Siobhan O'Flynn's 1001 Tales http://1001tales.posterous.com tracing the roots & tendrils of storytelling today posterous.com Fri, 18 May 2012 20:06:00 -0700 Interactive Web Show Dirty Work Is Engineered for Short Attention Spans | Underwire http://1001tales.posterous.com/interactive-web-show-dirty-work-is-engineered http://1001tales.posterous.com/interactive-web-show-dirty-work-is-engineered

By Angela Watercutter May 8, 2012

"The masterminds behind new web comedy Dirty Work know that viewers’ increasingly short attention spans lead them to check their phones, monitor their e-mail and cruise Facebook while watching shows — in fact, they’re counting on it.

“The last few years, whenever we consume any media on our televisions, on our computers, wherever it is, they’re always kind of competing,” Elan Lee, chief creative officer of Fourth Wall Studios, which created Dirty Work, told Wired. “A lot of the concept behind [this] came from the central concept of, ‘Hey, what if we could get all of those devices and all of those platforms to come together to tell one story and cooperate with each other instead of competing for your attention?’”

In some ways, Dirty Work, which quietly premiered online last week and will continue soon with two more episodes, is a lot like many TV shows. It revolves around funny twenty-somethings finding their way in the world, only in this case they clean up bloody crime scenes in the middle of the night.

But it’s not a standard sitcom: Viewers watch Dirty Work on Fourth Wall’s proprietary Rides.tv website and, if they opt in, receive text messages, phone calls, e-mails and additional videos while they’re tuned in. It’s essentially a program trying to find an audience of young people by telling a story about young people using tools they’re already playing with...."

full post here:

http://www.wired.com/underwire/2012/05/interactive-dirty-work-fourth-wall/

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Mon, 14 May 2012 13:09:00 -0700 Fuel and McDonald’s launch kids virtual world » Kidscreen http://1001tales.posterous.com/fuel-and-mcdonalds-launch-kids-virtual-world http://1001tales.posterous.com/fuel-and-mcdonalds-launch-kids-virtual-world
Media_httpkidscreenco_bdbea

By Jeremy Dickson

Excerpt:

"Ottawa, Canada and L.A.-based youth digital brand builder Fuel and its partner McDonald’s Europe have announced the official launch of their free kids’ virtual world Happy Studio, an online media experience based on the fun of Happy Meals.

The site, which already has 1.8 million registered users since a beta version launched in August 2011, and can also be accessed through mobile devices, includes interactive and educational games and fun activities featuring many licensed characters from McDonald’s Happy Meals and a range of entertainment IPs (Tom and Jerry, Tin Tin, Puss N Boots)...."

Read more: http://kidscreen.com/2012/05/10/fuel-and-mcdonalds-launch-kids-virtual-world/...

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Mon, 14 May 2012 12:04:00 -0700 Transmedia producer Jackie Turnure (Fourth Wall Studios): Podcast: In the History-Makin’ Business | StoryForward Podcast http://1001tales.posterous.com/transmedia-producer-jackie-turnure-fourth-wal http://1001tales.posterous.com/transmedia-producer-jackie-turnure-fourth-wal

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Jackie Turnure

Veteran transmedia producer Jackie Turnure (Fourth Wall Studios) joins J.C. and Steve in this jam-packed episode. Their discussion spans her past Alternate Reality Game projects for LOST, Flash Forward, Salt and more, and leads up to an in-depth conversation about Fourth Wall Studios’ just-released project, Dirty Work and their new transmedia platform, RIDES. Jackie talks about what makes Dirty Work different, and the unique challenges that a transmedia entertainment studio faces.

Subscribe to the StoryForward podcast through this link or via iTunes. Stop by our website where you can find links to contact us with your tips, suggestions, concerns and submissions.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Fri, 03 Feb 2012 12:30:00 -0800 Michael Antwan's Breaks it Down: Breaking the 4th Wall: Halo Reach « Excerpt via Console XP http://1001tales.posterous.com/michael-antwans-breaks-it-down-breaking-the-4 http://1001tales.posterous.com/michael-antwans-breaks-it-down-breaking-the-4

A long long time ago, in a console generation with no online passes or day one DLC, we were introduced to Halo. A franchise that made a lot of headway in only 10 years or so; with 6 games (not counting PC ports and the recent remake), several novels, comics, board games, and even a canceled movie project under it’s belt. Halo fans have a lot to be proud of. This year we’ll see Halo return in a big way with a brand new developer and trilogy in the works. What 343 Industries does with Halo is yet to be seen, for now let’s look back at the last official Halo title, and Bungie’s last contribution to the series, Halo Reach.

