ACTING THEIR AGE: Women, Ageing & Popular Cinema took place on Friday 4th May 2012.

This one-day symposium primarily questioned how cinema has responded to and historically dealt with older women both on and off screen.  Papers ranged from Hollywood stars ageing on screen to the scriptwriter’s creation of older characters, from the acceptable older star to the self-reflexive ageing filmmaker.  We were privileged to have two keynote speakers, Dr Sadie Wearing and Dr Deborah Jermyn, both of whom presented current research into the older woman and cinema.  Papers were also presented by Dr Martin Shingler, Claire Mortimer, Kirsty Fairclough, Deborah Brewis, Dr Helen Jacey, and Rona Murray.

If the interest that this symposium has garnered is anything to go by, now is the time for this discussion and for further work to develop.  Demand for positive cinematic representations of ageing and the older woman is high and there is a willing audience waiting to be satisfied.

This event was funded by The Research Centre for Film and Digital Media at Newcastle University.  Support was also kindly provided by The Gender Research Group at Newcastle University.  Thanks go to all of the speakers and visitors, Professor Guy Austin, Sheila Heppel, Dawn Pinkerton, Petra Hahner and Theresa Poulton.  Thanks should also be extended to our chairs for the day: Dan Horn, Mani Sharpe, Dr Carolyn Pedwell and Dr Melanie Bell.