Provisional title: The political documentary.

Acceptance of articles for the section Notebook: 15 October-10 November 2015.

The premiere in 2002 of the film Bowling for Columbine by Michael Moore on gun ownership and the culture of fear in America, had a significant impact: its triumphant path through festivals and competitions (Cannes, Toronto, César awards and Oscars) was accompanied by controversy fuelled by an intense media campaign of the American right who saw Moore’s film as a frontal attack against the interests of the most influential economic and political lobbies. Moore’s next film, Fahrenheit 9/11 (2004), intensified the controversy and showed renewed political life for the documentary and its ability to challenge the mechanisms of power.

Following the tradition of Joris Ivens, Moore managed to create a model of contemporary political documentary based on his vision of cinema as an instrument for social intervention. The characteristics of this model (assumption of subjectivity as a starting point, questioning of the hegemonic media discourse and appeal to the emotions of the viewer) have had a great significance in Western cinema with the realization of numerous documentaries (by filmmakers such as Morgan Spurlock, Larry Charles or Charles Ferguson) who have approached, like Moore, various issues affecting power relations (public health, religious fundamentalism or the current economic crisis).

This proposal seeks to provide a detailed account on the political documentary, this being the documentary films that explicitly focus on the analysis of some of the main issues on the political agenda intending a critical response. Thus, the goal is to see the different manifestations of political documentary that are occurring in various parts of the world to trace the common features and derivations of this genre that challenges the consideration of film as a mere escape show.

Research lines:

1. Relations between documentary and fiction films and the history of political documentary.
2. Representation models of documentary films.
3. The Soviet School and its influence on the New Cinemas.
4. Film and war mobilization.
5. Political cinema and historical memory.
6. The boundaries between documentary and fiction film and the class struggle.
7. The Spanish and Latin American cinema.

L’Atalante. Revista de estudios cinematográficos accepts the publication of original essays on interdisciplinary or single-topic subjects related to theory and/or cinematographic praxis that stand out for their innovative nature. Some matters to be considered:

• Only unpublished work will be accepted, it must also follow the journal’s style guidelines and fit the standards and rigour expected from an academic journal.
• The originality of the topic will be valued, especially if it has already been issued in the journal. The repetition of subjects and themes may be a reason to dismiss a manuscript. The contents of previous issues can be consulted in our webpage.
• The Executive Editorial Board will submit the articles to a process of external peer-evaluation, which will respect both the authors’ and evaluators’ anonymity (peer review system) in order to prevent potential bias. If the number of proposals received is too high, the Executive Editorial Board will first select the articles that will then be peer-reviewed, dismissing those considered as less adequate. If the initial conditions of originality and style are not fulfilled, the essay will be dismissed without a prior external consultation.
• The acceptance of a manuscript will be communicated to the author within the following six months.
• The manuscripts (whose length must be between 4000 and 45000 words) must be sent through the journal webpage (OJS), saved only in Rich Text Format (.rtf) and using the provided text template. The author’s statement (.pdf) and the images (.psd, .png, .jpg, .tiff) must be attached as complementary files. The detailed submissions guidelines and process can be found in our webpage. Those manuscripts which do not comply with these rules will be dismissed.
• If it is decided that the manuscript is to be published in a bilingual issue, the author will cover the costs derived from translation and revision (in some cases, such as students and unemployed scholars who prove their situation, this cost will be zero).
• L’Atalante does not offer any compensation for the published articles.

For further information, please contact info@revistaatalante.com