 

For starters Halo Reach isn’t the game adaptation of the novel The Fall of Reach, which is a damn shame because that book had a much better story to tell. One that actually works as a prequel to the original trilogy, and uses Master Chief. Instead we are introduced to an all new cast of characters, Noble Team; who aren’t relevant to the Halo Universe at all.

read the full review here:

http://www.consolexp.com/breaking-the-4th-wall-halo-reach/

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Wed, 18 Jan 2012 09:13:00 -0800 The Colbert Report: The Most Cunning ARG You've Never Heard Of http://1001tales.posterous.com/the-colbert-report-the-most-cunning-arg-youve http://1001tales.posterous.com/the-colbert-report-the-most-cunning-arg-youve

The Colbert Report:  Flying Completely Under Your Radar.

1712141975_8d7e6172ed

I’ve been thinking about this for months, years in fact, watching The Colbert Report. Launched on October 17, 2005, satirist Stephen Colbert’s portrayal of Stephen Colbert, right-wing pundit (an homage to Bill O’Reilly), and know-it-all Wikipedia editing expert, is so seamless that the ‘performance’ of his faux character is almost forgotten. Search him online (forget Wikipedia today folks!) and it is virtually impossible to find interviews with the ‘real’ Colbert. Think back to his appearance at the White House Correspondents Dinner 2006, billed as a Special Edition of The Colbert Report, where he delivered a masterpiece parody of the George Bush era and what he termed the “No Fact Zone.” Now, with his ongoing shaming of the Federal Election Committee (FEC) and the absurdities or criminalities of Super PACs in the US electoral process, he’s done a flurry of interviews this past week, again in character, with George Stephanopoulos and Ted Koppel. In each of these interviews, the extremism of his character is marked by some absurd proposal or claim that foregrounds the artifice of his performance. Watch his exchange with Stephanopoulos here:

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/OTUS/stephen-colbert-runs-president-talkss-geo....

Now if you’ve never thought about The Colbert Report as a transmedia ARG, pause for a moment. What Colbert has done is promote a fictional character with a subversive agenda across multiple platforms: the TV show, multiple websites (www.colbertnation.com, www.nofactzone.net/, http://www.indecisionforever.com/). What he’s doing definitely stretches the model of the ARG (hey! wait! Is there a single model?). But it’s definitely transmedia & cross-platform and he’s had complete buy-in from his audience:  he’s led an activist rally in the 2010 March to Keep Fear Alive (see its companion website, http://colbertrally.com/), and successfully solicited who knows how much $ through the contributions to his Super PAC that, as he repeatedly points out, he will not have to report on legally for an undetermined period of time. Yet this performance is only now being commented on widely as a performance: ABC news just today ran an article on Who is the Real Stephen Colbert? 

Colbert’s control of his performance and the media’s responses to him has been absolute and to get a sense of how he has created a storyworld in which his character exists as unchallenged, watch his September 2011 interview with Al Gore, who does the unthinkable on live TV by commenting on ‘your character.’ Colbert is clearly aghast and in character, crushes Gore with "finger quotes." Or watch Colbert’s interview with Frank Luntz October 2011 on how to set up his Super PAC focus group and sell the message that Corporations are People Too. Here, Colbert slips into his highly racist Chinese character, Ching Chong Ding Dong, and says: “I’m not responsible for anything my character says.” This moment is genius as it reveals the strategy underlying Colbert’s parodic persona. That he is now raising serious debate in the US as to the validity of Super PACs, generating numerous articles and news reports is an indirect homage to the persuasiveness of his performance over time.

Colbert’s application and appearance before the FEC was a fascinating moment in his ongoing ‘alternate reality performance.’ One, for Colbert, he was surprisingly monosyllabic and undemonstrative, whereas outside the hearing, he was emphatically the satiric pundit. That moment in the hearing however, raised the question of who exactly speaking before the Commission. As, if it was the character, then the legality & authority of the FEC were being mocked & challenged - technically a dicey move - yet watch him immediately after speaking outside to the press. Colbert played that moment ambiguously because he had to, but he also didn’t commit or reveal himself as the real Stephen Colbert.

And, given the specifics of the ruling as to what Viacom and Colbert’s Super PAC, Americans for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow, could and could not do, Colbert has neatly circumvented the restrictions on broadcasting outside of his show or network by allowing the net to do the job for him as his Super PAC negative campaign ads can be watched on multiple sites, including YouTube, and as embedded content in multiple news reports (Take that! SOPA!). If you haven't seen them, catch the latest Super PAC commercials here: Mitt the Ripper and Vote for Herman Cain

Colbert has used his comedic position to introduce new words to the lexicon, ‘truthiness,’ ‘anchor baby,’ and now it’s starting to look like his relentless and inventive challenge to the Super PAC might actually galvanize change. If he’s successful, I can’t wait to see what he tackles next.

 

You can read the Federal Election Committee's Advisory Opinion from June 30, 2011 here: 

http://www.colbertsuperpac.com/advisory/Advisory-Opinion.pdf 

And, if you haven't been following this, here's a great recap by Sarah Mimms:

“Federal Election Committee rules on Colbert’s Super PAC application”

by Sarah Mimms, June 30 2011

http://nationaljournal.com/hotline/fec-rules-narrowly-on-colbert-request-20110630

“In filing his initial request for an advisory opinion, Colbert sought to take advantage of an exemption traditionally used to allow media outlets to report and comment on campaigns and endorse candidates without having their work considered “in-kind” political contributions, triggering filing and disclosure requirements with the Federal Election Commission.

