CFP Star Wars 50 Years: Pasts, Presents, and Futures (11/1/2026; Leicester, UK 5/21-22/2027)

Here's the information on yet another conference set to commemorate the 50th anniversary of Star Wars in 1977. 

Star Wars 50 Years: Pasts, Presents, and Futures

deadline for submissions:
November 1, 2026

full name / name of organization:
University of Leicester

contact email:
sw-conf-50@leicester.ac.uk

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/node/106328

Conference Call for Papers

The Star Wars 50 Years academic conference will be held by the University of Leicester and the Leverhulme Centre for Humanity and Space at Space Park Leicester on 21-22 May 2027 in anticipation of the 50th anniversary of the original release of the film on 25 May 1977 in the U.S. We are now inviting proposals for conference presentations.

Conference Organisers:

Xiyuan Gao, PhD Candidate - Conference Director
Dr David Christopher - Conference Co-Director
Dr James Aitcheson - Leverhulme Centre Partner
Dr Tara Smith - Leverhulme Centre Partner
Helen Bruce, PhD Candidate - Director, Festival of Media Stories



Overview

Star Wars: A New Hope was first released in the United States on 25 May 1977, inaugurating a screen franchise whose cultural, industrial, and imaginative afterlives now span half a century. The Star Wars 50 Years Conference will mark the anniversary by bringing together scholars, researchers, practitioners, archivists, and fans at the Leverhulme Centre for Humanity and Space in Leicester contiguous with The National Space Centre.

The Centre hosts numerous Star Wars-themed public events throughout the year, and we will be excited to follow their developing programme with an eye to connecting their events and screenings to the conference.

Leicester and Leicestershire occupy a distinctive place in the history of Star Wars in the UK. Leicestershire was home to Palitoy, the toy company that held the coveted manufacturing contract in the UK during the original trilogy era.

Palitoy’s Star Wars figures, vehicles, packaging, and playsets remain central to British collecting cultures and to the material memory of the franchise, linking Leicestershire to the commercial and affective history of Star Wars childhoods, fandom, and merchandising. Indeed, Matt Holt’s upcoming documentary In a Landfill Far, Far Away (Spoon Jar Films) seeks to discover the so-called ‘lost toys’ from the Palitoy factory putatively buried somewhere in Leicestershire which is sure to create a scholarly buzz: 'Filmmaker unearths legend of buried Star Wars toys'.

Leicestershire’s connection to the franchise is also embodied in personnel history. The late Jeremy Bulloch, born in Market Harborough, was the first actor to perform Boba Fett in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, helping to create one of the most enduring and enigmatic figures in Star Wars. His association with Boba Fett further situates Leicestershire within the lived and performed history of Star Wars, extending the county’s relevance beyond merchandising and into questions of screen performance, character embodiment, cult stardom, and fan memory. Gareth Edwards, director of Rogue One also calls Nuneaton home.

More broadly, the franchise has launched or fostered the careers of myriad British performers from Sir Alec Guinness and Peter Cushing though to John Boyega, Felicity Jones, and Daisy Ridley. And so much of Lucas’s production efforts were located at various studios and locations across the UK including locations in Leicestershire.

Star Wars 50 Years invites contributors to reflect on the franchise’s pasts, presents, and futures, especially with regard to the participation of UK production inputs or international franchise phenomena, but not necessarily limited by this parameter as such. The conference welcomes papers on Star Wars across film, television, animation, games, publishing, merchandising, fan communities, transmedia storytelling, race, gender, class, politics, technology, nostalgia, and global reception, etc.

By gathering in Leicester, the conference asks not only what Star Wars has meant over the past fifty years, but also how particular places, objects, performances, institutions, and communities have shaped the franchise’s meanings across the UK and beyond.



Topics of Interest

We welcome papers on, but not limited to, the following research topics:

• Star Wars histories, legacies, and cultural memory.
• Directors, writers, producers, showrunners, designers, performers, and other creative workers across the franchise.
• Star Wars and transmedia storytelling across film, television, animation, novels, comics, games, audio, toys, and digital platforms.
• Expanded universes, canon, continuity, retconning, and the relationship between Legends and Disney-era canon.
• Star Wars television and Disney+ distribution.
• Star Wars animation (The Clone Wars, Rebels, and more recent animated projects).
• Star Wars games, interactive storytelling, virtual worlds, and player agency.
• Ethnicity, class, disability, age, and embodiment in Star Wars.
• Feminism, female characters, creators, audiences, and female-led fan practices.
• Masculinity, fatherhood, family, lineage, inheritance, and dynastic storytelling.
• Queer readings, slash fandom, transformative works, and alternative affective attachments.
• Stardom, performance, voice acting, physical performance, puppetry, motion capture, and creature performance.
• Practical effects, digital effects, CGI, sound design, editing, and the aesthetics of technological change.
• John Williams, musical themes, soundscapes, voice, and sonic memory.
• Merchandising, toys, collecting, licensing, branding, and commercial culture.
• Museums, exhibitions, archives, private collections, fan collections, and the preservation of Star Wars objects.
• Global Star Wars: international reception, translation, dubbing, subtitling, censorship, distribution, and localisation.
• Fandom, fanfiction, fan art, cosplay, fan films, podcasts, conventions, online communities, and platform cultures.
• Fan controversy, anti-fandom, canon disputes, toxicity, moderation, inclusion, and community governance.
• Nostalgia, childhood, memory, intergenerational spectatorship, collecting, and affect.
• Science, space travel, astronomy, robotics, artificial intelligence, and the relationship between Star Wars and public science imagination.
• Theme parks, immersive experiences, live events, exhibitions, tourism, and commercialised fan participation.
• Archives, lost materials, production histories, oral histories, memory work, and fan-led preservation.
• The future of Star Wars: franchise fatigue, renewal, legacy, and new audiences.

The conference is scheduled to be on-site and in-person. The submission of remote presentation proposals will be considered only under specific mitigating circumstances.



Submission Details

Individual Papers

The individual proposal shall include the following information, all in the same document:A title.
An abstract (maximum 300 words) for a 15-20-minute presentation.
Speaker’s short biography (maximum 150 words), including affiliation.
Speaker’s email address.

Pre-constituted Panels

The panel proposal shall include the following information, all in the same document:A panel title.
All individual abstracts (maximum 300 words each).
All speakers’ short biographies (maximum 150 words each), including their affiliation and email address.
If you wish to designate a panel chair, please indicate this in the panel proposal. Otherwise, the committee will assign one for you.

To submit, please email your proposal as an attachment (Word file preferred) to sw-conf-50@leicester.ac.uk by 1-November-2026. Please clearly state in the email subject either “Star Wars 50 Years individual proposal” or “Star Wars 50 Years panel proposal”.

Notification of accepted papers and panel proposals will be returned on or before 31st January 2027.



