On November 2nd there will be two events exploring the experience of narrative immersion in film from both a philosophical and empirical perspective: a morning workshop and an afternoon film screening and discussion about Shadow of a Doubt (1943), which Hitchcock sometimes called his ‘favourite’ of his oeuvre. Though registration for the two events is separate, they are related and everyone is welcome to attend both.

The widespread experience of ‘being lost in a narrative’ (Nell 1988)—sometimes called transportation (Gerrig 1993) or immersion (Ryan 2003)—has been the object of a vast literature in psychology, communication science and narratology. In philosophy, engagement with narrative works has been a recurrent topic of inquiry; however, the specific topic of immersion has until recently been largely neglected. Moreover, philosophers very rarely take into consideration the empirical evidence provided by psychological literature. The two events will bring together considerations from philosophy, film theory, and the empirical sciences on immersion.

 

Schedule

Workshop on Immersion in Film (Senate House, room G03)

9.15-9.30 – Welcome by Paloma Atencia-Linares (UNAM) and Stacie Friend (Birkbeck)

9.30-10.45 – Vittorio Gallese (University of Parma): ‘Being Moved: The Embodiment of Moving Images’

10.45-11.00 – Coffee break

11.00-12.15 – Murray Smith (University of Kent): ‘Perceptual, Imaginative, and other Varieties of Immersion in Moving Image Media’

This event is sponsored by the Institute of Philosophy with generous funding from the British Society of Aesthetics. The workshop is free but registration is required. Please register here.

 

Film and Philosophy: Immersion in Hitchcock (Birkbeck Cinema, 43 Gordon Square)

13.30-14.00 – Introduction by Paloma Atencia-Linares

14.00-16.00 – Screening of Shadow of a Doubt (1943)

16.00-17.00 – Roundtable and Q&A with Murray Smith, Vittorio Gallese, and Paloma Atencia-Linares

This event is part of the Autumn series of the Birkbeck Institute of the Moving Image (BIMI). The event is free but registration is required. For more information and to register, please click here.