Getting Everyone on the Same Page

THE BIRTH OF CROSS MEDIA PRODUCTION
Adventures in Storytelling pt. 8 - Getting Everyone on the Same Page
By Brian Seth Hurst

The network, the creators, producers and writers and the cross media producers all need to start in the same place. Call it mutual education in which the cross media folks learn in depth about the show and the show folks learn what is possible across platforms. Lines of communication and approvals must be established right away. If this is truly going to be distributed story telling that works, then no one can work in isolation. During preproduction, the Cross Media producers should be briefed and then either go away and come back with a fistful of prioritized executable ideas or what I consider to be the most fun a brainstorming session with producers where the possibilities are thrown on the table, vetted and prioritized.

Ideally the Executive Producer Cross Media should ride shotgun with the producers of the show. The story arc, plot twists and turns, and character development are just a few of the things that will provide foundation for cross media ideas.

Cross-platform strategies can vary significantly according to producer Patrick Crowe. “In the Fallen Alternate Reality Game, the TV production provided the framework for the game world,” explains Crowe. “However, we had enormous freedom to develop the game plot and characters provided these remained consistent with the themes of the TV mini-series. By contrast, in our previous ARG for the TV drama ReGenesis, we worked directly with the writing team of the TV series, planting interactive events into every single episode. Sometimes these clues even influenced the plot of the TV drama.”

What should you consider in the process of building a cross media proposition? The process is deep but exciting. A book or even a manual could be written on it. It is both an art and a science, but briefly you should keep the following factors in mind:

The Show
The Audience
The Platforms
The Business Models
The Vendors
The Production

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Brian Seth Hurst is CEO of the Opportunity Management Company, Inc. a cross media strategy and production company. Hurst served two terms as Chairman of the Producers Guild of America New Media Council (’03-’05) while simultaneously serving on the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Board of Governors. Currently, he is Second Vice Chair of the Television Academy and sits on the National Board of the PGA.

Cross Media Methodologies

THE BIRTH OF CROSS MEDIA PRODUCTION
Adventures in Storytelling pt. 7 - Cross Media Methodologies

By Brian Seth Hurst



“Welcome back.” A phrase that has been used in television since it began. But these days it has a whole new meaning when it relates to a persistent active and dynamic community built around a television property. When the show is not on the air, its life and the life of its fans can continue across a number of distribution platforms.

Previous posts presented examples of cross media production includingNBC’s Heroes 360 Experience, The Jericho Experience, ABC Family’s Primetime Emmy® winning Fallen Alternate Reality Game, and Showtime’s The L World. These examples are really just the beginning of a growing trend that may actually provide new programming genres: part drama, part interactive mystery, part game, part social network. And, though these examples are anchored in television, new and compelling storytelling can begin on any platform -- Comedy Central’s Lil' Bush was born on mobile and there are many examples of original programming born or reborn as both linear and cross media programming on broadband including Prom Queen, Kate Modern and Quarterlife.

Mapping out and producing cross media programming is a challenge. And, just as television production companies specialize in producing television, there are new cross media production companies teaming with television and film producers that are the experts in the planning and production of cross platform storytelling. It is challenging, but as production processes in film and television have become standardized over time, so too will cross media methodologies.



In most cases now, it is a chaotic world of experimentation - like the early days of any medium - but speaking for cross media producers I can say that we are rapidly and of necessity quickly finding our way. We are responsible for defining not only what is possible on each platform but what story or content will live on those platforms while remaining true to the creator’s and producer’s vision and the audience. After all, the audience has to have an authentic and engaging experience regardless of platform. If it’s too complicated, or not complex enough, not true to the story, not organic, or they feel manipulated we will lose them. We have to be more audience-centric than your traditional television producer. We really need to know who they are and how they behave with technology and each other. We are profilers of a sort, mapping and predicting their behavior with content, technology and each other. Finally we are responsible for selecting the right technologies, partners and best of breed vendors to execute the vision. And like any production we must remain on time and on budget.