Conference Address

Space Park Leicester
Space City, 92 Corporation Rd, Leicester
Postcode: LE4 5SP



Contact

If you have any queries regarding the conference, please email conference director Xiyuan Gao (xg92@leicester.ac.uk) or co-director Dr David Christopher (dc435@leicester.ac.uk).

General enquiries: sw-conf-50@leicester.ac.uk

CFP “Feel the Force”: The first 50 years of Star Wars (12/31/2026; PopCRN Online 5/4-5/2027)

“Feel the Force”: The first 50 years of Star Wars 4-5 May 2027

deadline for submissions:
December 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/2026/03/18/%E2%80%9Cfeel-the-force%E2%80%9D-the-first-50-years-of-star-wars-4-5-may-2027


“Feel the Force”: The first 50 years of Star Wars

A PopCRN Conference

Join us for a free virtual conference exploring the Star Wars universe and its enduring cultural impact to be held online from 4th-5th May 2027.

From a surprise blockbuster to a galactic empire of multimedia dominance, Star Wars has fundamentally reshaped popular culture, spawned generations of devoted fans, and continues to spark passionate debates about sequels, prequels, spinoffs, and what George Lucas really meant to say. Is Jar Jar Binks a Sith Lord? Are the Ewoks cute and cuddly? Which is the best trilogy? And what order should you watch them in? We want to hear all the academic debates from across the galaxy!

We welcome both individual papers, panels and round table discussions from researchers across the academic spectrum and encourage papers from academic padawans, postgraduate researchers and early career researchers. Selected papers will have the opportunity to be published in a planned book.

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

• "I find your lack of faith disturbing" – Fandom, canon wars, and the discourse around Disney's sequel trilogy.
• "These are not the droids you're looking for" – The role of robots, androids and AI in Star Wars narratives and our contemporary moment.
• "I am your father" – Paternity, family structures and generational trauma in the Skywalker saga.
• "Do or do not, there is no try" – Yoda, philosophy, and wisdom.
• "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away" – Nostalgia, retrofuturism and the invention of the past.
• "The Force will be with you, always" – Spirituality, religion and mythology.
• "Laugh it up, fuzzball" – Comedy, camp and levity.
• "That's no moon" – Scale, technology and the sublime in science fiction cinema.
• "I love you." "I know." – Romantic narratives and toxic masculinity in space opera.
• "The garbage'll do!" – Consumption, waste and sustainability in Star Wars merchandising.
• "This is the way" – Community, belonging and parasocial relationships in television fandom.
• The Imperial March – Empire, corruption and war in the Star Wars universe.
• "The Resistance will rise" – Class struggle, labour and economic systems in Star Wars worldbuilding.
• "Strike me down, and I will become more powerful than you can possibly imagine" – Death, resurrection and immortality narratives.
• "I'm just a simple man trying to make my way in the universe" – Labour, precarity and the gig economy in space.
• "That's no way to treat a lady!" – Manners, civility and social codes across species and cultures.

Please email inquiries to popcrn@une.edu.au

Website: www.popcrn.org

Please submit abstracts (200 words) and author details via our online portal By 31st December 2026.

Notification of abstract acceptance is 31st January 2027.

Registration is free. The conference is welcoming of early career researchers, postgraduates, Indigenous scholars, people with diverse identities and other Star Wars enthusiasts.

You can also submit via the QR code below or through the URLs below

Submit here - https://unesurveys.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8jjzaWnS732QsFE

Register here - https://unesurveys.au1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_7TGWUYZidtlxVLU

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 Paul Verhoeven @85 Conference (6/16/2023; Bangor, UK 9/7-8/2023)

From the SFRA listserv:

Paul Verhoeven @85

An in-person academic conference hosted by The Centre for Film, Television and Screen Studies, Bangor University, UK

7 and 8 September 2023

Paul Verhoeven (b. 1938) has left an indelible mark on popular culture. His films marry a European arthouse sensibility with the US blockbuster but in a wickedly satirical way. But this does not mean his films are not open to criticism.

His American dystopic trilogy – RoboCop (1987), Total Recall (1990) and Starship Troopers (1997) – provided dark visions of futuristic metropoles that continues to resonate to this day, touching on capitalism, robotics, biopolitics, posthumanism, urban planning, artificial intelligence, transhumanism and climate change, while female-led dramas, such as Basic Instinct (1992), Showgirls (1995), Black Book (2006), Elle (2016) and Benedetta (2021), remain controversial for their overt eroticism, sexual violence and representation of lesbianism.

To critically explore the origins and legacies of Verhoeven’s body of work, this conference proposes to bring together scholars from diverse disciplinary backgrounds to explore Paul Verhoeven’s output, debate its legacy and consider its position within visual culture including specialists from fields as diverse as literary and cinematographic studies; the history of art, design, fashion and architecture; musicology; philosophy; political sciences; computer science and robotics; urban and ecological studies; and feminist, queer and sexuality studies.

We welcome contributions from any perspective such as (but not limited to) the following:

• Paul Verhoeven as auteur: origins, influences, production, aesthetics, publicity, reception, afterlife, sequels and director’s cuts
• Paul Verhoeven and biopolitics, posthumanism, urban planning and climate change
• Paul Verhoeven and capitalism, neoliberalism, post-industrialism and the rise of multinational corporations
• Paul Verhoeven and gender
• Paul Verhoeven and memory
• Paul Verhoeven and psychoanalysis
• Paul Verhoeven and race, ethnicity and Otherness
• Paul Verhoeven and reception: audiences, fandom and ‘cult’
• Paul Verhoeven and robotics, artificial intelligence, cybernetic organisms, the transhuman and the post-human
• Paul Verhoeven and science fiction
• Paul Verhoeven and sexuality
• Paul Verhoeven and stardom
• Paul Verhoeven and tech noir, retrofuturism, future noir, and cyberpunk.

We are applying for funding to facilitate postgraduate and unwaged participation.

Please complete the following link by Friday, 16 June 2023.

For further information, please contact the organisers Nathan Abrams and Elizabeth Miller (PaulVerhoevenConference@gmail.com).

CFP James Bond Studies Conference 2023 (5/1/2023; London 6/30-7/1/2023)

James Bond Studies Conference, June 30th-July 1st 2023

deadline for submissions:
May 1, 2023

full name / name of organization:
International Journal of James Bond Studies, University of Roehampton

contact email:
ian.kinane@roehampton.ac.uk


source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2023/03/22/james-bond-studies-conference-june-30th-july-1st-2023

Call for Papers: James Bond Studies Conference

30th June – 1st July 2023

University of Roehampton, London

In association with the Centre for Literature and Inclusion and the School of Humanities and Social Sciences at the University of Roehampton, the International Journal of James Bond Studies will host a 2-day international conference on the University’s beautiful parkland campus in South West London.

