The Fan Studies Network

Call for Papers: Journal of Fandom Studies, Queerbaiting special issue.

Fans use the term ‘queerbaiting’ to account for a television tactic whereby producers deliberately insert homoerotic subtext between characters in order to capture a queer viewership, yet never actualise this subtext on screen. It is near exclusively deemed by fans as an exploitative tactic that is harmful to queer viewers; one that teases queer representations, then shuts down opportunities for validation with ‘no homo’ jokes in text and denial of the existence of any subtext in commentary. It has thus attained decidedly negative connotations in its usage by fans and a degree of cultural currency in the popular sphere, the hashtag #Queerbaiting an increasingly popular device on Twitter for shaming such tactics, for example. Cult series such as Supernatural and Sherlock are among the most frequently named for queerbaiting their audiences, which given the scholarly interest by fan scholars in these texts, raises important questions for our field. Recently, investigation has begun into some of the questions posed by queerbaiting, such as the activist agenda behind the term’s coinage (Nordin, 2015), its statement on fan-producer interactions (Collier, 2015), textual readings of certain texts that queerbait (Fathallah, 2015), and of how this relatively new term bodes for understandings of particular well-canvassed fan practices, such as slash (Brennan, 2016).

The recent interest by scholars in the various issues associated with queerbaiting make a collection of essays that situate the tactic in terms of the fan studies field timely. Further, a survey of such issues is important in light of the impassioned calls from many fans for such tactics to cease, and for producers to take account of the harm caused by queerbaiting. A key argument being that in ‘baiting’ their audiences, then denying actual representations, queer viewers face invalidation of their experiences (Sheehan, 2015). This is not to discount alternate readings on the practice, such as of the potential queer readings that ‘queerbaiting’ in fact make possible, even plausible (Brennan, 2016).

This special edition of Journal of Fandom Studies aims to take account of why queerbaiting as a concept has gained the appeal it has, and why now. Not only what exactly it means to queerbait, but also the relationship between this term and the current media landscape, in which queer representations are supposedly possible in mainstream texts, yet still denied. Therefore, the issue seeks to take stock of the current state of media representations accused of queerbaiting and of the fannish culture that surrounds the development of this term. Importantly, the edition aims to consider what criticism of certain tactics might mean for longstanding debates within the field, among them: media effects, fan/producer power relations, active/passive consumption, fan production (slash, for example), and identity, to name just a few. As such, submissions are encouraged from across disciplines, with the aim to better understand what queerbaiting means to fans; what harm, if any, it causes them; and how we are to proceed with the study of fandoms that, some argue, are harmful.

Submission Details

Submissions of particular interest are not limited to but may address:

Etymology of the term
What constitutes queerbaiting?
Queerbaiting as fan activism
Good/bad representations of sexuality
Mainstreaming queer representation
Queerbaiting vs homoeroticism
Campaigns to boycott series that queerbait
Queerbaiting vs queer reading
Hoyay, fan service, subtext, ‘no homo’ jokes, and other related terms
Textual readings of particular series that queerbait, such as Supernatural, Sherlock, Merlin, Rizzoli & Isles, Teen Wolf
#Queerbaiting on Twitter
Fan-producer dynamics
Methodologies for studying queerbaiting
Queerbaiting on film (The Avengers, Victor Frankenstein, for example)
Queerbaiting in advertising
Queerbaiting and slash/femslash, ‘correcting’ queerbaiting
Queerbaiting as invalidation of identity
Cast and producer responses to accusations of queerbaiting
Celebrity queerbaiting (James Franco, Nick Jonas, etc.)
Capitalising on queerbaiting (the ‘pink dollar’)
This special edition of Journal of Fandom Studies will be edited by Dr Joseph Brennan.

Please send abstracts of 300 words and a short biographical note to joseph.brennan@sydney.edu.au by June 1, 2016. Completed articles of 6000–9000 words will be due November 1, 2016.

Editorial Information

Edited by: Joseph Brennan (joseph.brennan@sydney.edu.au)

It’s HBO! Life After Legacy (2018) will examine, not HBO’s legacy shows, but its current programming, bringing together an international group of media and cultural studies scholars to offer an in-depth look at issues of race, class, gender, sexuality and power behind HBO’s new and original voices.

Current shows, such as Game of Thrones; Girls; The Leftovers; Silicon Valley; True Detective; The Looking; Ballers; and Vinyl, will be discussed through the lens of sociocultural and political context and the transformation of American television and global society in the 21st century. There exists a range of issues here, driven by HBO’s current content, which are important not only to the shows, but to our understanding of society today.

