Indeed, many of the panels I attended spoke to the fact that things were changing and improving and earnestly testified that progress has been made. Characteristically, many of the industry-focused panels were relatively self-protecting and nonspecific in their responses and several replicated what are the by now common refrains about focusing on “quality,” “artists'” and creatives’ “visions,” and on “telling good stories,” with several references to the “new stories” and different “voices” which are now being told and heard with more frequency and visibility. This year’s ATX festival was as convivial and friendly as ever, with many attempts by panel participants (and festival organizers) to address and respond to the issues of race, gender, sexuality, and identity which have become pointed sources of cultural debate and pressure for the entertainment industry in the wake of Black Lives Matter, President Trump’s Election, and the Harvey Weinstein revelations and MeToo Movement. That being said, from our responses, it is clear that a renewed focus on politics (identity, industry, and governmental) exposes the problematic nature of quality, auteur, and brand-focused discourses. While there were a few stumbles-the Why Does TV Matter? panel featured four white panelists discussing diversity, for example-the needle does seem to be moving in a favorable direction, especially compared to similar conventions and festivals. This year’s festival included several panels that directly addressed the complex, intersectional power dynamics that play out in the negotiation between creative vision, industrial imperative, and audience response. However, in the wake of the #MeToo movement, the organizers and their industry panelists are clearly trying to attend to identity politics and representational issues. As a repeat attendee, it appears that ATX’s “TV fans” are also being redefined demographically: the majority of the attendees were young women.Īs a festival that balances screenings with behind-the-scenes industry panels, the audience, industry, and critical discourses on display at ATX are typically quality-focused, auteur-driven, and brand-defined. It seems, at least at ATX, that “TV fans” have been redefined in terms of licensing agreements, original content, and streaming platforms. Aside from a few notable exceptions-the congratulatory Felicity, TGI!Hulu, and Freeform panels, for example-little attention was paid to linear networks and their content. Even so, that excitement seems to be specifically tied to notions of prestige content. For example, audiences cheered every time the HBO logo appeared on screen. While our coverage is not exhaustive-ATX uploads recordings of the panels on YouTube and releases them via their new podcast, The TV Campfire-it can serve as a primer for the varied panels, screenings, and events that some of the RTF graduate students in attendance found particularly compelling.īased on this year’s programming, ATX seems well-aware of the excitement surrounding specific showrunners (Ava DuVernay, David Simon, etc.) and specific outlets (HBO, Hulu, etc.). We’ve sourced and compiled notes and reflections from the grad students who attended the festival. This year’s theme is “Precarity, Preservation, Praxis” and, in keeping with that theme, we have decided to write up our coverage of ATX 2018 for those who were unable to attend. In September 2018, we will be hosting our own Austin media event, Flow 2018. This year, many UT Austin RTF graduate students were able to attend the 7th annual event due to the generous support of ATX. One of the perks of studying media in Austin is that we’re often gifted with discounts to such events. Each year, Austin hosts a number of media festivals, conferences, and conventions like SXSW, Austin Film Festival, Fantastic Fest, the RTX Gaming Convention, and the ATX Television Festival.
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