Joomla! site syndication http://plugincinema.com/plugin 2009-07-04T22:59:51+01:00 http://plugincinema.com/plugin http://plugincinema.com/plugin/images/M_images/joomla_rss.png text/html 2009-07-01T10:17:27+01:00 http://plugincinema.com/plugin http://plugincinema.com/plugin/content/view/1884/27/ (This article originally appoeared in the January 2009 issue of Develop (http://www.developmag.com/) magazine)Expanding Event HorizonsThere can be little doubt that there has been huge amounts of convergence within both media content and technology: not only does my phone make calls but it also plays music and video. My PS3 is far more than just a games machine: it is a connected media centre. But to add to the confusion there is also a huge amount of divergence, you can play Sonic the Hedgehog on mobile, PS3, xbox360, PC and much more. It is not enough to say Sonic, you also need to say what version and on what platform (not forgetting the myriad of other non-game Sonics, from cartoons to fan-created works on YouTube). How do content creators make sense of an event horizon that is both shrinking and growing at the same time?In film studies, there is a useful term; 'diegesis (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diegesis)' that I think can help us to understand this situation better. Not just from some lofty academic stand-point but in a way that helps us makes the overall experience more coherent for the player, that helps our development process and enables our business models to adapt to constantly changing products. Diegesis, as a concept, originates from classical Greek theatre and has been adopted by film studies to refer to the 'narrative space' a movie might occupy. By this we mean, not just what happens on the screen that we see and hear, but also what happens to the characters that is not represented on the screen, but impacts the story. Let me give an example, in the film 'Cloverfield (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IvNkGm8mxiM)', we are introduced to a number of characters before the monster attacks the city. They have clearly been written with lives that extend back before the events the film covers. These relationships are central to the narrative and are referred to directly in conversation in the film, and there is also a small portion of 'pre-recorded' footage on the camera that the audience sees. The monster is also central to unfolding events in the film: at ground-zero of the massive conflict that engulfs the city in fact, but it is not a central character. As audience, however, we only glimpse a fraction of the conflict we know is occurring. The film does not show us everything that we know has happened and is happening. It is the 'narrative space' of the film, its diegesis that contains the past of the characters, the conflict with the monster and much more. Our understanding of this diegesis is what makes the film's story what it is. Diegesis is the totality of events, wherever and whenever it happens.Charting The Edges of the Digital Event HorizonWhat I propose is that we start to see all of our creations as part of an inclusive, diegetic media world. In film studies, the diegetic world is one that refers to all we see as well as all additional information that makes the world coherent and sensible: it contains all that the audience needs to understand the story. I would like to take this idea further: as well as containing all essential narrative elements, 'Diegetic Media' is a bringing together of the development of all creative content on all platforms that all contribute to, that create a world that is more than just one story/platform. It enables the audience/players to experience our creations in a variety of ways and a variety of forms. This idea can be illustrated, in embryonic form in The Matrix (http://whatisthematrix.warnerbros.com/). Whilst opinion on the films and games may be mixed, the Wachowski brothers approach to the concept of the Matrix is very interesting in relation to 'Diegetic Media'. I will start by discussing their approach to the narrative and explore how they drew all the separate elements of the story together.The story starts, chronologically, with the short films 'The Second Renaissance, Parts I and II (http://www.thematrix101.com/animatrix/renaissance.php)', though some of this is explained by Morpheus to Neo in the first (1999) film, The Matrix. The story chronologically, then continues in the short film 'Final Flight of the Osiris (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Animatrix#Final_Flight_of_the_Osiris)', where the crew of the Osiris discover the Machine's plan to drill to Zion and in response they get a message 'out' into the Matrix. The narrative is pushed along different lines by the game 'Enter the Matrix (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enter_the_Matrix)', where the player has to acquire the urgent message mentioned in 'Final Flight of the Osiris', and pass it on to the other film characters, which turns into the focus for the 2003 film, Matrix Reloaded (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F0On9Hf7Quc). Other comics, short films, websites and the MMPROG feed into and grow out of the story in terms of events and characters but also in simply growing the narrative space outwards and enriching it with each additional element. This prompted one writer (http://www.henryjenkins.org/) to refer to The Matix's story as 'Transmedia Storytelling'; “The Matrix is entertainment for the age of media convergence, integrating multiple texts to create a narrative so large that it cannot be contained within a single medium...The Matrix is also entertainment for the era of collective intelligence...The Matrix clearly functions as both cultural attractor and cultural activator. The most committed consumers track down data spread across multiple media, scanning each and every text for insights into the world.”There is, of course, an obvious business model relating to the sales potential every time there is a new release: creating a market for each element that is part of the overall Diegetic Media world. It amplifies the overall potential for new sales to existing customers, as well as having a plethora of choices available to new customers enabling them to 'buy into' the concept at any level. There is also an aspect of cultural amplification whereby the audience is encouraged to feel part of something bigger. Being involved