The request came down to one essential issue: whether Viacom can legally donate production costs, airtime and use of Colbert's staff to create ads for the so-called super PAC, to be played both on "The Colbert Report" and as paid advertisements other networks and shows.

The commission said no, ruling that once ads created using Viacom resources were broadcast on other networks, Viacom would have to report them as political contributions.”

 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Mon, 09 Jan 2012 04:30:00 -0800 What I’m looking forward to in 2012 - Part 1: Prison Dancer! Interactive Web Musical (new video & links added) http://1001tales.posterous.com/what-im-looking-forward-to-in-2012-part-1-pri http://1001tales.posterous.com/what-im-looking-forward-to-in-2012-part-1-pri

 

I’m assuming you’re all over this by now as this new web series & video trailer have been getting tons of global buzz in the last few days. But if you don’t know about it, you should.

 

Inspired by a real video of 1500+ prisoners in the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center in the Philippines dancing en masse to Michael Jackson’s Thriller (49+ million views), Prison Dancer is a 12 part interactive video series that will launch in March 2012. The trailer launched on YouTube six days ago, is now over 50,000 views, and has been picked up as viral video of the week by Fox News, “hot” on Trendhunter, and featured on Australian TV. Part of its appeal seems to be what co-writer and director Carmen De Jesus describes “as one of the first post-Dr. Horrible “made for web” musical web-series.” You know from the trailer that this is going to be a funny, campy, no-holds-barred production that will play up the romance and the drama in a way that reminds me already of John Waters’ musical homage to the 50s delinquent teen movie, Cry Baby (watch that one for an early singing Johnny Depp!). 

 

Now, one genius aspect of this production is its in-built global reach. Produced in Toronto, it taps audiences across national boundaries. One of the series’ stars is Mikey Bustos, a superstar in Canada and the Philippines who Americans might know better as “that guy who did the Filipino accent tutorial on the Internet.  

 

Producer Ana Serrano took a moment to answer a few questions and now I’m totally intrigued!:

 

SO: Prison Dancer is described as an interactive web series - that could mean interactive video where web videos have some kind of interactive interface to play with content flow or it might also include interactive participatory strategies for crowdsourced, fan-generated content - without giving too much away, are you playing with the latter idea? It would seem to be a genius project for that.

 

AS: We are playing with both ideas. One of the key interactive tools we are using is Youtube’s annotation tool. This allows folks to turn Youtube videos into clickable assets. For Prison Dancer, most of our episodes have interactive branches from them. However, these branches either provide more backstory to the characters or allow our audiences to engage with experiences they can then use to claim as their own and share back with the community. Think karaokified musical.

 

 

SO: As you say in your Toronto Star interview, this is “a perfect property for online because it was inspired by a web video,” the phenomenally popular Filipino prisoners’ YouTube version of Thriller. It was originally written as a play for stage and you give a little detail as to the long term vision, three seasons & maybe a Broadway Show, and Prison Dancer seems to have real substance as a cross-platform project. Is there a possibility of transmedia story extensions as well? It looks like this will be a story with multiple characters and easily multiple storylines, given the setting. Oz meets Glee but pitched WAY happier than OZ. And with three seasons in mind, that would seem to give you some scope for a really amazing transmedia story.

 

AS: yes, I think the possibilities for extending character storylines well beyond the web series and stage play are enormous. The original dancing inmates already have virtual lives.  It’s not far off to see either the “real prisoners” or characters inspired by them to be hooked on their Internet notoriety and hence want to continue building a rapport with an audience rabid for their dances. So yes, part of what we are playing with is who these characters are and how they may actually be interfacing with the Web audience as individuals.

 

 

SO: Another really fabulous aspect of Prison Dancer, with what little is known so far, is that the project already has a trans-global audience, especially with the story being set in a Filipino prison and being a Canadian production. Have you and the writers given any thought as to writing for specific regional audiences? Or, if you write for a global audience, do you feel there are any specific considerations to keep in mind? Or do you just make the best damn web series you can and see what happens?

 

AS: We have very specific audiences in mind — Filipinos both at home and abroad; LGBT; and Glee/musical lovers (which arguable could be seen as slightly mainstream these days...so call it young women.) So we are writing and creating experiences with those audiences in mind only. Our thought is if we can satisfy this niche yet globally distributed sets of people we have the possibility of crossing over.

 

 

SO: Have you thought about the fact that both this current project and the CFC's interactive feature film are set in prisons? Is there a wacky backbone of interest or theme(s) running through these projects for you? 

