European Screens 2016

An International Conference on Film, TV Drama and the Audiovisual Industries in Europe

From films like Ida, The Kings Speech, Taken, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Intouchables and The Great Beauty, to television dramas like The Killing, The Returned, Inspector Montalbano, Generation War, Salamanderand Downton Abbey, there seems to be a new vitality to the European audiovisual industries. In the new digital world, it is potentially easier than ever to encounter other Europeans on screen. At the same time, US movies still dominate the European box office, while only a minority of European films – generally big-budget, star-led productions from large producing countries – successfully travel to other European territories. The appetite for non-national European television dramas is slightly stronger, but cultural biases and structural weakness at the level of production and distribution still remain, raising questions about the media’s role in terms of creating a common sense of European identity or reflecting the rich diversity of European cultures and identities.

The European Screens conference will reflect on these trends. Organised by the HERA-funded project ‘Mediating Cultural Encounters through European Screens’ (MeCETES), this three-day event brings together academics, policymakers and industry professionals, and will provide a forum for researchers to discuss their latest research on contemporary European film, television and the audiovisual industries, as well as attend industry debates and keynote lectures (speakers to be confirmed). The MeCETES team – led by Andrew Higson (University of York, UK), Ib Bondebjerg (University of Copenhagen, Denmark) and Caroline Pauwels (Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium) – will also be sharing the findings of their landmark pan-European research project.

Following on from our previous successful academic-industry events at the Ostend Film Festival in 2014 and the Danish Film Institute in 2015, our aim is to establish a dialogue and exchange ideas on the trends, challenges and possibilities facing the audiovisual industries in contemporary Europe.

Programme:

• Are the UK film and TV industries part of Europe? – Amanda Nevill (BFI), Tim Bevan (Working Title), Mike Downey (European Film Academy), Duncan Petrie (University of York)

• The future of public service broadcasting – Cassian Harrison (BBC Four), Katherine Sarikakis (University of Vienna), Ed Braman (University of York)

• Transnational adventures: European screens, European identity – Daniela Berghan (Royal Holloway), Laura Rascaroli (University College Cork), Tim Bergfelder (University of Southampton)

• Well-travelled European drama -Lucy Mazdon (University of Southampton), Paul Cooke (University of Leeds), Eva Novrup Redvall (University of Copenhagen)

• The state of European cinema – Will Higbee (University of Exeter), Angus Finney (London Film School), Michael Franklin (Goldsmiths University of London)

• Key trends in European film and TV drama – findings from the MeCETES project – University of York: Andrew Higson, Huw Jones, Roderik Smits, Martina Lovascio / University of Copenhagen: Ib Bondebjerg, Eva Novrup Redvall, Rasmus Helles, Henrik Søndergaard, Signe Sophus Lai / Vrije Universiteit Brussel: Caroline Pauwels, Tim Raats, Ilse Schooneknaep

Plus 40 research papers covering the latest work on cultural diversity, transnational audiences, co-productions, historical drama, national representation, small national cinemas, production, distribution and exhibition.

For more details, including conference programme and registration details, see the conference website