Last Call: Refocus: The Films of Gregg Araki

deadline for submissions: 
November 30, 2024
full name / name of organization: 
Arnau Roig-Mora / Universitat Pompeu Fabra
contact email: 

Producer, director, and screenwriter Gregg Araki is a pivotal figure in independent film, known for his distinctive style and contributions to New Queer Cinema. Despite his inclusion in such cinematic movement thanks to The Living End (1992), and his rise to fame with the Teen Apocalypse Trilogy (1993-1997), Araki's explorations of a more mainstream style and his incursions in television directing have garnered little critical and academic attention, except for his 2004 adaptation of the novel Mysterious Skin and his win of the first ever Cannes Film Festival Queer Palm in 2010 for his film Kaboom. Yet, Araki's vibrant and provocative oeuvre portrays contemporary youth culture, identity, sexuality, and subversion while exploring the legacy of shoegaze and indie music in each soundtrack.

 

Although Araki's work shares an interest in sexuality with fellow New Queer Cinema directors Todd Haynes and Gus Van Sant, it also refers to previous queer filmmakers such as the camp and exaggerations of John Waters or Andy Warhol's pop aesthetics. Internationally, Araki’ diverse portfolio of techniques and themes connects him to the sensibility of Xavier Dolan and showcases his ability to jump from grittier cinema to the polished and stylized filmmaking of Pedro Almodovar. He has commonalities in themes with other fellow U.S. directors, like Richard Linklater's exploration of alienated youth or the nihilism and avant-garde filmmaking of Harmony Korine. Even so, Araki has maintained a distinctive point of view that makes him unique, and his catalog a perfect site for the exploration of dissidence in cinema.

 

This CFP is soliciting abstracts of approximately 250—300 words for chapters to be included in a book-length anthology on Gregg Araki. This anthology will be the first exploration of Araki’s entire body of work—including his early cult movies, label as a queer filmmaker, and television work—deepening our understanding of his position in contemporary cinema and the legacy of his work. Essays may focus on individual pieces or on themes and topics that permeate Araki’s body of work.

 

Possible areas of inquiry could include but are not limited to:

•          the role of music in Araki's films;

•          Araki and television;

•          intersections of race, gender, and sexuality;

•          production histories and the role of independent film communities;

•          reception and influence of Araki's work in cultures/geographies beyond the U.S.;

•          parallels between queer theory/politics and Araki's films;

•          influence of punk and other subcultures;

•          beyond the auteur;

•          ... or a suggested topic of your choice.

 

Essays included in the refereed anthology will be of approximately 6,000 to 8,000 words, referenced in Chicago endnote style, American spelling and grammar. 

 

The Films of Gregg Araki aims to be one of the scholarly editions to be published by the University of Edinburgh Press in their ReFocus: The American Directors series, which examines overlooked American film directors. Series editors are Robert Singer, Ph.D., Gary D. Rhodes, Ph.D., Frances Smith, Ph.D., and Alicia Kozma, Ph.D. Previous editions include The Films of Richard LinklaterThe Films of Amy Heckerling, and The Films of Wes Craven.
Authors don't have to pay to publish.

 

Please attach a curriculum vitae to your abstract and email all documents directly to the anthology’s editor by November 30th, 2024:

 

Arnau Roig, Ph.D.

Universitat Pompeu Fabra

Barcelona (Spain)

arnau.roig@upf.edu