When dealing with a specific show we begin the process with a strategy. Traditional producers might call it preproduction, but to Cross Media producers it’s that and more. It’s blueprinting. It is an audience experience “flowchart” of how fans will move through and interact with the story. We found it necessary to create a workflow methodology that maximizes efficiency, facilitates integration, communication and quality assurance... but leaves plenty of room for creativity and the “secret sauce” that makes it delicious to the audience. And so our planning stage -- whether we are coming in before a show has even been produced or coming in after the fact -- has to have a process.



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Brian Seth Hurst is CEO of the Opportunity Management Company, Inc. a cross media strategy and production company. Hurst served two terms as Chairman of the Producers Guild of America New Media Council (’03-’05) while simultaneously serving on the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Board of Governors. Currently, he is Second Vice Chair of the Television Academy and sits on the National Board of the PGA.

Welcome to Cube One

THE BIRTH OF CROSS MEDIA PRODUCTION
Adventures in Storytelling pt. 6 - Welcome to Cube One
By Brian Seth Hurst

In recent posts we’ve explored some of 2007’s stand out best cross media executions.

Heroes 360 Experience
The Jericho Experience
Fallen
The L World

These are really just the beginning. And, just as television production companies specialize in producing television, there are new cross media production companies that are the experts in the planning and production of cross platform storytelling.

It isn’t easy right now, but just as production processes in film and television have become standardized over time, so too will cross media methodologies. In most cases now, it is a chaotic world of experimentation - like the early days of any medium - but speaking for cross media producers I can say that we are rapidly, and of necessity, finding our way. We are responsible for defining not only what is possible on each platform but what story or content will live on those platforms while remaining true to the creator’s and producer’s vision and the audience. After all, the audience has to have an authentic and engaging experience regardless of platform. If it’s too complicated, or not complex enough, not true to the story, not organic, or they feel manipulated we will lose them. Finally we are responsible for selecting the right technologies, partners and best of breed vendors to execute the vision. And like any production we must remain on time and on budget.

So, how do we do it? We’ll talk about the nuts and bolts of cross media production including the strategy, the business models, production integration and implementation in the upcoming posts.

This is one of the most exciting times in the history of storytelling. In fact, Cross Media storytelling is becoming a genre all unto itself. And, the participation of the audience is blurring the boundaries between fiction and non fiction, providing fertile ground for new ways to tell stories to a new “interactive” generation. The possibilities are only limited by your imagination and the imagination of your audience. So, in the multidimensional world of cross media you are not really at square one -- you are really at cube one. Cross Media producers are here to help to turn those cubes into building blocks for a remarkable audience experience.

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Brian Seth Hurst is CEO of the Opportunity Management Company, Inc. a cross media strategy and production company. Hurst served two terms as Chairman of the Producers Guild of America New Media Council (’03-’05) while simultaneously serving on the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Board of Governors. Currently, he is Second Vice Chair of the Television Academy and sits on the National Board of the PGA.

The L Word

THE BIRTH OF CROSS MEDIA PRODUCTION
Adventures in Storytelling pt. 5 - The L Word
By Brian Seth Hurst


Though not in 2007's Emmy® crop, Showtime’s cross media programming for The L Word is another wonderful example of a brilliantly executed cross media property rooted deeply in the culture and social behavior of its audience. The approach taken by Showtime’s Digital Media Group and Senior Vice President and General Manager Rob Hayes seemed to achieve the perfect balance of promotion for the on air show and cross platform story telling.

It began by making the show available for download on iTunes, Movielink, Cinema Now etc. so that viewers, even those not subscribed to Showtime, could have access anytime and anywhere. Fans were passionate, and a community formed online instantly. Showtime became a part of that community and then literally gave ownership of the show brand over to the fans.

