production of science fiction television against the tumultuous Zeitgeist of post-2016.   

The unprecedented popularity of streaming platforms has transformed the playing field, as well as the rules, of the entertainment business. It is nevertheless rare for a streaming service to aggressively invest in one particular genre as AppleTV+ has done with science fiction. Some platforms with vast repertoires, like Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, sample an array of genres and narrative modes – including science fiction, action, stand-up comedy, and reality shows – without privileging quality or diverging from mainstream tastes. While Netflix operates independently of older media conglomerates, Amazon and others like Max and Hulu harness their links with “legacy” media giants, like Metro-Goldwyn-Myer; HBO and Warner Bros.; and Disney, FX, and Fox Searchlight respectively.

New to the scene is AppleTV+, which launched in 2019 and has since offered an alternative model to content production. AppleTV+'s branding and production strategies consist in offering original titles that feature A-list actors and directors while displaying a preference for the high-quality, technically proficient content that cultural commentators often associate with prestige TV. More central to this special issue, however, is the company’s investment in science-fictional media. Series such as Dark Matter (2024), Constellation (2024), and Silo (2023) are only the company’s three latest entries into a growing collection of titles including For All Mankind (2019) and Severance (2022). While AppleTV+ is not the only streaming platform fueling the popularization of science fiction on screen, TV critics and cultural commentators alike seem to agree that AppleTV+ is television’s new “sci-fi Valhalla” (Speicher, “AppleTV+ Has Become”).

This special issue accordingly invites critics to explore Apple’s investments – financial and otherwise – in science fiction. A powerhouse of consumer technologies, Apple has long drawn inspiration from the imaginaries of science fiction, not least in its marketing campaigns, which include iconic Super Bowl commercials directed by Ridley Scott (“1984”) and Mark Coppos (“Hall”); iPhone advertisements by David Fincher (“Hallway”; “Break In”); and the now-controversial “Crush” ad by Gal Muggia and Vania Heymann. In each case, the genre’s technological imaginaries were central to Apple’s marketing of its cutting-edge products, and they have since helped the brand hone its distinctive futuristic look and minimalist style. 

AppleTV+’s singular emphasis on science fiction as its privileged genre of production could also reflect the company’s larger business strategies for product management and development. Under its current CEO, Tim Cook, Apple has maintained Steve Jobs’ hallmark emphases on streamlined production and paternalistic oversight. Not only does the company commit to practices of austerity and lean production models to limit the number both of original films and TV shows/episodes produced, it also reportedly supervises and “meddles'' in content production, sometimes to the chagrin of seasoned producers and directors (Goldberg and Fienberg, “Ron Moore is Ready”; Szalay, “iPhone TV”). Cook’s avoidance of controversial subjects like religion, nudity, violence, China, or negative representations of technology – or of Apple, more specifically – similarly exemplifies his tight control of the brand’s image (Mayo, “Tim Cook Reportedly”; Smith, “Apple TV”; Rosen, “Rian Johnson”; Kent, “The Problem with Canceling Jon Stewart”). Under such circumstances, the high premium AppleTV+ has placed on science fiction, how the genre informs Apple’s public image, marketing strategies, and future enterprises elicits closer scrutiny from scholarly readers and researchers of the genre. 

Equally important for scholars to investigate is how Apple influences the public perception of science fiction as it cherry-picks the genre’s aesthetic and narrative tropes primarily to serve its corporate interests. The privilege such a giant of consumer technologies accords to science fiction indubitably raises the profile and visibility of this historically marginalized genre. This represents a chance for science fiction to publicize its radically different – and potentially subversive – imaginaries of what is possible, which endears the genre to its well-versed enthusiasts. In prioritizing corporate profit, however, Apple also exploits the genre’s futuristic style, aesthetic values, and cultural associations for branding purposes. Can the science fiction it sponsors effectively scrutinize, let alone dismantle, the deeper structures of inequality that the company also perpetuates beyond a fashionable lip service to pluralism, diversity, and globalism? How can we read Apple’s self-fashioning through science fiction in light of, say, its manufacturing partnerships with off-shore sweatshops like the Chinese Foxconn or its failure to provide its content writers a home with proper work conditions, job security, and equitable compensation (Albergotti, “Apple Accused”; Fuster, “#BadApple”)? Given Apple's record of complicity in resource extraction, labor exploitation, and union-busting politics, this issue invites contributors not simply to affirm but to critique the Apple brand’s sci-fi output against the contentious political, economic, and socio-cultural dynamics of the contemporary. 

