[ecrea] CfP »in/between: cultures of connectivity« The NECS 2016 Conference

Call for Papers ― »in/between: cultures of connectivity« ―The NECS 2016
Conference

Potsdam, Germany, 31 January 2016

Call for Papers

The NECS 2016 Conference

»in/between: cultures of connectivity«

Potsdam, Germany, 28–30 July 2016

Hosted by ZeM – Brandenburgisches Zentrum für Medienwissenschaften
(Brandenburg Center for Media Studies), Potsdam, Germany

Please note that due to the different schedule of the German academic
year, the conference takes place a month later than usual.

Deadline for submissions: 31 January 2016

Please note that the membership fee must be paid before submission (see
www.necs.org/faq for more details).

Connecting people has always been one of the most important functions of
media, but arguably, the pervasiveness of media since the digital
revolution has increased the awareness of the fact that interrelatedness
is the basis of culture, and that media therefore play a crucial role in
the formation of human relations. Originally used in technological
discourses to describe and advertise the potential of media devices to
link up with other devices, connectivity has recently emerged in media
studies as a new concept with a much broader meaning, i.e. the potential
of media to link objects, agents, and processes. Such links exist and
operate on various levels, from the material to the symbolic. From this
perspective, mediation involves much more than what is traditionally
defined as communication, and this in turn presents a challenge to media
studies, both in theoretical as well as methodological terms.

The 2016 NECS conference aims to reflect on our current culture of
connectivity from a variety of perspectives. In 2016 and with this
conference, we will celebrate the 10th anniversary of the European
Network for Cinema and Media Studies (NECS), in itself a success of the
principle of connectivity between scholars. Thus it is in every way a
timely undertaking to investigate how different forms and aspects of
connectivity have influenced our work as scholars in Cinema and Media
Studies.

The 2016 NECS conference will be held in Potsdam, Germany, home of
Europe’s largest film studios in Babelsberg. The Berlin-Brandenburg
region is internationally renowned for its media industry. The
Brandenburg Center for Media Studies (Brandenburgisches Zentrum für
Medienwissenschaften, ZeM) is a new joint institution of the
universities and colleges of Brandenburg. The interconnections that the
ZeM aims to represent and create both within media studies and with
related disciplines are intended to increase the visibility of the
numerous contributions in research and teaching as well as to develop a
distinct profile for Brandenburg as a significant contributor to the field.

Submissions may include but are not limited to the following topics:

* Historical aspects: What is the role of media in the process of
(inter)connecting different spaces and times (“cultural memory”)? How
have mediated connections and the cultural significance of connectivity
changed throughout history? How do we connect with the past as media
scholars (archives, media archaeology etc.)?

* Theoretical aspects: How does connectivity relate to other concepts,
such as communication, mediation, interfaces, relays, hubs and networks?
In which discourses and theories have these terms originated, and what
are their ideological and methodological implications?

* Technological aspects: Which technological innovations have been
crucial for the development of our culture of connectivity? How does
technology influence our perception of being connected?

* Political/ideological/social aspects: What are the political, social,
and ideological conditions, implications, and effects of connectivity?
What kinds of social groups do media form (fan cultures, production
networks, internet forums, computer game communities etc.)?

* Psychological/anthropological aspects: What are the psychological
motivations for and the effects of media connectivity? Is there a
relationship between the idea of connectivity in media studies and the
idea of connectivity in the realm of neurosciences? How has connectivity
changed media reception practices? Does the idea of connectivity help us
develop our understanding of the relation between the human body, media,
and society?

* Aesthetic aspects: How far has the idea of connectivity inspired new
aesthetic forms, modes of narration and representation or strategies of
artistic production and media consumption?

* Meta-theoretical/institutional aspects: How has connectivity changed
the way we conduct our work as media scholars in teaching, research, and
publishing? How is the field of Media Studies connected geographically,
socially, and institutionally with other disciplines?

The conference will be held in English. Scholars from all areas of media
and cultural studies (film, radio, television, digital media, etc.),
whether previously affiliated with NECS or new to the network, are
invited to submit proposals, but NECS membership is a requirement (see
below).

FORMATS

Individual papers

Individual presenters wishing to submit a proposal for a paper
presentation of max. 20 minutes are required to provide their name,
email address, the title of the paper, an abstract (max. 150 words), 3-5
key biographical references, and a short bio of the speaker (max. 100
words).

