Exploring the Landscape of Cinema and Media Studies in Italy听Past and Present, Approaches and Issues
Fifth Edition of the Journal of Italian Cinema & Media Studies International Conference
In Person ONLY
91直播 of Rome
11-13 June 2026
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Conference Documents
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Conference program听(pdf)
Opening Keynote Address
Professor Giorgio Bertellini听- University of Michigan听(USA)
鈥淎 Crucible of Sorrow鈥�: The Question of Pain in Italian Americans鈥� Screen Life
For over a century, Hollywood has portrayed Italian-American characters as both inclined to perform violent acts, as mainstream criticism has regularly stressed, but also to endure violence. Recognizing this second, no less common, representational strand has significant consequences. In contrast to the notion that immigrants are a problem in need of a solution听according to the familiar formula of "crime and punishment,"听Italian- Americans鈥� repeated portrayal as 鈥渨ounded characters鈥� has, since the听silent era, addressed one of Hollywood's more troubling needs 鈥� showcasing experiences of pain, anguish and defeat.
Giorgio Bertellini听is Professor in the Department of Film, Television and Media at the University of Michigan and听member of the Advisory Board听of听JICMS.听He is the author and editor of the award-winning volumes听Italy in Early American Cinema: Race, Landscape, and the Picturesque听(Indiana University Press,听2010),听Italian Silent Cinema: A Reader听(John Libbey/Indiana听University Press, 2013), and听The Divo and the Duce: Promoting听Film Stardom and Political Leadership in 1920s America听(University of California Press,听2019;听Italian trans.听Le Monnier,听2022).听His other books include a monograph on Sarajevo-born film director Emir Kusturica, published in Italian, English, Romanian and Persian.
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Closing Keynote Address
Professor Frank Burke听- Queen鈥檚 University (Canada)听
鈥淟ike Being in a Fellini Movie鈥�: An Exploration of Altered States听in and Around the Work of the Italian Director
The discussion will move through childhood fantasy and Fascist gaslighting to the altered state of Fellini鈥檚 reputation today and possibilities for Fellinian reinvention via the challenging 鈥渁lterity鈥� of AI. The concept of 鈥渁ltered state鈥� will function as an umbrella term to engage biography, history, and Fellini鈥檚 work, as well as various and often contrasting inflections of the 鈥渁ltered鈥� such as numinosity, transformation, visionary insight, disfigurement, dissociation, sublimation. 鈥淟ike being in a Fellini movie鈥� will also embrace what ultimately became Fellini鈥檚 two most self-absorbingly altered states: dream (Il libro dei sogni听and various films) and death (various films, 鈥淚l viaggio di G. Mastorna,鈥� et al.).
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Frank Burke听is Professor Emeritus from Queen鈥檚 University (Canada). He has published five books on Fellini, including听A Companion to Federico Fellini听with M.听Waller and M.听Gubareva (Wiley听& Sons, 2020), and听Fellini鈥檚 Films and Commercials: From Postwar to Postmodern听(Intellect, Chicago UP, 2020).听He has provided the audio commentary, along with the late P. Brunette, for the Criterion Collection鈥檚听Amarcord,听as well as solo commentaries for Criterion鈥檚听Roma听and听Il bidone. He has also published听A Companion to Italian Cinema听(John Wiley & Sons, 2017) and (with A. Hough-Dugdale and M. Gubareva) a special issue of听the听Journal of Italian Cinema and Media听(11:1, 2023)听on Tonino Guerra.听He has also published on numerous Italian听and American听directors,听horror cinema, experimental cinema, the听peplum听and Canadian cinema.