Transmedia and Augmented Reality

Presentation to

Ubiquitous Media StudioPalo Alto, California

Robert PrattenFounder, TransmediaStoryteller.com

13th October 2010

About me

…and in the recent past…

Current project: Lowlifes.tv

One story, three perspectives.Told over three platforms: novella, web series, blog.

This presentation

• Intro to transmedia: basic concepts– what is transmedia storytelling? – types of transmedia storytelling– why is "transmedia“ so popular?

• Design principals for transmedia experiences – deciding what your goals are– designing to achieve the goals– how might we employ AR in an transmedia experience?

Part 1: Introduction to Transmedia

Transmedia storytelling

…is telling a story across multiple media and, although it doesn’t always happen, with a degree of audience participation, interaction or collaboration…

...with each additional media heightening the audience’ understanding, enjoyment and affection for the story.

Transmedia storytelling

Story and storyworld

Types of Transmedia

Franchise transmediamultiple platforms create a collection of individual experiences

Portmanteau transmediamultiple platforms contribute to a single experience

Why Transmedia

• Millennials/GenY expect it:– simultaneous multi-platform consumption of media– multiple media

• More audience touchpoints to aid discovery in world exploding with content

• Increased penetration of sales to existing audience• Consumers actively avoiding ads: therefore brands

seeking truly engaging experiences• Exciting and fun: oceans of uncharted water to explore

Part 2: Designing your Experience

Anatomy of a transmedia project

• The Story– genre, characters, location, time, plot etc.

• The Experience – timing (commercial, context, practical)– platforms (media, technology, physical)– location (online, offline, geographical)– agency (interactive, affecting, collaborative)

Transmedia projects

Story Gaming

Participation

Storytelling Cube (Raph Koster & Rich Vogel)

• Control: How much freedom does the audience have to create their own experience and how much control will you have as the author?

• Impact: What long-lasting impact will the audience have on the evolution of the experience?

• Context: How much of the experience is based in a fictional world and how much exists in “real life”?

Transmedia Radar Diagram

Story (strength, depth & authorial

control)

Gaming (goals, puzzles, challenges, trophies)

Participation (contribute, change, co-create)

Real-world (pervasive, built around fact)

Participation = ability of audience to change or contribute to the story-experienceGaming = audience has goal, use of puzzles, game mechanics (trophies, levels, leader boards etc.)

Story = importance of narrative, depth of world & degree of authorial controlReal-world = extent to which story-experience pervades real locations & times

Transmedia Project Development

Story

Experience Audience

Platforms BusinessModel

Execution

Transmedia Project Development

Story

Experience Audience

Platforms BusinessModel

ExecutionAR fits here

Part 3: Use of Augmented Reality

Approaching Augmented Reality

• How might the story be best served with this platform?

• What experiences can I create?• What content can I deliver?• How does it fit within the storyworld?• What business model opportunities are there?• What audiences will be excluded/ included?

Augmented reality – when, where, how?

HomeHome Away

Tablet

Tablet

Public screen?

AR

• Call-to-action– AR marker (offline to online)

• Narrative (video, animation, audio)– Add interactivity to non-interactive media– Provide contextual story

• Exploration– Provide contextual content

• location-based content – Provide audience with tools

• gaming• role-play

Lowlifes.tv

• Lowlifes.tv is a book, video series and blog• Authorial control is the dominant feature• No game or puzzles even though there’s some

mystery in the storytelling and a few content “clues”

• Experience has strong link to San Francisco with exploratory content coming from real-world sources such as wikipedia, SF crime map etc.

• There’s a forum to influence future stories and the development of the character but this experience is “on rails”

• AR & mobile used to provide additional narrative content (sub-plot in video, audio, images) that enriches ownership of paid content (book & ebook) and exploratory content (wikipedia, coalition on homelessness in SF)

Story

GamingParticipation

Real-world

Infection: AR mobile game

• Location-based mobile game in which AR is used to identify infected areas of a small neighborhood. Teams complete to “clean-up the ‘hood” or “infect the ‘hood“within a 60 min time window: point mobile camera, see infection, zap infection, get points or see no infection, create infection, get points.

• Story is used to establish the premise for the game but from then on players make their own entertainment choosing how to progress through the streets and extent of role-play

• Players have no ability to change the rules of the game or contribute content

Story

GamingParticipation

Real-world

CyberKiller

• Comic book series and feature film provides strong narrative thread that ties together all aspects of content.

• Game mechanics used to encourage collection of content and to establish “super fan” bragging rights plus puzzles and PvP used to test knowledge of storyworld to win prizes

• Some participation in the storyworld in that fans allowed to submit fan fiction and upload artwork but is mostly outside canon

• Opportunity for real-world LARP at meet-ups which again feeds into game

• AR used to provide community with fun and role-play tools - facial-recognition overlays cybernetic endoskeleton on real faces

Story

GamingParticipation

Real-world

Lowlifes.tv - AR marker at end of chapter reveals clue that creates suspense

AreYouAwake.tv

http://social.areyouawake.tv

Transmedia Storyteller

Robert Prattentwitter.com/zenfilms

www.transmediastoryteller.com