Story Bridges in Transmedia: Expanding transmedia stories across platforms in a meaningful way
Translated title
Story Bridges i Transmedia: Meningsfuld udvidelse af transmedia historier på tværs a platforme
Authors
Midtgaard, Hanna Skov ; Breum, Annette Corpuz
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2013
Submitted on
2013-05-31
Pages
104
Abstract
Transmedia-fortælling betyder at fortælle én sammenhængende historie på tværs af flere medier (fx film, spil og tegneserier), hvor hvert medie bidrager med sin egen del. Specialet undersøger, hvordan sådanne historier kan udvides fra én platform til en anden på en sammenhængende og engagerende måde, og hvordan klare kriterier kan bruges til at designe koncepter inden for en ramme for meningsfulde publikumoplevelser. Med en hermeneutisk, teoretisk tilgang (en fortolkende analyse af eksisterende litteratur) afklarer specialet først centrale begreber i transmedia storytelling. Det introducerer story bridges (fortællebroer): fortællingselementer, der forbinder platforme i et transmedia-univers og motiverer publikum til at bevæge sig mellem dem. Der defineres tre typer story bridges. Specialet diskuterer også tentpoles—centrale bærende elementer, der holder den samlede fortælling sammen—og udvider definitionen i denne sammenhæng ved at pege på tre grundlæggende komponenter i enhver historie: karakterer, en tidslinje med begivenheder og et fiktivt univers. Disse idéer samles i Story Bridge Model, som bruges til at analysere eksisterende transmedia-eksempler. Modellen afprøves derefter i et designeksperiment med metoden research through design, hvor viden skabes ved at designe og afprøve prototyper. Med story bridges som variable munder eksperimentet ud i tre spilkoncepter. Arbejdet viser, at de tre story bridges har forskellig kompleksitet. Specialet argumenterer for, at Story Bridge Model kan støtte konceptudvikling ved at hjælpe designere med at fokusere på relationerne mellem broerne under designprocessen. Det konkluderes, at de foreslåede kriterier for at udvide transmedia-fortællinger er gyldige, men at indsigterne om selve designprocessen endnu ikke kan generaliseres. Den foreslåede brug af modellen til at designe koncepter kræver sandsynligvis yderligere praktisk validering.
Transmedia storytelling means telling one coherent story across multiple media (for example, film, games, and comics), with each medium contributing its own part. This thesis examines how such stories can expand from one platform to another in a coherent and engaging way, and how clear criteria can be used to design concepts within a framework for meaningful audience experiences. Using a hermeneutic, theoretical approach—an interpretive analysis of existing literature—the thesis first clarifies key terms in transmedia storytelling. It introduces story bridges: story elements that connect platforms within a transmedia universe and motivate audiences to move between them. Three types of story bridges are defined. The thesis also discusses tentpoles—central elements that hold the overall story together—and extends this definition in this context by identifying three basic components of any story: characters, a timeline of events, and a story world. These ideas are combined in a Story Bridge Model, which is applied to analyze existing transmedia cases. The model is then tested in a design experiment using a research-through-design method, where knowledge is generated by creating and trying out prototypes. Treating the story bridges as variables, the experiment results in three video game concepts. The design work shows that the three story bridges differ in complexity. The thesis argues that the Story Bridge Model can support concept design by helping designers focus on relationships between the bridges during the process. It concludes that the proposed criteria for expanding transmedia stories are valid, but that insights about the design process cannot yet be generalized. The suggested use of the model for designing concepts likely needs further practical validation.
[This abstract was generated with the help of AI]
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