LAMP FORMATS

EMERGING MEDIA FORMATS

This is a collaborative page to develop and fine tune the eight formats for the LAMP:SOF workshops.

Please edit as you see fit.

Revised Program:

9.30 - 9:45 Welcome Peter Giles and Josie Emery

9:45 - 10:15 Exciting New Markets and Opportunities

Gary Hayes gives a brief overview of the general landscape.

10:15 - 10:45 Game Story

Jackie covering a) TLC and b) Indigo Prophesy plus 5 min Q&A

10:45 - 11:15 Distributed Story

Marissa a) Fat Cow Motel b) UGC driven ARG tba plus 5 min Q&A

11.15 - 11.30 Morning Tea

11:30 - 12:00 Story World

Gary a) MMORPG, directed RPGame b) Story environment for UGC Role play etc plus 5 min Q&A

12:00 - 12:30 Collaborative Story

Peter a) Parallel Collaboration - PS Trixi, L Word Script, Forget the Rules b) Story seed/episodic collaboration, audience - Lonely Girl plus 5 min Q&A

12:30 - 12.55 Stories Meets Formats: Speed Dating Exercise

Participants pick a 3 x 5 card which puts them in one of eight groups of six. These groups are either one of 4 stories (classic novels or films) or one of the four story formats(as above). Format groups sit at long tables and story groups sit opposite. In pairs, students discuss the potential of the marriage between the format and the story for 5 minutes, then story groups rotate.

12:55 - 1:10 Brief for next steps and pitch

1:10 - 2:00 Lunch 50 minute Working Lunch. Over lunch, participants meet in original 8 groups, share their findings, decide on a format/story match and prepare a pitch.

2:00 - 2.30 Speed Dating Pitches and Feedback with all mentors

2.30 - 3:00 Growing Your Story: Idea Selection

Participants meet in original groups of six and share their ideas, voting and choosing one to develop. Mentors circulate.

3:00 - 3:45 Growing Your Story: Idea Development

Participants work in original groups of five and develop their ideas further and their pitches. Mentors circulate.

3.45 - 4:00 Afternoon Tea Working break, continues through pitch prep.

4.00 - 4.30 Ideas Pitches and Feedback with all mentors

4.30 - 5.00 Next Steps

Gary Hayes and Peter Giles present on what can be achieved the LAMP residential and beyond. Q & A

5.00 Finish

Format Presentations:

1. What is it? Brief definition, mediums involved, audience
2. How does it work? User journey demonstrated from call to action
3. How does narrative work? Story structure, turning points, suspense, climax
4. What are the components? 4 or 5 key elements/organs including tools

Notes and To Do

1. Put stories and formats on 3 x 5 cards with title on front and description on back (use for group assignation)
2. Format signs on stands on tables
3. Brief the speed dating by Gary and Jackie demonstrating/roleplaying example of pair collaboration
4. Ensure that formats take ownership and don't do hybrids
5. Story teams must start afresh and each table
6. Suggest putting speed dating brief on overhead projector to look at throughout exercise
7. Also could put pitch hints up on projector

Four Stories

1. Dracula
2. The Magic Pudding
3. Mad Max
4. Clueless

Collaborative Story (PG)

Web 2.0 - Free Hugs Campaign, Lonelygirl15 and Georgiana Molloy

1. What is it?

- Second generation of web services or Web 2.0 are two way meaning that they are conversations not broadcasts - Blogs, Wikis, RSS Feeds, podcasts, vodcasts are central - Subscriptions to content, highlighting most recent updates, dynamic sites which feature user generated content (UGC) - Concept of 'mass intelligence' that is harnessed to collaboratively create content, resources and solve problems - Audience/users - younger 18 - 35 demographic who overwhelmingly trust blogs over traditional print media

1. How does it work? User journey demonstrated from call to action

Good examples are the peer review elements of TriggerSt, the economic elements of CurrentTV and of course the vanity publishing aspects of YouTube. The user can subscribe to a service or 'feed' and is alerted when updates become available. In this way content can be personalised and delivered. Users are also given the opportunity to comment in text, audio or video form so build up a constellation of content around a meme. Content can also be tagged by users so that they can be found in particular ways - this is called a 'folksonomy' and indicates a viral, popular way of classifying and hierarchising information.