Such critique has increased urgency as Apple launched its streaming platform and focus on science fiction in a moment of social and political instability in the U.S. and around the globe. Our contemporary moment reflects what Lauren Berlant has dubbed “crisis ordinariness” (Cruel Optimism), which not only overwhelms our perceptive capacities but also defies the conventional limits of the real – the global rise of right-wing politics with a flagrant disregard for objectivity, facts, or truth; concomitant assaults on women’s reproductive rights and equal opportunity initiatives that helped promote racial justice; the rising number of havocs wreaked by climate-change-caused natural disasters; the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East; the mass migration of people fleeing wars, violence, famine, or political persecution; and the attacks against the LGBTQ+ community are only a few examples. Against this state of crisis ordinariness, how can we read Apple as an agent in the (re)production of convergent worlds of aesthetics, economics, and politics? What do Apple’s images of futurity and history do for viewers at a moment of impasse? What kinds of social and political imaginaries does Apple open up and/or disavow? And how can we read these imaginaries against the neoliberal capitalist logics they mediate? 

Some possible topics may include AppleTV+ in relation to:

• Generic developments/trends in science fiction (TV);
• Science fiction in the post-truth political moment;
• Streaming TV and Media (adaptation, mediation, and/or immediacy);
• Writing sci-fi in the age of globalization, corporate profit, and labor precarity; 
• Shifts in social class, labor organization, and worker solidarity; 
• The aesthetics of political economy (venture capital; "stealth wealth");
• The cult and operational logic of disruption (& the rise of AI);
• The history/trajectory of the Apple brand, television, and marketing;
• The potential and limits of futurism and techno-solutionism;
• Nostalgia – (esp. in the context of the MAGA movement's backlashes against women, minorities, LGBTQ+ people, and immigrants); 
• Politics, economics, and social (re)production of science-fiction aesthetics;
• Representations of work/anti-work movements and politics;
• Crises -- aesthetic, reproductive, climate, economic, care work, immigration, political, and leadership; 
• Science fictional representations of futurity (Utopian & Dystopian).

**NOTE: We are particularly interested in essays that address, preferably within a science-fictional framework, AppleTV+’s less discussed series, including but not limited to Dr. Brain (2021), Invasion (2021), and The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey (2022), among others. We will also consider essays on AppleTV+’s original science fiction films, such as Finch (2021), Fingernails (2023), and Swan Song (2021). We have received many proposals for essays on Severance, so additional essays on this series alone will not be considered. We are also interested in essays that critically assess issues of class, disability, gender, and race.

Abstracts of no more than 500 words will be due by May 21, 2025. Acceptance notifications will be sent out by May 30, 2025 with complete drafts of 5,000-7,500 words due by November 28, 2025.

Please submit abstracts and questions to projectscifi.appletv@gmail.com.

Last updated May 1, 2025

CFP Transformers and SOGIE: Call for Proposals for Edited Collection (5/31/2025)

 

Transformers and SOGIE: Call for Proposals for Edited Collection

deadline for submissions: 

May 31, 2025

full name / name of organization: 

Daniel M. Look

contact email: 

dlook@stlawu.edu

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2024/09/25/transformers-and-sogie-call-for-proposals-for-edited-collection.

Title: TBD, but potentials include:

• ‘Til All Are One: Gender, Sex, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity/Gender Expression (SOGIE) in Transformers

Editors (Collaborators): Elizabeth Sanders, Daniel M. Look

Description / Call for Papers:

We are soliciting chapters/articles for an edited academic book on topics relating to the Transformers franchise and gender, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, and/or gender expression.Proposals from academics and independent scholars covering official continuity/properties, fanfiction, the fandom, and content creators will be considered. Proposals should be for new essays, not republications of previous works.

