The University of the District of Columbia Film Committee invites papers on the theme of the Child in Film and Media for an interdisciplinary conference to be held on the UDC campus on September 26-27, 2008.

Representations of children in today's media intersect with contextual issues that demand scholarly consideration. As the academic and commercial markets' attention to children's literature and media increases, the need to explore how children are used, targeted, explored, and represented in books, films, games, and toys grows. This conference will explore how different media, particularly film, deal with definitions of childhood, the place of the child in differing texts, and the connections scholars and critics have made with these various forms of media.

Papers might consider (but are not limited to) the following topics:

· Historical Intersections: Children’s Media and History
· Illustrated and Animated: Visual Representations of Children
· So Unreal: Magic and Fantasy
· Dystopia/Utopia
· [Mis]appropriations of Racial Identity in Children’s Media
· Consumerism, Corporatization, and Advertising: The Child and the Market
· Violence: Screen to Text
· The Elephant in the Room: Sex in Children’s Media
· Nationalistic Fantasy, Identity, and Power
· Animals Among Us: Intersections of Human and Animal
· Graphic, Anime, and Manga: New Media, New Century
· Trains and Atari: Toys, Games, and Children
· Disability and Representations of the Child
· Him/Her/It: Gender and the Child
· The Virtual Space of Childhood: From 8-bit to HD

Papers addressing individual authors and works in developing these themes are encouraged. Panel proposals are welcome.

Please email your 250-word abstract, contact information, and a brief bio to Alexander Howe at: udcfilm@yahoo.com

Please visit the conference website for more information: http://www.udc.edu/films/ka.htm

Deadline for Submissions: August 1, 2008. Early submissions are appreciated.