In many West African countries and cultures, the family has been a key site that both reflects and produces social changes and development in religious practices, conceptualizations of personhood, parenthood, gender roles and relations, sexuality, intimacy, and financial opportunities and limitations. The family has been significantly portrayed within West African cinematic productions, and this interdisciplinary panel will explore the roles these representations have played. Contributors could consider the various ways ruptures and shifts in familial roles and expectations have spurred creativity and innovation in cinema as well as how cinematic creations and processes have impacted and reimagined family ruptures and shifts. We invite papers that examine the diverse ways that the family is represented in West African films, inclusive of documentaries, short films, and fiction features. We welcome contributions by scholars at all career levels including graduate students, independent researchers, and filmmakers.
Please submit a paper title, 250-word abstract, and brief 100-word bio via email to Devin Bryson (devin.bryson@ic.edu) and Molly Krueger Enz (molly.enz@sdstate.edu) by March 12.
Cinematic Ruptures and Shifts in the West African Family