Since its inception in 1984, the Transformers property has had a complicated relationship with concepts relating to sex and gender. During the creation of the names and personalities for the original characters, Bob Budiansky proposed that Ratchet, the medical robot, be a female character. Hasbro rejected the idea, reportedly saying "this is a boy toy. We don't wanna have, you know, girl robots."

However, during the Sunbow animated series, we are introduced to (unfortunately, one-dimensional) ‘female Autobots’ in the episode “The Search for Alpha Trion” and, in 1986, Transformers: The Movie introduced the first recurring female transformer in Arcee.

In the US Marvel comics continuity, the transformer Cloudburst states that for transformers “there are no men, no women…no mates!” Female transformers exist in the Marvel UK comic series, but this is primarily a result of that continuity incorporating aspects from the 1986 animated movie.

Starting in the animated series Beast Wars, cast inclusion of one or more female characters became more commonplace, but they were still heavily outnumbered. Likewise, their gender and gender expression and relationships, when they existed, were cisgender and heteronormative.

The 2005 IDW comics continuity changed this landscape and moved gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, and more diverse relationships closer to the spotlight with, we add, Hasbro’s endorsement and support. We see an incredible explosion of topics ranging from homonormative societies, gender without the “biological” concept of sex, transgender robots, and concepts for close, platonic relationships (amica endura) and spouses (conjunx endura).

These topics are complex and not something expected from a ‘toy’ franchise. Further, there was a directed effort to include women and LGBTQIA+ creators and consultants to write these stories in believable and sensitive ways. That effort has continued in follow up cartoon series, including Transformers: Earthspark, which introduced the first non-binary Transformer. Although some of the expected pearl-clutching occurred, the response was, by and large, positive. However, beyond interviews with creators and fan articles, little academic attention has been paid to the Transformers franchise and its relationship to these topics.

To our knowledge, there is no published academic work relating to this material. Our hope is that this edition will not only stand on its own, but also welcome and encourage further scholarship in this field.

Contributions could include, but are not limited to, the following topics:

Potential Sections & Chapter Ideas

Why “Genderless” Means Male

• Portrayals of Masculinity
• Boys Toys = Boys: Hasbro specifying only wanted male character ers for G1 cartoon
• How “Genderless” Appears in Comics: more as “sex less,” but really all monosexed/gendered as male
• One of Those: Intimacy and emotions not being the focus (traditionally)
• The Trouble with Gobots: Gobots had many female characters and, for the most part, you could not tell male from female from their body design
• Monstrous Reproduction
  • Physically monstrous: Budding, Protoforms
  • Ideologically Monstrous: Made to Order, Vehicons
  • Frankenstein Approach: “Firstborn,” Dinobots, Tarantalus, Quintissons
  • Sacred Well: Vector Sigma, Quintus Prime
• The Problem of Fembots/Femmebots
  • Arcee’s Journey as “The Only One”
  • Toys for Boys: Fembots/Femmebots as Sexual/Romantic Objects
  • All Hail the Queen: Black Arachnia / Airachnid
  • Bringing Balance: Caminus (IDW), Fan Polls (female Megatronous/Victorion) + Windblade, Mairghread Scott (author)
• Queer Identities
  • Found Family: Conjunx Amica
  • MLM and WLW: Conjunx Endura
  • Trans-Transformers: Anode, Lug, Arcee
  • A Wonderful Experience: Nightshade, Non-binary Transformer
  • Intention vs. Interpretation: Knock Out and Breakdown
  • Frenemy or “Will they/Won’t They?”: Ratchet and Drift as a romantic partnership that would have been predicted had they been perceived as male/female

• Humans (Fans and Creators)
  • Own Voice: Queer Creators in Transformers (writers, consultants)
  • Importance of seeing yourself in your fiction
  • Unchecked Privilege and complaints about Genderswapping: “If you want more female characters create new characters”
  • Won’t someone think of the children?: Fan reactions to themes related to gender/orientation in fiction for children
  • Fan reactions: “don’t get your politics in my toys”
  • Cultural differences in reactions from international fanbase

• Misc.
  • Bishojou Figures
  • Kiss Players (tread carefully here)
  • TFs in love with humans, aliens, mermaids, etc. (Seaspray and Powerglide) as explorations of gender identity/sexual identity

To express interest and receive details about submitting a proposal, please contact the editors at esanders5@lamar.edu and dlook@stlawu.edu.

