[ecrea] call for articles: Silencing Cinema: Film Censorship around the World

CALL FOR ARTICLES
 
 
Silencing Cinema: Film Censorship around the World
 
 
 
INTRODUCTION 
 
In recent years there has been a renewed scholarly interest in film
censorship. This went hand in hand with a broader definition of
censorship, new theoretical underpinnings of the concept and an
enlargement of research approaches to it. Acknowledging that 
banning, cutting or other  forms of control  were not
monopolized by authoritarian regimes (e.g. Nazi-Germany, Fascist Italy,
the Soviet Union), researchers agree  that censorship was and is
more complex, and that it  constitutes more than simply restrictions
imposed ‘from above’ by state institutions. 
 
While the international literature on the topic is dominated by
accounts  of the legal and ethical frames, it also tends to deal
with the history and practices of censoring movies in a few cases: the
US, the UK and some major Western European countries, especially those
that experienced dictatorial regimes. In many more countries, though,
including those in the Third World, scholars have conducted
groundbreaking research on film censorship. Unfortunately, access to most
of these publications is restricted to those who read the local language.
Silencing Cinema: Film Censorship around the World, a volume
edited jointly by Daniel Biltereyst and Roel Vande Winkel, aims to bring
together a wider variety of case studies and to foster cross-national
comparative research in this field. 
 
CONCEPT 
 
This call for articles invites film historians and other experts to
contribute a chapter on particular countries or regions. The articles may
offer new research, but summaries of works that have already been
published are also welcome. The editors prefer articles stressing film
censorship within particular geographical boundaries, covering (i) shifts
in the legal and ethical underpinnings of  film censorship, (ii)
structural and institutional changes, and (iii) shifts in censorship
practices. Although the editors prefer contributions with a broad time
span, papers on particular periods (e.g. silent era) will also be
considered. Articles with a narrow focus (for instance case studies of a
particular film or director) are not likely  to be accepted.
 
The editors will compose an introduction and a conclusion in order to
frame all chapters in a broader perspective and to facilitate 
cross-cultural comparison. To stimulate further research, the volume will
also include a general bibliography and an inventory of important
archival collections. 
 
 
SUBMITTING A PROPOSAL
 
If you would like to be considered for inclusion in the volume please
send a short abstract (c. 400 words) by 15 August 2010 summarizing your
contribution. Please also include a short CV and a selected list of
publications.  The editors will carefully read all proposals and
make a selection. As soon as they have come to an agreement with a
publishing company, guidelines regarding deadlines (the due date will be
no sooner than 30 June 2011), length (probably 8000-10.000 words),
reference systems etc. will be sent out to all selected
contributors.
Palgrave MacMillan has expressed serious interest in the possibility of
publishing a collection along the lines indicated in this call, but a
publishing contract with this company (or another global academic
publisher) cannot be negotiated before all contributors have been
confirmed. 
 
Please send your proposals to Daniel Biltereyst (Ghent University,
(daniel.biltereyst /at/ ugent.be)
) and to Roel Vande Winkel (University of Antwerp,
(roel.vandewinkel /at/ gmail.com)
). 
 
Daniel Biltereyst is a
Professor of Film Studies at the Ghent University, Belgium, where leads
he the Centre for Cinema and Media Studies (CIMS,
www.cims.ugent.be). He published
in international journals and readers, and is the co-editor of The New
Cinema History (co-edited with Richard Maltby and Philippe Meers,
Blackwell, 2010). 
 
Roel Vande Winkel is
assistant Professor at the University of Antwerp and book review editor
for the Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television.
He is the author/editor of various publications on film history,
including Cinema and the Swastika: the International Expansion of
Third Reich Cinema (co-edited with David Welch, Palgrave
2007).

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Nico Carpentier (Phd)
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Vrije Universiteit Brussel - Free University of Brussels
Centre for Studies on Media and Culture (CeMeSO)
Pleinlaan 2 - B-1050 Brussels - Belgium
T: ++ 32 (0)2-629.18.56
F: ++ 32 (0)2-629.36.84
Office: 5B.401a
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European Communication Research and Education Association
Web: http://www.ecrea.eu
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E-mail: (Nico.Carpentier /at/ vub.ac.be)
Web: http://homepages.vub.ac.be/~ncarpent/
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