To celebrate the 70th anniversary of the publication of Ian Fleming’s first James Bond novel, Casino Royale, we invite submissions for panels and individual papers on any aspect of the James Bond phenomenon (Ian Fleming’s original novels and short stories; the James Bond continuation novels; the James Bond film franchise and related media, etc.), although we are especially interested in papers and/or panel presentations on the local-global relationship between Marlow, Buckinghamshire, and London (where many Bond films have been produced and filmed), cultural geography, and global cinema tourism.

Suggested topics may include (but are not limited to):

• James Bond and Marlow, Buckinghamshire, and London
• James Bond and tourism
• James Bond and internationalism
• James Bond, gender, and sexuality
• James Bond, race, and neocolonialism
• James Bond and environmental ethics
• James Bond and political morality
• James Bond and technocracy
• James Bond and #MeToo
• James Bond, “Brexit”, and right-wing nationalism
• The future of James Bond

Prospective contributors are invited to submit a 300-word abstract along with a brief bio note to Dr. Ian Kinane (ian.kinane@roehampton.ac.uk).

Submission Deadline: 1st May 2023. (Applicants can be assured that they will hear back in good time so as to facilitate travel planning etc.)

Following the conference, contributors will be invited to submit their papers to a special issue of the International Journal of James Bond Studies, pending peer review.

This event is open to academics, casual scholars, and fans alike; and you do not have to present in order to attend. Details of how to register will follow the publication of the conference programme.

Expressions of interest and queries can also be addressed to the above email.



Last updated March 24, 2023

Coming Soon from Disney: Strange Worlds

 Trailer for an upcoming Disney film. It looks like a version of Journey to the Center of the Earth.

CFP Evolution of Jim Henson's Puppetry Symposium (6/24/2022; hybrid 9/9-10/2022)

CFP: SYMPOSIUM “THE EVOLUTION OF JIM HENSON’S PUPPETRY: FROM ANALOGUE CRAFT TO DIGITAL FRANCHISING”. SEPT 09-10, 2022 @ UNIVERSITY OF BRISTOL (UK) AND ONLINE. DEADLINE: JUNE 24, 2022.

Source: https://cstonline.net/cfp-symposium-the-evolution-of-jim-hensons-puppetry-from-analogue-craft-to-digital-franchising-sept-09-10-2022-university-of-bristol-uk-and-online-deadline-june-24-20/

Jun 17, 2022




A two-day research symposium

Symposium organizers: Prof. Rayna Denison (University of Bristol) and Dr. Cristina Formenti (University of Udine)



“On the stroke of 5:15, I happened to be walking into the radio and television department of Harrods and there, on a third of the television sets in the place was Kermit, waving his green arms about. Everybody, customers and assistants alike, paused and edged towards him. […] Thank goodness that the show finished at 5:45 or they’d never have got the store shut.” (McGill, Evening Standard 1977)



This two-day symposium addresses the legacy of Jim Henson’s puppetry. It will thus not only look back to the 1970s when the world came to a halt to watch Kermit the Frog and Miss Piggy in The Muppet Show, but it will also explore the transformations undergone by Henson’s original creations under Disney in the digital age. As Jennifer Carlin and Annisa Graham (2013) argue, “Henson was the creative force behind a huge catalogue of television programs, films, and other productions.” And more than thirty years after the death of their creator, Henson’s puppets and muppets continue to enchant audiences globally, demonstrating the power of his imagination to connect to us across cultures, platforms, and generations.

With this symposium we seek to understand the artistry, variety, and popularity of Henson’s many creations, examining examples which range from his avant-garde filmmaking to his work in popular television and blockbusters. In doing so, the symposium will investigate both the original and wider landscapes of media that have spun out from Henson’s imaginative worlds, to influence contemporary puppetry and animation. From aesthetics and character development through to performance, voice acting, music, and social media we wish to underscore the many ways that Henson’s creative work has impacted popular culture around the world.

We are particularly interested also in papers exposing how nonfiction aesthetics and modes of representation have been exploited within titles starring Henson’s characters as well as in proposals focusing on how discourses around Henson’s approach to puppetry and his characters have instigated and shaped through filmic and televisual making-of documentaries on the production practices behind popular titles like The Muppets Show or Sesame Street. Finally, the symposium aims to investigate also issues of eco-criticism and eco-sustainability in relationship to Henson’s franchises and puppetry more generally.

We invite proposals for 20-minutes papers on topics including (but not limited to): Character development

• Henson’s characters under Disney ownership
• Henson’s characters in the digital age
• Co-productions and transmedia franchising of Henson properties
• The Muppets, stardom, and social media
• Parody and pastiche in Muppet performance
• Ecocriticism and eco-sustainability in Henson’s franchises
• Making-of documentaries and the shaping of discourses on Henson’s approach to puppetry
• Genres and adaptation
• Gender and sexuality
• Ethics and philosophy
• Reception and translation
• Music and the Muppets
• Voice acting and puppet performance
• Artistic and craft aesthetics in puppet creation
• Fandom and Muppets merchandising
• Animation and Henson characters/properties
• Intertextuality and the influence of Henson’s creations

Please submit your proposals as a word document to Cristina Formenti (cristina.formenti@uniud.it) and Rayna Denison (r.denison@bristol.ac.uk). Include a title, an abstract of up to 250 words, and a short biographical statement (max 100 words) as well as contact information and institutional affiliation where applicable. To facilitate participation from scholars based across the globe, the symposium will be held as a hybrid event, and it will be possible to present either in person or online. Please specify in your submissions the mode of participation of your choice.

Deadline for submissions: June 24th, 2022.

Acceptance/non-acceptance notifications will be sent by July 20th, 2022.

For all symposium-related inquiries, you can email Cristina Formenti (cristina.formenti@uniud.it) and Rayna Denison (r.denison@bristol.ac.uk) using as subject line “Jim Henson‘s puppetry symposium”.

CFP Geographies of the Fantastic and the Quotidian (5/15/2022; PAMLA Los Angeles 11/11-13/2022)

CFP - Geographies of the Fantastic and the Quotidian - PAMLA Conference

source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2022/02/17/cfp-geographies-of-the-fantastic-and-the-quotidian-pamla-conference

deadline for submissions:
May 15, 2022

full name / name of organization:
Pacific Ancient and Modern Language Association

contact email:
andrkirb@gmail.com



This is a call for papers for the anual PAMLA conference to be held in Los Angeles, California at the UCLA Luskin Conference Center and Hotel between Friday, November 11 and Sunday, November 13, 2022.

The Film Studies session is open to all papers that explore some aspect of film or Film Studies, but we are particularly interested in papers attuned to some facet of the conference theme, "Geographies of the Fantastic and the Quotidian.” For example:

-The role of space and place in genre filmmaking

-World-building in fantasy film and television

-Cinematic cityscapes

-Road movies

-Representations of localized ecologies

-Settler colonialism in film

-Geographical otherness

-Films limited to one setting

-Representations of claustrophobia or agoraphobia

-Landscape in film

-Otherworldy spaces

-Outer space

-Theme parks and the carnival

-The role of satire in constructing places

-Impact of space in residential life

-Transcending real and unreal spaces

Please visit https://pamla.ballastacademic.com/ in order to submit proposals by May 15. The session specifiic information is available at https://pamla.ballastacademic.com/Home/S/18471.




