Tag Archives: transmedia

Process Post #11: Flowing Through Media

This week we discussed the concept of transmedia. It is a way to describe a story which can be told across different platforms like writing, films, toys, games, etc. For example, in the reading written by Blogroll, they used pokemon as an example. It is seen across many mediums of platforms like card games, on-screen, on consoles, and books, and it contributes to the growth of the fanbase (blogroll, 2013). It explains the goal of transmedia storytelling to keep the experience and community alive and to continually grow an audience. This keeps the community interested and engaged in the whole platform experience.

With that said, knowing that I can use transmedia as an advantage to my site to engage my audience, to take a small step I can expand my branding of KeptCollexion onto other media platforms. I plan to take action by creating an Instagram page to start, then maybe a YoutTube channel to expand my creativity. With new platforms in mind, the content shared would be in the forms of Instagram posts and stories, and short edited video montages on Youtube. I’ll still be putting more emphasis on social media platform channels as it is the easiest and quickest medium to attract users since it is what most of us use. It is also the platform I am most comfortable using, and it can contribute to sharing a glimpse of what KeptCollexion has to offer.

– Eliza (aka Peanut)

Reference:

Whippersnappers, B. is for. (2013, November 21). Pokemon as transmedia storytelling. kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com. Retrieved March 27, 2023, from https://kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com/2013/11/21/pokemon-as-transmedia-storytelling/

Transmedia Integration and Channels

This week’s topic is centered around incorporating more transmedia integration and leveraging various channels for our blog. In Kevin Britteny Lauren’s blog (2013), they reference Henry Jenkins’ definition of transmedia storytelling which describes it as a process by which elements of fiction are disseminated across different media channels to enhance users’ experience.

They go on to quote Jenkins, “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” (2013, para. 7).

Regarding YVRchives, I could certainly leverage this to create more accessible content that is disseminated in a more versatile way. The photography medium offers an opportunity to be easily shared on multiple platforms. While social media is the most efficient channel I could tap into, I think a unique form of transmedia would also be beneficial.

For instance, a video game could be a great way to create a story around Vancouver photography that people could easily integrate into their everyday lives. A few ideas I could pursue:

  • Matching the photo to the local artist
  • Vancouver trivia with photography attached to each question
  •  Speed snapshot the local photo

Finally, I could feature a place on my site that centers a virtual photography feed. This would be a dedicated page where my blog audience interacts and engages with the site. People can create their own content, remix other local artists’ work, and even screenshot other virtual content and share it with other users. This would be a great channel for users to access content, and participate with the media.

Furthermore, I’d share all this transmedia on social media channels to garner exposure. I would use hashtags to further disperse this information and integrate it into multiple platforms. This way, I could increase more traffic as well as engagement to my online publication.

References:

Kevinbrittenylauren.wordpress.com. (2013). “Pokemon as transmedia storytelling“

Process Post 10 – Transmedia

“Transmedia stories are based not on individual characters or specific plots but rather complex fictional worlds which can sustain multiple interrelated characters and their stories” (Kevin Britteny Lauren, 2013).

I had no idea what ‘transmedia’ meant before enrolling and subsequently engaging in this course. However, this does not mean I wasn’t participating in it as both creator and consumer. In fact, when reflecting on the media in which I was utilizing throughout childhood and today, much of what interested and continues to tap my mind is a product of transmedia storytelling. We like, follow, buy and crave stories, and through various mediums and ways in which our interests interact, these only become more appealing, compelling and addicting.

Similar to Lauren’s (2013) post about the transmedia-ness of Pokemon, which you can read here if my last link did not tempt you; various forms of involvement within the ‘story’ enthralled me from the likes of ‘Batman,’ ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles,’ ‘Grand Theft Auto’ and ‘Star Wars.’ I was not just watching a cartoon or playing with an action figure, I was interacting with video games, seeing movies, watching YouTube videos, mesmerized by commercials, wearing clothes and playing board games that encapsulated the worlds, characters and stories of each interest. For an in-depth exploration of transmedia storytelling in the context of Star Wars, read this article about Suzanne Scott’s course at the University of Texas, Austin.

Today, it only takes a second to recognize the success of Marvel movies as a product of transmedia integration. These films, as well as everything else from Stance socks to video games, are transmedia juggernauts, all of which impact us at the deepest neurological level. The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) of Australia posts an interesting article here that examines the cognitive science behind our infatuation with media and how transmedia arouses neurons. In 2019 and assuredly beyond, transmedia storytelling has and will continue to expand – apps, VR, Blogs and whatever gaming platform arises from the brains of Silicon Valley. However, the fresh technologies of the 21st Century did not spawn the idea of transmedia, as Henry Jenkins, attests, our brains have long been exposed and satiated by the integrated and complex worlds created by multiple media. In fact, Jenkins suggests that transmedia started making strides in the 1930s with Tarzan Adventures, which was interestingly during the Great Depression. Perhaps Jane was not the only person saved by Tarzan…

In terms of ReRouted, transmedia integration seems like a logical step and initiative. I feel this because the nature of the blog is to read as a story; therefore, the complexities, characters and interwoven environments and ponderings fare well to be exposed through other mediums and platforms. Because my technical skills are somewhat limited, I have to consider the ways in which I can enhance transmedia integration on this blog. I have yet to give careful consideration for this, but the addition of a vlog via YouTube, perhaps some storyboard sketches or various one page infographics depicting the blog’s content or message. In terms of audience, I’m wanting to capture more people, and for me, the challenge will be grasping the likes of non-athletes or people who really aren’t interested in hearing ‘some jock’ blab about football. It will be important to discuss change in general; identity, life, situation, environment, etc. To accomplish this, I need to present the story from different angles or mediums that conjure interest from others.

