Looking Back to the Future: Media Archaeologies in Times of Crisis and Resistance

The 2027 Association for Southeast Asian Cinemas Conference (ASEACC) explores the profound technological and cultural shifts in regional media production since the early 2000s. While the dawn of the millennium brought substantial democratization through accessible digital video and platforms like YouTube, empowering a new generation of independent filmmakers outside the traditional studio system, these creative opportunities now intersect with a modern “polycrisis.” Today’s media landscape is challenged by overlapping geopolitical, social, economic, and environmental catastrophes. At the center of this tension is the rapid integration of artificial intelligence; while AI represents an emancipatory tool for some, its use in mass surveillance and content generation raises critical concerns about losing the core humanity within cinematic arts.

To navigate these contemporary challenges, the conference adopts a media archaeological approach, using past technological revolutions to understand our current trajectory and future possibilities. By delving into the history of older, accessible formats—such as Super 8mm, Portapaks, and VHS—the event highlights how previous generations documented resistance and counter-narratives during past social upheavals. The discussions will center on the vital role of archival practices, community video activism, and independent collectives in preserving these historical images and sounds. From examining diasporic nostalgia to analyzing experimental found footage, the conference ultimately investigates how Southeast Asian film communities have historically utilized shifting media formats to reimagine their realities and resist institutional constraints.

Graduate Students’ Workshop

Following the inaugural Graduate Students’ Workshop at the 2025 ASEACC in Chiang Mai, we are also pleased to announce that the second workshop will also be held on August 11-13 2027, in conjunction with the 2027 conference. Workshop participants will be divided into small groups, with each group working with a mentor. Mentors and participants will read each other’s work and exchange feedback and ideas to help prepare a completed work for publication or develop works-in-progress. Possible works include future conference presentations, research publications, dissertation/thesis chapters, and papers written for previous coursework.

For the upcoming workshop, graduate students are invited to apply to attend by filling in the form and including an abstract of the paper they wish to feature at the workshop. The paper can be of any topic as long as it is related to Southeast Asian cinema and screen. The abstract must not exceed 300 words.