Transmedia Storytelling

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Transmedia Storytelling

Disclaimer: It has been argued that transmedia storytelling can be identified in not only fiction, but advertising, news and public relations. As this blog will be addressing how transmedia storytelling applies to video game development, not so much advertising, there will be an emphasis on how it functions with fictional content.

So what is it?

Transmedia storytelling is the term used to describe the process in which media content can be expanded and extended across a number of different media platforms, and is most successful when used to create and explore an entire story universe, taking Star Wars  as an example. This expansion is both "spreadable" and "drillable"(Jason Mittel, in Epstein, online, 2010) and 'commercial' and 'grassroots' (Jenkins, online, 2009).

Commercial expansion is used to help the content reach a wider audience, and has many economic benefits. It is primarily achieved through collaboration with other media firms through licensing, and begins by 'spreading' content from say television to film to the internet. From there, it creates a desire for fans to 'drill' deeper into the universe and, increasingly, participate themselves. This is where the grassroots expansion occurs, when passive 'viewers' become active 'users' and user-generated content like fan art or fan fiction, or simply ideas about the plot's future revelations,  are shared among user communities.

Here are some examples of commercial and grassroots expansion:

Grassroots:  

Commercial: 

Henry Jenkins certainly believes Transmedia Storytelling to be the perfect fit for the collectively intelligent world of today, and using a few of his 10 characteristics of the process, it is easy to find successful modern examples that prove him right:

2: "Transmedia storytelling reflects the economics of media consolidation or what industry observers call "synergy." Modern media companies are horizontally integrated"(Jenkins, online,  2007) Just as a horizontally integrated media company may choose to utilise newspapers, websites, radio and television stations to promote the latest release from their film studio or the like, they may use their power to extend the story across these platforms, especially if they feel they have created a hit. Jenkins uses the example of "the comic books published in advance of the release of such films as Batman Begins and Superman Returns by DC ( owned by Warner Brothers, the studio that released these films). These comics provided back-story which enhanced the viewer's experience of the film even as they also help to publicize the forthcoming release (thus blurring the line between marketing and entertainment). "(Jenkins, online, 2007)

9:" A transmedia text does not simply disperse information: it provides a set of roles and goals which readers can assume as they enact aspects of the story through their everyday life. "(Jenkins, online, 2007) While Jenkins used an example of children playing with action figures, it may be more relevant to look at Pokémon. One of the greatest joys for a fan would be the ability to physically interact with something from the fantasy world of Pokémon, to hold in their hand something they thought would never exist in reality, so, the Pokéball with plushie Pokémon inside may induce a frisson with some fans. Jenkins agrees that there is a trend among fans to want to take content and appropriate it for personal use, as with fan fiction and art, and when media companies identify this desire and market it with toys and costumes, they are successfully providing "roles and goals" to the fans for enrichment of the text. Video games also help to achieve this as they let the player act out the story elements via their game avatar. (Jenkins, Textual poachers: television fans & participatory culture, 1992)

10:" The encyclopaedic ambitions of transmedia texts often results in what might be seen as gaps or excesses in the unfolding of the story: that is, they introduce potential plots which can not be fully told or extra details which hint at more than can be revealed."(Jenkins, online, 2007)  This will spark the interest of most viewers, and a percentage of those will actively seek this missing information. The creators of the Lost universe provide a successful example, shrouding their content in mystery throughout the television series, and releasing a number of websites, even an "official" site for the notorious Hanso foundation. The mystery "drilled" deeper when fans collaborated and discovered a secret within the Hanso site: when clicking a certain area of white space would reveal a flash animation which would appear to take you into the depths of the site, cracking the page and bringing some sort of glitch to surface. By keeping fans guessing, and sharing their guesses, successful media firms create a dedicated community eager to snap up the next titbit of story information dangled above their heads.

So what of the future?

Will Jenkins' dream of a transmedial collective world of user-producers be realised? Some agree, but some don't. Angus Kidman of lifehacker reports, "It’s important not to fall into the trap of saying “this is the way that all fiction will be created in the future”, or that it is necessarily superior by virtue of covering multiple platforms. One of the most obvious but often ignored lessons of the last century is that new media doesn’t automatically displace existing media. It doesn’t necessarily kill off its predecessors, though it may alter their audience or scope. TV did not kill cinema; VCRs did not kill TV; repeat as necessary." He brings up the example that there are far more people out there whose involvement in the Star Wars franchise ended after watching the film than those who accessed other transmedia iterations of the content. (Kidman, online, 2010)

Unfortunately, the future still holds issues with licensing, cannon and intellectual property. Every time a media company reaches a hiccup with user generated content, their actions in dealing with it are what determines their popularity with remaining participatory fans. For example, Microsoft had no issue with Rooster Teeth appropriating Halo(2001) content for their machinima series Red vs Blue (2003), until they started selling dvds. Thankfully, instead of stamping this group of fine comedians out of existence, Microsoft allowed machinima in their next Halo game's EULA, and even included tools for others to follow suit. By switching attitudes to champion the user-producer, they widened their audience exponentially, as now the players could help advertise the game though their lovingly made films, and everybody won.

Also, the "delicate balance between creating stories which make sense to first time viewers and building in elements which enhance the experience of people reading across multiple media." (Jenkins, online, 2007)  is understandably difficult to construct, and those developers who fail at this soon find their universe either stagnating, or expanding beyond comprehension and becoming too intimidating for new fans to access.

How does this relate to video games?

When looking at the future of video game development, 'collaboration' is the key word. There are two main ways of collaborating between content creators; co-creation and licensing. Game developers of the future will need to be familiar with both, especially if Jenkins is right in his assumption that participatory culture is on the rise.  If users and developers can find a way of working together, not only in the post-release stage, but in the production stage, then the future of video games looks bright. Auran's Trainz (2001) showed that this was possible, but they did encounter many shortcomings, such as user contributors had limited access to help and tutorials to make the content, were constantly misinformed about important deadline changes, and felt slightly used - considering they were paid in only in recognition for their hard work. On the other hand, completely leaving fans out of the production stage can spark issues with copyright when they follow their natural urge to appropriate your material, so balance is key. If developers can find a way to co-create with fans, or at the very least offer licensing of user-created content that stands out, they could be opening their world up to a whole universe made possible by transmedia storytelling.

Bibliography

Epstein, D. (2010, 01 20). What is Transmedia? Retrieved 10 19, 2010, from The Varsity (University of Toronto): http://thevarsity.ca/articles/24855

Jenkins, H. (1992). Textual poachers: television fans & participatory culture. New York: Routledge.

Jenkins, H. (2007, 03 22). Transmedia Storytelling 101. Retrieved 10 19, 2010, from Confessions of an Aca-Fan: http://www.henryjenkins.org/2007/03/transmedia_storytelling_101.html

Jenkins, H. (2009, 08 11). Transmedia Storytelling and Entertainment -- A Syllabus. Retrieved 10 19, 2010, from Confessions of an Aca-Fan: http://henryjenkins.org/2009/08/transmedia_storytelling_and_en.html

Kidman, A. (2010, 10 12). Do We Want Multi-Media Storytelling? Retrieved 10 19, 2010, from lifehacker: http://www.lifehacker.com.au/2010/10/do-we-want-multi-media-storytelling/