CALL FOR PAPERS

Guest Edited Issue of Animation Journal

Editor: Rebecca Coyle

Working Title: Thwack! Hearing the motion in animation

Sound plays a crucial role in screen animation, assisting and extending
expressive tools. Sound and music operate with motion, storytelling and
space, enabling animation to leap out of the screen and into the viewer¹s
imagination. Analysing why and how this occurs requires research and
critical tools. Animation Journal will address this need with a special
issue devoted to the sound of on-screen animation. The issue will recognise
the convergence of two increasingly popular study areas ­ animation and
screen music.

Animation film and television music and sound have remained relatively
under-researched. While many studies of, for instance, Disney productions
has been supplemented by some recent research ­ especially in relation to US
cartoon music – there is still a dearth of scholarly studies of animation
music and sound. Much of the research that does exist is dispersed,
reflecting the inter-disciplinary nature of animation sound studies,
bridging film, television, screen music, media industries, animation,
popular music and new technology studies.

Scholarly articles on the sound of animated film and television productions
are sought for this special issue of Animation Journal. Articles to be
included will identify analytical approaches to on-screen animation sound,
and demonstrate the value of experiencing animation with our ears as well as
our eyes. This issue will not diminish the importance of the visual but
rather show how these audiovisual productions offer a shared engagement of
sight and sound.

Articles accepted for the special issue will focus on all components of
sound including music (composed original or re-arranged, instrumental or
songs), sound effects, dialogue and sound design, or in-depth analysis of
one or more of these domains. Submissions from authors in various
countries/continents are encouraged. Articles may analyse the sound of
productions from independent or mainstream studios and cover one or several
film or television products, focusing on, for example:
* Therelationship of sound/music and image in specific examples;
* Productionprocesses informing music and sound;
* Sonicallyauteurial directors
* Techniquesemployed by a composer or sound designer
* Casestudies of a studio¹s output;
* Industrialissues relating to animation music and sound
* Nationally-specificapproaches to music and sound in animation film or
television;
* Themes,concepts and issues explored through the sound in animation film
and/ortelevision;
* Otherrelevant topics as agreed.
 
While musical analyses may be included in the articles, these must be
integrated into a discussion of the audiovisual text. Along the lines of the
Journal¹s usual practice, innovative approaches to writing are encouraged,
eg the use of panels mapping images with sound, graphic essays.

Timeline:

Articles accepted at any time up to submission deadline ­ 1st March 2009

Refereeing process ­ March-May 2009

Editing process ­ June-July 2009

Journal publication ­ October 2009

Abstracts:

Authors interested to submit articles 4000-7000 words in length for the
journal should email the guest editor Rebecca Coyle rebecca.coyle@scu.edu.au
a 200 word abstract and author profile.

About Animation Journal:

Founded in 1991, Animation Journal was the first peer-reviewed scholarly
journal devoted to animation history and theory. Its content reflects the
diversity of animation’s production techniques and national origins.
Animation Journal is edited by Dr Maureen Furniss who teaches animation
courses at the California Institute of the Arts. Visit the Journal homepage
at http://www.animationjournal.com/ for submission and formatting
guidelines. Note that, to accommodate the blind refereeing process, author
names should only appear on the cover sheet.

Guest Editor Profile:

Dr Rebecca Coyle is located in the Media studies program at Southern Cross
University, Australia. Coyle¹s research centres on media and cultural
production, and critical analysis. Most recently, her publications have
clustered around cinema music and sound, and she is editing a book on
animation film music and sound (Drawn to Sound: Animation Film Music and
Sonicity, due for publication by Equinox UK in mid-09). Since 2007, she has
been leading a team of researchers on a four-year ARC Discovery Project
DP0770026 �ŒMusic production and technology in Australian Film: enabling
Australian film to embrace innovation¹. She is on the Editorial Boards for
three international journals, has guest edited issues and refereed several
articles/chapters for various journals and books. Visit
http://works.bepress.com/rebecca_coyle/ for more detail.