What is it about Game of Thrones, a series of power, violence and fear, that resonates so deeply with audiences? How is it that True Detective (2014-present), a Nietzsche-influenced crime drama, broke viewing figure records? Why has HBO’s comedy-drama Looking (2014-2015) been celebrated as the most original and progressive depiction of queer characters in the 21st century? What is it about the post-Katrina New Orleans-set mini-series Treme (2010-2013) that has provoked discussion about cultural appropriation, race and class? How did indie comedy series Girls (2012-present) re-define the representation of Baby Boomer predecessors and their millennial successors? Why has post-apocalyptic drama The Leftovers (2014-present) been deemed the most brutal and essential, ‘new kind of religious’ viewing experience on television?

Editors: Victoria McCollum and Giuliana Monteverde

Deadline for Abstracts: March 31, 2016

Publisher: Routledge

It is anticipated that submissions will conform to one of the three book parts:

Part I: Authorship, Gender and Reception
Chapters in this section will focus on authorship, and explore the role of creator from a variety of perspectives. Essays should draw upon current HBO programming to analyse the role of the creator, and their perspective and method, in shaping the terrain of American popular culture and speaking to selected audiences.

PART II: Race, Place, Power and Risk
Chapters in this section will focus on HBO’s current programming’s treatment of gender, race, sexual orientation and class, and on the subsequent power relations employed in representing such important identity positions.

PART III: Consumption, Criticism and Fandom
Chapters in this section will focus on questions of political economy, the new culture industry and the changing critical landscape (YouTube reviews, podcasts, Reddit threads, wikis and Tumblr gifs).

Topics may include (but are not limited to):

Lena Dunham, Girls, and the Artistic Narcissism of Creative Millennials
Pizzolatto’s Flying Solo, Philosophical Meanderings and Existential Nihilism in True Detective
Age, Adaption and Traumedy in Olive Kitteridge
Toxic Masculinity, Golden Eras and Collapsing Economies in Vinyl
Game of Thrones: Medieval Laddism, Rape Culture, and Feminist Fandom
(White Girl) Feminism, Privilege and White-Washing in Girls
Postfeminism, Scathing Satire and Political Humor in Veep
Age, Disability, Class and Corporatization in Getting On
The Rapture, Religion and Complicated Worldviews in The Leftovers
Race, Class and Political Truth in Storm-Damaged Treme
Geeks, Freaks, Feminism and Capitalism: Satirizing the Tech World in Silicon Valley
‘The Rock’, American Dreams and Racial Nightmares in Ballers
Queer Naturalism and Petitions For Change in Looking

Submission Guidelines: Abstracts/Proposals (250 words) with a 50-word biography due: March 31, 2016. Notifications made by: April 10, 2016. Accepted and completed papers (5000-6000 words with references in Harvard format) due: April 1, 2017.

Please send inquiries and abstracts to editors:
Victoria McCollum and Giuliana Monteverde at: hbobook@gmail.com

http://popculturestudies.blog.com/2016/02/27/call-for-paper/

The inaugural International Vampire Film and Arts Festival will take place in Sighisoara in Transylvania, Romania, on May 26th – 29th 2016.

From Stoker to Rice; from Nosferatu to classic Hammer onto Twilight, The Strain and beyond – the vampire genre is the world’s most enduring and influential horror genre straddling film, television, literature, theatre, games and new media. IVFAF brings together vampire media-makers from across the World in one cross-industry event – an exciting four-day programme of film screenings, book launches, readings, theatre, seminars, workshops, tours, networking events, a trade fair and parties. The Festival will take place within the walls of the dramatic medieval citadel that was the birthplace to the real Vlad Dracula and will involve industry, artists, fans and academics.

Confirmed speakers include:

Dr Stacey Abbott (University of Roehampton)
Professor Richard Hand (University of South Wales)
Dacre Stoker (Author)

This call for papers is for scholars interested in presenting their work in the academic symposium that runs alongside the Festival (in association with the University of South Wales). Proposals for single 20-minute papers or pre-constituted panels (of 3 x 20-minute papers) on any aspect of the Vampire are now welcomed from scholars working in (but not limited to) the following areas:

• Literature
• Film & TV Studies
• Gothic Studies
• Media & Cultural studies
• Art
• Fashion
• Audience & Fan Studies
• Theatre Studies
• Music

We are also interested in proposals for academic roundtables or workshops. The deadline for proposals is Wednesday 9th March 2016.