First, through a company called FanLib, the community had a chance to take the characters of the show and write their own stories and situations. Known as fan fiction (a growing industry unto itself) the stories are based on the original work. According to FanLib Founder and CEO Chris M. Williams, this season an actual fan scripted scene will be shot and incorporated into an episode. It is the first time this has ever been done. The show also has a MySpace page, and clips available on Youtube, and other video sharing sites, and fans building their own tribute pages.

But, the best playground was yet to come- L-Word in Second Life. A virtual world with all the locations, characters, parties - everything you need to live the L-Life. Like any virtual world, fans choose an avatar and an identity and enter the world that was established by Showtime but that they now own and create. And, Showtime has now entered the world of social media with “Our Chart” , a Web 2.0 network for the lesbian community. Showtime watched the trends among their demographic and simply integrated itself into those trends.


We do need to tip our hats to non-fiction producers for breaking down the forth wall and allowing viewers to participate in the telling of the story. Back in 2004, FX’s ToddTV offered the audience the chance to control Todd’s life through their T-Mobile phones. The hook wasn’t enough and the show tanked. But bigger brands with bigger audiences can succeed where smaller ones cannot. Flash forward to this season on CBS’ Big Brother 8 and “America’s Player”. Housemate Eric was handed tasks to complete in each episode by the viewers votes at CBS.com or via text messaging. And, each task completed not only affected proceedings in the house but earned Eric $10,000. As of this writing Eric has completed 20 out of 27 tasks and has one task left - to cast America’s vote for who should be the winner. Additionally, CBS gave fans more - the Big Brother broadband talk show House Calls and, for the things that you can’t show on network television, Big Brother After Dark on Showtime Too.

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Brian Seth Hurst is CEO of the Opportunity Management Company, Inc. a cross media strategy and production company. Hurst served two terms as Chairman of the Producers Guild of America New Media Council (’03-’05) while simultaneously serving on the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Board of Governors. Currently, he is Second Vice Chair of the Television Academy and sits on the National Board of the PGA.

Fallen

THE BIRTH OF CROSS MEDIA PRODUCTION
Adventures in Storytelling pt. 4 - Fallen
By Brian Seth Hurst

ABC Family’s Fallen was a 6 hour miniseries that told the story of fallen angels loosely based on the four volume fantasy novel “The Fallen” by Thomas E. Sniegoski. The extension of Fallen would be an alternate reality game or ARG.

An ARG is a story that takes place over time and actually has a beginning, middle and end as opposed to a “persistent world” created in virtual reality games. The devices (platforms) of storytelling vary but the hallmark of an ARG is the audience’s ability to interact with the character(s) and each other - thus blurring the lines between fiction and reality.

The Fallen Alternate Reality Game, 2007's Emmy® winner for Outstanding Achievement in Interactive Television, gave fans the opportunity to immerse themselves in a clue-based universe of emails, chats, video, live online events, and clues embedded into the television show. Here the viewser enters the brilliantly contrived, designed and executed online world through a device called “The Oculus”. A runic puzzle that must continually be solved in order to reveal story elements, working the Oculus will help to ultimately reveal the origins of Faith Arella, the main character in the experience.

Once you are playing, The Fallen ARG is no more difficult than any video game but you have to know the television program. Again, this is something to be experienced. After all, to get to know how to use these platforms and devices to reach your audience, you have to know what’s possible.

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Brian Seth Hurst is CEO of the Opportunity Management Company, Inc. a cross media strategy and production company. Hurst served two terms as Chairman of the Producers Guild of America New Media Council (’03-’05) while simultaneously serving on the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Board of Governors. Currently, he is Second Vice Chair of the Television Academy and sits on the National Board of the PGA.