Last updated March 5, 2022

CFP Gardeners of the Galaxies: How Imaginary Worlds Teach Us to Care for This One (5/15/2022)

CFP: Gardeners of the Galaxies: How Imaginary Worlds Teach Us to Care for This One, co-edited by Dr. Sørina Higgins and Dr. Brenton Dickieson

Source (and video intro to the project): https://apilgriminnarnia.com/2022/02/24/cfp-gardeners-of-the-galaxies-how-imaginary-worlds-teach-us-to-care-for-this-one-by-by-drs-sorina-higgins-and-brenton-dickieson/.

PDF version at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1lmX9M3LgVzap0j7UjVAvLb0Wlun8bTa7/view. 

As the climate crisis worsens, our home planet and our conversations about it are heating up–and creative writers both reflect and anticipate such concerns. Thanks to the recent ethical turn in science fiction and fantasy, many speculative works offer readers a mirror in which to view our own world. Its beauties and vulnerabilities take on special clarity through the page or the screen. A tale of terraforming another planet reminds us how precious and fragile our home world is. The perennial conflict between nature and technology comes alive when trees march to war. We find insights into healthy, diverse communities by spending time with characters in a fellowship–or on a starship.

Gardeners of the Galaxies: How Imaginary Worlds Teach Us to Care for This One will be an academic, peer-reviewed collection of interdisciplinary essays, co-edited by Dr. Brenton Dickieson and Dr. Sørina Higgins. This volume will explore literature, film, the visual arts, and other creative works (especially Cli-Fi, genre fiction, and speculative lit) that imagine, invent, and embody environmental concerns. Rather than coercing texts to conform to our analyses, however, we want to approach our subjects humbly and earnestly, listening to what they say about creation care, biodiversity, or neighborliness; immersing ourselves in their stories of ecological harmony and disharmony; mourning the disasters they depict; and celebrating the solutions they imagine. In particular, we would love analyses of works that envision ingenious alternatives to large-scale planetary depredation.

Chapter proposals might consider questions such as the following (although this list is by no means comprehensive nor intended to limit lines of inquiry): What kinds of environmental disasters are depicted in contemporary literature, film, and other media? How does a certain genre or medium represent nature, and how have those portrayals evolved over time? Do certain metaphors for land or diction choices about earth impact how people treat the soil, landscapes, or ecosystems with which and in which they live? In a given work, is nature empowered or oppressed, and how do characters respond? What is the significance or impact of the anthropomorphism of animals, plants, landscape features, or celestial bodies? When stories blur the line between the human and the nonhuman, what implications does such destabilization have for our living in community with our nonhuman neighbors? What lessons are conveyed through encounters with extraterrestrial species? What do stories of interplanetary colonization suggest about imperialist urges, their ecological impacts on earth, and strategies for integrating with the Other rather than obliterating or oppressing them? Are there tales in which technology plays an essential role in preserving nature or reinforcing what makes us human? What techniques do creators use to entertain us and draw us into moral considerations without compromising artistic excellence or devolving into propaganda?

Submission Information:

As this volume will be interdisciplinary, we welcome scholars working in literature, film, popular culture, the fine arts, ecology, history, the social sciences, religion, and related fields. While aimed at a scholarly audience, chapters should be written in a lively, accessible tone, avoiding jargon while employing rigorous theoretical and critical frameworks and engaging deeply with existing research. Interested authors should consider trying out their ideas at TexMoot, Signum University’s Annual Texas Literature & Language Symposium (held in Austin, TX, and online; CFP deadline March 1st), which explores the overlapping theme of “Starships, Stewards, and Storytellers: How Imaginary Worlds Teach Us to Care for This One.”

Please submit 500-word proposals here by May 15, 2022. Notifications regarding acceptance will be made in June 2022. Full papers (5,000-8,000 words, including notes) will be due by November 30, 2022.

In addition to academic submissions, the editors will carefully curate a small number of creative works for possible inclusion in the volume. Poets, short-story writers, essayists, and visual artists are invited to submit the actual piece of work that they would like to have considered here; note length limits on the submission form. These works can be submitted up until September 1, 2022.

Send questions about academic submissions to Brenton Dickieson (brenton[dot]dickieson[at]signumu[dot]org). Send queries about creative submissions to Sørina Higgins (sorina[dot]higgins[at]signumu[dot].org).

CFP There Can Be Only One: Critical Essays on the Highlander Franchise (proposals by 5/31/22)

 Posted on behalf of the editor (and wishing her good luck with the project).

There Can Be Only One: Critical Essays on the Highlander Franchise

Abstract submission deadline: May 31, 2022

Essays of 4,000 – 6,000 words deadline: December 10, 2022

Source: https://michelebrittany.com/?p=31

 

There Can Be Only One.  This phrase was made popular 35 years ago with the release of Highlander, a fantasy action-adventure film directed by Russell Mulcahy and starring Christophe Lambert, Sean Connery, and Clancy Brown.  While it did not turn a profit during its theatrical release, it did become a cult film inspiring several sequels, three television series, original novels, comic books, audio books, video games, a web series, collectibles, musical scores, and a loyal fandom who have successfully organized a number of Highlander fan conventions.  

Over the years, aspects of this franchise become part of popular culture’s lexicon, such as the enduring Queen album, A Kind of Magic with iconic phrases (“Princes of the Universe”/“There Can Be Only One”), and dramatic imagery (electrifying beheadings and portrayals of historic events/places). Since 2008, there have been discussions of remakes and reboots and most recently in May 2021 with Henry Cavill proposed to have a lead role.  

Interestingly, other than franchise retrospectives, soundtrack analysis, and film reviews, there are no singular books of scholarly focus.  This proposed transmedia book will seek to address this gap by collecting a series of essays that provide a focused exploration of the Highlander franchise. 