Please submit 250 word abstracts and a short author biography to Dr Rebecca Williams at rebecca.williams@southwales.ac.uk

Further information and regular updates on the event, including information on the Industry Strand and the VampFest fan Festival can be found at http://ivfaf.com/

You can follow the Festival on Twitter @VampireFestival or find it on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/vampireartsfestival/?fref=ts

Sex and Sexualities in Popular Culture: Feminist Perspectives 2016

Call for Papers for a 1-day postgraduate symposium hosted by the Digital Cultures Research Centre

Abstract deadline: April 15th, 2016

Conference date and location: September 3rd, 2016, Digital Cultures Research Centre, The Watershed, Bristol

Eligibility: Postgraduate students (MA/MSc onwards) and creative practitioners

Send abstracts to: popsex.conference@gmail.com

Keynote speaker: Cheryl Morgan

The second annual Sex and Sexualities in Popular Culture: Feminist Perspectives symposium is returning to the Bristol Watershed in September 2016. Following an exciting inaugural symposium in 2015, this year’s event will continue our tradition of offering a safe, inclusive space for postgraduate students and creative practitioners to meet peers, share work and learn from each other.

We are delighted to welcome Cheryl Morgan as the keynote speaker for PopSex16. Cheryl is a Hugo award-winning science fiction critic and publisher. She is the owner of Wizard’s Tower Press and the Wizard’s Tower Books ebook store. Previously she edited the Hugo Award winning magazine, Emerald City (Best Fanzine, 2004). She also won a Hugo for Best Fan Writer in 2009. She is a Co-Chair of Out Stories Bristol and lectures regularly on both trans history and science fiction and fantasy literature.

We continue to be interested in how representations of sex and sexualities in popular culture shape feminist – and anti-feminist – issues and discourses. Since our 2015 event, we have seen both the box office success and backlash against films such as Mad Max Fury Road (noted for strong feminist themes and female leads in a traditionally male-dominated franchise) and Star Wars: The Force Awakens (which upset “Men’s Rights Activists” through its failure to feature a straight, white, male hero). MRAs have also made abortive attempts to organise away from the keyboard. Eddie Redmayne, the cisgender male actor cast as the lead in The Danish Girl, has drawn criticism for his claims that the movie has brought trans issues to the mainstream. Fanfiction has received even more mainstream coverage with speculation that pressure from fans may move Disney to make one of the leads in the latest Star Wars trilogy canonically gay. And of course many aspects of sex and sexualities remain silenced and unrepresented in popular culture. We welcome, among others, proposals which examine these trends and take the (mis/under)representations of sex and sexualities in popular culture as a starting point to theorise the links between popular culture and real-world feminist issues and activism.

We aim to create a space safe for experimentation – both with new ideas and with presentation formats. We therefore encourage a range of submissions, including workshops, discussions, pecha kucha, as well as the traditional 20-minute paper format.

Possible topics include but are not limited to:

– Representations of women’s desire and sexualities in popular culture
– Non-cis- and heteronormative sexualities in popular culture, especially beyond “gay and lesbian”
– Representations of sex work
– Infertility and sexual dysfunction
– Sexual intersections, including race, disability, religion, class and socioeconomic status, gender, etc.
– Sex and sexualities in gaming
– Sexual pleasure in popular culture
– Invisibility: (a)sexualities unrepresented
– Sex, sexualities and social media
– Sex and sexualities in fan and transformative works

Please submit a 300-word abstract and a 100-word bio to popsex.conference@gmail.com by April 15th, 2016.

We look forward to your proposals

Bethan Jones, Monika Drzewiecka, Milena Popova

Ageing celebrities and ageing fans in popular media culture

19-20 May 2016 at Department of Media Cognition and Communication, University of Copenhagen.

We are proud to announce that the following keynotes are confirmed for the seminar:

Professor Matt Hills, Aberystwyth University, Wales.
Professor. C. Lee Harrington, Miami University, USA.
Reader, Dr. Deborah Jermyn, Roehampton University, England
Senior lecturer, Dr. Kirsty Fairclough-Isaacs, University of Salford, England.

Call for abstracts

DEADLINE: 1 March 2016: 250-300 words for paper presentations. Abstracts should be submitted to linenp@hum.ku.dk and jerslev@hum.ku.dk

There is increasing interest in celebrity and age within media studies, most recently represented by the edited volume Women, Celebrity and Cultures of Ageing. The same goes for age in fan studies, with the edited volume Ageing, Media and Culture (2015) devoting a few chapters to ageing and life course in fan culture. This seminar combines these two strands of research, with a focus on both female and male celebrities and fans. The seminar is dedicated to discussions of representations of and meanings related to ageing in contemporary celebrity and fan culture across a range of media, from fashion ads and tabloid magazines to music, film, television, social media, and other media platforms.

Ageing remains contentious in popular culture, with young stars being cast to play much older characters. The ageing female body is either contained or pathologized in audiovisual media, eloquently described by Vivian Sobchack in the late 1990s. Nowhere is ageism as prominent a logic as in media production. Celebrity culture is a culture of youth. Recently, however, movements have emerged that run counter to this pervasive notion of celebrities as young and beautiful. Much effort has been made by mature female actresses to publicly call attention to the lack of older female characters in film. Jane Fonda co-stars with Lily Tomlin and co-produces the Netflix comedy series Grace and Frankie, which deals with women starting over post-divorce late in life and reinventing themselves as modern single women. Elderly celebrity, writer Joan Didion, was chosen as the face of Celine’s spring campaign of 2015, as was singer Joni Mitchell for Saint Laurent.

