British Association of Film, Television and Screen Studies

Second Call for Papers

BAFTSS 1st Annual Conference 2013
(British Association of Film, Television and Screen Studies)
University of Lincoln, April 19-21 2013

Critics & Criticism: Writing on Audiovisual Media

Submissions are invited for the first annual BAFTSS conference at the University of Lincoln, 19-21 April 2013. The theme of the conference is 'Critics and Criticism: Writing on Audiovisual Media'. The unrelenting expansion of digital cultures, including social networking and blogging, forces us to revise the role of the critic, including the academic, the journalist and the amateur. In particular, political pressures on Humanities research and calls for open-access research publication will affect the place and style of academic writing. Within this context, further investigation is needed into the histories and likely developments of audiovisual criticism and critical schools.

As well as papers addressing this theme, the conference will consider relevant proposals on any area of film, television and screen studies, including their learning and teaching, from A-levels to Higher Education, and any other developments pertaining these disciplines.

Pre-constituted Panel proposals are preferred, but proposals can be made for individual papers or workshops. If proposing a panel or workshop, please indicate a panel title in your proposal. If proposing a workshop, please include details of your workshop aims and your target audience. We also encourage proposals from media professionals, postgraduate students as well as academics and independent scholars.

The conference will include
- BAFTSS General Meeting,
- presentations by the first BAFTSS book and essay prize winners (awarded in September 2012),
- conference dinner (Saturday night)
- publishers stands
- postgraduate students session(s)

A Lifetime Achievement Award will be presented during at the conference dinner to Professor Laura Mulvey, who will also be the keynote speaker (Friday afternoon) and a panel of critics will discussion issues in contemporary criticism (Saturday afternoon, specific critics being confirmed)

BAFTSS was established in 2011 as the new professional organisation to represent the interests of Film, Television and Screen Studies in and beyond the UK.  Our mission is to

- promote the recognition of the discipline and represent the academic and professorial interests of those engaged in it to the academy, government, funding agencies, the cultural industries and the public;
- encourage best teaching and research practice;
- promote the training of postgraduate students in research.

Proposals for individual papers (with or without a panel proposal) should be 250 words long, plus a brief biography (100 words) including affiliation details. Proposals should be submitted to the conference committee (at [log in to unmask], [log in to unmask] and [log in to unmask]) by Monday, 17 December 2012. Proposers will be notified by 1 February 2013.

 There will be an an early-bird discount when booking before 15 February but our aim is to make an affordable conference experience for all participants and there are a number of conference fee options available (from full conference fee of £161 excluding accommodation to a session fee, morning or afternoon  of £20). If you are not a member of BAFTSS, attending the conference will activate your membership.