Fwd: CFP: International Superheroes on Screen (Proposals by 31 July 2011)

[Aaron Gerow]

> 
> 
> Not Just The American Way:
> Screen Superheroes in National, International and Transnational Contexts
> 
> The figure of the superhero is primarily seen as an American one, dominated
> by Marvel and DC comics and their adaptations across multiple media. These
> superhero franchises operate across media networks within many of the
> world’s global markets, influencing local representations of heroism and
> being altered to meet local expectations of the superhero in turn. American
> culture and, indeed, American superheroes play significant roles in these
> phenomena and historically have often led the way in debates around the
> representations around superheroes in culture. However, super-powered and
> costumed heroes are not just American in origin; they appear in screen media
> across many cultures, whether as the anti-social teenagers of Britain’s
> Misfits, India’s alien-empowered Krrish or Japan’s Ultraman. This collection
> examines super-heroes and heroines as they travel around the world,
> exploring the figure of the superhero beyond the North American context. As
> such, we are interested in the local, international and transnational
> manifestations of superheroes, as well as in their reach beyond their
> originating contexts. Furthermore, we are seeking papers on the importance
> of the  superhero to global media markets.
> 
> Potential subjects include, but are not limited to:
> 
> Local and national superheroes outside the United States
> US superheroes in global markets
> Co-produced superheroes
> Transmedia franchising and the superhero
> Superheroes on TV
> Iconography and aesthetics
> The reception of the superhero
> Gender, sexuality and ideology and the superhero
> Marketing the superhero internationally
> Geographically dislocated superheroes
> Cultural specificity of the superhero
> Special effects and the superhero in film and/or television
> Superhero adaptations
> Industrial and narrative origins
> The geography of superheroes
> International cultural flows and exchanges in superhero phenomena
> 
> Abstracts of no more than 250 words should be sent no later than 31st July
> 2011 to: superheroesonscreen at gmail.com
> 
> Please see the blog for this project at http://superheroesonscreen.blogspot.com/
> 
> The collection will be edited by Rayna Denison, Derek Johnston and Rachel
> Mizsei-Ward.
> 
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