bumps in the road . . .

challenges, obstacles and difficulties

The journey has begun.

The project is now underway and as happens with most projects there are challenges to overcome.

My passion for the project is enormous, unfortunately my ability to funnel that passion into actual work has met a few roadblocks.  Time management is above all the biggest problem.

Image source: Melissa Frew

Between classes, assignments, family and life there seems to be little time to sit down and work on the actual project.

Lists, lists and more lists are the only thing holding me together right now.  Other than creating a time machine or finding a portal I am stuck with a finite resource when it comes to the hours and minutes that are available in a day, week or month.  With that in mind I need to focus on tools and skills to make sure that the project keeps on track and on schedule.

Step one will be to develop a timeline and schedule for what is done when by whom.  Luckily, I have just created a ‘budget’ of hours for a project charter so, check that is done.

Step two, I need to let my team know what the plan is and what I am hoping they will be able to contribute to the project.  Job descriptions are due, done and I will be meeting with the team on Tuesday so, check, check!

Step three, More lists.  My lists may haunt me but they also keep me on track.  It may be time to take them digital and create a Trello project board.  Project management has introduced me to the wonderful world of digital work flow and it seems like it is time to create a Trello board, fill it in and start tracking progress!

Well now that the time management issue has been addressed what else is standing in my way?

Oh, right, the story!

The pivotal detail for the entire project, writing the story, has become the biggest elephant in the room.  I am unsure which element of the project to tackle first, which story?  What details do I need to include and what words do I use?

image source:  Melissa Frew

Step one, two, three worked well for time management, so let’s try that with story development.

Step one, decide which story to work on.  It makes sense to start at the beginning.  Is that the story with the most impact?  Is that the best way to showcase what this project is?  What is the beginning?  So many questions, so few answers.

Step two, pinpoint which details need to be included to tell the story.  So, let’s say I decide to tell the ‘what is cancer’ story.  Seems like a pretty good place to start?  What do I need to include?  Probably I should talk about cells, what they are, how they multiply and how sometimes, things go wrong.  That was not so hard.   What interactive elements need to be included for this story?  Wait, I still need to write the story.  Focus on that and then the interactive elements will grow.

image source: Melissa Frew

Step three, write the story.  For this I need my content writer/consultant Katie.  Maybe I should set up a google doc and post ideas, then ask Katie to collaborate on the story.  Great idea, why didn’t I think of that earlier!

Time management and story writing aside I think the project is well underway and I am excited to see how things develop in the next few weeks.

More on the process to come in blogpost #3!

Putting the Interactive in Interactive Stories

What makes an interactive project ‘Interactive’?  Suspension of disbelief?  Complete immersion?  Or is it simply an enhanced experience?

To find the answer to these questions let’s compare two seemingly successful interactive projects.

Looking at the following two interactive digital stories will provide some guidance and hopefully, some answers.

The Boat

http://www.sbs.com.au/theboat/

The Boat is an interactive digital story that places the audience in the boat filled with Vietnamese refugees.  Through the images, sounds and narrative the journey unfolds in the form of a graphic novel.  

The audio track sets the scene.  The sounds of the wind and sea provide an entrance into a tragic journey fraught with multiple challenges and intense emotions.  Birds, songs and sounds punctuate the narrative, highlighting key moments.

source

The primary images are simple black and white, pen and ink sketches.  Evocative in their stark nature, these images are given simple animations through parallax scrolling and graphic overlays.  The intense emotions of the story are mirrored in the images.  The audience is drawn into the tale of the two key heroines through an artfully concise narrative.

Movement adds to the intensity of the experience.  The sway, and motion of the ocean is mimicked in the movement of the images.  The titling and swishing succeeds in putting the audience in the boat, provoking feelings of unease and stress.

The sounds, story, and visuals combine to create an immersive and engaging experience.  Scrolling through the narrative captured my attention completely, I was caught up and felt compelled to see the experience through to the end.

After the Storm

http://www.pbs.org/independentlens/interactive/after-the-storm/#/dear-future-disaster-survivor

After the Storm tells the story of life after a tornado hits Tuscaloosa in April 2011.

The narrative unfolds through a combination of real life images, graphics, video clips, and voiceover audio. The story is presented in short snippets.  There are no long monologues just succinct details presented in a relatable way.  The voice over speaks directly to the audience telling the story and offering instructions on how to rebuild and start over in the wake of tragedy.

Visually the narrative is presented through a series of stills and video, overlaid with graphic elements.  The graphics add motion and emphasis, impact and explanation.

source

Video clips are also embedded within the narrative.  In one instance video clips of interviews and news reels are embedded directly into a ‘photo album’ as if they were additional images in the album.  These added clips bring relatable and real life content into the story without removing the audience from the narrative.

The audience is asked to scroll click and listen.  Allowing the story to unfold at their pace and with their direction.  Scrolling is used as a tool to move the story along but also gives the audience the opportunity to control a level of the interaction in the narrative.  Scroll quickly and graphic elements move quickly.

While researching interactive narratives, I surfed and scanned through a number of projects.  ‘After the Storm’ caught my attention in a way that others did not.  I was compelled to continue through until the end.  I did not feel that I was simply a spectator, I felt engaged and invested.  I felt that I was a part of the story.

The Conclusion

The Boat and After the Storm are both traditional narratives presented in a non-traditional format.   Audio, movement, visuals and narrative all combine to create vibrant and immersive digital experiences.  Both stories begin with an impactful and bold opening sequence which engages the audience and draws them in.  

The boat is presented as a story.  The narrative is told through a series of images and text elements and unfolds for the audience.  Whereas, After the Storm is a conversation with the user.  The narrator of After the Storm clearly speaks directly to the audience.  Both stories are effective in their own way.

Creating a successful interactive story does not require complete immersion but it does require something that will keep the audience engaged.  The audience needs to be sufficiently intrigued to compel them to follow the narrative through until the end.  Both of these projects fulfill the definition of an interactive narrative through their use of sound, images and narrative.