1. How does narrative work? Story structure, turning points, suspense, climax

Stories are character driven and rely on 1st person techniques, eg confessional. Different points of view can be given through other characters but communication is almost always one on one and direct to camera. Therefore characters need to be three dimensional and totally believable as they are carrying the story. In addition, they need to be completely authentic, in the case of LonelyGirl15, any suggestion she is not real discredits the entire story.

In terms of story structure, they are by their very nature episodic and build drama over a series of posts. In the case of Lonelygirl15 there is a parallel story structure where the same events are described from the points of view of different characters.

Free Hugs is a simple template which has been imitated and proliferated around the world - it is an example of a strong 'meme' or idea that proliferates or virally builds through the system.

1. A popular appeal to key human values and personal engagement
2. An idea that ties in with current events or high rated search terms
3. Want to know more? Opinions, dialogue and diverse knowledge around a subject area
4. Want to connect with other audience members? Community building tools around themed media
5. Want to be heard? an opportunity to publish your views in a two way discussion
6. Want to be findable? Aggregating user generated content is a good way to do this

Story and Mash-up. New media (pre-rendered and UGC)

1. What is it?

Interactive resource that allows the user to navigate through a story or theme and engages them to play, extending their experience with the property. DVD and CD ROM, broadband web and IPTV mediums. Favours older demographic and consumers of traditional TV and film, although with the rapid growth of online mash-up "engines", the form may now begin to attract younger audiences.

1. How does it work?

An extension of a linear media property providing more background materials, assets and resources for users to explore and learn more. After navigating and becoming familiar with the assets, users are given a challenge and offered the chance to re-structure the assets according to their personal preferences. The "Call to Action" (CTA) may take the form of an invitation to engage in the following activities: re-create/re-edit the material as an individual, re-edit/re-create from a pool of assets in collaboration with an online community, create material (from scratch) in response to the media property either as an individual or as a member of an online community. For example Rolf de Heer's "Ten Canoes" website (a small subset of a much larger project including a feature film), invites people to create their own poster or edit their own "film" from a series of clips.

1. How does narrative work? Story structure, turning points, suspense, climax

Providing meaning through juxtaposition of a variety of points of view, story is much less sacred here. An initial navigation and exploration of the resources leads to more advanced features where users can put their own stamp on the material eg: re-shuffle a sequence of video and audio to "re-create" a story. By being reedited stories can be completely changed (eg edits of John Wayne movies to Brokeback-esque gay cowboy trailers). The strongest examples will still have a solid narrative but the meaning comes from the alteration, ie it is the ability to customise the content and repurpose it that is the driving force rather than serving a fixed story premise.

• the "audience" is invited to "Lean-Forward" rather than "Lean-Back" - people move from observing to doing for example: in the LAMP project "4th World" the "audience" is invited to travel around a virtual music festival including spaces such as the Main Stage, Backstage and the "Merch" tent. It's only when they discover the "mash-up tent" however, that they truly transition from exploring to doing and participating. Even though the audio loops and samples are pre-made, there is enough flexibility via the interactivity and content to allow people the feeling of "creating" their own unique compositions. The vocals are subtle spoken-word tracks which often contain a compelling socio-political message.
• the act of "creation" enables a personalised experience
• encourages a natural urge to play and explore in a mediated space
• when people are "playing", they are often at their most open and able to absorb and contribute to multi-layered meaning - they are learning and knowledge-building in an informal more spontaneous fashion
• "re-editing" material, even at the simplest level is a gratifying experience and encourages an emotional investment in the story(s)
• the "mash-up" form assumes a natural curiosity and intelligence in its "audience"

Key components

1. A fixed asset pool of content arranged thematically or in logical order ie: video footage, images, audio.

1. Tools which allow users to navigate and explore the content. These may be custom-built for the property or may be openly available on the web.

