[Commlist] CFP: Edited volume for Bloomsbury Series in Asian Celebrity and Fandom Studies

*CFP: ‘Star and Celebrity Branding within Asia: Using Comradery Capital’ 
edited volume for Bloomsbury Series in Asian Celebrity and Fandom Studies*

*Editors*: Jackie Raphael and Celia Lam


*Call for chapters*

The centrality of the celebrity commodity to the flow of cultural and 
economic capital in mediascapes has been explored by scholars such as 
Driessens and Marshall who note that celebrities are “manufactured by 
the celebrity industry” (Driessens, 2012, p. 643), and a mechanism to 
sell products. Marshall notes that the “celebrity as public individual 
who participates openly as a marketable commodity serves as a powerful 
type of legitimation of the political economic model of exchange and 
value – the basis of capitalism – and extends that model to include the 
individual (2014 [1997], p. xlviii).

In a recent publication, /Celebrity Bromances/(Routledge, 2022), we 
engage with the notion of the celebrity commodity, expanding Driessens’ 
celebrity capital to the dynamics of celebrity relationships. Driessens 
outlines how celebrities become part of the currency in a commodity 
culture, amassing capital that can be traded for profit to the benefit 
of the celebrity or affiliated products. Celebrities are therefore seen 
as cultural commodities (Marshall, 2014; Driessens, 2012, 2013); 
products of culture that contain value which can be traded for economic 
capital.

The commodification of celebrity interactions is a lens through which 
celebrity bromances are explored. We suggest that a “bromance capital” 
operates in contemporary celebrity culture, wherein thebromance is not 
only used as a tool to draw attention to individual celebrity figures. 
It also becomes a cultural “product” which gains value as a consequence 
of the affective attachments it provokes.Expanding the discussion beyond 
male homosocial intimacy, we also propose the concept of comradery 
capital, which is inclusive of group dynamics and functions across 
genders. Comradery capital refers to inherent value of the presentation 
of celebrity friendships and how these are utilised for the promotion of 
movies, television shows, charities, and products. The capital can 
fluctuate depending on levels of authenticity and how the relationship 
is performed.

While /Celebrity Bromances/explored some examples of comradery capital, 
these examples originated mostly from Hollywood celebrity culture. In 
our efforts to explore the operation of comradery capital, we wish to 
examine the various readings of comradery capital across countries in 
Asia. For example, /The Avengers/cast promotes their dynamic and films 
in interviews across Asian countries. Similarly, the way Gal Gadot and 
Chris Pine perform their friendship in the promotion of the /Wonder 
Woman/films or Chris Hemsworth and Tessa Thompson for /Men In Black 
International/.

We would like to capture cultures from around Asia including Japan, 
Korea, Dubai, Lebanon, India, China, Iran, Singapore, Pakistan, 
Malaysia, Israel and Indonesia. In examining the way comradery capital 
is performed and perceived in these various regions, the book would be 
able to capture the way in which celebrities vary their performances of 
friendship to take into account cultural differences of acceptable 
physical contact, understanding of language and slang, and the reading 
of sexuality and gender. It will also examine how comradery capital is a 
global promotional tool, breaking the barriers of communication.

We welcome contributions that focus on the political economy of 
comradery capital, as well as the affective/empowering dimensions of 
comradery capital, including fan and consumer relations.

We encourage interested authors to review definitions of bromance and 
comradery capital in /Celebrity Bromances/by accessing the open access 
chapters at the below links. We encourage an engagement with these 
concepts in abstracts submitted.

Chapter 4 – ‘Utilising’ Bromances 
<https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/oa-mono/10.4324/9781003093329-4/utilising-bromances-celia-lam-jackie-raphael?context=ubx>

Chapter 5 – Beyond Bromances 
<https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/oa-mono/10.4324/9781003093329-5/beyond-bromances-celia-lam-jackie-raphael?context=ubx>


Topics could include, but are not limited to:

·Promotion of Hollywood films in Asian contexts

·Reception of Hollywood cast dynamics in Asian contexts

·The creation and presentation of cast dynamics in Asian contexts, 
including same and mixed gender (binary and non-binary) casts

·The reception of regional cast dynamics in Asian contexts

·Creation and reception of joint or group celebrity persona

**

**

*Submission*

Please send the following to the editors at: 
(cjcelebrityresearch /at/ gmail.com) <mailto:(cjcelebrityresearch /at/ gmail.com)>by 
April 1, 2023:

-300-word abstract

-100-word bio

-5-6 key words

*
*

*Contact*: (cjcelebrityresearch /at/ gmail.com) 
<mailto:(cjcelebrityresearch /at/ gmail.com)>.

**

*
*

*Anticipated timeline:*

Abstract submission deadline: April 1, 2023

Submission of full proposal to Bloomsbury: July 1, 2023

If the proposal is accepted, full chapters would be expected by November 
2023.

**

**

References

Driessen, O. (2012). The celebritization of society and culture: 
Understanding the structural dynamics of celebrity culture. 
/International Journal of Cultural Studies/, /16/(6), 641–657. 
https://doi.org/10.1177/1367877912459140 
<https://doi.org/10.1177/1367877912459140>.

Driessens, O. (2013). Celebrity capital: Redefining celebrity using 
field theory. /Theory /

/and Society/, /42/(5), 543–560.

Marshall, P. D. (1997, 2014). /Celebrity and power: Fame in contemporary 
culture/. University of Minnesota Press.




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