August 3, 2025—August 7, 2025

Visible Evidence XXXI

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

VE XXXI Theme: “Community”

 

Visible Evidence, the annual scholarly conference on documentary and nonfiction film, media, and politics will convene for its 31st year in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. VE XXXI is hosted by Temple University’s Film and Media Arts department, in partnership with area colleges and universities, including the University of Pennsylvania, Swarthmore College, and Bryn Mawr College.

The overarching theme for this conference is “Community,” a nod to the important history of community media practices in Philadelphia and the continued vitality of the city as a center for independent documentary production. And while Philadelphia serves as a jumping off point, globally-oriented proposals are welcome that conceive of community in its expanded sense from any angle in documentary studies and media, whether focusing on communities of practitioners or theorizing community in a virtual, digital age. While we hope the theme is generative, submissions are not limited to it.

The conference will run from August 3-7, 2025, taking place immediately after Blackstar Film Festival, Philadelphia’s influential showcase of films by Black, Brown, and Indigenous artists from around the world. (https://www.blackstarfest.org/)

Call for Papers

Submissions exploring any topic related to the study of documentary media practices are welcome. The conference invites several types of proposals: scholarly paper, theory-practice presentation, workshop, film screening, and pre-constituted panel. Scholarly papers of a traditional 20-minute length may be submitted via open call. Theory-practice presentations of 20 minutes are geared toward scholar-practitioners submitting audio-visual research or multi-modal material for which screened material will be accompanied by some theoretical presentation. Workshops consisting of 5-6 participants are envisioned as an open exchange of ideas between workshop participants. Film screenings will be accompanied by attending filmmakers, who will also have the chance to discuss their work in Q&A format with the delegates in attendance. Pre-constituted panel proposals are welcome for panels of three to four scholarly and/or theory-practice papers.

 All presentations will take place in person without an online option. All accepted attendees must be members of Visible Evidence in order to present at the conference.

Submissions are due Friday, February 28th, with acceptances going out in March 2025. The submission portal is available through Oxford Abstracts:

https://app.oxfordabstracts.com/stages/77529/submitter

If there are any questions or submission issues, please email us at ve2025@temple.edu

Sincerely,

VE 2025 Organizers,

Chris Cagle

Nora Alter

 

Film and Media Arts, Temple University

Philadelphia, PA, USA

Registration

To attend the conference, please register here:
Attendees not presenting can register for the Auditor rate of US$30.
A program will be sent out to those registered.

Conference Dates and Location

Pre-conference events, Sunday, August 3
Conference: Monday, August 3 through midday Thursday, August 7
Conference panels will be held at Temple University’s Center City campus (TUCC), 1515 Market St., Philadelphia, PA, with other events to be held nearby in central Philadelphia.

Accommodation and Travel

TRANSPORTATION
Philadelphia (PHL) airport is well connected domestically and internationally. Newark and JFK may provide cheaper and better international connections – NYC is a little over an hour away by Amtrak train, with stops at Newark airport.
From PHL airport, we generally recommend that taxi cabs are plentiful and at a flat fare to Center City, $32-34. The public transportation service SEPTA runs train service on the half hour, for $7.50. Center City is fairly walkable, but SEPTA bus and subway service can be convenient, or useful for getting to other parts of the city. Ride share service varies a lot in availability and cost.
ACCOMMODATION
There is no official conference hotel, but the conference will be taking place in Philadelphia’s Center City (downtown), near City Hall. There are many hotels in the area, and August is typically low season for the city, with more affordable rates.
Any lodging between 12th and 19th Streets and Spruce and Arch Streets will be very convenient, about a 5-10 minute walk from one of the main venues. There are some budget chains like Sonder, Club Quarters, Motto and Cambria that are all reasonably located. The Double Tree, Sonesta, or the Element are also very conveniently located. More broadly, any Center City hotel will be convenient enough for walking, transit, or ride share.
Taxes for hotels run 16.25% in Philadelphia.