The Jericho Experience

THE BIRTH OF CROSS MEDIA PRODUCTION
Adventures in Storytelling pt. 3 - The Jericho Experience
By Brian Seth Hurst

CBS Interactive’s The Jericho Experience at http://www.whodroppedthebomb.com also had a deeply interactive audience that lived across platforms. Rich with features that grew over time, the experience included an original prequel “webumentary” called Countdown which took viewers through the expected real world consequences of a nuclear bomb drop. Executive Producers Stephen Chbosky, Carol Barbee and Jon Turtletaub were intimately involved in the process with Turtletaub writing scripts for the online community experience. As in the case of Heroes, a character was introduced on the web with a storyline and videos, who eventually crossed over to television. Though the site launched as promotion, it morphed into a Web 2.0 social community, and sustained the audience’s involvement during a 9 week winter hiatus.

Again the power of an interactive community was evident, especially when fans sent 50,000 pounds of nuts to CBS executives to protest the cancellation of the show. CBS then ordered seven additional episodes warning fans that ratings on TV must increase. But, if you were the creator or the producer of the world of Jericho, you might have to ask yourself… if that community is so active... is the television show as we know it really needed or was it just the flash point for a community that would congregate in a virtual Jericho world or a massive multiplayer online Jericho game either supported through subscription or in game advertising and product placement. This is where storytelling and opportunity converge.

But before we get into how you define those opportunities, there is a brilliant example of a well thought out cross media strategy and execution that is redefining what a television experience can be. You will notice that both the Heroes and Jericho examples use the word experience. That is the essence of the cross media challenge. To involve the audience through the creation of deeper richer experiences of the story, the characters and the community that builds itself around them. Then, both the story and the audience evolve together. Rather than the audience being passive they become your active partners. And hopefully passionate and loyal partners.

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Brian Seth Hurst is CEO of the Opportunity Management Company, Inc. a cross media strategy and production company. Hurst served two terms as Chairman of the Producers Guild of America New Media Council (’03-’05) while simultaneously serving on the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Board of Governors. Currently, he is Second Vice Chair of the Television Academy and sits on the National Board of the PGA.

Heroes 360 Experience

THE BIRTH OF CROSS MEDIA PRODUCTION
Adventures in Storytelling pt. 2 - The Heroes Experience
By Brian Seth Hurst

The seeds of cross media programming and production may have begun in non fiction, but now, the real innovation is actually happening in fiction. As a matter of fact, some of this activity is blurring the line between the drama of the programming and the non-fiction reality participation of the community. And, though it doesn’t break the “forth wall” down per se, it bends it, twists it and distorts it into compelling interactive audience experiences among loyal fan bases. There could be some valuable inspiration and learning available for non-fiction producers of television by digging into what is happening in the fiction cross media world. We’ll talk more about how all television producers can master cross media in later posts but first, I wanted to give you a few examples. I can write about them but it is like trying to describe a brilliant VFX moment in a movie. You really have to see it. Or in this case you really have to be “in” it. So I urge you after reading this article to go play!

2007’s crop of Emmy® finalists for Outstanding Achievement in Interactive Television are pioneers, masters of cross media production pushing the frontiers and drawing audiences into the worlds they have created by extending environments, characters and plot onto platforms that are part of their viewers everyday lives: broadband, mobile, gaming, social networking and more. This trend has given rise to a new term - “distributed storytelling” and new titles: Executive Producer Cross Media and Producer Cross Media.

NBC’s Heroes 360 Experience knew that their audience of science fiction fans would be an active online community. They wrangled them through the introduction of the character of Hana Gitelman exclusively on-line. Hana became the bridge between what was on television and the opportunity for viewsers to become more deeply involved and therefore have more at stake emotionally in the show. Through emails and text messages to those registered (providing a valuable fan database) she interacted with them on a daily basis, urged them to build profiles, do research, and explore. She began by telling them how to hack into the fictitious Primatech Paper web site where they could find hidden messages, clues, voicemails, etc. that extended the shows plot lines compelling them to solve the mysteries. Later when Hana’s character appeared in the television show, the online community already knew who she was and why she was there. And yet, those who only watched the television show had no feeling of being left out. When Hero’s was off the air, the experience kept fans engaged in the Heroes universe. Between January 22 and March 22 of 2007 the Heros 360 Experience had over 48 million page views and 27 million video downloads testifying to the power of great storytelling and the ability to move an audience back and forth between platforms. (NBC.Com delivers with 'Heroes360'The Futon Critic. 2007-03-22).

