Spartacus @ 60: An Online Conference

Spartacus @ 60: An Online Conference

21st December 2020, 9-6.30 p.m. UK Time.

Conceived by Kirk Douglas and executed by Stanley Kubrick, it is still considered one of the best examples of its genre. To mark sixty years since the release of Spartacus, this virtual conference considers the making and impact of this crucial film. Spartacus has left an indelible mark on our popular culture and has been much mimicked as well as parodied. But its exact position with Stanley Kubrick’s oeuvre has been misunderstood with some critics and academics excluding it from his canon. Consequently, it has not been subjected to the same scrutiny from a wide variety of disciplines and methodological perspectives as his other films. This conference brings together a global community of scholars and fans from diverse disciplinary backgrounds to explore Spartacus sixty years since its release, discuss its impact and consider its position within Kubrick’s oeuvre and the wider visual and socio-political culture.

Topics include the film’s origins, influences, production, aesthetics, themes, representations, publicity, reception, afterlife, legacy, and where the film sits in Kubrick’s and Douglas’ wider body of work.

The conference is hosted by the Centre for Film, Television and Screen Studies at Bangor University. It is free to attend, and participants can REGISTER HERE.

For further information please contact the organisers.

Spartacus@60 has been organised by Professor Nathan Abrams, Professor in Film, Bangor University (n.abrams@bangor.ac.uk); Dr. James Fenwick Senior Lecturer in Media, Sheffield Hallam University (j.fenwick@shu.ac.uk) and Dr. Elisa Pezzotta, Independent Scholar (elisa.pezzotta@virgilio.it).

Publication date: 24 November 2020