EVENTS
Tuesday 8 December 2009, John Casken Lecture Theatre, Martin Harris Centre.
Drama Research Encounters
'Story and Show: The Basic Contradiction of Film Star Acting' presented by Professor Paul McDonald
A tension is produced when stars act in film. Although a star plays a character, he or she is always visible and recognizable as a known on-screen identity. In I am Legend Will Smith was at once Robert Neville and Will Smith. Although for her role in Julie and Julia Meryl Streep did all that was necessary to reproduce the vocal and physical idiosyncrasies of Julia Child, still at every moment she was Meryl. On the one hand, star acting contributes to narrative by the portrayal of character, yet equally, the visibility of the star makes the performer part of the overall spectacular presentation of film. Situated between narrative and spectacle, star acting is therefore always positioned in the contradiction between story and show. To explore this tension, initially this paper will set out some of the terms by which film scholarship has attempted to grapple with the difficulties of conceptualizing the workings of screen performance, in particular looking at Barry King’s (1985) distinction between ‘impersonation’ and ‘personification’. As a way of assessing how such ideas can illuminate the tension between story and show in star acting, the main part of the paper will then undertake an analysis of the performances of Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie in the 2005 action comedy Mr and Mrs Smith, examining how these enact the balance between character and star. While King’s distinction theorized film acting in terms of a dichotomy between the privileging of the character over actor (impersonation) or of the actor over character (personification), the paper argues the tension found in star acting arises from how screen performance achieves impersonation through personification.
Paul McDonald is Professor of Cinema and Associate Dean (Research) in the Faculty of Creative and Cultural Industries at the University of Portsmouth. His research interests lie in two areas. His work on stardom in Hollywood cinema addresses stars through matters of acting, industry, and politics. He is the author of The Star System: Hollywood’s Production of Popular Identities (2000, Wallflower) and during 2009-10 is completing the study Stardom in Conglomerate Hollywood (forthcoming, Blackwell) supported by a Leverhulme Research Fellowship. A second area of enquiry is concerned with the operations of international film industries, with particular emphasis on film distribution and exhibition. He is the author of Video and DVD Industries (2007, British Film Institute Publishing) and joint editor with Janet Wasko (University of Oregon) of The Contemporary Hollywood Film Industry (2008, Blackwell). Currently he is collaborating with Stuart Hanson (De Montfort University) on a project examining the conversion to digital film exhibition in the UK. He is joint editor with Michael Curtin (University of California, Santa Barbara) for the International Screen Industries series from British Film Institute Publishing.
For further information click here to visit the University of Portsmouth website
Thursday 3 December 2009, 2-5pm, The Manchester Museum and the Martin Harris Centre
Launch event organised by the Institute for Cultural Practices
Launch Symposium - everyone welcome: "Researching Cultural Practice and Participation"
Keynote Speaker: Professor Sara Selwood
Speakers: Sam Alberti, Anna Farthing, Alison Jeffers, Selina Todd
Centre for Screen Studies is affiliated to the Institute for Cultural Practices and will be represented at the ICP launch event.
Evening Reception: A party with performances
Welcome Address: Tom Bloxham MBE, Chancellor of the University of Manchester
Time: 5.30pm - 7.30pm
Venue: The Martin Harris Centre
For further information click here to visit the Institute for Cultural Practices website
Wednesday 18 November 2009, The Zion Centre
Insight Film Festival - Films of Faith
The Insight Film Festival was begun in Manchester, U.K. in 2007 by a group of professionals in the film and media industry who wanted to make a serious contribution to community cohesion through film and moving image.
The awards have attracted global interest and entries and enquiries have been made from throughout the UK. Manchester is a key city for media of all types and is at the forefront in the drive towards global digital communication.
Presenting the first Insight Festival Award in 2007, Michael Wakelin, the BBC's Head of Religion and Ethics said ‘In order to create a better society we must learn to understand each others faith and values. So let me give my fulsome backing to the purpose of this festival’. John Forrest, Festival Director, said at the occasion 'We live in a world where the impact of faith is as significant as ever. Film and media allow us to express ourselves and to communicate with each other. Let's do it!”
In 2009 we are please to be partnering and expanding our vision with SIGNIS, with a localised community film project in North Manchester and with Mostra De Cinema E Religião in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
We are especially pleased to be piloting an innovative new project with the North Manchester Community Cultural Regeneration project. A number of North Manchester residents have been partnered with undergraduate film students from Manchester University to make films exploring their stories in line with the INSIGHT objectives. It is hoped that the project will spread to other areas in future years and make a further contribution to community understanding.
Councillor Mike Amesbury, Executive Member for Culture & Leisure, Manchester City Council said “Manchester is a city of many Faiths and none. The city that gave the world it's first industrial revolution is now driving the creative revolution. The rich diversity of our communities give Manchester an edge, we may have differences but we are all Mancunian. INSIGHT will help celebrate this.”
The 2009 Steering group consists of:
Jack Burke, Dr David Butler (Director), Rachel Davies, James Abbott (SIGNIS), John Forrest (Festival Director), Michael Harvey (Commercial Director), Jonathan Mounteney (Company Secretary), Dr Johannes Sjöberg, Zahid Hussain, Juliet Fletcher, Rabbi YY Rubenstein, Ada Nzeribe (North Manchester Regeneration Arts Project).
For further information click here to visit the Insight Film Festival website
Thursday 8 October, 5-7pm, John Casken Lecture Theatre, Martin Harris Centre.
At First Sight and Matinee
'Ears are Dazzled, touched by sound' - Video Artist and Documentary Filmmaker Amanda Belantara in conversation with Johannes Sjöberg.
‘Ears are Dazzled, touched by sound’ is a collective exploration of the sounds that surround us, this film features sounds and images inspired by sound diaries kept by local people in Yamaguchi, Japan. An intriguing portrait of the invisible, the film’s unconventional style attempts to reveal the magical quality of sounds that lies hidden in the everyday.
Amanda is an internationally based video artist and documentary filmmaker. She holds an MA in Visual Anthropology from the University of Manchester. Her latest film, ‘Ears Are Dazzled, touched by sound’ was produced during an artist in residence programme in Yamaguchi, Japan. She is currently working on collaborative storytelling and soundscape projects with the art collective, Kinokophone.
At First Sight is organised by Centre for Screen Studies and Granada Centre for Visual Anthropology. Matinee is organised by NOVARS at the University of Manchester.
Click here to learn more about Amanda Belantara
