[Commlist] Call for Abstracts: The Bloomsbury Handbook to Global Contemporary Documentary (deadline: 23/02/24)

Call for abstracts:

Please email chapter abstracts between 300-500 words to:

(levi.dean /at/ nottingham.edu.cn)

by Friday 23rd February 2024.
Abstracts should be sent in word or PDF format, and should include the 
following information:

· Chapter title

· Your name

· Your affiliation

· Bio (100 words)

We will notify you of the outcome by Monday 4th March 2024. If selected 
for publication, the full chapter will be due on Monday 1st July 2024. 
The proposed length of each chapter will be 7000 words maximum 
(inclusive of in-text references).


Questions surrounding documentary’s legitimacy for representing the 
“real” can be traced back to the release of Nanook of the North (1922) 
given the film’s advancement of fictional techniques to tell a more 
compelling story. However, as Ian Mcdonald (2007) argues, documentary as 
a credible form of “cinematic” entertainment began to take shape in the 
1990s with the success of Michael Moore. This saw the increasing 
utilisation of fictional techniques by documentaries all over the globe 
to secure box office success. The blurring between fiction and 
non-fiction within documentary has only been amplified by the 
exponential developments of transnational streaming platforms. In a bid 
for platforms to secure global viewership, documentary as entertainment 
has only become even more important (Ioardache, Raats & Mombaerts, 
2022). It is reasonable to postulate that this has led to an 
overwhelming number of documentaries placing entertainment before truth. 
The implications this has on documentary being considered as a credible 
and valid channel for representing reality raises ethical concerns, 
which needs to be addressed. It becomes difficult to address this gap 
because what precisely is meant by the terms “fictional,” “cinematic,” 
“character” and “story” led within the context of documentary is 
nebulous. We seek to fill this void through an approach that meets 
global scholars with expertise in storytelling, documentary, and 
relevant disciplines at the confluence to better understand and 
articulate ongoing trends. This will facilitate more diverse scholarly 
work and equip students with relevant concepts that they can advance as 
a critical lens to improve their understanding of issues and debates 
specific to global documentary storytelling.

Potential topics that you may wish to cover (but not limited to):

· Character and characterisation in global documentary

· Dramatic arc in global documentary

· Narrative structure and global documentary

· Narrative conventions in global documentary

· Documentary storytelling in the age of transnational streaming platforms

· Documentary storytelling in interactive and VR documentary

· Documentary storytelling and global south

· Eco-documentary storytelling and Anthropocene

· Emotional engagement in global documentary storytelling

· Documentary storytelling and entertainment

The above list is far from exhaustive, so you are more than welcome to 
contribute an additional topic within the context of Global Contemporary 
Documentary.

This proposed volume has received provisional support from Bloomsbury.




References:

Iordache, C., & Raats, T., & Mombaerts, S. (2022). The Netflix Original 
documentary, explained: global investment patterns in documentary films 
and series. Studies in Documentary Film. DOI: 10.1080/17503280.2022.2109099

McDonald, I. (2007). Situating the Sport Documentary. Journal of Sport & 
Social Issues, 31(3), pp. 208-225.


Editor Biographies:

Dr. Levi Dean is currently an Assistant Professor in Communications and 
Cultural Studies at the University of Nottingham Ningbo, China, and is 
the module convenor of Documentary and Reality, as well as Storytelling 
and Video Production. He is also the Director of Audio-Visual Technology.

Dr. Zhaoyu Zhu is a Teaching Fellow in Communication and Cultural 
Studies at the University of Nottingham Ningbo, China. He received the 
Katherine Singer Kovacs Essay Award from the Society of Cinema and Media 
Studies in 2022.

Dr Vikrant Kishore is Associate Professor at the University of 
Nottingham and Honorary Fellow of Deakin University, Australia. He has 
authored and edited books on Indian cinema, and worked with media 
channels including Zee News, ABC, and Channel 7. Kishore is a board 
member of the Australia India Film Council.

Dr Thomas William Whyke is an Assistant Professor in the School of 
International Communications at the University of Nottingham Ningbo, 
China. Dr Richard Frenneaux serves as Assistant Professor of 
International Communications at the University of Nottingham Ningbo, 
China - transitioning from a successful career in the music industry. 
Achievements include being the principal songwriter for UK charting 
band, Red Light Company, and earning a gold record as songwriter and 
record producer.
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