Some examples of freely available online tools: Jumpcut, vSocial, motionbox, vuvox, scrapblog. One of the earliest tools available was filmator"...devoted to visual artists , musicians, documentary-makers and uses Web 2.0 technology to enable creators to produce Filmations...Filmations are compiled using sound, pictures, videos, Flash Films and the Title Generator tool...Filmmakers can create and distribute films online using one site."

1. Additional tools and challenges to keep an audience engaged with content: widgets (ie: Google images, e-bay, YouTube etc.), which may be used to add "real-time" and "real-life" veracity to a story world. Online engines which allow users/audiences to mix and match themes against "real-world" data eg: "MoveTrack" using Google Maps. When you visit the site, your iTunes library appears on the left side of the screen. On the right side of the screen, you see the Google Maps application. Once your library has fully loaded, you enter a starting and ending address and see your route populate on the map. Then, you drag and drop songs from your library into the route you've created. Once you've populated your route with songs, save your MoveTrack so that it's sent to your iTunes library as a playlist. Sync your iPod (or burn a CD), hop in your car and push play at your starting landmark. You are now listening to your MoveTrack."

Other egs that do this - [Long Journeys Young Lives, Dog and Cat News, Inconvenient Truth? Rolf De Heer's Ten Canoes,

Examples from LAMP of activist type services

• Ministry of Truth
• 4th World
• Global Youth Futures
• Scorched
• Your House is Killing You
• Jared Reckons
• Georgiana Molloy

Distributed Story (MC)

Cross Media Storytelling - TBA

Fat Cow Motel

Alternate Reality Game (ARG)

1. What is it? An interactive narrative that uses the real world as a platform, often involving multiple media and game elements. The form is typified by intense player involvement with a story that takes place in real-time and evolves according to participants' responses, and characters that are actively controlled by the game's designers, as opposed to being controlled by artificial intelligence as in a computer or console video game. Players interact directly with characters in the game, solve plot-based challenges and puzzles, and often work together with a community to analyze the story and coordinate real-life and online activities. ARGs generally use multiple media (such as telephones, email, and mail) but rely on the Internet as the central binding medium.

1. How does it work?

A hook or rabbit hole in ARG parlance, grabs the audience and pulls them into the story. They are given a quest that may at first seem like a smaller quest but is quickly revealed to be much bigger and more complex. A signature of ARGs seems to be the false summit. Players are given many dead ends, detours, and turning points that provide strong story structure. The goal or climax is often a real world event. For example:

The Beast, which ran for twelve weeks in the spring and early summer of 2001, was set in the year 2142, fifty years after the events chronicled in A.I. There were three overlapping entry points to the game, or "rabbit holes". First, some trailers and posters for A.I. had a credit for Jeanine Salla as Sentient Machine Therapist hidden among the credits for Spielberg and the actors. Second, one of the trailers encoded a telephone number in markings on the promotional text; if a player called this number and followed the given instructions he/she eventually received an email stating in part that "Jeanine is the key" and that "you've seen her name before." Third, an A.I. promotional poster sent to some technology and entertainment media outlets had a very simple code stating "Evan Chan was murdered. Jeanine is the key."

Each rabbit hole led to questions about Jeanine Salla, especially since one would not expect a film made in 2001 to require the services of a robotherapist. Googling Jeanine brought up several web pages set in the fictional world of the game such as the homepage of Salla's employer, Bangalore World University. Reading Salla's bio page, the player encountered a link to the personal page of Salla's granddaughter, Laia Salla, as well as Jeanine's phone number. Following these clues leads the player to the homepage of Evan and Nancy Chan, family friends of the Sallas. Jeanine's phone message revealed that Evan recently died in an alleged boating accident on his A.I.-enhanced boat, the Cloudmaker. From the beginning some question the official story of Evan's death. For instance, on Laia's web page memorial to Evan she writes "He was a superb swimmer. He was a wonderful sailor. He died on the boat who loved him within sight of land."