Calling this season a dry-run, Co-executive producer and writer Jesse Alexander has promised that this season the 360 Experience will be even bigger. (WWLA: Loeb & Co Talk “Heroes” (Comicbookresources.com March 17,2007) This is a great example of not only knowing your audience but anticipating their needs and desires and giving them content and interactivity that is deeply and richly engaging. It is satisfying a hunger.

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Brian Seth Hurst is CEO of the Opportunity Management Company, Inc. a cross media strategy and production company. Hurst served two terms as Chairman of the Producers Guild of America New Media Council (’03-’05) while simultaneously serving on the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Board of Governors. Currently, he is Second Vice Chair of the Television Academy and sits on the National Board of the PGA.

Adventures in Storytelling

THE BIRTH OF CROSS MEDIA PRODUCTION
Adventures in Storytelling
By Brian Seth Hurst

Not long ago I received a call from a television producer of dramas. “I know television, I mean I really know television but when it comes to this cross platform stuff… well… that’s why I am calling you. I am at square one. I have no idea where to begin.” Welcome to the new world; a world where the audience is demanding more from television programming; where fans can become a powerful interactive community that actually exercises influence over each other and even over network decisions; a world that is virtual, that is mobile, that extends across a myriad of devices and activities. We have moved from network entertainment (traditional broadcasting) to the era of networked entertainment where a piece of content becomes the gateway to a web of connectivity that becomes both personal and communal. This is the Web 2.0 and it presents television producers with new opportunities to involve and evolve the audience, to extend the brand and even to create new revenue streams.

Mastering this world for traditional producers really isn’t that difficult because, save some revolutionary tools, it is still storytelling. Cross media is built on four foundational pillars: technology, distribution, content and social behavior. Yesterday’s kids weaned on video games, born with a mouse in their hand are now today’s viewsers. They just don’t view television they “use” it and literally can become a part of it. We’ll talk more about how to master cross media in future posts but first, I wanted to give you a few examples. I can write about them... but it is like trying to describe a brilliant VFX moment in a movie. You really have to see it. Or in this case you really have to be “in” it. So I urge you after reading this post to go play!

This “new world” actually started in non-fiction programming which stimulated people to interact with the shows and each other. Perhaps the best known example is American Idol where in version 1.0 fans got on cell phones and landlines to make sure their favorites continued to the next round. But those same fans got on the net and built discussion groups, fan sites, and blogs fighting to turn their favorites into stars. As the seasons progressed, the producers of Idol began to give that community a place to gather, a town hall if you will, where all those visits to the net would come under the fox.com domain and eventually americanidol.com. This is a place where fans play alongside Idol’s advertisers rather than being outside the tent on their own. Over the years more features and ancillary content were added to the site and now of course there are the requisite mobile applications, behind the scenes, downloads etc. During Season 6, producers of Idol motivated that same community for “Idol Gives Back” raising over $75 million for children’s charities in the US and Africa. CBS’s “Big Brother” with its robust Big Brother Goes Mobile, “House Calls” talk show on the net, wikis, message boards and, of course, full episode viewing at CBS.com is a good illustration of what most non-fiction producers are doing to extend their show brands. At BravoTV.com, which covers all of Bravo’s original programming, virtually the same bill of fare is available albeit very well done.

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Brian Seth Hurst is CEO of the Opportunity Management Company, Inc. a cross media strategy and production company. Hurst served two terms as Chairman of the Producers Guild of America New Media Council (’03-’05) while simultaneously serving on the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Board of Governors. Currently, he is Second Vice Chair of the Television Academy and sits on the National Board of the PGA.