 

AS: LMAO have not even crossed my mind! But one of our themes is really about this idea of second chances. It’s a slightly subtle take to the classic underdog story. We’re creating a story not just about underdogs, or “losers” but about people who “lost their way” (as the first song “Point of View” says) and then finds it again by changing their “point of view” of what’s worth living for. (listen to the song to get the gist though you’ll here more of the lyrics in episode 1.) Which when I talk about it like this is also similar to the themes we explored in Late Fragment. So perhaps I am attracted to redemptive tales.

 

      

So props to Prison Dancer and to the launch of Ana’s independent production company, Prison Dancer Inc, co-founded with Carmen De Jesus and Romeo Candido (who penned writer of the lyrics and music and is co-writer of the book with De Jesus). I love it when smart people do smart work.


Mikey Bustos gives a peep inside the production here:

 

 

And if you haven’t seen the original viral Prisoners of Cebu Thriller it’s here:

 

 

Other great posts on Prison Dancer here:

 

http://www.8asians.com/2012/01/06/viral-like-sars-prison-dancer-the-interacti...

 

http://www.channelapa.com/2012/01/prison-dancer-the-interactive-web-musical-t...

 

 

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Thu, 14 Jul 2011 03:58:00 -0700 Green Knights Entertainment Launches Transmedia Company to Transform Broadcast Model http://1001tales.posterous.com/green-knights-entertainment-launches-transmed http://1001tales.posterous.com/green-knights-entertainment-launches-transmed

Green Knights Entertainment Launches Transmedia Company to Transform Broadcast Model

Green Knights Entertainment (http://www.greenknightsentertainment.com) announces the launch of a new transmedia company that is transforming the broadcast model into a conversation model surrounding bad online date experiences, products and services for singles. Entrepreneur, producer, director, author, social media innovator and dating advisor, Jennifer Kelton has built a unique business model that monetizes brands on multi-platforms through voting, product placement, video ads, banner ads, user-generated ads, social games, blogs, exclusive post-show follow-up episodes and TV Shows.

Los Angeles, CA (PRWEB) July 14, 2011

Recognizing Internet and Mobile Video are the fastest growing media and advertising channels, CEO and Founder Jennifer Kelton announces the launch of a new transmedia company, Green Knights Entertainment, built to create conversations around bad online dates. With women launching startups at nearly three times the national average in the US, Kelton is a visionary entrepreneur who is gearing up for this business wave. Based on this female startup trend, the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts more than half of the new small business jobs created by 2018 will be from women-owned firms.

Based on a track record of building consumer entertainment and fashion brands, Green Knights Entertainment is the next step for Jennifer Kelton’s startups. Through community sharing and cross-platform entertainment content, the big picture goal is to have the healing power of laughter change the way the 96 million singles in the US support each other both online and offline.

Kelton explains the focus of this new entertainment company, “We’re creating total engagement experiences with storytelling.” Green Knights Entertainment’s transmedia family includes established entertainment brands with shows and products that include:
1.    BadOnlineDates.com – a web entertainment property with a 3-year history.
2.    Bad Dates iPhone/iPad app – a virtual bad date wingman app to provide instant support.
3.    Bad Date TV – a 2-year webisode series with “Bad Date Ben” and “Bad Date Betty.”
4.    Dating in Disguise – the new Dating Game meets Let’s Make a Deal in this TV Show.

An early leader in online video content, Kelton created Bad Date TV, featuring bad date characters such as "Bad Date Ben" and "Bad Date Betty." The 2-year old webisode series provides hilarious and inspiring lessons to help instill better etiquette and dating skills among too many singles who seem to have forgotten (or never learned) them. Kelton shares, “People want to be entertained, vent, commiserate and even compete about bad date experiences.”

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Sat, 02 Jul 2011 05:08:00 -0700 Grazie Henry Jenkins for posting!: Transmedia Hollywood 2 Videos from UCLA Conference http://1001tales.posterous.com/grazie-henry-jenkins-for-posting-transmedia-h http://1001tales.posterous.com/grazie-henry-jenkins-for-posting-transmedia-h

Now Available: Transmedia Hollywood 2 Videos

Due to technical difficulties, we've been delayed in sharing with you the videos from our April Transmedia Hollywood 2 conference, jointly sponsored by the cinema schools at USC and UCLA, and hosted this year at UCLA. We hope to be back next April at USC with a whole new line up of speakers and topics, which we are just now starting to plan. In the meantime, check out some of these sessions, which should give the ever expanding Transmedia community plenty to chew on this summer. As for myself, I'm flying down to Rio, even as we speak.