The editor seeks essays exploring any aspect of the Highlander franchise in films/television, literature, comics, video games, and any other popular culture medium such as: 

• Films: Highlander (1986, Russell Mulcahy); Highlander II: The Quickening (1991, Russell Mulcahy); Highlander III: The Sorcerer (1995, Andy Morahan); Highlander: Endgame (2000, Doug Aarniokoski); Highlander: The Source (2007, Brett Leonard); Highlander: The Search for Vengeance (2007, Yoshiaki Kawajiri)
• Television series: Highlander: The Series (1992-1998); Highlander: The Animated Series (1994-1996); Highlander: The Raven (1998-1999)
• Books:  Highlander: Die Ruckkehr des Unsterblichen (Highlander: The Return of the Immortal, 1994, Martin Eisele and Hans Sommer); Highlander: The Element of Fire (1995, Jason Henderson); Highlander: Scimitar (1996, Ashley McConnell); Highlander: Scotland the Brave (1996, Jennifer Roberson); Highlander: Measure of a Man (1997, Nancy Holder); Highlander: The Path (1997, Rebecca Neason); Highlander: Zealot (1997, Donna Lettow); Highlander: Shadow of Obsession (1998, Rebecca Neason); Highlander: The Captive Soul (1998, Josepha Sherman); Highlander: White Silence (1999, Ginjer Buchanan); Highlander: An Evening at Joe’s (2002, written by cast/crew of Highlander: The Series)
• Comics: Highlander comic book series (Dynamite Entertainment); Highlander 3030 (Emerald Star Comics)
• Video games: Highlander (1986, PC); Highlander: The Last of the MacLeods (1995, Atari Jaguar CD)
• Audio: Highlander: The Original Scores (1995); Queen’s A Kind of Magic (1986); Big Finish Productions’ Highlander audio stories; Highlander: A Celtic Opera
• Web series: The Methos Chronicles (2001)
• Collectibles: Highlander: The Card Game (La Montagnard Inc.)
• Fan derivative works: film, fiction, etc. 

Essays that take an interdisciplinary approach to the subject matter and/or can apply a variety of lenses and frameworks, such as, but not limited to, are encouraged: 

• Close textual analysis
• Comparative analysis
• Cult/secret societies
• Cultural and ethnic
• Fandom and fan studies
• Film studies
• Folklore
• Gender/LGBTQIA+ studies
• Historic analysis
• Literature studies
• Media and communications
• Media Sociology
• Mythological
• Psychological
• Racial studies
• Semiotics
• Theoretical

The editor will review multiple abstract submissions to assemble the most cohesive arrangement of entertaining/insightful essays that will provide a well-rounded exploration and representation of this popular franchise.  Additionally, the editor is seeking essays that balance an academic and armchair enthusiast tone to ensure the widest audience appeal. The deadlines are: 

• 05/31/2022: Abstract of 300 – 500 words, brief CV, and preliminary draft bibliography emailed to the editor. 
• 06/10/2022: Notification of acceptance/rejection.  Successful essayists will be sent a comprehensive style sheet.
• 12/10/2022:  Essays of 4,000 – 6,000 words in length are due to the editor.  Earlier submissions are welcomed and encouraged.
• 12/10/2022 – 05/10/2023: Essays will be edited and returned to each author for review and revision.  
• 05/11/2023 – 11/11/2023: Manuscript will be peer reviewed.  The editor will work with essayists to address all peer review notes and finalize each essay.
• 11/30/2023: Final manuscript sent to the publisher. 

IMPORTANT NOTES

• The editor will be utilizing Microsoft Word’s Track Changes function to record all edits.  It will be the writer’s responsibility to resolve each edit and submit a final clean essay by the deadline noted above. 
• Contributors will receive a complimentary book copy when published.  Postage will be paid by the editor.
• For team written essays, keep to a maximum of two co-authors. 
• The editor encourages the widest possible diverse representation to submit to this call for papers.

Please direct all correspondence to Michele Brittany, Editor, at mcbrittany@gmail.com

 

CFP: Edited volume on Star Trek and Star Wars (8/2/2021)

Call for Proposals: Edited volume on Star Trek and Star Wars

Source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2021/05/11/call-for-proposals-edited-volume-on-star-trek-and-star-wars

deadline for submissions:
August 2, 2021


full name / name of organization:
Emily Strand and Amy H. Sturgis for Vernon Press


contact email:
drahsturgis@gmail.com



Call for Abstracts

Edited volume on Star Trek and Star Wars

Edited by Emily Strand, MA and Amy H. Sturgis, PhD

Vernon Press

The generations-spanning, multimedia franchises Star Trek and Star Wars will form the focus for this edited collection of scholarly essays. As venerable and evolving repositories of science fiction and fantasy storytelling, and as towering pillars of popular culture, both Star Trek and Star Wars inspire, transform, and even at times inflame their often overlapping fan bases. Together with the publisher, the editors seek proposals for essays exploring these franchises’ themes, narratives, characters, treatment of moral and philosophical dilemmas, religious or spiritual notions, and other aspects. (Abstracts for essays which compare or contrast the two franchises are also welcome.) Collected essays will offer insight — from a variety of disciplines and perspectives — on how these franchises contribute to popular culture and the tradition of speculative storytelling.

Abstracts and subsequent essays should be academically rigorous yet accessible to the informed (even non-academic) reader.

Abstracts of 300-500 words in length should be submitted, along with a brief biographical statement, by August 2, 2021.

Authors of accepted papers will be notified by September 1, 2021, and paper drafts should be submitted by January 10, 2022.

Please submit proposals via email (with or without attachment) to emilykcstrand@gmail.com and drahsturgis@gmail.com.

Last updated May 11, 2021 

 

CFP Pop Enlightenments: The Eighteenth Century Now (6/18/2021)

CFP: Pop Enlightenments: The Eighteenth Century Now

Source: https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2021/04/22/cfp-pop-enlightenments-the-eighteenth-century-now

deadline for submissions: June 18, 2021


full name / name of organization: Emrys Jones and Madeleine Pelling


contact email: mp656@york.ac.uk



Contemporary depictions of the long eighteenth century – whether drawn from historic sources or responding imaginatively to the era’s multifarious legacies – regularly captivate TV, film and theatre audiences and gamers alike. Increasingly, scholarly biographies provide the basis for big budget biopics, eighteenth-century narratives are adapted in new and experimental ways, objects from museum collections are replicated in cultures of fandom, and academics are invited onto sets as consultants. During a global moment in which the representation and deployment of history in the public sphere are subject to new and urgent scrutiny, we ask what function film, television, gaming, theatre and more can perform when depicting the eighteenth century in our modern world? Can such works speak to perceived eighteenth-century ideas and values and, simultaneously, the shifting paradigms of our own time? How, and why, should we engage?

Pop Enlightenments will bring together scholarly essays and interviews with creative industry professionals. Building on conversations begun in Emrys Jones’s Pop Enlightenments podcast, it takes a broad approach to explore how eighteenth-century forms and narratives are variously taken up, recycled and re-visioned in contemporary media. It asks which histories are being told and by whom.

We seek proposals for chapters from scholars, including early career researchers. Particular areas for analysis and discussion might include, but are not limited to:

• The eighteenth century’s imaginative currency in contemporary popular culture
• The representation (or misrepresentation) of historical crimes and traumas
• Intersections between eighteenth-century models of culture and our own
• Considerations of genre and audience expectation
• Contrasting international contexts for adaptation and re-creation
• Recent shifts in historiographical discourse, and industry responses to these

We welcome contributions discussing any cultural sources from the last twenty years. The list below, while not exhaustive, provides some examples of possible focus points.

