“SQUID GAME” AND BEYOND: Utopia and Dystopia in Contemporary Asian Popular Culture
Organizer: Central Connecticut State University
Organizing Committee: Dr. Ivan Small (Anthropology); Dr. Alfredo Rosete (Economics); Dr. Yeojin “Julie” Kim (Communication); Dr. Karen A. Ritzenhoff (Communication and WGSS)
Description: Of late, TV shows, fashion, music, sitcoms, movies, video games, comics, and cartoons of India, South Korea, Japan, and other Asian countries have entered the popular consciousness of American consumers. From Bollywood, Anime to K-Drama, J-Horror to manga, K-pop to fast fashion, the influences of Asian popular culture are capturing the imagination around the globe. While they influence stylistic and aesthetic choices in the United States, these forms of popular culture also hold up a mirror that both critiques and shows the possibilities and media convergences of our contemporary societies.
The hit Netflix series Squid Game (2021), for example, brings together themes such as debt and unemployment to create a dystopian vision of contemporary capitalist society. On the other hand, the contemporary Bollywood classic, Lagaan, weaves the game of cricket into a tale of national liberation. The American sitcom Boondocks caters to predominantly African American youth and is influenced by Japanese anime. Films such as Ringu from Japan and its many American adaptations sparked a tsunami of a new horror genre, called J-Horror. Video Game culture has long been transnational where shows are not only adapted for different consumer markets but where more and more users interact across geographical boundaries. Fashion influencers from the Philippines, South Korea and Japan allow their followers to tune in across the world.
We seek to create a hybrid international conference (virtual and in-person) with presenters from a broad background of fields, disciplines, and countries who shed light on how social and digital media, film, television, and popular culture of various Asian countries critique contemporary societies, and explore our greater human possibilities. Our organizing committee is part of Asian, Asian American and Pacific Islander Studies (AAAPI) at Central Connecticut State University.
Potential topics can include but are not limited to:
*Squid Game and its representation of class struggle, violence, migration, gender, and economic disparities
*Watching Squid Game with or without subtitles: the significance of the original language for distribution of popular culture
*Comparing the elite in Squid Game and The Hunger Games
*J-Horror and its adaptations in the English-speaking market
*How does popular culture present alternatives to contemporary social, economic, and political institutions
*How certain pieces of popular culture critique contemporary and historical institutions
*How does the production process of certain pieces of culture relate to dystopian or utopian visions of the future
*Alternate histories and their meaning in certain digital and social media
*The role of pop culture in creating an image of contemporary Asia and its influence on tourism, media industry, advertising/marketing strategies, and/or public policy
*Synergies and contradictions between contemporary and traditional culture in television, movies, and video games, etc.
*Use of fiction to critique current historical processes
*The role of states in promoting cultural productions
*Transnational and Intra-regional influences of Asian pop culture
*Impact of pop cultural imaginaries on migration
Timeline:
Abstract submission deadline: August 15, 2022
Decision for abstract acceptance: September 15, 2022
Conference: April 13-15, 2023
Please submit a 300 words abstract as well as short bio by August 15, 2022 to yeojinkim@ccsu.edu and ritzenhoffk@ccsu.edu with “ASIAN POPULAR CULTURE_Your Name” in the subject line.