October 9-10, 2025

Vienna, Austria

Deadline: August 17, 2025

As streaming platforms challenge traditional distribution, AI reshapes storytelling and production processes, and as underrepresented communities continue to push for visibility and participation, the question is no longer whether the European film industry must adapt, but how, and who gets to lead the change.

Rebooting the industry requires an intersectional approach, one that considers the dynamic role of people (creators, audiences, and different groups), technological innovation (AI, digital platforms, XR), and institutions (festivals, funding bodies, policy frameworks). This conference will be a space for critical exchange, bold ideas, and collaborative futures.

Areas of interest

We welcome contributions that address, but are not limited to, the following themes:

• What is film industry competitiveness?
  
• European policy/legal frameworks concerning the European film industry (e.g. copyright law, public support and European funding frameworks, media/entertainment law, platform regulation and content moderation, protection of minors).
  
• The role of children & youth for the European film industry as creators and audiences.
  
• Bringing overlooked European films into the spotlight (e.g. alternative film festivals, alternative film modes of film production, collectives, centre vs. periphery in European film industries)
  
• European distribution & new technology (e.g. streaming platforms and digital disruption)
  
• Innovative storytelling (e.g. AI/VR/XR, interactive formats)
  
• The interplay of generative AI and filmmaking (e.g. working conditions of creative workers, AI and ethical creativity, AI literacy and cultural industries)
  
• Representation and inclusion in the European film industry
  
• New narratives by women, youth, diaspora, and intersectional identities
  
• Gender and the European screen industries
  
• European film festivals as spaces of resistance and cultural diversity
  
• Training, access, and equity in the European film workforce
  
• Governance, sustainability and democratic participation in the audiovisual sector
  

Submission Guidelines

Abstracts (300-400 words) should be accompanied by a short bio (max. 100 words each).

Panel proposals (ca. 60 minutes) must include a panel title, brief rationale (max. 300 words), and details of 3-4 speakers.

Abstracts must be submitted via the following link: https://app.oxfordabstracts.com/stages/79051/submitter

Panel proposals must be submitted via email: info@thereboot-project.eu

Screening the Scene: Rethinking European film competitivenessConference Dates: 9 and 10 October 2025

Location: Department of Communication, University of Vienna

Deadline for Abstract Submission: on a rolling basis until August 17, 2025

Conference Description

The European film industry stands at a critical juncture, shaped by shifting technologies, evolving societal demands, global political changes and the need for more inclusive and adaptive institutional frameworks. Under the theme “Screening the Scene: Rethinking European film competitiveness”, this conference seeks to explore innovative strategies and fresh perspectives that can reinvigorate the industry for a sustainable, equitable, and competitive future.

We invite scholars, practitioners, policymakers, creatives and industry stakeholders to submit abstracts for the REBOOT Conference, a two-day, no entry-fee event dedicated to critically reflecting on and advancing the future of the European film industry.

The REBOOT project has received funding from the European Union’s Horizon research and innovation programme under grant agreement 101094796.

Conference Registration opens on August 17, 2025

Please note, as this is a free to attend event, we have limited places; if we have enough interest in a hybrid format, we will open this event to online participation.

Join us as we bring the REBOOT project to a powerful close through dialogue, debate and vision - building.Let’s collectively shape the next chapter of Europe’s film and audiovisual future.

Conference Speakers

Roland Teichmann (Director – Austrian Film Institute)

Katharine Schenk (Director – ORF Television Film)

Rodrigo Gómez (Professor, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Cuajimalpa)

Ufuoma Akpojivi (Policy-Research and Leearning Lead – A4ID)

Juliette Prissard (General Delegate - Eurocinema)

Brigid O’Shea (Director - Documentary Association of Europe)

Scientific Committee Bios

(available here)

• Jean-François Trubert
  
• Kaisa Hiltunen
  
• Daniel Biltereyst
  
• Melis Behlil
  
• Caterina Sganga
  
• Jacek Mikucki
  
• Fernando Ramos Arenas
  
• Antonios Vlassis
  
• Katharine Sarikakis
  
• David Nieborg
  
• Ramon Lobato

Organising Committee

Katharine Sarikakis

Professor of Communication Science, Media Governance and Industries Research Lab, Department of Communication, Univie

T: +43-1-4277-493 94

E: katharine.sarikakis@univie.ac.at

Angeliki Chatziefraimidou

Researcher, Media Governance and Industries Research Lab, Department Of Communication, Univie

T: +43-1-4277-49348

E: angeliki.chatziefraimidou@univie.ac.at

Gentiana Ramadani

Researcher, Media Governance and Industries Research Lab, Department of Communication, Univie

T: +43-1-4277-48328

E: gentiana.ramadani@univie.ac.at

Simon Haslauer

Student Project Researcher, Media Governance and Industries Research Lab Department of Communication, Univie

E: simon.haslauer@univie.ac.at

Yves Saint Clair Zogo

Student Project Researcher, Media Governance and Industries Research Lab, Department of Communication, Univie

E: yves.saint.clair.zogo@univie.ac.at