 This edited volume will be organized into thematic sections around these topics and others that emerge from submissions. Prospective authors should contact the editors with any questions, including potential topics not listed above.

Please submit a 300-500 word abstract of your proposed chapter contribution as a Word Document (not PDF) with a brief bio (in the same document), current position and experience with the topic, affiliation (if any), and complete contact information to editors Elizabeth Sanders and Daniel Look by May 31, 2025. Full chapters of 6000-8000 words are likely due December 2025. A publisher has shown preliminary interest.

Please share this announcement with anyone you believe would be interested in contributing to this volume. Proposals from academics and independent scholars covering official continuity/properties, fanfiction, the fandom, and content creators will be considered. 

Note: Acceptance of a proposed abstract does not guarantee the acceptance of the full chapter.

Last updated May 1, 2025

CFP “Living in a Material World”: The 1980s in Popular Culture (7/31/2026; PopCRN 11/26-27/2026)

“Living in a Material World”: The 1980s in Popular Culture
deadline for submissions: July 31, 2026

full name / name of organization: 

PopCRN - The Popular Culture Research Network

contact email: 

popcrn@une.edu.au

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/04/02/%E2%80%9Cliving-in-a-material-world%E2%80%9D-the-1980s-in-popular-culture.

Call for Papers

“Living in a Material World”: The 1980s in Popular Culture

 

PopCRN (the Popular Culture Network) will be holding a free virtual symposium exploring the 1980s in popular culture to be held 26-27 November 2026.

The 1980s was the decade of excess, technological innovation, and political upheaval. This conference aims to explore both the popular culture of the 1980s and how the 1980s have been depicted in the popular culture of other eras.

The 1980s was the era of MTV, the personal computer, the fall of the Berlin Wall, the rise of neoliberalism, Live Aid, the Falklands War, the Iran-Contra affair, the assassination of John Lennon, the AIDS crisis, Chernobyl, the end of the Cold War, the birth of hip-hop, Madonna’s Like a Virgin, Michael Jackson’s Thriller, the Walkman, Rubik’s Cubes, shoulder pads, punk, glam metal, synthesizers, VHS tapes, The Breakfast Club, Top Gun, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Blade Runner, Pac-Man, the Challenger disaster, the rise of video game culture, The Simpsons, The Oprah Winfrey Show, 24-hour news networks, the invention of the World Wide Web, the election of Ronald Reagan, Margaret Thatcher’s Britain, the Tiananmen Square protests, the creation of CNN, the rise of Japanese consumer technology, the Space Shuttle program, the rise of Wall Street culture, yuppies, the DeLorean, New Romanticism, breakdancing, Miami Vice, The Cosby Show, He-Man, Transformers, the emergence of cyberpunk, Ghostbusters, The Goonies, Nintendo, Trivial Pursuit, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and many more.

We welcome papers from researchers across the academic spectrum and encourage submissions from postgraduate and early career researchers. We also welcome submissions for papers, panels and round tables. Papers from this conference will have the opportunity to be published in an edited book.

