THE UNIVERSITY of Northampton will shine a spotlight on black British and British Asian screen media with a symposium next month.

The Diaspora Screen Media Network, which was set up in 2019, aims to bring together scholars, students and creatives with an interest in screen studies and new media.

The network will hold its first event at the university on Wednesday February 5. It will be open to creative practitioners, community arts organisers, consultants, researchers and the public.

The research question, “What is the impact of social media on consumption patterns of diasporic cinematic and media culture in modifying its themes and issues?”, will be debated during the event through presentations, a round table discussion and a workshop.

Short films of black British and British Asian cinema will be made available in advance, for attendees to view and serve as a discussion point in the session.

Funded by the Arts & Humanities Research Council, the network is jointly led by the University of Northampton’s professor in English and postcolonial studies, Janet Wilson, while the university’s senior lecturer in English and screen studies, David Simmons, is its research coordinator.

The symposium takes place on Wednesday February 5, between 9am and 5pm, at the University’s Waterside campus.

Attendees are encouraged to submit 300-word profiles on their interest and work in Black British and British Asian screen media, for loading onto the network website. They can also submit a 500 to 800-word blog on their experience in this area.

For more details, click here and for enquiries about attending the symposium email [email protected].