Sixth Annual Association of Adaptation Studies Conference, Yeni Yuzyil University, Istanbul, 29-30 September 2011

Abstract

The venue of the Sixth Annual Association of Adaptation Studies Conference—the British-built, colonial-style gentlemen’s club, Anadolu Kulübü (Anatolian Club), on the island of Büyükada situated between Europe and Asia—was arguably the most spectacular setting for a discussion of adaptation studies so far. With its in-between location, the views of both the European and the Asian shores of Istanbul in the distance, and its many-layered cultural history, the setting literally embodied the theme of cross-cultural adaptation and exchange stressed in the conference title The Intellectual Silk Road: Cross-Media and Cross-Cultural Adaptations. The ‘silk road’ of the title was intentionally used by the conference conveners, Laurence Raw (University of Başkent, Ankara) and Günseli Sönmez Işçi (Ege University, Izmir), in their call for papers as a readily recognizable historical image laden with literal and metaphorical implications of exchange. Organized jointly by the Association of Adaptation Studies and the Faculty of Sciences and Letters of the Yeni Yüzyıl University in Istanbul (29–30 September), this year’s conference thus aimed to foster a wider interdisciplinary exchange on the understanding of the term ‘adaptation’, setting out to do so ‘across a variety of platforms—literary, cinematic, sociological, intercultural, spatial and educational’, as Laurence Raw stressed in his opening address. With some fifty presentations, the conference went on to do just that, opening up the field of adaptation studies to new interpretations of the concept as well as to the processes of cross-cultural adaptation to insights from pedagogical and various professional (translation, advertising, job-training) perspectives. As a conference hosting primarily humanities-related participants, it unfortunately suffered the consequences of the current cost-cutting climate of recession through a number of last-minute cancellations caused mostly by a lack of sufficient travel funding, making it somewhat smaller than the previous two held in Berlin (2010) and London (2009). On the upside, this made the Istanbul conference more intimate, leaving sufficient room for questions and discussions during the panels. The venue’s picturesque scenery, worthy of a heritage drama production, gave a special flair to these discussions which continued afterwards during coffee breaks, mealtimes, and walks along the traffic-free island roads.