Author: Christy

Detecting Cross-Media TV

Christy
There is a special double episode of Criminal Intent being broadcast in Oz this Sunday that could be akin to what I think is one of the best cross-media works: the Homicide tv show and Second Shift detectives on the web. I’ll explain the Homicide work first. In the late 1990s the Homicide TV show extended to the web. When the TV detectives clocked off for the day, the ‘second shift’ of detectives took over on the web. This is a great idea from the start, but the ingenuity continues: in Feb 1999 a case was investigated by the online detectives, only to be followed up by the TV detectives and then back to the web:

* Part 1 (online Feb. 3 and 4). Viewers witness a ritual killing streamed online with the Windows Media Player. Witnesses call the homicide unit, but during the course of the investigation the detectives determine that the crime appears to be a hoax. 

* Part 2 (on-air Feb. 5). As the eerie case progresses, both teams of detectives challenge the perpetrator to stage another Internet event – and attempt to apprehend the suspect before the next ritual is performed.

* Part 3 (online Feb. 12 and 19). The online story is resolved and its implications explored

[source]
The cross-media work inspired academic John T. Caldwell to write on what he terms ‘second shift aesthetics’ — one of the first specific cross-media theories around.

Caldwell, J.T. (2003) ‘Second-shift Media Aesthetics: Programming, Interactivity, and User Flows’ in New Media: Theories and Practices of Digitextuality(Eds, Everett, A. and Caldwell, J. T.) Routledge, New York, pp. 127-144.

But to the upcoming Criminal Intent show. Currently on TV the following teaser is being broadcast:

We’re not going to tell you who the victims were…we’re not going to tell you why they died…we’re just going to give you this one clue…www.doyouwanttodie.com 

This Sunday, on Channel 10, there will be a double episode: No Exit and The Gift. There is nothing on the 10 website, but on the NBC website is some detail about the episode (WARNING: POSSIBLE SPOILER):

TRAIN CRASH CLAIMS FOUR YOUNG ADULTS IN SUICIDE PACT — OR WAS IT A HOMICIDE EXPRESS? — In the bloody wake of a multiple suicide pact gone wrong, Detectives Goren (Vincent D’Onofrio) and Eames (Kathryn Erbe) consider the deaths of four young adults who parked their car on railroad tracks and waited for the inevitable . And while the cops probe a “suicide matchmaking” website, they discover that one of the victims tried vainly to escape. Backtracking, the investigators seek to learn what brought the four together that night, and they wonder if office politics and an illicit romance were factors in the tragedy — and subsequent coverup. Jamey Sheridan and Courtney B. Vance also star. TV-14 

It is obvious now (unless I’m wrong) that the website (www.doyouwanttodie.com) is not only a provocative teaser to the show, but part of the storyworld — a site to lure those keen to commit suicide. The lack of content on the site, however, is a worry. If the site is understated prior to the broadcast to promote conjecture and suspense, and then the site changes during or after the broadcast, then I’m impressed. If not, I’m disappointed.

There is also a lesson here, for creators or such cross-media works. There will be audience members who, like me, will search for info about the show on the web. Obviously you cannot control content on the web, but be aware that some audiences will be proactive and you should provide content that meets their ingenuity. Audiences don’t just look at the local websites. Indeed, I quite often search for info about shows on OS sites because the ones in Oz are so puny.

Cross-Media Release will be the Norm

Christy
Simultaneous cross-media release will be the norm. I’ve heard a few producers mention this, even the Director-General of the BBC has unveiled that their tv shows will be simulataneously available for download on the web. I thoroughly support this move and have been anxiously waiting for it for some time. When a movie is released, for instance, I assess it according to what medium I’ll experience it. A very small percentage of films go on my ‘to-be-watched-in-the-theatre’ list, most are on the ‘wait-for-DVD’ list, and then most are on the ‘wait-until-the-overnight-category’ list. Unfortunately, they often disappear from the shelves at the last point. By having a film available on DVD at the same time as it is released will mean I can participate in the excitement that accompanies the first release, and make a sincere assessment as to its theatre- or DVD-viewing status.

*A Cunning PLAN

Christy

Other types of cross-media storytelling are ‘pervasive gaming’ and ‘locative arts’. Both include the use of multiple media, usually with running through streets, GPS and other exciting tech-performance type works. The Pervasive and Locative Arts Network (PLAN) is hoping to develop understanding of best-practice in this emerging area. They have called for artists, scientists, industry and academics to work together:

* To review the scope of the research that is currently being carried out in these fields through a focused workshop, leading to an integrated ‘state of the art’ survey paper.
* To identify the key research issues that need to be addressed in order to further develop pervasive and locative media to support culture and creativity, leading to a series of discussion ‘white papers’.
* To seed future projects by bringing artists, scientists and industry together in a creative environment so that they can generate and practically explore new ideas, and also to provide a forum for publicly demonstrating some of these.
* To produce online and offline resources to support researchers, artists, industry and to promote public understanding of this emerging field, including a public website, an online document repository for members and a newsletter and DVD.

If you don’t know about locative arts and pervasive gaming, check out the exciting projects by Blast Theory and the papers by Jane McGonigal:

McGonigal, J. (2004) ‘The Runaway Game: Spectacle and Performance in Public Play’ presented at StoryEngines Conference, Stanford University, February [pdf]

McGonigal, J. (2003) ‘A Real Little Game: The Performance of Belief in Pervasive Play’ presented at Digital Games Research Associaton (DiGRA) “Level Up” Conference, November [pdf]

There is also the IPerG project, that is investigating pervasive gaming. They have a section on Crossmedia gaming on their website:

The aim of the Crossmedia showcase is to untie the game play from specific media channels to provide a game space which is accessible anytime and anywhere. We will investigate the potential of combining several media streams for game control, presentation and broadcast. At the same time, we will support collaborative game play and allow for a broad audience participating in the game.

Crossmedia is a game genre that employs a wide range of media devices. In our prototypes, not only the same gaming applications, but also the same gaming sessions will be accessible with different devices. Persons equipped with smart phones will be able to play with persons sitting in front of their TV or using Augmented Reality technology. It will also be possible to switch gaming devices during a gaming session, such that players can access an ongoing game session with their favourite gaming devices. To allow for collaborative game play and a broad audience, we will study options to let users participate both actively and passively in the game sessions. To enable interaction with a mass audience we will support community building and voting functionality for very large user groups. Apart from playing with different media devices and in different groups, Crossmedia allows for playing across the border of virtual and physical game spaces. To closely interweave the virtual with the physical game space events in the “real” world such as weather conditions or political events will have a strong influence on the game course.

Our first Crossmedia prototype will focus on interactive TV, cellular phones as well as mobile Augmented Reality technology and will implemented basic functionality for collaborative game play. For the second prototype we will refine the design of the first prototype based on the experience we have gained with the first test runs. The second prototype will enhance the first prototype in respect to size of the addressed audience and media devices employed.