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Call for papers for the 18th Screenwriting Research Network Annual International Conference (Extended Deadline)

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The 18th annual International Conference of the Screenwriting Research Network (SRN 2026) will be hosted by Oxford Brookes University in the UK, on Wednesday 9th through Saturday 12th September 2026. It will mark the 20th anniversary of the SRN.

The Conference is organized with the support of the School of Arts of Oxford Brookes University. The main location of the Conference will be at the Headington Campus. Oxford is well known for its history, culture, “dreaming spires” and… academic tradition.

Calendar (summary of deadlines)

  • CfP out: Mid-November 2025
  • Submissions of abstracts by: 06 March 2026 (extended deadline)
  • Shortlisting/notification of acceptance by: End of March 2026
  • Website going live: Early Spring 2026
  • Registration: From May/June 2026
  • Conference: 9-12 September 2026
  • Keynote speakers and/or special guests to be announced in Spring/Summer 2026.

Submission of abstracts/proposals

Proposals/Abstracts can be sent as either a Word or PDF file: please indicate “Yourname_PROPOSALTYPE” (i.e. PAPER, PANEL, ESSAY or POSTER; see details in Full CfP) clearly in the file title and in the subject heading of your submission email to [email protected]

Deadline for submission of all proposals: 20 February 2026.

Earlier submissions are very much welcome.

All presentations, regardless of format, must be delivered in person (i.e. no pre-recorded presentations), in English, and be underpinned by original research work being conducted by the presenter (i.e. no recycling/repetitions from previous SRN or other conferences). Multiple presenters for co-written papers are allowed.

We aim to notify acceptance/rejection of proposals by the end of March 2026.

Website and registration

The SRN 2026 website will go live in the coming months – likely by early Spring 2026.

It will include a wealth of useful information (e.g. registration, travel, accommodation options) as well as all the updates and, eventually, the programme leading up to the Conference.

We aim to keep registration fees in the region of £100-£120 (GBP) with a discounted rate for early career researchers (e.g. post-docs) and PhD students. We will have more precise details by around the abstract submission deadline.

Contacts

An official conference email address will be available when the website goes live.

Meanwhile, please address any query regarding abstracts, registration, programme, etc. to [email protected]

Winner of the 2025 SRN Screenwriting Teaching Innovation Award

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Every year, the Screenwriting Research Network (SRN) Teaching Innovation Award recognizes the achievements of an outstanding faculty scholar whose work demonstrates original approaches to supporting the teaching and learning development of screenwriters and scholars of screenwriting. The cerimony is celebrated during the annual conference.

This year´s Teaching Innovation Award Cerimony took place in the SRN Conference, in September, in Adelaide (Australia). The winner is Professor Lucian Georgescu for his pedagogy, curriculum reform, and industry integration at UNATC in Romania, that  are considered both innovative and visionary.

Read the words of the jury regarding the winner:

-He has clearly made a significant impact on his screenwriting students. 

-We are particularly impressed with the exportability of his approach to teaching and learning. Grounded in psychology and practice, Lucian has implemented new teaching methods to equip emerging writers to develop their work within a community of filmmakers — rather than in isolation — enabling them to thrive amid rapidly evolving media and production realities. 

-Lucian’s thirty-year teaching career with visible and impressive results represents the kind of pedagogical leadership the SRN Teaching Innovation Award seeks to honor.

Learn more about the winner: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lucian-georgescu-a8596510/

Read more about the awards

The committee is particularly interested in reviewing materials from applicants who look critically at their research agenda and teaching practice and consider how in addition to being innovative in their classrooms they are intentionally integrating their screenwriting research into their pedagogy.

Additionally, the committee would like to encourage applicants to:

  • Demonstrate the significance and value of their
  • Address how their research and teaching practice is new to the
  • Consider the exportability of their teaching innovation (how the practice can be adapted by other educators).
  • Demonstrate an overall awareness of their research and teaching innovations and what they are trying to achieve. In other words, clearly articulate pedagogical objectives and the broader significance of their

Members of SRN may self-nominate for the Screenwriting Teaching Innovation Award, or may nominate a colleague.

The Teaching Innovation Award Jury is composed by three eminent academics:

Armando Fumagalli – [email protected]
Dee Hughes – [email protected]
Anna Weinstein – [email protected]

Winners of the SRN Book/Publication Awards 2025

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The SRN AWARDS cerimony was celebrated in the 6th edition at the 2025 Conference in Adelaide, Australia, September 2025.

The Awards this year was again in two categories:

Best Monograph – for single-authored or co-authored volumes (any format) category, the winner was Eva Redvall  for her book entitled “Writing and Producing for Children and Young Audiences: Cases from Danish Film and Television”

Check the words of the jury regarding this winner:

“This book stands out as a unique and timely contribution, offering the first comprehensive, empirically grounded study of Danish media for audiences from toddlers to teenagers. Redvall effectively uses her “Screen Idea System” framework to analyze this often-overlooked sector, brilliantly illuminating how screenwriters, producers, and commissioners engage audiences and reshape script creation, including co-creative practices with children. This work provides valuable global lessons, bridging theoretical frameworks with practical industry knowledge that resonates far beyond a single nation”.

Where to read it: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-67073-2

Best Journal Article/Book Chapter – For articles and chapters normally category, the winners were Craig Batty & Allyson Holbrook for the work entitled “Screenwriting as research: How do doctoral candidates articulate the screenplay as a contribution to knowledge?”

Check the words of the jury regarding this winner:

“This book stands out as a unique and timely contribution, offering the first comprehensive, empirically grounded study of Danish media for audiences from toddlers to teenagers. Redvall effectively uses her “Screen Idea System” framework to analyze this often-overlooked sector, brilliantly illuminating how screenwriters, producers, and commissioners engage audiences and reshape script creation, including co-creative practices with children. This work provides valuable global lessons, bridging theoretical frameworks with practical industry knowledge that resonates far beyond a single nation.”

Where to read it: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/14790726.2025.2490239?src=exp-la

While no ratings of journals/publishers will be a factor in the evaluation of submissions, all publications should be scholarly, fully peer-reviewed work underpinned by substantial research specifically in the area of Screenwriting Studies.

Learn more about the criteria of the awards

All submissions in both categories should be made directly to all the members of the Jury.

All submissions will be evaluated independently by our Jury of distinguished academics:

Professor Carmen Sofia Brenes [email protected]

Leslie Kreiner Wilson [email protected]

Garrabost Jayalakshmi [email protected]

If you have any enquiries, please contact Rosanne Welch [email protected]