Potential contributors are requested to send 300-word abstracts to emrys.jones@kcl.ac.uk and mp656@york.ac.uk by 17th June 2021.



Works of Interest

Television

• Bridgerton
• Outlander
• Poldark
• Harlots
• The Great
• Taboo
• The Scandalous Lady W
• Versailles
• Turn: Washington’s Spies
• Black Sails
• Roots
• Frontier
• Catherine the Great
• Banished
• Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell

Film

• Belle
• Amazing Grace
• The Favourite
• Portrait of a Lady on Fire
• Emma.
• The Duchess
• A Little Chaos
• Marie Antoinette
• Mary Shelley
• Bright Star
• Beauty and the Beast
• Last of the Mohicans
• The Patriot
• Pirates of the Caribbean
• Interview with a Vampire
• Sleepy Hollow
• John Adams
• Perfume: The Story of a Murderer
• The Royal Affair
• Love and Friendship
• Rob Roy
• Lady J
• Casanova

Theatre

• The Madness of King George
• Hamilton

Games

• Assassin’s Creed III, IV, Rogue and Unity
• The Council
• Return of the Obra Dinn
• We. The Revolution
• Banner of the Maid

Last updated April 23, 2021
This CFP has been viewed 16 times.

CFP Star Wars Conference (2/20/21; Virtual 5/4-7/21)

 I was excited to come across this call today from the SFRA news feed.

Realizing Resistance Episode II: Uncharted Galaxies

https://digital-frontiers.org/rrii/

With the end of the Skywalker era of the Star Wars saga, and the emergence of spin-offs like The Mandalorian, Resistance, and Rebels, aca-fans from all disciplines have an opportunity to engage with nearly half a century of Star Wars media. As with our previous event, this conference aims to bring together scholars from across disciplines to examine Star Wars media as cultural texts. We invite scholarly and creative interventions with an explicit focus on themes of resistance and justice. How do these these films and other media objects contribute to, reflect on, or depart from broader contemporary cultural practices and social discourses?

Since 2019, both the political and media worlds have experienced dramatic shifts and disruptions, including the COVID-19 pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement, a contentious U.S. presidential election, and an increasing sense of the vulnerability of democratic institutions and processes. Star Wars, as a cultural phenomenon, has also been embroiled in controversies and transitions, from reactions to The Rise of Skywalker and The Mandalorian to the emergence of Disney+ as a principle platform for the continuation of the Star Wars legacy. Star Wars has penetrated into the culture in surprising ways including martial arts classes offering lightsaber training, political protests that feature Star Wars iconography, the co-opting of the Empire and First Order by the alt-right, among many others. We encourage presentations that reflect on these contexts to offer new perspectives and innovative methodological and disciplinary approaches to Star Wars scholarship. 

 

 

Digital Frontiers invites proposals of individual papers, panels, academic posters and infographics, media objects (critical making, comics, video, Twine, or performance), and methodology or other workshops. Topics may include but are by no means limited to:

• Expanding the Star Wars universe: where do we go from here?
• Genres far, far away: Star Wars as western, war story, dystopian fiction, caper movie, romance, etc. 
• The Transmedia Star Wars: memes, video games, board games, RPGs, etc.
• Fan cultures and participatory practices.
• Star Wars Style: costume and fashion in the Star Wars universe.
• Animation as an artform and cultural object.
• Comics and animated series as canon
• The material culture of Star Wars: toys, branding, and collectibles
• Star Wars DH: computational and quantitative approaches to Star Wars scholarship
• Ahsoka Tano, Rey, Ventress, and other Women Warriors
• Queering Star Wars
• The Fall of Skywalker
• Deus ex Exegol: narrative studies and Star Wars
• The Star Wars Family: Malignant paternity, missing moms, toxic relationships
• “Much to learn, you still have.” Star Wars and Pedagogy
• Pop culture precursors
• Getting over “The Hero’s Journey”
• Monsters of Star Wars

Submit 250-word abstracts via this Google Form no later than midnight Central Time (US) on February 20, 2021.

Submit

All submissions will undergo transparent peer review. All participants will have the opportunity to publish their work in the RRII Proceedings in Unbound: A Journal of Digital Scholarship. Every effort will be made to accommodate international and early career and student scholars to facilitate their participation. All interactions are governed by the Digital Frontiers Statement of Inclusion and Accessibility.

This virtual conference will take place May 4-7, 2021.  Registration will be Pay-What-You’re-Able with a recommended contribution of $45. Registration opens March 22, 2021.

Important Dates:

Submission Deadline: February 20, 2021
Notifications & Registration Opens: March 22, 2021
Conference: May 4-7, 2021

Collaborating Institutions

• The University Library of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
• The University of North Texas Libraries
• The Department of Rhetoric and the Program for Critical Theory at the University of California Berkeley
• The Departments of English and Environmental Studies at Aurora University
• The Department of Communication & Media Studies at SUNY Cortland

Organizing Committee

Bridgitte Barclay, Aurora University
Spencer D. C. Keralis, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Christina Knopf, SUNY Cortland
Samantha Langsdale, University of California Berkeley
John Edward Martin, University of North Texas

Sponsorships

We invite organizations and institutions to sponsor Realizing Resistance Episode II. A $250 sponsorship will add your branding to this page, include coordinated social media announcements, and your branding during the virtual event. Sponsors can share a video or other personal message to be played during the event. To purchase a sponsorship, visit our Square Store, or contact conference@digital-frontiers.org for additional information.

Connect

Follow @RealizeResist on Twitter for updates and conversations. Contact conference@digital-frontiers.org with inquiries.

 

 

CFP PopMeC Conference (4/5/20; Madrid 5/27-28/20)

CFP: PopMeC, Instituto Franklin–UAH (Alcalá de Henares) on May 27–28, 2020
https://www.fantastic-arts.org/2020/cfp-popmec-instituto-franklin-uah-alcala-de-henares-on-may-27-28-2020/
February 11, 2020

PopMeC Conference
Instituto Franklin–UAH (Alcalá de Henares) on May 27–28, 2020

Thanks to the pervasiveness of popular culture in everyday life, its products embody a fundamental driving force in forging the collective imaginary of both national and foreign publics. The timely construction, consolidation, and intrinsic political potential of popular representations—myths, symbols, images, and signs—has undeniably facilitated the shaping of identities, discourses, and communities. The diversity and peculiarities of the American society can therefore be traced through the analysis of popular culture and multimodal cultural expressions, conveyed by means such as film, comics and graphic novels, TV and web series, videogames, music, books, and whatnot.

PopMeC aims at providing a collaborative, engaging, and fair environment for any interested scholar, promoting the sharing of knowledge, experience, and ideas across disciplines and thematic fields. We’re also working to foster a stimulating space for early career researchers and postgraduate students in North American studies, thus we’ll warmly welcome their proposals.