To whet your appetite, we have provided some topics below. We will also accept topics beyond this scope:

• "Greed is good." – The financial excess and corporate culture of the 1980s.
• "I want my MTV." – The rise of music television and the visualisation of pop music.
• "Nobody puts Baby in a corner." – Gender, romance, and independence in 1980s film.
• "I pity the fool!" – The rise of wrestling, action heroes, and hyper-masculinity.
• "Do you really want to hurt me?" – LGBTQ+ identities and culture in the 1980s.
• “The dream is alive.”– The Space Shuttle program and its impact on popular imagination.
• "Gotta catch ‘em all!" – Toys, video games, and marketing to children in the 1980s.
• "This is your brain on drugs." – The War on Drugs and moral panics.
• "We’re not gonna take it!" – Punk, rebellion, and counterculture.
• "Tear down this wall!" – The Cold War in popular culture.
• "The computer is personal." – The rise of home computing and digital culture.
• "The more you know." – Education, media, and the spread of information in the 1980s.
• "Life moves pretty fast." – Youth culture and coming-of-age narratives in 1980s cinema.
• "I ain’t afraid of no ghosts!" – Science fiction, horror, and the supernatural in 1980s media.
• "Power dressing." – Fashion, materialism, and aesthetics of the decade.

Please submit by your proposed abstract by 31st July 2026

• Submit here - https://tinyurl.com/2hyksxn8
• Register here - tinyurl.com/mrxeys35
• Queries to popcrn@une.edu.au

Stay up to date with PopCRN on our social pages & website

• www.popcrn.org
• X (ex-Twitter) - https://twitter.com/PopcultureUne
• Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100071540522655
• Bluesky - https://bsky.app/profile/popcrn.bsky.social
• LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14503409/

Last updated April 3, 2025

CFP Child's Play in Popular Culture: History, representations and consumption (11/30/2025; PopCRN 4/30-5/1/2026)

Of potential interest:

Child's Play in Popular Culture: History, representations and consumption

deadline for submissions: 

November 30, 2025

full name / name of organization: 

PopCRN - The Popular Culture Research Network

contact email: 

popcrn@une.edu.au

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2025/04/01/childs-play-in-popular-culture-history-representations-and-consumption.

Call for Papers

Child's Play in Popular Culture: History, representations and consumption

PopCRN – The Popular Culture Network invites scholars to explore the diverse representations of childhood in popular culture at a virtual symposium to be held online on 30 April – 1 May 2026.

From dolls and board games to digital playgrounds and interactive media, the concept of play has been a defining aspect of childhood across cultures and historical periods. Popular culture has both shaped and been shaped by children’s play, reflecting broader societal values, anxieties, and technological advancements.

This conference, Child’s Play in Popular Culture: History, Representations, and Consumption, invites scholars, researchers, and practitioners to explore the multifaceted ways in which play is constructed, represented, and consumed in popular media and culture.

We welcome papers from researchers across the academic spectrum and encourage submissions from postgraduate and early career researchers. Presenters will have the opportunity to submit their work for consideration in a refereed book publication.

Topics can include, but are not restricted to:

• "Life must be lived as play." – The history of children’s games and toys in popular culture
• "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy." –Representations of play in literature, film, television, and digital media
• "Play is the highest form of research." - Play and pedagogy: the intersection of entertainment and education
• "Toys are put on this Earth to be played with by a child." – Commercialization and commodification of childhood through toys and games
• "Girls can do anything!" –Gender, race, and class in play culture
• "The future of play is digital." – The influence of technology on play: from board games to virtual worlds
• "Adults are only kids grown up, anyway." – Fan cultures, nostalgia, and adult engagement with childhood play
• "It’s all fun and games until someone gets hurt." – Risk, danger, and moral panics around children’s play
• "If you obey all the rules, you miss all the fun." – Play as resistance: subversive and transgressive forms of play
• "The world’s playgrounds are as diverse as its cultures." – Global and cross-cultural perspectives on child’s play in popular culture

Please submit by your proposed abstract by 30th November 2025

• Submit here - https://tinyurl.com/2hyksxn8
• Register here - tinyurl.com/mrxeys35
• Queries to popcrn@une.edu.au

Stay up to date with PopCRN on our social pages & website

• www.popcrn.org
• X (ex-Twitter) - https://twitter.com/PopcultureUne
• Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100071540522655
• Bluesky  - https://bsky.app/profile/popcrn.bsky.social
• LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/groups/14503409/

Last updated April 3, 2025