Welcome and Opening Remarks

Denise Mann, Associate Professor, Producers Program, UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television

Transmedia Hollywood 2, Visual Culture & Design: Denise Mann Opening Comments from UCLA Film & TV on Vimeo.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Wed, 29 Jun 2011 05:35:52 -0700 FlipReport | Insight on Transmedia | Starlight Runner Entertainment http://1001tales.posterous.com/flipreport-insight-on-transmedia-starlight-ru http://1001tales.posterous.com/flipreport-insight-on-transmedia-starlight-ru

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Sun, 19 Jun 2011 20:00:00 -0700 Jen Begeal Guest Posts: Keeping Your Sanity While Engaging Your Audience Through Transmedia http://1001tales.posterous.com/jen-begeal-guest-posts-keeping-your-sanity-wh http://1001tales.posterous.com/jen-begeal-guest-posts-keeping-your-sanity-wh
The Future of Film blog at TribecaFilm.com

Excerpt from a June 18, 2011 post:

"Summary: A successful transmedia project doesn't require a big budget or a large team. It just requires patience and foresight.

Cross-posted from The Future of Film blog at TribecaFilm.com, where leading filmmakers and experts within the film industry share their thoughts on film, technology and the future of media. Click here to follow commentary on the changing media environment on Tribeca's Future of Film blog.

Transmedia projects have multiple points of entry that follow multiple storylines across several platforms. This kind of attention to detail can be overwhelming to a small team, and let's face it, most transmedia projects function on micro budgets. Asking your audience to jump down the rabbit-hole with you requires finesse, timing, and above all energy. With so many moving parts it can be a daunting task to keep a project from becoming completely overwhelming.

In the spring of 2010 I joined a transmedia project already underway, called Zenith. Focused around a film (which was not set to release for months), our small team was tasked with designing and building a campaign that would invite our audience to engage with the film's central themes and incorporate them into their own stories. This is how we did it.

Zenith is a science fiction thriller, which takes place in two separate time periods: the present day and the year 2044. The film alternates between the realities of the two main characters: Ed Crowley, a paranoid conspiracy theorist, and his son Jack, a drug-dealing ex-neurosurgeon. Ed predicts a future where a hidden society controls the minds and actions of the population. Ed's future - Jack's present - has become a bleak reality where people are permanently numb, yet pay dealers like Jack for pain from expired prescriptions. Jack is pulled into his father's quest for the truth behind this genetic experiment when he is presented with the first in a series of ten VHS tapes that Ed has left behind.

Zenith's director, Vladan Nikolic, first conceived the concept of multiple entry points for a project years before the advent of Facebook and Twitter. It wasn't until production got underway in 2008 that Internet technology had reached a point to where it could lend itself to an engaging multimedia experience. The term "transmedia storytelling" was the latest buzzword in the film community and its definition closely matched that of the filmmaker's vision of a new form of storytelling.

The transmedia project was multi-tiered. The first tier, an outreach campaign, was developed to connect with bloggers in the gaming, film, science fiction and conspiracy theory communities. The initial goal of the campaign was to get people talking about the conspiracy theory portion of the project, called Stop Zenith. With a tag line of "What is Zenith?" the outreach garnered mixed reactions, some bloggers were afraid they had been accosted by a group of conspiracy theorists while others embraced the deception with the understanding that this was all part of a much larger project. Partnerships with other websites were also developed, like that between Zenith and Above Top Secret (ATS), a conspiracy website with a multi-million member fan base. These partnerships were instrumental to attracting a larger, more engaged audience. They also showed our team that to keep the conspiracy plot moving, we had to think fast and build out our story lines with intelligence...."

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Thu, 12 May 2011 05:42:00 -0700 Excellent Post on: Transmedia in the Music Industry | Grazie! Transmedia Lab http://1001tales.posterous.com/excellent-post-on-transmedia-in-the-music-ind http://1001tales.posterous.com/excellent-post-on-transmedia-in-the-music-ind

Grazie to Transmedia Lab for a great informative post:

Par Ana Vasile et Olivier Godest • 12 May, 2011 • Catégorie: Study Case

"Faced with the evolution of uses and new media consumption habits, the music industry has to face similar problems to those seen in the audiovisual industry: unstable audiences, growing competition and pirating. However, new economic models and multiplatform projects are emerging: Jay Z, Gorillaz or Nine Inch Nails for example, are reinforcing their relationships with their audiences through storytelling.

New distribution models

The authors of record labels are faced with one main problem these days: the decreasing sales of material media (CD, DVD), which is directly linked to the digital explosion.

Even though it’s often brought up as producers’ number one fear, music only represents 2,9% of illegal downloads, as shown in this Ars Technica study. While most big producers are concentrating their efforts on fighting pirating with entities like the BPI in the UK, the Hadopi law in France or the RIAA in the US, new music development actors and economic development models are changing the playing field.

For example Spotify is a free music access provider that had 10 000 000 users last year with a service financed by advertizing. Since May 1st, Spotify’s policy has changed under pressure from record labels.

New Spotify Users will still be able to enjoy free service as it is offered now for the next 6 months. Afterwards, all the users of the free service will be able to listen to a song a maximum of 5 times, after this limit, the user will have to buy the song.

