De Angela is presenting at the Prince on Screen: Images and Ideology Conference at the University of Minnesota on June 17-18, 2024! This conference is curated by the International Centre 4 Prince Studies!

De Angela’s presentation is “”Life Is Just A Party, And Parties Weren’t Meant To Last:” Life, Death, And Celebration In Prince’s Cinematic And Musical Odyssey, by De Angela Duff” on the “Brave New World”: Prince’s Cinematic World Building” panel!

Abstract:

Prince’s prolific oeuvre traverses a spectrum of human emotions and existential reflections, manifesting most evocatively through the themes of life, death, and celebration and crafting a narrative that is as melancholic as it is euphoric. This talk explores these thematic recurrences in Prince’s narrative films, Purple Rain (1984), Under The Cherry Moon (1986), and Graffiti Bridge (1990), alongside a parallel analysis of these themes within his musical compositions.

Moreover, the interplay between joie de vivre and mortality is further nuanced as we approach the 40th-anniversary celebration of Purple Rain, Prince’s award-winning, debut film, and eight years since Prince’s own transition. Through a multidisciplinary lens encompassing film studies, musicology, and cultural analysis, this presentation seeks to understand Prince’s embrace of the inevitable– death, thereby enriching the understanding of his life, his moving image, and his musical legacy, as we continue to celebrate and honor his “everlasting now.”

Learn more about Prince on Screen: Images and Ideology Conference at https://www.internationalcentre4princestudies.com/events.