Politics in and of animation

NEW Deadline: March 12, 2017

 

“South Park’s creators have given up on Satirizing Donald Trump” (The Atlantic, Feb 3 2017)

This month’s theme looks at all forms of politics in and of animation. Having a history linked to the satirical comic strip, animation has long been used to subvert or challenge the dominant political discourse around the world, from short independent films to mainstream series. In this time of particularly complex political upheaval, we therefore want to consider how animation might fit into the satirical landscape. Is animation still widely used today as a tool for commenting on politics? In which terms is it employed at this end? Are there differences between how it is used now and how it was employed in the past? These are only some of the question we believe it is timely to tackle. We thus invite contributions which consider how animation can be used as a tool for commentary or even change.

We also invite contributions that reflect on the politics of the animation industry itself, from the gender imbalance of production and content, to the dominance of certain studios, to the role of awards and academies.

Topics may include but are not limited to:

– Animation as a tool for subversion

– Bias and balance – how far mainstream animation can go with satire and parody?

– Historical uses of animation for commenting on politics and politicians

– The studio machine and the power of multi-nationals

– Gender representation in the animation industry

– Awards season and the politics of prizes

– The jury is out – Is there a politics at play in festival selection?

Posts of between 400 and 600 words, which discuss any aspect of the above topic are welcome. Contributors are encouraged to include clips and images to support their posts. Please also include a short bio to accompany the post. All permissions are the responsibility of the contributor. Please contact the editor Nichola Dobson (nichola_dobson@yahoo.co.uk), Cristina Formenti (cristina.formenti@unimi.it) and blog@animationstudies.org with submissions or questions.