The number of listening hours will also be limited to 10 hours a month, a 50% decrease from last year. Spotify had to change its free policy under pressure from record producers who were denouncing an economic model that caused them losses. For example, Lemonde.fr criticized streaming based models by analyzing the distribution of money that comes from them and highlighting the fact that they hurt independent labels and artists..."

read the full post on their site.

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Sat, 30 Apr 2011 08:42:00 -0700 Transmedia Experts Jenkins, Gomez, Kring, Hurd... Tell the Story to NABShow Attendees | ARGNet http://1001tales.posterous.com/transmedia-experts-jenkins-gomez-kring-hurd-t http://1001tales.posterous.com/transmedia-experts-jenkins-gomez-kring-hurd-t
Media_httpwwwargncomi_xtozv

What a great day! Excellent long post detailing the talks of the day:

"For the second year in a row, the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) Show hosted a panel of transmedia luminaries to discuss the state of the industry. This year’s panel, Transmedia: Telling the Story through Narrative Content, Games and Real-World Adventures was hosted by Henry Jenkins (Professor of Cinema and Media Studies at the University of Southern California, and author of Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide) and included Jeff Gomez (President and CEO, Starlight Runner Entertainment), Kim Moses (Executive Producer/Director, Sander/Moses Productions and Slam Internet), Gale Anne Hurd (Executive Producer, The Walking Dead; President, Valhalla Motion Pictures), Danny Bilson (Executive Vice President of Core Games, THQ, Inc.), and Tim Kring (Transmedia Storyteller, Conspiracy for Good, Heroes)....

"...Jenkins next introduced Gale Anne Hurd, asking her to speak on any struggles with the transmedia expecations for The Walking Dead franchise. Jenkins noted that the zombie series was based on “a comic book that’s well known by comic readers, maybe not so well known by viewers of AMC, and you had to work to keep both satisfied.” Gale responded,

Genre fans are already very familiar with transmedia, because most of the properties they respond to have existed in another medium . . . look at Lord of the Rings, [and] some of the films I’ve done, including The Punisher, which became a THQ video game which started as a comic book...."

read the full post on argn.com

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Fri, 29 Apr 2011 05:07:20 -0700 Great Post Series by Mark Harris on Managing THE LOST CHILDREN Storyworld with WordPress: Part 1 http://1001tales.posterous.com/great-post-series-by-mark-harris-on-managing http://1001tales.posterous.com/great-post-series-by-mark-harris-on-managing
Media_httpdesperateco_kdbiz

Excerpt from Mark Harris' series on WorkBook Project:

"Organizing Our Data

The first thing I need to say is I am no expert on Transmedia or ARGs or anything like that. There are many other people who are. So this post is not meant as me preaching The Truth down from on high. This post is meant as an exploration of what I am working on now, in the hopes that it sparks some others’ imaginations. In the interest of us all learning, I’m simply sharing the process we’re going through right now.

The second thing I need to say is that this is not a tutorial, and not something that just anyone can do. I’m actually writing some software for this, and the things I’m talking about here will require more custom software to deliver to users. Eventually, if this works, I will likely write a set of WP plugins to simplify this process and make it something anyone can use. But for now, I believe that ideas are what count, and I think many people will be able to understand the ideas here and maybe contribute some of their own.

This is sort of an experiment in stretching WordPress beyond it’s original purpose. The goal here is to see if we can use WordPress as a place to maintain our entire storyworld, and then feed that storyworld out to our various platforms; Tweets, Text Messages, Phone Calls, Location-based content, blogs, etc. The benefit here is that all of our data is in one place, it can be queried, analyzed, related, tagged with metadata, etc. Another benefit is that we are using a good deal of free tools...."

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Sun, 24 Apr 2011 08:54:32 -0700 Toolkit | 5 Lessons About Transmedia from The IFP/Power To The Pixel Cross-Media Forum - indieWIRE http://1001tales.posterous.com/toolkit-5-lessons-about-transmedia-from-the-i http://1001tales.posterous.com/toolkit-5-lessons-about-transmedia-from-the-i
Media_httpi2indiewire_zwdjt

Having caught most of the day via the live stream, grazie to indiewire for summarizing key points of a day of great talks:

Transmedia Is Not Just Applicable to Entertainment

The Concept Isn’t Entirely New

The Living Room Has Evolved

Experimentation Is Essential

Transmedia Won’t Kill The Movie

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Sat, 16 Apr 2011 14:47:26 -0700 Will Renny Reports on: Across Transmedia from Power to the Pixel: The Cross Media Forum. Oct. 2010 (still worth the read!) http://1001tales.posterous.com/will-renny-reports-on-across-transmedia-from http://1001tales.posterous.com/will-renny-reports-on-across-transmedia-from

One of the really fascinating keynote presentations of the day for me was Michel Reilhac’s The Game-ification of Life. Michel, who is currently Executive Director of ARTE France Cinema and Director of Film Acquisitions for ARTE France, has been involved in producing, directing and writing films since 1998. His talk wasn’t about film making though. Michel instead spoke about how games and the notion of ‘play’ have recently emerged as models to incentivise engagement, learning and social change.