At this point the player joins the investigation into Evan's death. Over the course of the three months the Beast went on, it incorporated thirty diverse in-game websites, from the Anti-Robot Militia to the Coalition for Robot Freedom; from an architectural magazine to a sleep clinic, and from the coroner's office to a hat store. As the game progressed, the players came across additional mysteries, such as who is killing A.I.-enhanced houses, the location of the sexbot with whom Evan had an affair, and malfunctions in the weather-control system. By the end of the twelve weeks, players had also had live phone conversations with a game character and participated in Anti-Robot Militia rallies in New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles.

1. How does narrative work?

Storytelling as archaeology. Instead of presenting a chronologically unified, coherent narrative, the designers scatter pieces of the story across the Internet and other media, allowing players to reassemble it, supply connective tissue and determine what it means.

Platformless narrative. The story is not bound to a single medium, but exists independently and uses whatever media is available

Designing for a hive mind. While it might be possible to follow the game individually, the design is directed at a collective of players that share information and solutions almost instantly, and incorporates individuals possessing almost every conceivable area of expertise. While the game might initially attract a small group of participants, as they came across new challenges, they reach out and draw in others with the knowledge they needed to overcome the obstacles.

A whisper is sometimes louder than a shout. Rather than openly promoting the game and trying to attract participation by "pushing" it toward potential players, the designers attempt to "pull" players to the story by engaging in over-the-top secrecy (e.g. Microsoft did not acknowledge any connection between the company or the movie and the game, the game did not acknowledge any connection to Microsoft or A.I., the identities of the designers were a closely-guarded secret even from other Microsoft employees, etc.), having elements of the game "warn" players away from them, and eschewing traditional marketing channels. Designers did not communicate about the game with players or press while it was in play.

The "this is not a game" (TINAG) aesthetic. The game itself does not acknowledge that it is a game. It does not have an acknowledged ruleset for players; as in real-life, they determine the "rules" either through trial and error or by setting their own boundaries. The narrative presents a fully-realized world: any phone number or email address that is mentioned actually works, and any website acknowledged actually exists. The game takes place in real-time and is not replayable. Characters function like real people, not game pieces, respond authentically, and are controlled by real people, not by computer AI. Some events involve meetings or live phone calls between players and actors.

Real life as a medium. The game uses players' lives as a platform. Players are not required to build a character or role-play being someone other than themselves. They might unexpectedly overcome a challenge for the community simply because of the real-life knowledge and background they possess. Participants are constantly on the lookout for clues embedded in everyday life.

Collaborative storytelling. While the puppetmasters controll most of the story, they incorporate player content and respond to players' actions, analysis and speculation by adapting the narrative and intentionally left "white space" for the players to fill in.

1. What are the components?

• A complex story, usually a mystery or conspiracy to be solved, distributed as fragments
• Multiple ways to enter the story and a clear goal articulated for the players
• Registration for players to be contacted via email, sms etc and opportunites to confer with other players, forums etc
• Multiple mediums including real world meeting places, events and clues
• "White spaces" or open areas of the narrative for the players to fill in and/or determine

Story World (GH)

Virtual Communities for Children(Habo Hotel, Runescape, Nickelodeon, others?)

1. What is it? MMO, a 3D-esque online space where kids can meet friends, chat, roleplay, purchase clothes, customise their avatar, their own space, buy goods, trade and share. Online broadband sites for children aged from as young as three.
2. How does it work? Kids are alerted to the site through a favourite TV show or channel, through toys, or word of mouth. They can register for free but their involvement is limited. If they pay a subscription they are able to own more and have more access within the world. Depending on the site kids can become part of quests and role playing games, or can simply use the site as a character driven chat room.
3. How does narrative work? Here the narrative is primarily in the context - the world and the characters, relationships and back story that is the set up for the interaction. In a site like Nickelodeon the story is very strong in the kids' understanding of the brand, eg kids only have to hear the My Little Pony theme song and they immediately engage in a way of role playing (complete with american accents) that is integral to the narrative of that brand. In that case, stories around sharing, making friends, helping each other etc. However because there is not fixed narrative the kids are free to become the authors and the actors in the stories that play out. Generally they will follow what they already know of the brand stories at least in terms of direction and then start to branch out. The degree of how much game is in the space will also determine the level of narrative structure. In terms of building the drama, an overall quest gives the players a motivation or reason to be there but there needs to be enough freedom for them to do this autonomously. In many cases the goal is simply to have more stuff, meet with friends, or progress through levels of skill and achievement. Rhythm and pacing is an interesting issue here, with a game like WOW the release of new areas and quests help build the players suspense and anticipation and makes the game feel less static.
4. What are the components?
5. A 3D or 3D-like online world
6. Customisable characters and sets
7. Ability to communicate live with other players
8. Possible role playing elements such as guilds, quests etc
9. Real world bleed through forums, trading cards, toys etc.

