According to Henry Jenkins,
"multimedia and transmedia assume very different roles for its
spectators, consumers and producers." While multimedia is depicting a
message with the use of different content forms such as video, audio and
text, transmedia storytelling is the concept of promoting one brand or
story across multiple platforms. These brands and stories usually
consist of content that appeal to consumers. The most popular industry
that uses transmedia storytelling would probably be the movie/film
making industry, because in most cases, their products turn into apps,
video games, television shows, comic books, etc. and particularly
represents the media conglomerate it belongs to.
As it says in Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide,
"Media convergence makes the flow of content across multiple media
different platforms inevitable... Everything about the structure of the
modern entertainment industry was designed with this single idea in mind
-- the construction and enhancement of entertainment franchises"
(Jenkins, 106).
In
my search of finding a story that was told through multiple different
platforms, I found Toy Story, which is a computer-animated film that was
produced by Pixar and released by Disney in 1995. As Pixar's first
motion picture that made $350 million worldwide, the flow of content in
different platforms such as video games, comic books, facebook pages,
theme parks and books was inevitable. Toy Story is an example of
transmedia because it not only assumed roles for its spectators (the
people that viewed the very first film) but also its consumers and
producers through these platforms that helped further sustain the brand.
Located
in three Disney theme parks is the Toy Story Midway Mania, which is a
platform of telling the story. This is an interactive 4D theme park
attraction that offers Toy Story fans and consumers a virtual 4D
shooting gallery of carnival games. Another platform that was introduced
were video games for different consoles such as the Wii, PS3 and the
XBOX. These platforms assumed the role of consumers because instead of
just being "spectators" or viewers of the film, they are now
experiencing what they saw in the film. They have now become part of the
"Toy Story" image.
Fans
became producers when Personal Toy Story books and "Create Your Comic"
Toy Story books were introduced. This strategy engaged participation
because now fans are not just consumers of Toy Story, they are now also
the producers of Toy Story. Fans were also able to view an official Toy
Story Facebook page, where they can post movie quotes, get links to
pages of different characters from the movie, as well as receive
promotional videos. These different platforms assumed the role of
content creators or content providers for the Toy Story brand. They were
allowed to add or change the storyline however they pleased. Not only
did these platforms create new content for Toy Story but it also helped
build and expand the brand further.
From
movies and video games to theme parks and books, Toy Story has become
Pixar's most popular film and features most uses of different mediums.
What's even more interesting is that Toy Story is a platform of
storytelling within itself. It used different, classic toys in the movie
such as Mr. Potato Head, the Army Men and Etch-a-Sketch. Toy Story
helped promote these toys to consumers and expand these toy brands.
Unlike the film Toy Story, other Pixar films such as WALL-E, Ratatouille
and The Incredibles did not reach other media platforms. These films
simply lived in its medium as films. All in all, Toy Story is an example
of transmedia storytelling because the quality of each medium used
helped strengthen the relationship between the brand and the consumer
which then enhanced its popularity.
SOURCES:
Jenkins, Henry. Convergence Culture: Where Old and New Media Collide. New York University
Press. 2006
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