DEMOSERIES: A Year in Review

 Despite the difficult circumstances brought by the COVID-19 pandemic, Demoseries had a productive and dynamic year in 2021.

Initially planned for June 2020 and rescheduled due to the pandemic, the international conference “Women and Gender in Security TV Series” took place online on March 19-20, 2021. Focused on the place of women in security television series, the event brought together researchers working in the fields of television series, security studies, and women’s and gender studies, as well as television professionals. Responding to the increasing visibility of female protagonists (for example, Carrie Mathison in Homeland and Villanelle and Eve in Killing Eve) and the society’s expressed need for diverse fictional representations, the conference provided the much-needed space for an interdisciplinary reflection on the representation of women in TV series.

"The 9/11 ‘Event’" is the second international conference organised by the Demoseries project in 2021. One of the very few events in France to mark the 20th anniversary of the New York attacks of September 11, 2001, the two-day conference opened in the spectacular Amphithéâtre Liard with addresses by Christine Neau-Leduc, the President of the Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, and Laurent Nuñez, the National Intelligence and Counterterrorism Coordinator. Bringing together scholars, screenwriters, and security professionals, the conference focused on the ways September 11 has been represented and re-imagined through TV series and media culture and highlighted the diversity of approaches to thinking about the event and analysing its lasting global legacy.

In addition to international conferences, Demoseries also hosted two workshops: “Representations of the Military World in Cinema and TV Series,” which took place on November 8 at IRSEM - Ecole Militaire, and “New Space. TV Series and Space Security,” held on December 15 at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. “Representations of the Military World” reflected on the popularity of audiovisual works that deal with the contemporary security context by representing state institutions responsible for protecting citizens. Bringing together researchers in strategic studies, sociology, political science, cultural studies, cinematography and philosophy, this study day considered the representations of the military world in TV series and cinema through an analysis of their form and content, as well as institutional collaborations and contexts that make their production possible. Similarly, “New Space. TV Series and Space Security,” responded to the prominent role of the discourse on New Space in both fictional representations and in recent media coverage. Featuring presenters from multiple disciplines - specialists, academics, screenwriters, and security experts, – this study day focused on space and its representations, between reality and fiction.

Throughout the year, Demoseries continued to host its regular monthly seminar lecture series on security TV series, with topics varying from the trope of a “genius” or “gifted” protagonist to the figure of the “bad Russian.” In addition, Demoseries held a series of successful “Focus” events: series of afternoon presentations, dedicated to a focused issue with one hour dedicated for each presenter. From superheroes and the figure of the enemy in security series to the image of Africa in international TV series and issues surrounding screen adaptations across media and different cultural contexts, the “Focus” series became a forum for topical discussions and dynamic exchanges on works in progress.

The turn of the year is also marked by an important publication supported by Demoseries: the topical issue of Open Philosophy, entitled “Ethics and Politics of TV” is out in January 2022. The open access issue features 20 essays on TV Series analysed as a much-needed democratic tool. Check it out!

With 2021 behind us, Demoseries is looking forward toward 2022 and new undertakings. We look forward to welcoming you back for more updates on upcoming events, publications, and other new projects.