The conference will approach popular media and culture products—as well as their publics and reception—from an intersectional, multidisciplinary standpoint and a diverse range of perspectives. We’re looking for engaging, fresh, interesting papers acknowledging and exploring a variety of images and narratives, their configurations and aims, as well as examining the intersectional connections between identities, politics, and history, traceable in and across cultural products.

We welcome proposals for 20 min individual papers or panels constituted of three papers, on topics including (but not limited to):

> the representation of specific ethnic / religious / gender / etc. groups in the US popular media and culture (including mainstream, alternative, and self-representations)
> the articulation of American national ethos, myths, symbols and heroes
> public history and the representation of US history for the non-specialized public
> the reception of popular culture products and their publics
> comparative studies of contrasting / similar representations
> the US society as represented through humor, caricature, and satire
> deconstruction of national storytelling and stereotyped narratives

Please, send your proposal by April 5, 2020 to popmec.call@gmail.com attaching your abstract (200-250 words), inclusive of a short bio (100-120 words), name, affiliation, and email contact in a single file. All proposals (unless differently specified by the author) will be considered for both presentation in the conference and publication on the academic blog. Feel free to check our author guidelines page and to contact us for further information.

The languages of the conference will be English and Spanish. Nonetheless, we strongly recommend limiting the use of Spanish coherently with your chosen topic.

Registration fee:
> Full 45€ for waged scholars
> Reduced 15€ for unwaged scholars (e.g. postgraduate students, independent researchers)
[Coffee breaks and light lunch will be provided]

Key dates:
> April 5 deadline for proposals
> April 14 notification of acceptation and opening of registration
[We plan on doing a first round of evaluations by March 8 so that if your proposal needs a little retouching, we let you know and you can still resubmit it!]

Further details on keynote speakers, venue and registration will be provided shortly.
Organizing committee @ Instituto Franklin–UAH:
> Daniel Bustillo
> Carlos Herrero
> Anna Marta Marini
> Joaquín Saravia

Download the full CFP here: CFP_popmec

https://popmec.hypotheses.org/

CFP Myth and Fairy Tales Area (10/31/2019; SWPACA 2/19-22/2020)

Call for Papers: Myth and Fairy Tales at Southwest Popular/American Culture Association (SWPACA) 2020
https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2019/09/17/call-for-papers-myth-and-fairy-tales-at-southwest-popularamerican-culture-association


deadline for submissions: October 31, 2019

full name / name of organization: Southwest Popular/American Culture Association

contact email: sheila.dooley@utrgv.edu



Call for Papers

Myth and Fairy Tales

Southwest Popular / American Culture Association (SWPACA)



41st Annual Conference, February 19-22, 2020

Hyatt Regency Hotel & Conference Center

Albuquerque, New Mexico

http://www.southwestpca.org

Proposal submission deadline: October 31, 2019



Proposals for papers and panels are now being accepted for the 41st annual SWPACA conference.  One of the nation’s largest interdisciplinary academic conferences, SWPACA offers nearly 70 subject areas, each typically featuring multiple panels.  For a full list of subject areas, area descriptions, and Area Chairs, please visit http://southwestpca.org/conference/call-for-papers/



All scholars working in the areas of myth and/or fairy tales are invited to submit paper or panel proposals for the upcoming SWPACA Conference. Panels are now forming on topics related to all aspects of myths and fairy tales and their connections to popular culture. To participate in this area, you do not need to present on both myths and fairy tales; one or the other is perfectly fine. Presentations considering both genres are of course welcome and can stimulate interesting discussions. Proposals for forming your own Myth or Fairy Tale-focused panel – especially panels focused on one particular myth/tale – are encouraged.

Paper topics might include (but are certainly not limited to):

• Where Fairy Tales and Myth Overlap
• Non-Western Myths and Fairy Tales
• Revised Fairy Tales
• Fairy Tales in/as “Children’s Literature”
• Disney
• Urban Fairy Tales
• Ethnic Myths and Fairy Tales
• Gendered Readings of Myths and Fairy Tales
• Postcolonial Myths and Fairy Tales
• Myths and Fairy Tales in Advertising Culture
• Reading Myths and Fairy Tales in the Popular Culture of Past Centuries
• Performing Myths and Fairy Tales: Drama and/or Ritual
• Genres of Myths and/or Fairy Tales: Film, Television, Poetry, Novels, Music, Comic Books, Picture Books, Short Stories, or Graphic Novels

All proposals must be submitted through the conference’s database at http://register.southwestpca.org/southwestpca



For details on using the submission database and on the application process in general, please see the Proposal Submission FAQs and Tips page at http://southwestpca.org/conference/faqs-and-tips/



Individual proposals for 15-minute papers must include an abstract of approximately 200-500 words. Including a brief bio in the body of the proposal form is encouraged, but not required.



For information on how to submit a proposal for a roundtable or a multi-paper panel, please view the above FAQs and Tips page.



The deadline for submissions is October 31, 2019. 

SWPACA offers monetary awards for the best graduate student papers in a variety of categories. Submissions of accepted, full papers are due January 1, 2020.  For more information, visit http://southwestpca.org/conference/graduate-student-awards/



Registration and travel information for the conference is available at http://southwestpca.org/conference/conference-registration-information/



In addition, please check out the organization’s peer-reviewed, scholarly journal, Dialogue: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Popular Culture and Pedagogy, at http://journaldialogue.org/

If you have any questions about the Myth and Fairy Tales area, please contact its Area Chair, Sheila Dooley, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV), Sheila.dooley@utrgv.edu



We look forward to receiving your submissions!




Last updated September 23, 2019
This CFP has been viewed 213 times.

CFP 17th Annual Tolkien Conference at University of Vermont (1/12/2020)

17th Annual Tolkien Conference at University of Vermont
https://call-for-papers.sas.upenn.edu/cfp/2019/09/30/17th-annual-tolkien-conference-at-university-of-vermont

deadline for submissions: January 12, 2020

full name / name of organization: Annual Tolkien at UVM conference

contact email: cvaccaro@uvm.edu


17thAnnual Tolkien at UVM Conference, April 4th 2020

Theme: Tolkien and Classical Antiquities

This year, the Tolkien conference explores every aspect of the earlier Classical cultures of Rome, Greece, Ancient and Hellenistic Egypt, Carthage, their languages, religions, philosophies, etc. Includes work in early Christianity in Rome (Augustine and Boethius) and linguistic investigations into Tolkien's appreciation of Greek and Latin and other early languages. Can include cinematic adaptations.



Keynote:

Very Rev. John Wm. Houghton, Ph.D. (Champlain and Dean emeritus, The Hill School)




Last updated October 8, 2019
This CFP has been viewed 58 times.

