COMM234 Media & New Technologies

1. COMM234 Media & New Technologies Week 4 – Transmedia Narratives Sarah Wharton – sarah.wharton@liverpool.ac.uk

2. Week 4 outline • What is narrative? • What is a transmedia narrative? • How are transmedia narratives used? • By industries? • By consumers? • Examples of transmedia narratives: • Film. • TV. • Advertising. • How does this change concepts of narrative? • Seminar information.

3. Learning outcomes • Define a transmedia narrative. • Identify examples of transmedia narratives/products. • Identify arguments as to whether transmedia narratives are different to traditional narratives.

4. What is narrative? • Bordwell, David & Kristin Thompson (2008) Film Art: An Introduction (8th Edition). Boston: McGraw-Hill. Pp. 74-109. • “We can consider a narrative to be a chain of events in cause-effect relationship occurring in time and space” (p75).

5. Example • “A man has a fight with his boss; he tosses and turns that night, unable to sleep. In the morning, he is still so angry that he smashes the mirror while shaving. Then his telephone rings; his boss has called to apologize” (p. 75). • This is a narrative because: • We can connect events spatially. • The 3 events are a series of causes and effects. • The events occur in a specific time-frame. • Develops from conflict to resolution through a series of events caused by the conflict.

6. What is narrative? • Narration or fabula(story): • The action as a chronological cause-effect chain of events occurring within a given duration and spatial field. • A mental construct or pattern that spectators create through a process of assumption and inference. • Narrative or syuzhet(plot): • The actual arrangement and presentation of the fabulaby the film. • In other words: the way in which the story is told. • Bordwell, David (1985) Narration in the Fiction Film. London: Methuen.

7. Example – Memento (Nolan, 2000) • Narration or fabula(story): • The film in chronological order (including inferred events such as the rape and murder of Leonard’s wife). • Narrative or syuzhet(plot): • The film as it is presented to the audience.

8. In traditional narrative theory… • The narrative is restricted to the text (film, TV show, advert, book, comic, video game etc.) itself. • In film, for example, the viewer’s experience is restricted to the viewing of the film alone. • So…

9. …What is a transmedia narrative? • Basic definition: a narrative that spans across a variety of media. • For example: a film that continues, expands and develops its narrative via a website/video game/graphic novel etc.

10. What is a transmedia narrative? • “…a particular narrative structure that expands through both different languages (verbal, iconic, etc.) and media (cinema, comics, television, video games, etc.).” • Transmedia storytelling “is not just an adaptation from one media to another. The story that the comics tell is not the same as that told on television or in cinema; the different media and languages participate and contribute to the construction of the transmedia narrative world.” • Scolari, Carlos Alberto (2009) “Transmedia Storytelling: Implicit Consumers, Narrative Worlds, and Branding in Contemporary Media Production” in International Journal of Communication, Vol. 3. Pp. 586-606.

11. What is a transmedia narrative? • “In the ideal form of transmedia storytelling, each medium does what it does best – so that a story might be introduced in a film, expanded through television, novels and comics; its world might be explored through game play or experienced as an amusement park attraction.” • “Each franchise entry needs to be self-contained so that you don’t need to have seen the film to enjoy the game, and vice versa. Any given product is a point of entry into the franchise as a whole.” • Jenkins, Henry (2006) Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York: NYU Press. Pp. 95-6.

12. Examples of transmedia products • Donnie Darko(Kelly, 2001) • The Matrix franchise (1999-2003) • The Saw franchise (2004-2010) • How I Met Your Mother (20th Century Fox Television, 2005-) • Sherlock (BBC, 2010-) • Waterloo Road (BBC, 2006-)

13. What does a transmedia narrative do… • …For film/TV production companies? • Provides dynamic marketing in the form of interactive websites, viral campaigns etc. • Provides saleable consumer/leisure products (e.g. video games, theme park rides, comics, graphic novels, books, ancillary DVDs etc.) that provide income and further marketing. • Continues to make money from spectators beyond the initial film/TV show. • A direct result of media conglomeration.

14. What does a transmedia narrative do… • …For writers and directors? • Gives a creative outlet for content not included in the film (e.g. backstories, cut characters, “plot holes”, cut stories). • Assists the development of a narrative world.

15. What does a transmedia narrative do… • …For audiences? • Enables the prolonging of the film (franchise) experience. • Provides different levels of entry into a franchise. • Encourages fan discussion and entry into collective knowledge bases. • Allows a deeper understanding of the narrative world and its characters. • Assists in the answering of questions set up in the film.

16. The Saw franchise • 7 interdependent films • Saw: The Ride at Thorpe Park • Saw: Game Over maze at Universal Studios • Saw – 2009 video game • Saw II: Flesh & Blood – 2010 video game • Saw: Rebirthcomic book

17. The Saw games • The first video game of Saw expands the narrative of the first film without interfering with the film series narrative. • Takes place between Saw and Saw II following the character of David Tapp who’s presumed dead at the end of the first film. • It develops characters hinted at in the first film and gives Tapp a resolution to his narrative since his “death” is not seen in the film. • The second video game is a direct sequel to the first and so does not interfere with the film series narrative, while expanding on characters and situations introduced in the films.

18. Sherlock • TV series features 4 tie-in websites (so far): • The Science of Deduction • John Watson’s Blog • Molly Hooper’s Diary (Series 1 references only) • Connie Prince’s official site (Series 1 references only) • All 4 expand the narrative of the series as well as providing additional narrative content only hinted at in the show.

19. How I Met Your Mother • 7 series (so far) • 3 tie-in books written by the character Barney: • The Bro Code • Bro on the Go • The Playbook • 21 (so far) tie-in websites that expand the narrative and/or provide extra content. • 2 official music videos by Robin Sparkles • Let’s Go To The Mall • Sandcastles in the Sand

20. Do transmedia narratives affect traditional narrative theory? Yes No • Narrative is no longer restricted to one text. • Film narratives may be incomprehensible to audiences without transmedia experiences. • Spectatorship becomes active rather than passive. • Film/TV is still the biggest, most accessible element. • Most transmedia texts can be enjoyed without full transmedia experiences. • Spectatorship has always been active to an extent with audiences “getting” references and discussing texts.

21. Creating worlds • “When I first started, you would pitch a story because without a good story, you didn’t really have a film. Later, once sequels started to take off, you pitched a character because a good character could support multiple stories. And now, you pitch a world because a world can support multiple characters and multiple stories across multiple media.” • Screenwriter, cited in Jenkins. P. 114.

22. Seminar information • Key reading: • Jenkins, Henry (2008) Convergence Culture: When Old and New Media Collide. New York: NYU Press. Chapter 3. • Keane, Stephen (2007) CineTech: Film, Convergence and New Media. New York: Palgrave MacMillan. Chapter 6. • In the seminar we will explore how to write a transmedia product proposal using industry guidelines. • You will be provided with your brief and deadline for Assessment Two. • This seminar will be held in a computer suite! • Eleanor Rathbone Building Teaching Centre, Room 201, 2nd Floor Eleanor Rathbone Building.