Immersive Shared Online Worlds

What is it? Brief definition, mediums involved, audience

• These are best thought of as customisable or non game-specific online 3D communities.
• Often called MUVE's they include services like Second Life, There, ActiveWorlds, Sims Online and even traditional MMOs such as Neverwinter Nights which is customisable.
• Modern MUVEs allow for thousands of simultaneous users to interact across a persistent virtual world.
• The audience demographic is very broad across age and gender with an average age of 32.
• The worlds often have 'real life' paradigms that drive them - money, sex, education, creativity and so on.
• The big attraction for brands and creative producers is accessible tools that make building the world rapid and cost effective.
• The immersion goes from 'residents' seeing MUVEs as 3D chat rooms at one end to complete alternate and parallel dimensions at the other.

How does it work? User journey demonstrated from call to action

We could consider these worlds as tools to create an unlimited range of sub-cultures or branded, mini worlds. This makes them ideal for story world development and more importantly a way to draw users into an immersive environment that has far more impact than most other forms of media. Examples within the now nearly 4 million registrant strong Second Life to include Darfur, NOAA, Dublin, Amsterdam, City of Lost Angels, Midian City, Navora, Sigil, Star Trek, Star Wars, Crimson Empire, Myst/Uru as well as a few corporate branded spaces.

The way users are drawn into persistant virtual worlds, the call to actions and sequence of events:

1. Initially the pull is curiousity, media hype or peer pressure
2. Once inworld there is a significant learning curve and this investment is hard to throw away after a certain point
3. Like any social network once you have connected with old friends, made new friends or joined interest groups you become 'obliged' to reenter on a regular basis.
4. Once exploring if you become aware of the 'event horizon' and unlimited play, an element of the 'service is bigger then you' becomes a draw. Something to 'lose' yourself in, escapism.
5. You then may become aware of the visual or auditory detail, beauty or personality of the place. It is a place worthy of your time to inhabit.
6. As you go deeper you discover 'niche' areas. Role play worlds within worlds, specialist groups behavioural or interest.
7. The worlds within worlds element becomes the entertainment replacement on top of the basic inhabitation of the main virtual world. Today you role play, tomorrow you educate yourself, the day after you go dancing and so on.
8. You start to become part of regular social events and like 'the local pub' it may become your regular place to communicate with a global group of people.
9. Then you may get the urge to personalise the experience by creating your own world within the service. This is total commitment and keeps you locked in as you invest both time and money creating 'your' ideal space.

