Call for Papers
Conference: Film Genres Today
Markets, Conventions, Emerging Practices
Oxford Brookes University
15 January 2010
This one-day conference, coinciding with the launch of the new MA in
Popular Cinema at Oxford Brookes University, will look at the state of
genres in contemporary cinema. Submission for proposals are invited,
particularly those addressing issues such as:
How have new technologies and cinema going habits affected genre?
Which emerging trends can be identified?
How do new trends relate to audience demands? How do new variations
become established?
Transformation of classical genres. What innovations have been
introduced in traditional genre conventions.
Are genres less stable than in the classic period?
Are there "art film genres"?
How do independent filmmakers react to the classical genre repertoire?
Are there any genres which are more specific to European film cultures?
Cross fertilization between specific world cinema practices and
mainstream Hollywood (i.e. Slumdog Millionaire or Moulin Rouge!
assimilating Bollywood).
Influence of Hong Kong action movies on Hollywood.
Genre is a notoriously difficult category to pin down, and the list of
typical "kinds of film" is in constant change. Academic accounts of the
meaning of genre take a variety of approaches. Some definitions have
been based on the film's contents (i.e. a Western as a film that takes
place in a specific geographical area). Others on the effect particular
types of film on particular audiences (i.e. thriller or comedies are
characterized to provoke tension or laughter). For authors such as Rick
Altman, the most rigorous way to describe genre historically is as
industrial formulae which emerge at specific moments and may or may not
evolve into other forms.
One thing that is clear is that both the repertoire of genres and their
relative importance keeps changing. Although some basic types of film
remain, some new genres (or variations on old recipes) emerge in order
to capture the imaginations of new audiences. In his recent update on
his ongoing study of narrative conventions, David Bordwell drew a map of
new, emergent and phased out genres at the start of the new millennium.
He also looks into the ways certain kinds of films have been transformed
by changing conventions to address new audiences.
Contact:
For proposals please contact Dr Alberto Mira, [log in to unmask]
Deadline for submitting an abstract (250 words): 1 September 2009
Notification of acceptance: 30 September 2009
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