Awra Amba - Utopia in Ethiopia - Interactive Documentary Project

From the site:

"UTOPIA IN ETHIOPIA - THE AWRA AMBA STORY

A NEW INTERACTIVE DOCUMENTARY BY THE FILMMAKERS OF THE SHORT FILM 'AWRA AMBA' 

“An exciting experiment in the use of transmedia practice” Brian Newman, former CEO of the Tribeca Film Institute.

“The best interactive project anyone has pitched to me here. In fact the only one that is truly interactive.” Alexandre Brachet, Upian France, at Sheffield Meet Market."

The Awra Amba Story is a 360° web documentary, in which the audience is invited to explore the Awra Amba village online through an immersive experience of 360° photography, 12 short documentary films, and a range of educational resources and discussion topics. A two-way Twitter debate is enabled with the audience and members from the Awra Amba community for a 6-week period following the launch. 

Click here to view a demo of the interactive documentary.

 

Please view our short film trailer for the project: The Awra Amba Story from Paulina Tervo on Vimeo.

IBC and Broadcasters - Multiplatform Apps - Threat Or Opportunity?

Excerpt:

"Multiplatform?

Let's look at some data from appmarket.tv. According to Nielsen's recent survey of nearly 12,000 connected device owners, 70% of tablet owners and 68% of smartphone owners said they use their devices while watching television, compared to only 35% of eReader owners. And 61% percent of eReader owners use their device in bed, compared to 57% of tablet owners and 51% of smartphone owners.

Couple that with the fact information technology research company Gartner predicts that well over 200 million tablets will be sold by 2014, and by 2015 more than one-third of American consumers (and likely Europeans) will use a tablet PC, says firm Forrester Research. Triple that even with Coda Research Consultancy predicting that worldwide sales of smartphones will total 2.5 billion units throughout 2010 to 2015.

Companion Apps

Generations Y and Zed are ripe for early adoption. But companion apps, synchronised with TV programming is the future – where viewers not only interact with TV but also take it one step further and really learn by engaging in trivia quizzes, predictions, voting, and other game mechanics. And they won't have to do it alone — the virtual communities around the shows will allow for cooperative experiences as well. The main stumbling block with broadcasters is their lack of agility in terms of decision making and propensity in keeping everything close to hip and internal. Rather than opening up to 3rd party innovation and creating open standards.

While broadcasters seem to sit on their hands and mull over the second screen interaction with TV, carriers like Vodaphone and Orange are trying to own that spot with companion apps on the second screen with Social TV Apps, content producers are writing new formats that integrate tightly with the second screen so they can try and own that spot (as well as creating connected TV apps on the single screen for VOD), CE manufacturers like Samsung and Toshiba who make tablets are trying to marry it tightly and offer API's and SDK's to third party developers to co-own that sweet spot, third party developers in the USA like Miso, Philo, Tunerfish, Getglue and Intonow are trying to own that space by building Social TV on Apple and Android tablets and smartphones — Google TV wants a piece of the action with Android and Chrome plays on TVs, smartphones and tablets, Apple is in the fray and likely to tie in the iPad and iPhone with a consumer TV play soon as rumours have it..."

New Cross-Platform Project from Arte Digital: WHO - your life into a movie

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Project Description:

“WHO – your life into a movie” is a brand new cross media concept which merge traditional TV- soap opera, internet series and mobile device with user interaction and co-creation (user-created content). Based on traditional ongoing, episode work of dramatic fiction presented in serial format the WHO project aims to formalise a loose interactive framework that will allow anyone to contribute and participate in the story we will create together.

In each episode a new character is introduced to the audience. The audience is invited to participate in the development of the WHO project by submitting a short video (which can be produced with mobile phones, web cams or with a video camera and the novel can be watched on a computer, TV or mobile equipments) suggesting the personality or actions of a new character. Ideas generated by the audience are then developed by a creative team and an actor/actress will be selected to play the role created.