Pre-constituted panels

We support the submission of proposals for pre-constituted panels in
order to strengthen the thematic coherence of panels. Furthermore,
several thematically related panels may form larger clusters (“panel
sponsoring”). We would like to strongly encourage members of the NECS
workgroups to put together pre-constituted panels, but we also welcome
submissions from academic research project teams, museums, archives, and
other institutions. We highly recommend no more than two speakers from
the same institution with a maximum of 20 minutes speaking time each.
Panel organisers are asked to submit panel proposals that include a
panel title, a short description of the panel (max. 100 words) and
information on all of the individual papers of the panel, as described
above.

Workshops

Events such as workshops, roundtables or seminars – both pre-conference
and conference – concentrating on more practical aspects of our field,
e.g. teaching, research methods, publishing, or networking with the
media industry are also welcome. Speaking time should be limited to 10
minutes per participant. Organisers are asked to submit workshop
proposals that include a title and a short description (max. 100 words).

Workgroups

There will be opportunity for the NECS workgroups to meet during the
conference.

Please note that individuals may submit only one paper proposal, either
as individual presenters or as part of a pre-constituted panel or
workshop. Please submit all proposals before 31 January 2016 using the
submission form available at:
http://necs.org/conference/proposal-submission-form/

ACCOMPANYING EVENTS

The 14th NECS Graduate Workshop

The format of the NECS Graduate Workshop was designed to give scholars
at the beginning of their career a platform for networking with
established European film and media scholars. The 14th NECS Graduate
Workshop in Potsdam is dedicated to the topic “Return of the Living Dead
Media: Media Cultures of Persistence, Resistance and Residue”. You will
find the CfP online at http://necs.org/node/107268. Please send your
proposal for a presentation with an abstract (300 words) and a short bio
(150 words) to (graduates /at/ necs.org) Organized by Anna Luise Kiss
(Filmuniversität Babelsberg Konrad Wolf), Sophia Satchell-Baeza (King's
College London), Marta Małgorzata Wąsik (University of Warwick)

Preconference Workshop: European Media Studies

For the 10th anniversary conference of NECS, and following our
successful workshop on "The Future of NECS" at the Lodz conference in
2015, this preconference workshop will report on the state of the art in
media studies in individual European countries. In particular, it will
deal with the question whether there is a common perspective that can be
regarded as specifically “European”, and if so, how this relates to
other parts of the world (such as the USA or developing countries).The
Steering and the Strategy Committee will organize the event. The
workshop will be open to all NECS-members, a program will be published
by May 1 on our website and via newsletter.

HoMER

We are pleased to announce that the HoMER network will once again take
part in the NECS conference, as it has previously in Prague (2013) and
Milan (2014). The HoMER papers will be selected separately, but for
participating in the main conference NECS membership is also required.
For further information please see: homernetwork.org.

There is no conference fee, but valid NECS membership and online
registration are required in order to participate in the conference and
to hand in a proposal. Participants (individual presenters as well as
all members of pre-constituted panels) must register and pay their
membership fee before a proposal is submitted
(http://necs.org/user/register). Since bank transfer may take some time,
please consider transferring the membership fee before 23 January.

Participants will have to cover their own travel and accommodation
expenses. Travel information, a list of local hotels and information on
further events (such as film screenings and a tour of the Babelsberg
film studios) will be posted on the NECS conference website in spring 2016.

See also: http://necs.org/faq. Please email all inquiries to:
(conference /at/ necs.org)

CONFERENCE ORGANIZERS

NECS Steering Committee: Sophie Einwächter, Judith Keilbach, Skadi
Loist, Francesco Pitassio, Antonio Somaini, Alena Strohmaier, Petr
Szczepanik

NECS Conference Committee: Luca Barra, Ruggero Eugeni, James
Harvey-Davitt, Daniel Kulle, Annemone Ligensa, Michał Pabiś-Orzeszyna,
Petr Szczepanik

Local organizing team: Marie-Luise Angerer, Lennart D’Aprile, Heiko
Christians, Jan Distelmeyer, Leonie Geisinger, Winfried Gerling,
Karl-Heinz Himmelmann, Jesko Jockenhövel, Ursula von Keitz, Stefan Kim,
Anna Luise Kiss, Annemone Ligensa, Laura Niebling, Christer Petersen,
Inga Selck, Michael Wedel.

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