Disability is present in various forms of animation, and while it is often not meant to be taken seriously, depending on its representation it can either help or hinder disabled people’s fight for equality and survival. For example, Crippen cartoons by David Lupton have provided an accessible way to raise awareness about disability politics. Furthermore, representations of disability in adult animation have been argued to be a useful form of ‘social commentary’ (Fink, 2013). This can work to promote ideas across the spectrum; for example, Pritchard (2021) argues that Family Guy highlights problematic attitudes towards dwarfism, whereas those within Disney's animated classic, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, have promoted damaging stereotypes of dwarfism (Pritchard, 2022; Watson, 2020). Others have shown how animation can strengthen feelings of pride, identity, and belonging (Wilde, and Millett, 2017) and theorised how animation can provide greater representation possibilities, and present ‘chaotic, mutable relational complexity’ (Roberts, 2019), arguably valuable to more multi-dimensional representations of disability and impairment. This special issue of JLCDS aims to bring together a collection of articles that focuses on such issues in representations of disability in animation, both past and present. We welcome proposals from disability scholars, but also from scholars in other disciplines whose perspectives can help to provide a broad and detailed understanding of how disability is represented in various forms of animation. Contributions might consider, but need not be limited to: 

• Representations of disability in adult animation

• Representations of disability in children’s animation

• Disney and Disability

• Representations of disability in Japanese manga

• Studio Ghibli and disability/diversity

• Disability and magic realism

• Disability and Humour in animation

• Computer generated imagery and cripping up

• Disabled animated characters as ‘ethical encounters’

• Animation, empathy, and disability

• Animation and audience affect

• Parasocial relationships with animated characters

• Implications of the false and the true aspects of animation in understanding disability

• Animation as a tool for activism

• Future representation of disability in animation 

Timeline: Please email a 1-page proposal and curriculum vitae to pritche@hope.ac.uk and a.wilde@leedstrinity.ac.uk by 1st December 2023. Contributors can expect to be selected and notified by 22nd January 2024 (Full drafts of the selected articles will be due on 29th July 2024). Please direct any questions to Guest editors, Erin Pritchard and Alison Wilde. 

Erin Pritchard, PhD, is a Senior Lecturer in Disability Studies at Liverpool Hope University and core member of the Centre for Culture and Disability Studies. Her most recent book, Midgetism: The exploitation and discrimination of people with dwarfism, published by Routledge, introduces the critical term ‘midgetism’, which the author has coined, to demonstrate that the socio-cultural discrimination people with dwarfism experience is influenced by both heightism and disablism. She has published work on dwarfism in key disability studies journals, including Disability and Society, the Journal of Literary and Cultural Disability Studies, the Scandinavian Journal of Disability Research and Disability Studies Quarterly. In 2020, she guest edited a special issue on representations of dwarfism for the Journal of Literary and Cultural Disability Studies. She is currently a consultant for Disney, specialising in representations of dwarfism.

Alison Wilde, PhD, is a Senior Lecturer in Sociology and Criminology at Leeds Trinity University. She has recently completed an Independent Scholar Fellowship with the Independent Social Research Foundation at Durham University, and has researched and written mainly on topics of screen media, disability, gender and audiences, educational inclusion, parenting, gender, and social and health care. She is Series Editor for Peter Lang’s Disability, Media, Culture. She co-founded the MeCCSA Disability Studies Network, and the BSA's Disability Studies Group.

The International Journal of Disney Studies examines the Walt Disney Company, a media conglomerate that impacts our global culture. This peer-reviewed journal draws from a variety of academic and industrial lenses, perspectives, methods and fields, while providing a space for scholars to present new research, review current research and comment on wider Disney commodities. The journal is seeking junior scholars to join its international and interdisciplinary associate editorial board as junior associate editors to provide early career researchers with unique career opportunities and leadership. We are looking for 3 early career researchers to serve in a junior associate editor position for the journal: 

• Junior Commentary Editor Responsible for editing and acting as peer reviewer for received pieces in cooperation with Senior Commentary Editors; scouting possible topics/authors for pieces. 

• Junior Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Editor Responsible to support senior editors in developing EDI strategy, identifying new possible methods for further developing the journal’s EDI strategy, and developing special issue topics with EDI focus. 

• Junior Reviews Editor Responsible for editing and acting as peer reviewer for received reviews in cooperation with Senior Reviews Editors; scouting possible topics/authors for reviews. 

We welcome applications from early career scholars. As Disney Studies is an international and interdisciplinary field, we encourage scholars from a range of fields to apply. If you would like to be considered, please email a two page CV and a brief explanation of which position(s) you would be interested in fulfilling and why you would be an appropriate person to fill the position to r.muir@surrey.ac.uk and rebecca.rowe@tamuc.edu by August 31, 2023.

The International Journal of Disney Studies examines the Walt Disney Company, a media conglomerate that impacts our global culture. This peer-reviewed journal draws from a variety of academic and industrial lenses, perspectives, methods and fields, while providing a space for scholars to present new research, review current research and comment on wider Disney commodities. The journal is seeking members to join its international and interdisciplinary editorial board. Responsibilities include: 

• Peer reviewing relevant articles relating to your expertise and providing constructive feedback 

• Encouraging engagement with the journal to colleagues at home institutions and other associations 

• Providing feedback on the journal to the rest of the editorial team 

• Suggesting special issues and/or possible article contributors 

• Suggesting members for all parts of the editorial team and possible peer reviewers 

• Attending training and annual meeting (all online) 

We welcome applications from scholars and industry experts at any career stage. As Disney Studies is an international and interdisciplinary field, we encourage scholars and industry experts from a range of fields to apply. If you would like to be considered, please email a two page CV to r.muir@surrey.ac.uk and rebecca.rowe@tamuc.edu by August 31, 2023.

Call for Papers The call will be open until August 1, 2023. You can submit your proposal at this link, which will ask the following questions about your proposal: Proposal Type (Single Presentation or Panel) Subject Area Working Title Academic Affiliation (if any) Abstract (250 words) Short bio (50-200 words) Preferred modality of presenting (in person or virtually). Accommodations Preferences for when to present After you submit your proposal, you should receive email confirmation of submission within 24 hours. Within 2 weeks, you should also be notified if your proposal was accepted. NEPCA honors a submission practice where if your first submission was declined prior to the CFP deadline, then you are welcome to re-submission of a revised proposal or a different one. If you have any questions about the conference, please reach out to Lance Eaton, the Executive Secretary (northeastpopculture@gmail.com).