A book comes out that your friend loves and they loan it to you. Before you know it the film is in the box office. Then you’re waiting for the soundtrack to be released on iTunes. Later you’re inviting that same friend around to play the newly released game with you. If you’re lucky, a spin-off TV show might come along. And when you’re not completely immersed in any one of these mediums presenting your new favourite, movie, game, song or show, you’re looking at social media – the comments, posts, extensions of the story online. The story. Something which once might have taken you less than a week to finish, has now become a part of your life. This, is transmedia storytelling.
Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, the Simpsons. All examples of franchises now available on a myriad of mediums, and the phenomenon is continuing to grow. Social media. Twitter, Facebook, Youtube. Today we see a parade, a protest, concert and we whip out a smart phone. Real life events, real life stories told in an instant. Imagine a cross between transmedia storytelling and citizen journalism. Enter, 18 Days in Egypt.
The story of the revolution in Egypt. It includes Youtube and mobile phone videos, photos, Facebook posts, international press, and firsthand accounts. “A collaborative documentary project about the revolution”. It is a quintessential piece of transmedia storytelling and a game changer. No longer is the story told with one voice on a news channel. This is a story being contributed to by the people who lived it, and told over a multitude of different mediums.
Social media is a significant contributor to transmedia storytelling – it allows people worldwide to connect and contribute to a story. For instance, Couchsurfing.org is a technology capable of abetting this phenomenon as its sole purpose is to connect people across the globe, encouraging them to share their lives and loves. While this branch of social media does not contribute directly to the stories, it holds the ability to share them.
Avalon Hope 