Interactive Storytelling
Interactive storytelling, on my part, has been a continuous idea, exploration and development. Interactive storytelling can take form in many media: CDs, games, websites, ebooks, performance, but the most compelling to me is interactive movies. What interactive movies are, or can be right now, is a movie like any other and more. It's engaging, but no more intrusive than an instinctive click of a button. How many times in a movie have you yelled, "Don't open that door!" or "Do you really want to listen to him and not her?" Interactive movies allow the viewer such interaction. However, like in life, seemingly insignificant decisions can have unforeseen consequences. Excellent for stories on morality.
Such interactive storytelling thinking carries over to other modes of communication as well. Combined with psychology and human interaction knowledge, websites can be finely designed to lead viewers where they need to go—whether they know where that is or not—and in unique, original ways.
Some of my interactive storytelling developments have included:
Detroit Rock N' Fashion: A Virtual Art Exhibit is a dynamic, multimedia presentation of over 150 works of art by eight artists who are also involved in Detroit rock and/or Detroit fashion. Fourteen songs from eight Detroit bands these artists are directly involved with drive this 25-minute presentation. Over 300 photos from 40 photographers punctuate these interactive stories. Detroit Rock N' Fashion is designed to be viewed passively projected on a gallery wall or big screen HDTV; or interactively on a computer or co-host gallery website as a special exhibit; and or configured with actual physical art.
Detroit Rock N' Fashion: A Virtual Art Exhibit was first launched at UDetroit Cafe, a media cafe in downtowntown Detroit on one of their live Web TV shows in August of 2011. A physical Detroit Rock N' Fashion art exhibit is still in place at the Cafe. A couple live Web TV shows—Chizzy CAM and Detroit Rock N' Fashion: A Live Web TV Show have since been spawned at UDetroit Cafe from this initial endeavor, as well as various forms in art shows in Metro Detroit.
I conceived, designed, and built Detroit Rock N' Fashion to get some buzz for The Gallery of the Arts. This entailed developing relationships with artists, musicians, bands, photographers and a large portion of Detroit's music community to make DRNF happen.
VIEW: ONLINE PRESENTATION | ART GALLERY | MUSIC GALLERY | PHOTO GALLERY
Seven Swans: The Existentialist's Canvas is the story of a young, aspiring artist discovering what it truly is to be an "artist." The story has seven main diversions, each providing a different back story. Multiple views of this interactive movie adds different threads to a richer and deeper tapestry of a story.
Seven Swans was both a project in my first screenwriting class, and an important development in interactive movie screenwriting. Below are links showing views of the step outline for this interactive story, as well as the diversions and mutiple paths. One of the most important developments from this project is showing how literally the same exact scenes in literally the same exact timeline can have fully different meanings—by the information that proceeds it. Seven Swans is likely the first interactive movie screenplay ever copyrighted. This a first draft version.
STEP OUTLINE FLOWCHART: FULL SCREEN | FULL SIZE
Undertermined is an interactive study of how the choices of a single, young individual could effect the destiny of a family, a community, a society, a civilization. Classic determinism vs. free will debate underscores the story. Different diversions in the storyline show differing points of view.
Undetermined is a natural development and adaption of the earlier interactive story Frac. This a first draft version. A unique detail of this storywriting is an androgynous reference to all the characters—no he/she reference whatsoever. The attached screenplay is but the single, default storyline path. However it illustrates how to craft an interactive screenplay.
VIEW: SCREENPLAY
Frac is a story of right and wrong decisions, showing how seemingly insignificant decisions can affect your life.
Frac was a natural progresson in interactive storytelling from Hansel and Gretel Interactive, using a simple branching structure.
VIEW: STORY
