New Theory: Implications
Written on Saturday, April 19, 2014 by Unknown
My advisor will be reading this soon and I don't doubt that she will want me to write a post about the "greater meaning" of my theory. I can't just write up a theory without asking some rhetorical questions that I almost never have the answers to. What does it all mean? What are the larger implications? Why do we even analyze this at all? WHO SHOT J.R.?!?!
My only thoughts on this are these (more lists!):
1. My theory is just a theory. It's not even like a theory with a possible result. It is just a lens that we can look through when analyzing transmedia. Yes, it can lead to bigger questions. After identifying streams and barriers, we can ask questions like: "Are the streams/barriers important? Why? What happens if we remove/alter them? Could the story be told without this stream/barrier? What/whose story is being told here? How is it being told? What did we learn from the stream/barrier about the narrative? Why is it here as opposed to somewhere else? Can we break it down even further?"
Like Poter, Larson, Hathcock, and Nellis' article about The Scene Function Model ("Redefining Narrative Events" cited in bibliography), we could test this lens on students and see what kind of conclusions they come to. Perhaps a new level will need to be added to the theory that better qualifies importance. Or maybe not. We could also discuss some of the same things they discuss but slightly altered. Instead of wondering why fans and novice viewers have different opinions on importance of particular scenes, we can talk about fans versus novice viewers in terms on interaction/immersion and how much they are willing to dive into the universe. Just dip a toe? Full on cannonball? Do you find it easy or hard to follow?
Basically the questions are endless.
2. What does this mean? I don't really know. In terms of media in general I think it means that we are breaking down the walls between producer and consumer and turning it into creator and participant. Eventually the ways that film and television are currently being produced will be obsolete. Perhaps even the mediums themselves will be obsolete. Is webseries the next big thing? Maybe. Only time will tell. Is transmedia the next big thing? Maybe. It's possible that some version(s) of transmedia will become popular. I love that it is so broad, but that is not ideal for businesses (at least not right now) and so they will likely experiment with different versions of transmedia storytelling. Industry and creators transmedia could become bigger and more strictly defined categories. Again, only time will tell. They did make an interactive media Emmy though. So there's that.
3. Why do we analyze it? Psh, that's like asking why I study rhetoric.
a. It's awesome.
b. You can peel back layers and discover what is hiding underneath. As Aristotle says, rhetoric is "the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion." So what are these different medias trying to say, how are they saying it, are they being persuasive, and should they even be saying it at all?
c. Analyzing transmedia means understanding transmedia. Why are we drawn to that type of storytelling? What is it about this that makes people want to interact? What tactics do they use and are they effective or not? What could be a greater purpose of transmedia storytelling (other than just entertainment)? Why do we like certain transmedia projects more than others? What makes them different or unique? What are the limits? What is possible?
d. It's awesome. Oh, did I already say that? Well I guess I meant it.
Look, this is a thesis. I'm still a student. This wont be published anywhere else other than my blog (at least that I know of right now, but if I feel like publishing it one day then more power to me). It is a loose theory and I did my best to when coming up with it. I think it's pretty cool and I had a lot of fun working on it. No one else needs to use it (but if they do I totally want credit). Of course that's not the point. I made it to say that it is possible (and necessary) to look at transmedia differently. I'm not sure if there are any other implications or meanings that I am just not seeing, but I do know that things are changing and even though I can't predict the future I just hope that everyone else will come to realize how awesome transmedia is.
I mean, come on. It gave us this:
[via giphy.com]
[via rebloggy.com]
Good gif combo right? My thoughts exactly.
-Danny
P.S. I will edit for grammar/spelling later. I just needed to post it now.
P.S. I will edit for grammar/spelling later. I just needed to post it now.