Being based on a novel structure, the WHO project aims to create a relation among the audience and the novel main characters. By allowing the audience to create the profile of the new characters entering in the novel, people can influence the narrative.

The idea of having a creative role in the process is the hook to engage the audience. High quality submissions will be invited to not only participate in the development process but may also be offered the opportunity to enter in the novel and act and play the role of the character they created. Who wouldn’t like to act side by side with their favourite actors/idols?

The online version also acts as a talent finder and offer people real-world production experience, once each contribution is like a casting where new talents can be found.

The online version is based on a branching narrative model (non-linear narrative). It differs from the TV version by providing additional contents (additional scenes/stories that expand the main narrative). On the online version users (the audience) can follow one character/story at a time and “jump” between stories by clicking on relevant and significant objects on the set. This feature allows users to realise that there are elements in the main narrative (on TV) that are a direct result of another story, and this effects the direction of the main narrative and offer viewers a reason to engage by offering further content and "gameplay" - within the video...."

Handy Mashable Post: 15 Case Studies to Get Your Client On Board With Social Media

by Jonathan Rick

"...In order to sell the field that everyone is talking about, but on which few can illuminate, we first need to reframe the conversation. Instead of striving for Merriam-Webster precision, social media strategists would do better to focus on case studies.

Specifically, social media strategist Ari Herzog has argued, when you reach for the term “social media,” don’t spew broad buzzwords like Facebook or Twitter or YouTube. Instead:


  • Narrow your focus to responding to customer complaints, as Comcast does on Twitter.
  • Build brand loyalty, as Bisnow does with e-newsletters, as Skittles does on Facebook, and as the Wine Library does with its podcasts.
  • Issue blog posts and tweets instead of news releases, as Google does with its blog, and as its now-former CEO did with Twitter.
  • Re-purpose your existing content, and thus enlarge your audience, as The New York Times does with Twitter, as the FBI does with Scribd, and as Dell does with SlideShare.
  • Manage your reputation, as countless companies do — or try to do — with Wikipedia.
  • Conduct crisis communications, as Johnson & Johnson does with its blog.
  • Hold contests to improve your algorithms, as Netflix did with the Netflix Prize.
  • Crowdsource your challenges, as the U.S. Army did with its field manuals.
  • Demonstrate thought leadership, as recruiter Lindsay Olson does with her blog.
  • Research free advertising opportunities, as Allstate does on YouTube.
  • Showcase your wares, as Zappos does with its blog, and boost your sales, as Dell does on Twitter.
  • Recruit employees, as Booz Allen does on LinkedIn.

Very Smart: Tomodachi: The building blocks of friendship (Wired UK)

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Excerpt:

"...Designer Aya Shimada has designed ... the Tomodachi (Japanese for "friends") Blocks. Each one wirelessly connects to the web and can be representative of a single buddy. As Yanko Design explains, the block will then live-stream audio and video from that friend using an onboard speaker and iPod nano-sized screen built onto the block.

However, Shimada's most novel idea is that you could then stack the blocks and their internal sensors will then pick-up on who is present to allow group chat...."

I'll Play This: Olivia Solon Reviews: Toshiba's glasses-free 3D TV and AT200 tablet (Wired UK)

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Excerpt:

"Toshiba has launched a large screen glasses-free 3D TV called the ZL2. The TV features a multi-core processing platform and a Quad Full HD display, offering up to 3840 x 2160 resolution.

The glasses-free 3D technology draws upon the parallax technology we have seen in the likes of the Nintendo 3DS, but on a very large scale. The problem with parallax screens is that you have to be positioned squarely in front of them to see the 3D effect. However, the front of the Toshiba screen features a range of lenticular "lenslets" that guide the dedicated images to each viewer, providing 3D images in up to nine different viewing positions so that multiple people in different positions in a single room can enjoy the 3D without glasses.

There is also face-tracking technology that can define the actual viewing positions in front of the TV which directs the images precisely to the eyes that are watching the TV, wherever they move. Toshiba did not announce the retail price of the new TV, but said it would be available in Europe in December this year..."