Call for Papers

American Institute for Maghrib Studies

Centre d'études maghrébines à Tunis

May 23-26, 2008

(Click here for a pdf en francais) Though movies were made in the colonial Maghrib, the history of North African cinema in its own distinctive form begins with independence and the birth of the postcolonial nations in the region. It has benefited from numerous years of regional collaborations within the Maghrib, with other countries in the Middle East and with Europe. Though cinema as an industry is often dependent on national and international funding, and distribution in national, regional, and international markets mirrors global economic relationships, it has begun to see a measure of commercial success in the movie theaters of the region, and filmmakers from each nation have been able to participate in the elaboration of a national and regional cinema that has brought prestige through awards received by various North African directors and artists at international festivals in the Maghreb, Europe and at US film festivals.

The region has also become a popular site for directors from various countries, including Europe and the United States, to shoot their films. This conference explores all these aspects of the history and dynamics of filmmaking in and about the region. Proposals are invited from scholars working in fields such as film studies, history, literary and cultural studies, linguistics, sociology, anthropology, art history, architecture, geography, cartography, international relations, religious studies and any other related disciplines.

Topics to be explored include but are not limited to:

•History and development of Maghribi cinema

•The economics of film-making

•Thematic and narrative analyses

•Religion in cinema

•Sexuality and Gender

•Comparisons between national cinemas

•Social and political issues in/on film

•Aesthetic, thematic and narrative trends

•Major directors, actors and films

•Race and ethnicity

•The Maghrib as setting in Western films

•Relations between cinema and other arts

•The impact of domestic and foreign film making on North Africa states

•Sexuality and cinema

•Cinema and censorship

•The reception of Maghribi cinema domestically and abroad

•The challenges of new technologies

•Film Festivals in the Maghrib

•Intellectual Property laws and practice

The conference languages are English, French and Arabic.

Conference organizers are Dr. Michael Toler, NITLE Al-Musharaka Initiative and Dr. Joelle Vitiello, Macalester College

Please send abstracts of no more than 1 page or inquiries to mtoler@middlebury.edu or vitiello@macalester.edu,

Submission Deadline: February 15, 2008