in a culturally located diegetic media event means they will be more willing to invest in it over time, lending longevity to the overall Diegetic Media concept or narrative. As games become ever more connected, we want the audiences to go further to explore deeper into the worlds we create, to take the 'red-pill', to explore and come away wanting more.Everything is Connected to Everything ElseNot only is the technology changing but so is the audience and their expectations of what they want and expect from their entertainment. They are no longer content to be passive consumers who sit down and watch what they are told. They are as media and tech. savvy as many of the content creators and publishers (if not more so with younger audiences!) themselves. In addition, they are morphing from audience into creators in their own right, ripping, re-mixing and modding where they see fit. Where there is an 'official' cannon of the original creators there are many layers below this, where other creators – official and non-official - license holders, fan works etc. all add to the diegetic media world. They fill in the gaps left by the original, adding new concepts and ideas, but all within the same, original diegetic universe/narrative. The creative tension and expression that leads to the birthing of a new paradigm is no longer a choice for the creators. As with any popular creation, there is little doubt that a diegetic media horizon will grow and expand, the question is now; how do we want to create within this world.I suggest that we should start to see the creation of a game not in purely game terms, but that we should see it from the start as part of a larger, coherent diegetic media product: as a narrative and interactive space that will engage its users over a period of time. Whilst the game aspect of the concept may be the crucial aspect of the project initially (although, who knows where the potential could lie) we should also consider how other media can best assist us in telling our stories. Which of these new mediums should we choose? Which is best able to populate and enrich our emerging narratives, to realise the myths of this brave new media-enhanced world we will all be staring at in a future not far from now. text/html 2009-07-01T07:32:12+01:00 http://plugincinema.com/plugin http://plugincinema.com/plugin/content/view/1883/40/ There is a new idea in the coming version of the web-browser, Opera - called 'Unite' - what is interesting is that that is that is seems to be the opposite of cloud computing (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cloud_computing) in that it makes each user a server rather than a client, as in they can share videos, images and more via their browser. An interesting idea! (http://labs.opera.com/news/2009/06/16/) Opera Unite is a unique technology that turns any computer or device running Opera into a Web server. In other words, your computer (running Opera Unite) is truly part of the fabric of the Web, rather than just interacting with it, and it’s something anyone can use. With Opera Unite, everyday non-technical users can serve and share content and services directly from their own computers in the form of intuitive applications. That sounds kind of cool from a technology point of view, but what can you do with it, and why is it important?With Opera Unite, we are giving developers a chance to develop applications (known as Opera Unite services) that directly link people’s personal computers together, so that you can connect with one or more of your friends at the same time. It all happens through the browser, so no additional software has to be downloaded, and it will work wherever Opera works (Windows, Mac, Linux, and later mobile phones and other devices). Opera provides the platform and you provide the applications—what you create is limited only by your imagination. text/html 2009-06-22T07:03:34+01:00 http://plugincinema.com/plugin http://plugincinema.com/plugin/content/view/1882/40/ Lots of people (http://techdirt.com/) have been saying this for years - now the the economists are proving it (http://www.michaelgeist.ca/content/view/4062/125/);Economists Felix Oberholzer-Gee and Koleman Strumpf have just released a new Harvard Business School working paper called File Sharing and Copyright that raises some important points about file sharing, copyright, and the net benefits to society. This study are tackles a number of myths about p2p and file sharing such as that a download does not equal a lost sales (also noted here (http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2009/jun/05/ben-goldacre-bad-science-music-downloads)), that more music and films than ever before have been created. Worth a read. text/html 2009-06-10T10:30:35+01:00 http://plugincinema.com/plugin http://plugincinema.com/plugin/content/view/1881/40/ Here's an interesting development - the turning of digital issues into votes (http://torrentfreak.com/pirate-party-wins-and-enters-the-european-parliament-090607/);When the Swedish Pirate Party was founded in early 2006, the majority of the mainstream press were skeptical, with some simply laughing it away. But they were wrong to dismiss this political movement out of hand. Today, the Pirate Party accomplished what some believed to be the impossible, by securing a seat in the European Parliament.With 99.9% of the districts counted the Pirates have 7.1 percent of the votes, beating several established parties. This means that the Pirate Party will get at least one, but most likely two of the 18 (+2) available seats Sweden has at the European Parliament. text/html 2009-05-29T09:54:40+01:00 http://plugincinema.com/plugin http://plugincinema.com/plugin/content/view/1880/40/ The BBC and ITV have been looking at a new secret project, 'Canvas' which aims to (http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2008/dec/11/bbc-itv-bt-broadband-freeview) ; ...combine TV, radio and high-definition services with on-demand catch-up and archive programming provided by technology such as the BBC's iPlayer and ITV Player, as well as films, web content and interactive TV services. And given the success of iPlayer, it has got potential competitors, such as Sky, very nervous (http://www.independent.co.uk/news/business/news/sky-challenges-bbc-plans-for-project-canvas-catchup-tv-service-1684065.html). There is more on Canvas here too (http://www.flypaper.tv/2008/10/25/what-is-project-canvas/).