Michel posited the idea that games have contaminated reality, now more so than ever. Contamination sounds a little OCD, but I think the premise of infiltration works. As if gaming is leeching into the system, below the radar. Michel went further to suggest that the ‘As if’ scenario within a fantasy game structure, is now becoming an ‘As is’ scenario in reality. By this I think he meant that the mechanisms of gaming are being folded into the real; the lived, physical world. A game structure can now be used to wrap around other things in order to make them more attractive as well become an integral form of interoperability – between ourselves and the world around us, as well as with the people we engage with.

Michel maintained that the reason games are beginning to proliferate into our daily lives is down to two factors: Social networks and geo-localisation. Both of these factors you should note are down to technology making it possible for us to connect on the move, and across multiple types of networks. So it’s about our improving ability to connect, that and the fact that games are more fun, as Michel says, than reality. Once connected, we can now have ‘fun’. We can now play.

The concept of play really resonated with me as something that is not only integral to how we learn (Michel made this point too) but also something that needs to be comprehended when considering what makes transmedia storytelling different to more traditional one to one or one to many forms of storytelling.

Read the full post on jawbone.tv - excellent article!

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Tue, 12 Apr 2011 12:33:00 -0700 Storytelling Via the Transmedia Lens http://1001tales.posterous.com/storytelling-via-the-transmedia-lens http://1001tales.posterous.com/storytelling-via-the-transmedia-lens
Media_httpwwwnabshowd_fcsdl

Excerpt:

"...Super Session "Transmedia: Telling the Story Through Narrative Content, Games and Real-World Adventures."

"TV is no longer the only canvas," said Jeff Gomez, president and CEO of Starlight Runner Entertainment. "You can now dovetail and provide access across new media channels."

For example, producers of the program "Ghost Whisperer," which aired on CBS, use a transmedia model to drive eyeballs from one medium to another, said Kim Moses, executive producer of Sander/Moses Productions. "Ghost Whisperer" leverages different platforms — mobile phones, the Internet and social outreach — to keep viewers engaged.

"I'm always asking myself, 'What would a fan want?'" said Danny Bilson, executive vice president of Core Games. Fans of the video game "Homefront" are able to experience the game in widely varying ways: through a recently published novel written from the perspective of a journalist, YouTube video clips that advance the game's plot and an interactive online map with video clips shot by a reporter on the run.

It's that fan base that transmedia experts say is the most important element to consider when attempting to branch out into different media.

For hard-core fans of the comic "The Walking Dead," for example, it was imperative to consider the attachment and knowledge the fan base had with the original comic when attempting to re-create it on the small screen.

"These fans have an enormous connection to the material and they're terrified [the new program] will no longer be true to the underlying material," said Gale Anne Hurd, executive producer of the show, which airs on AMC.

In response, the producers worked closely with the comic's creator, put up a website to show the evolution of the television program and made adaptations to the program after seeing viewers' responses, both positive and negative...."

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Tue, 12 Apr 2011 10:16:06 -0700 'Chopper' Goes From Comic-Con Indie to Sponsored Transmedia Web Series http://1001tales.posterous.com/chopper-goes-from-comic-con-indie-to-sponsore http://1001tales.posterous.com/chopper-goes-from-comic-con-indie-to-sponsore
Media_httpnewstubefil_giqme

By Barc Hustvedt:

"There are, as it turns out, other reasons to make the annual geek pilgrimage to San Diego Comic-Con every summer besides convincing your friends to dress up with you in authentic Battlestar costumes. Producer J.C. Christofilis spent some time perusing the indie comics corner of the sprawling convention floor, finding comic artist Martin Shapiro and his graphic novel Chopper.

Months later, a teaser trailer for the upcoming Chopper web series is now out (below), and even a clothing line has come on as lead sponsor. To be sure, the actual series hasn’t been shot yet, but the recent addition of horror actor Tyler Mane (Michael Myers from Rob Zombie’s Halloween films) is helping with the early buzz. Mane stars as the titular ‘Chopper’ character, a headless horseman killer—who’s horse is a Harley—seeking vengeance on “mortal sinners.” This means killing and collecting his victims heads of course.

In getting this project off the ground, Christofilis pitched the concept to Southern Cal-based Sullen Clothing, an edgy action sports brand, in hopes of securing enough capital to shoot the first season. Sullen was looking to grow its presence amongst the horror-loving young male demo that Chopper is targeting. “We pride ourselves on being an innovative, art-driven company,” said Sullen co-founder Jeremy Hanna, “and J.C. laid out a clear vision of how Chopper’s creative execution will enable Sullen to authentically reinforce our edgy brand values with our existing fans, while driving awareness of our products with a new consumer base as well....”

Read the interview with J.C. Christofilis on tubefilter.tv:

http://news.tubefilter.tv/2011/02/18/chopper-goes-from-comic-con-indie-to-spo...