How does narrative work? Story structure, turning points, suspense, climax

• Virtual worlds combine traditional role playing with the added element of real world cross-over.
• Those inhabiting avatars are playing with the complexity of real world ethics/morales/story brought into a new space so there is often a tension with many story elements playing against a well rooted real life context.
• The story becomes less the story within the role play and more the story of the interaction. Ie the story of the experience, in much the same way someone tells a travel story. "Today I was in world and this happened..." Also interesting to look at stories within the story, the stories we tell of RL in the Virtual context and how this type of storytelling is almost a sub genre of the story of the interaction. Except here is it is the flip of the travel story, it is RL being told to VL.
• Also interesting is the split between those that role play a different persona, vs those who play themselves, but perhaps emphasise a different part of themselves. How they describe themselves changes the way they interact and how fictional it is for them. Ie is this real or is this fiction? Or is it both?
• Story structure is completely determined by the degree of story in the world. If it is a roleplay space like Firefly in SL, is their a quest for the evening/week/month/year? Does the story build over time with outside elements being introduced to steer the story in certain directions? Or is it simply a free for all?
• Narrative Need: Just as in traditional literature, film and tv, different audiences have different narrative needs. Some need a very straightforward story spoon fed to them, others prefer a more David Lynch or abstract experience where they get to determine the narrative meaning. That continuum would certainly play out here with some participants wanting more structured play whilst others want simply to be.
• From a story perspective it varies as above - immersion goes from 'residents' seeing MUVEs as 3D chat rooms at one end to complete alternate and parallel dimensions at the other. So the story is real life brought in through their alternate identity/s - which creates an interesting paradox immediately. A penguin talking about their hard day at the office or a muscular 6 foot man discussing their state of pregnancy in real life and so on.
• For those that keep their 'avatorial' identity separate then they are continually role playing. They have committed to a character which is not their own and although unscripted, for those who only know their avatars a significant character is in place. Each 'next' meeting therefore has a built in narrative continuance.
• The pure role play is when the above already shifted character takes on a 3rd role. Playing a pre-defined role within a specially created sub-environment and improvising to a pre-set story. Eg: Here are a few character definitions from Midian City:
  • SHADOW STALKERS - Much darker in desire and intent are this loose knit group of psychologically insane individuals who choose a very different approach to the hunt. The Stalkers do not play games with their prey like the Hounds. They wait in the shadows, and are behind every corner, under every fire escape. They are patient, they are determined, and when they spot a favored prey, they pounce, grab, and drag it into the darkness with them. What happens after that is often unspeakable, even within the city itself.
  • CATWALKERS - A blip in the human genetic code has given birth to these half cat half human anomalies. Seldom seen on the streets, these "CATWALKERS" can be found perched high above the city on the many catwalks, upon which they are forever roaming, watching, and waiting for a chance to pounce. They love to toy with their prey. Fun loving kittens, easily amused, they just as readily squash those things that come to bore them. They are jokers and night creatures and just love to play, just like the cats they resemble.
  • GUTTER RATS - Scamper Run Climb and Hide: the Gutter Rat way of life. A varied lot of homeless teens who know all too well that there is safety in numbers. They've learned the hard way never to trust or fall for soft smiles and offerings of candy from the smiling perverts of the alleys.This streetwise gang knows better than most the quickest paths through the tangled city streets and the twisted sewers beneath. And so, they are often used as go betweens and carriers.

What are the components? 4 or 5 key elements/organs including tools

The ingredients of a 'branded or purpose driven' space in a virtual world are:

• LOTS TO EXPLORE. A compelling, immersive 3D space with lots to explore, learn and be active within
• PLACE TO CALL HOME. Where individuals have a place to feel at home with a like-minded community and part of the evolution of the sub-world.
• STAYS THE SAME. Persistance of place and story that slowly evolves based on user input. And you are compelled (as in any good soapy) to return as often as you can to keep up with developments.
• IT IS ‘DETAILED’. The most popular areas of virtual worlds are the organic ones, with faults but with real complexity and richness in a) design, look and feel and b) back-story development. The story world architects, like any game, need to be key role players and provide freshness.
• ROLE-PLAY. Give your mini-world defined roles for people to play, simulations that people can adopt and grow.
• THE PLACE IS SPECIAL. The space must be special, not a clone of other areas by developing an environmental identity and personality.

Game Story (JT)

Adventure Game(Indigo Prophecy)

1. What is it? Action adventure game which is a hybrid of adventure game (puzzles and clues) with action game (combat and physical skills), in a quest based single player game, usually with one POV. Usually PC and/or console games for majority male audience but increasingly female audience.
2. How does it work? Player registers, picks a level and then is pulled into a cinematic sequence that sets up the story and the central quest that the player must undertake. A training program helps orient the player and gain the necessary skills to play the game. Player then proceeds through a series of scenes, locations, levels and can not move forward until completing the mini quest in each level. In this sense the game is "on rails". The game is over when the player has achieved the goal of the game and completed the quest.
3. How does narrative work? Structured like any good drama, a dramatic question propels the narrative, characters have arcs, turning points add twists and turns, throwing the player in new directions and there are subplots, backstories a climax and a resolution. Narratively, the biggest challenge lies with losing the dramatic impact of a scene or moment when the player must play it repeatedly in order to get "through", resulting in the player becoming less interested in the narrative at that point and more focussed on the game play.
4. What are the components?