Just as with celebrities, fan cultures are mostly considered to be teen or youth phenomena. However, an increasing number of mature adults and seniors are active members of fandoms, both online on social media platforms and as participants at fan conventions. Playfulness or excessive enthusiasm for a media product or celebrity are no longer seen as the exclusive property of the younger generations, but there is still a lack of knowledge about what happens when fans become parents and grandparents or when people become fans in later life. Similarly, we seek to understand the possibilities new media and platforms, such as Tumblr, offer fans and how social media encourage older people to perform fan practices. One mature fan writes in her Twitter bio: ‘Old enough to know better, old enough not to care.’ Finally, a range of television and film series have returned with updated versions of the original older shows (including Sherlock (2010-), Doctor Who (2005-), Twin Peaks (2016), X-Files (2016)), creating an opportunity for fans of the original series to engage on social media platforms and immerse themselves in the narratives once again. This seminar examines the role fandom plays in the life course of mature and elderly fans.

In summary, we hope to shed light on new tendencies related to ageing in celebrity and fan culture in popular and entertainment media by bringing together the two research traditions and the cultural spaces in which they overlap.

The seminar includes but is not limited to:

– Tabloid and celebrity media’s focus on age and ageing

– Representations of ageing celebrities at red carpet events

– Representations of ageing in popular media narratives

– The role of fandom for mature and ageing fans in online/offline fan culture

– Old stories, old audiences? Audiences for revived narratives such as Sherlock Holmes film and TV franchises, Star Trek, Doctor Who, the X-Files, Twin Peaks, etc.

– Gender studies in relation to ageing in celebrity culture and fan culture

– Genre and ageing: the action hero, ageing in comedy, etc.

http://mcc.ku.dk/research/focus-areas/ageing-and-old-age-in-the-media-and-elderly-peoples-media/box/activities/arrangement1/

Media Engagement: Connecting Production, Texts and Audiences

International Symposium Wallenberg Foundation, Lund University and University of Westminster

Wednesday 4th May 2016, Boardroom, 309 Regent Street, London Preceded by the seminar Media Industries and Engagement Tuesday 3rd May (CAMRI seminar series) Organisers Annette Hill and Jeanette Steemers

How do people engage with media such as television drama, twitter feeds, or reality entertainment? Media engagement is a broad term for research into how we experience media content, artefacts and events, from our experience of live performances, to social media engagement, or participation in media itself. Media engagement offers a rich site of analysis for exploring the dispersed connections across industry contexts, cultural forms, and audience experiences.

This symposium provides a platform for research on new terms of media engagement. We want to understand industrial contexts for engagement, including performance metrics, production practices and policy discourses. And we want to understand people’s shifting and subjective relations with media as live audiences, catch up viewers, illegal users, citizens and consumers, fans and anti-fans, contestants and participants. Media engagement thus encapsulates research on audiences, fans or producer-users, and the ways these different groups co-exist with those making content and driving policy and politics. The aim of the symposium is to investigate how industrial contexts, producers and audiences co-create, shape and limit experiences within emerging mediascapes.

We welcome research that relates to the following areas of enquiry for media engagement:
1.Industrial contexts for engagement: production practices, policy discourses and stakeholder coalitions
2.Empirical production and audience research: quantitative and qualitative methods and practices Audience experiences and engagement: affect, emotion and passion
3.Fans and anti-fans: labour and fan practices
4.Unmeasured audience: informal media economies and illegal practices

The conference includes a combination of invited speakers and open panels. Confirmed speakers include Professor Göran Bolin (Södertörn University, Sweden), Professor Raymond Boyle (Glasgow University, UK), Professor John Corner (Leeds University, UK), Professor Annette Hill (Lund University, Sweden), Professor Jeanette Steemers (University of Westminster, UK), Dr Paul Torre (University of Northern Iowa, USA), Professor Anne Marit Waade (Aarhus University, Denmark). The symposium is connected with the Media Experiences project, a production and audience study of television drama, documentary and reality entertainment based at Lund University, in collaboration with Endemol Shine Group, and funded by the Marianne and Marcus Wallenberg Foundation (http://mediaexperiences.blogg.lu.se/).

Please submit abstracts of 300 words in English by 23rd March 2016 to Jose Luis Urueta (jose.luis_urueta@kom.lu.se). There is a registration fee of 25 GBP.

Information about the CAMRI seminar series:
https://www.westminster.ac.uk/camri/research-seminars

http://www.kom.lu.se/index.php?id=51836