Transmedia options provide a different lens in which to explore my content and overall theme. ReRouted is a story, and with that, there are various ways in which to tell it. One year ago, Shannon Emmerson posted an article about great transmedia examples, with The Matrix series of films being a quintessential standard. Like the movie reflects in its complex direction, the more angles you have to view something, the more intrigue is developed, questions are asked and in the blogosphere, visitors one receives. Therefore, more channels of accessibility and variety in exploring ReRouted from various perspectives is valuable and the reason why I need to utilize transmedia.

Transmedia Reporting and Electronic Music

This morning I was reading an article by lecturer and professor Henry Jenkins about effective use of transmedia forms and the entertainment industry’s slugish ability in adopting the form.

‘Transmedia’ is a term that describes a media phenomenon that exists across multiple platforms and which facilitates different user experiences depending on the platform. Pokemon is one of the best examples of a transmedia concept, as identified by Jenkins. The Pokemon world is one that exists across TV series’, movies, manga, video games, card games, and etc.

The Wartortle universe is expanded by this expertly crafted fan-music.

Transmedia Journalism

As the transmedia practice tends to enrich a users interaction with subject matter and offer a user opportunities to demonstrate agency with media interaction, I believe that the practice would benefit journalism.

In fact, journalism has exists transmedia since the printing press entered popular use, when one could,perhaps, receive news from both a town crier and a local pamphlet.

In this day and age, news about an event is delivered in print, on the radio, and across the internet in the form of news outlets, blogs, or podcasts.

Transmedia Music Journalism

Music reporting and journalism are, by definition, transmedia. Listening to the music of a local musician who I recently read an interview from will broaden my impression of that musician.

When writing about music on Ammeter, linking to that music or accompanying an article with a recorded interview is transmedia. I wonder about other ways that I can expand transmedia practice as a electronic music reporter. Below are a list of ideas. Let me know if any stand out to you!

  • Print expertly designed posters concerning electronic music events that Ammeter appreciates and paste them up around town.
  • Print and distribute local electronic music guide-zines that inform readers about Vancouver’s grassroots electronic music organizers.
  • Post emails or “letters to the editor” from readers concerning their experiences with particular venues or events.
  • Post music produced by Ammeter staff after they’ve attending a music production workshop.
  • Hand write and hand out endearing notes to dancers at music events that are “from Ammeter.”

It feels like linking to music and posting podcasts / or interviews are insubstantial in modern journalism. Branching out to new forms of media could only benefit the publication.

Adam

Process Post 11 (Transmedia Integration)

With plenty of media outlets in the world today, there is without a doubt plenty of ways to implement transmedia integration to your site. As described by Henry Jenkins, transmedia storytelling, “represents a process where integral elements of a fiction get dispersed systematically across multiple delivery channels for the purpose of creating a unified and coordinated entertainment experience.” (Jenkins 2007). This can be highly beneficial in enhancing the experience for users on the site and the possible objectives and message that you envision.

Luckily for my site, I already have one form of transmedia integration added, which is through the use of Soundcloud playlists on my “Let’s Listen” posts. This form of transmedia integration helps enhance the entertainment experience whilst aligning with my message for Here, There in terms of representing diversity within the arts and entertainment industry. This media integration also connects with my target audience of artistic individuals who have an appreciation for music and who are interested in discovering diverse artists. An additional benefit of including Soundcloud playlists would be the option to implement audience recommendations, both to increase engagement, but to also make full use of this type of transmedia integration.

Another way of adding transmedia integration for the future development of my blog could be through YouTube videos. As a blog that focuses on the arts, but also societal issues of race, gender, and sexuality, there are many opportunities to have visual and auditory media implemented. Possibly, having my own Buzzfeed or Cut style videos could help enhance the entertainment experience, in addition to videos posted that are partnered with, or directly connected to my site. This can help build relationships with other artists and individuals, help develop the blog and its audience, and enhance my message and objective.

Inspired by sites like Them. who provide subscription emails for important posts and issues, my blog could also implement this form of transmedia integration. As Henry Jenkins notes, the use of dispersing elements systematically across multiple channels can be beneficial in spreading a message. Having an option to subscribe through an email may not only offer a means of engagement and audience retention, but also spread awareness of my website and of important topics and issues.

Lastly, an additional transmedia integration for my site would be including multiple social media accounts. Nowadays, it is a given that most businesses, organizations, sites, and individuals use multiple social media accounts. The use of social media for my site would be a core element as it would not only link my Instagram (in order to establish a personality behind my blog), but also link a specific Instagram for Here, There. Photos would fit a certain aesthetic that relates to my blog, but also highlight diverse people, events, artists, shows, and current events. Additional social media integration would include a Facebook page and Twitter account, in which there would be specific posts on events and key topics discussed. These accounts would also create an additional place for engagement between the audience and my blog and hopefully maintain a welcoming and communicative space.