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Thu, 07 Apr 2011 04:53:17 -0700 Wow! Tribeca Film Festival makes Video Game from Rockstar 'L.A. Noire's' an Official Selection - The Hollywood Reporter http://1001tales.posterous.com/wow-tribeca-film-festival-makes-video-game-fr http://1001tales.posterous.com/wow-tribeca-film-festival-makes-video-game-fr
Media_httpwwwhollywoo_bcdbf

Houser also discusses the convergence of Hollywood and video games, and why we haven’t seen a "Grand Theft Auto" movie yet.

The 2011 Tribeca Film Festival has broken with tradition and included the first video game to be honored as an Official Selection. Game publisher Rockstar Games’ L.A. Noire, which was developed by Team Bondi, allows players to enter the violent world of 1947 Los Angeles as an LAPD detective fighting against the criminal underbelly that ruled the streets during Hollywood’s Golden Age.... "

From the interview with Dan Houser cont.

"...Another hot topic these days is transmedia -- what are your thoughts on the role video games play today in launching new properties that span all sorts of entertainment?

No one has done it very successfully yet. Virtually all movies made from games are awful, while many games made from movies are also pretty horrible. This will change, but with an ever more discerning audience, the goals of taking something from film-to-games or game-to-film have to be more than financial. If you feel the property has something about it that is universal or could work in another medium, and it is not simply about making easy money, then that is something worthwhile. Too often, however, the aim appears to be to cash-in on the success of a particular game, book, pop singer, website, etc., and that usually produces mediocre results.

Why haven’t we seen a movie based on any of Rockstar Games’ blockbuster franchises?

We have explored a lot of movie deals, but we have just chosen not to make a movie. We love movies, but we also love games and that is what we remain focused on. If we were to attempt to make a movie, we would like to make it ourselves, or at least work in collaboration with the best talent, so at least if it is bad, we can know we failed on our own terms. But doing that takes time, and making games properly takes a lot of time. So, we may make movies one day, with the right property and the right partnership, but we have not found the time to do that yet.

Would something like LA Noire work on the big screen today?

Well, we spent a long time being told Westerns were dead, then we made Red Dead Redemption, which along with True Grit showed that well-made classic Westerns have life left in them in any medium. The same could be said of classic Noir - a great film could be successful now, just as Chinatown and LA Confidential were long after the 1940s."

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Mon, 04 Apr 2011 20:28:00 -0700 Schwarzenegger takes Transmedia to the Next Level: Living Transmedia in The Governator trailer http://1001tales.posterous.com/schwarzenegger-takes-transmedia-to-the-next-l http://1001tales.posterous.com/schwarzenegger-takes-transmedia-to-the-next-l

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn
Sun, 13 Mar 2011 14:23:00 -0700 Q&A with Frank Rose on ‘The Art of Immersion’ | Interview on JWT Intelligence #transmedia http://1001tales.posterous.com/qa-with-frank-rose-on-the-art-of-immersion-in http://1001tales.posterous.com/qa-with-frank-rose-on-the-art-of-immersion-in

A contributing editor at Wired, Frank Rose is the author of a new book, The Art of Immersion: How the Digital Generation Is Remaking Hollywood, Madison Avenue, and the Way We Tell Stories. Rose explores how the Internet is transforming storytelling and talks to creative minds who are “rethinking the ancient art of narrative for a two-way world.” He calls their efforts “deep media,” defined as “stories that are not just entertaining but immersive, that take you deeper than an hour-long TV drama or a two-hour movie or a 30-second spot will permit.” Most “deep media” content could also be termed transmedia, a topic we explore in a new trend report, “Transmedia Rising.” Attendees of SXSW Interactive can catch Rose on two panels; he’s also participating in the MediaGuardian Changing Media Summit in London later this month.

What’s your elevator pitch for this book?

Essentially, that the influence of the Internet is changing stories—by which I mean movies, television shows, games, advertisements, any number of ways that stories can be told. It’s changing them in a way that is making them immersive above all, but also non-linear, because the Web itself is non-linear. That’s making it somewhat game-like and certainly very participatory. In other words, no more passive viewing. It means taking a much more active role.

And what’s driving all this is the emergence of a type of media that’s participatory, that is the opposite of the mass media we’ve known for pretty much all of the 20th century. What you’ve seen in the past 10 years or so is the emergence of social media, of any number of other things online that’s, first off, giving pretty much everybody a voice that wants it and is at the same time influencing how stories are told on television and in other media.

Read Marian Berelowitz' full interview with Frank Rose on jwtintelligence.com

Permalink | Leave a comment  »

]]>
http://files.posterous.com/user_profile_pics/2024188/Screen_Shot_2012-06-07_at_5.01.45_PM.png http://posterous.com/users/3sOfsD8qBu5X Siobhan O'Flynn narrativenow Siobhan O'Flynn