• Complex character who is struggling with something
• An incident that send the character on a journey
• A compelling world that the character/player then traverses
• Puzzles and combat situations the player must solve/win in order to progress
• A climax that is emotionally fullfilling and satisfying from a game play perspective.

FOUR FORMATS FOR SOF CLINIC

Four presentations 30 mins each. Two strong example user journeys and 5 min q/a plus all the other stuff. Continuum authored to non-authored - do a graphic for the presentations

Game Story =

Jackie covering a) TLC and b) Indigo Prophesy + extras

Distributed Story

Marissa a) Fat Cow Motel b) UGC driven ARG tba

Story World

Gary a) MMORPG, directed RPGame b) Story environment for UGC Role play etc

Collaborative Story

Peter Giles What is it?

Story creation in collaboration with an audience

a) Parallel Collaboration - Forget the Rules • Producer invites audience input in parallel with creative process

• Clear invitation to respond and defined ‘rules’ eg. voting

• The reward of having an impact on the storyline

• Mediums can include broadband, mobile, IPTV, SMS

• Audiences: 18 - 35 demographic, active audience

b) Story seed/episodic collaboration, audience - Lonelygirl15

• Producer seeds the elements of the story

• Invitation to respond, comment or contribute

• Constellation of user generated content around story seeds

• Web 2.0 basis and potential of ‘mass intelligence’

• Mediums: broadband web or mobile

• Audiences: 18 - 35 demographic, social networking aspects weighted to female audience

How does it work?

The audience are invited to collaborate by contributing to the creative process in some way. In the case of Forget the Rules, audiences are invited to vote on 'what comes next' or to send in song lyrics or artwork that will feature in the show. The reward for the audience is to see their contribution incorporated into the story - or the influence of their vote reflected in story outcomes. In more freeform episodic collaboration the audience is given the opportunity to comment in text form or through a vlog building up a constellation of content around a particular clip, 'feed' or channel of content. Content is also classified by the users through a tag system - referred to as a 'folksonomy' and indicates a viral, popular way of classifying and hierarchising information.

How does narrative work?

Stories are character driven and rely on 1st person techniques, eg confessional. Different points of view can be given through other characters but communication is almost always one on one and direct to camera. Therefore characters need to be three dimensional and totally believable as they are carrying the story. In addition, they need to be completely authentic, in the case of LonelyGirl15, any suggestion she is not real discredits the entire story.

In terms of story structure, they are by their very nature episodic and build drama over a series of posts. In the case of Lonelygirl15 there is a parallel story structure where the same events are described from the points of view of different characters.

What are the components?

Parallel Collaboration - Forget the Rules

• Defined choices for audience - multiple choice voting

• Topicality: fast turn-around production

• Distribution on mobile, TV and broadband platforms

• Inclusion of audience created elements eg. song lyrics, art

• Narrative short form drama with fast moving stories

• clearly defined ‘windows’ for audience input

Story Seed/Episodic Collaboration - Lonelygirl15

• Building on confessional vlog format

• Single character confessional mode to camera

• Questions of trust and authenticity central

• Freedom for audience to contribute wide range of content

• Conversations between audience members

• Viral distribution to global audience base

• Beginnings of new story structures

• Episodic structure of posts, contrasting points of view

• Short form drama as story seeds to draw audience content

Overall

• An invitation to the audience to contribute to the creative process

• Harnessing human drive to create

• Call to action, inviting response and input

• Reward of being seen or heard

• Web 2.0 encourages social networking of audience

• Two way content encouraging conversations

• Popular appeal to human values and personal engagement