CFP Food and Drink in Science Fiction, Edited Volume (proposals by 11/15/2018)

CFP: Food and Drink in Science Fiction, Edited Volume
https://www.fantastic-arts.org/2018/cfp-food-and-drink-in-science-fiction-edited-volume/
August 7, 2018

CFP, edited volume: Food and Drink in Science Fiction

“But now, we must eat!”
Food and Drink in Science Fiction

Deadline for abstracts: November 15, 2018

Edited by Cindy Miller, Steve Rabitsch, and Michael Fuchs this volume will discuss food and drink in science fiction across media—movies, television shows, literature, video games, comics, etc. Of course, as forms of sustenance, food and drink are among the essential elements of life. But this is also precisely why representations of food and drink are always ripe with meaning. As this book will show, science fiction uses food and drink to explore pertinent issues ranging from the homogenization of food in a globalized economy to the exploitation of our natural resources and the attendant phenomena of water, air, and soil pollution, deforestation, and the scarcification of food.

If you are interested in contributing to this volume, please submit a 500-word proposal to science.fiction.food@gmail.com. All submissions will be acknowledged. If you do not receive a confirmation of receipt within 48 hours, you may assume that your email hasn’t reached us for some reason. In that case, please re-submit. Please also direct any questions you might have to the email address indicated above.
We will most likely first approach European university presses with this project, as they generally move ahead faster than their American counterparts.

Please check out this attached CFP for more details, and do not hesitate to drop us a line if you have any questions.

CFP New England Studies Area (10/1/2018; PCA/ACA Washington DC 4/17-20/2019)

New England Studies at PCA CFP
https://nepca.blog/2018/09/21/new-england-studies-at-pca-cfp/

NEW ENGLAND STUDIES — CALL FOR PAPERS (2019)

The 2019 Popular Culture/American Culture Association Conference will be held in Washington, DC, April 17-20, 2019,. The New England Studies Area invites presentations on any aspect of New England popular culture: Architecture; Art; Ecology/Environment; Economics; Fashion; Film and Theater, especially films made in New England, and plays set in the region, e.g. ‘The Crucible’; Folklore; Food; Language and Literature; Politics; History; Music; Sports; Celebrities; Entertainment; Gambling/Casinos; Industries, e.g. Fishing; Regional Cultures; Sports and Recreation; Tourism and Travel; and numerous other topics. The subjects are endless.

Quite welcome will be papers or panels that focus on any of these topics:

• New England politics and the Washington connection, e.g. presentations on political issues, such as the Massachusetts politicians who became Speakers of the House (Joseph Martin, John McCormack, Thomas ‘Tip’ O’Neill) and their impact on the nation and on the state.
• Sports and New England, especially a discussion of fan loyalties with champions such as the New England Patriots and the Red Sox; baseball rivalries (Red Sox v. Yankees); football rivalries, such as the old quarterback rivalry between Tom Brady v. Peyton Manning; Tom Brady and the rest of the NFL quarterbacks; Patriots v. NY Giants or NY Jets).
• New England tourism sites and architecture. A good presentation would be how New England holds its own against the Washington, DC, tourist trade.
• U.S. Capitol v. six New England capitols. How many were based on the national capitol? How has the Bulfinch capitol in Boston been imitated elsewhere in other state capitols and buildings?
• Multi-culturalism of New England today compared to its former ethnic separatism, e.g. Irish in Boston, Portuguese in Gloucester or Fall River, French in parts of Rhode Island. Impact of immigration in making New England a vast, diverse culture over the decades.
• Films and plays set in New England or filmed there, e.g. ‘The Departed,’ ’Mystic River,’ ‘On Golden Pond,’ ‘The Magnificent Yankee.’
• Infamous figures, such as Whitey Bulger in Boston, Lizzie Borden in Fall River, or Buddy Cianci in Providence, whose cases became national profile with the attendant media attention.
• Holiday celebrations, such as St. Patrick’s Day parades, various ethnic Christmas celebrations, and Halloween in Salem, Massachusetts, at Halloween.
• Also of interest would be presentations on literary personalities, such as Nathaniel Hawthorne, Louisa May Alcott, Henry Thoreau, Mark Twain (and his Connecticut connection), and Harriet Beecher Stowe.
• Cultural attractions, e.g. Freedom Trail, Boston Pops, Fenway Park; any of our higher institutions of learning.
• Role of religion on New England life and community.
• Famous personalities born in New England, such as Bette Davis; Katherine Hepburn; John F. Kennedy and the Kennedy family; Rosalind Russell; Harriet Beecher Stowe; Howie Long; and Kurt Russell.. How many kept their New England roots or left them behind for other geographic locations. Example: Kurt Russell was born in Springfield but you now think of him more as a Californian. Howie Long is from Somerville but he is now a resident of Charlottesville, VA, where he raised his family. Has anyone heard or read Howie mention Massachusetts in his professional life?

Please submit a proposal to only one area at a time. All proposals and abstracts must be submitted through the PCA Database. See the website at ncp@pcaaca.org. . Presentations should be 15-20 minutes in length and lively in nature! The deadline for the submission of a 200-word abstract is October 1, 2018. Acceptance will be earlier than usual as well to enhance your ability to seek funding. Although all proposals should be submitted to the PCA Database directly, please also cc: me, and include university or organization affiliation (if applicable), telephone number, and e-mail address. Graduate students welcome. Individual and full panel proposals are considered. Please feel confident about attendance if you are accepted.

If you give a paper, you must register for the conference. See: http://www.pcaaca.org. Site also includes information on travel grants and rates at the conference hotel.



Send inquiries and paper proposals to:

Martin J. Manning

4701 South Park Court

Woodbridge, VA 222193

E-mail preferred: ManningMJ@state.gov

Newish Book: Star Wars: The Rise of a Hero

One more Star Wars book:

Simonson, Louise. Star Wars: The Rise of a Hero. Art by Walter Simonson, Tom Palmer, and Laura Martin. Los Angeles and New York: Disney-Lucasfilm Press-Disney Book Group, May 2017. 978-1-4847-9933-8

Released in celebration of the fortieth anniversary of the original Star Wars, Star Wars: The Rise of a Hero details the life of young Luke Skywalker through words and images based on the film; however, in design, it is very unlike traditional picture books. Instead, it offers an illustrated narrative reminiscent of illustrated comic strips, like Hal Foster’s Prince Valiant. Louise Simonson’s text (which is sometimes a bit too close to the dialogue of the film) is depicted in a comics-style font with related features of italics and bold accents; this is presented alongside and around the comics-like images produced by her husband Walter Simonson and his fellow artists Tom Palmer and Laura Martin. For the most part, the text and images are depicted separately, but a few pages include the text boxes within the image panels; at other occasions, the images are stacked creating an even more comics-like page. Both occurrences further reinforce the work’s connection to the comic form.

More details and ordering instructions from Disney Books at https://books.disney.com/book/star-wars-the-rise-of-a-hero/.