AbstractsLanguage, Literature & Linguistics

Otea: transmission and transmedia

by Zak Waipara




Institution: AUT University
Department:
Year: 0
Keywords: Transmedia; Maori cultural transmission; Interactive game; Motion comic; E-comic
Record ID: 1317101
Full text PDF: http://hdl.handle.net/10292/7328


Abstract

Transmedia can be described as storytelling across multiple platforms of media delivery. This transmedia project, Otea, uses three digital media – an animated motion comic, an e-comic, and an interactive game - to tell a single story. The objective is the creation of a transmedia resource that allows the transmission of aspects of traditional Maori knowledge, culture and language, via an original fictional narrative aimed primarily at children. Henry Jenkins calls transmedia storytelling “the art of world making,” and my goal is to build a rich and engaging story-world where the aspects of Maoritanga used are an accessible and natural part of the storytelling landscape. By embedding these cultural concepts inside a story that communicates my own enthusiasm by way of entertainment, I aim to initiate positive interest in these topics. Given the transmission of Maori concepts at the heart of the project, specific Maori cultural lenses have been applied to interpret the modern media employed. Through practical investigation, this project explores how a transmedia approach might be applied to communicate Maori cultural concepts, in order to develop a potentially useful methodology for other practitioners to employ and build upon.