The media convergence in digital media era brings infinite possibilities for IP owners

The advent of the digital media era leads to media convergence. According to Henry Jenkins, convergence could be traced from the multi-platform distribution of media content, the diverse cooperation of old and new media industries and the blurring line between content producers and consumers.

Under the trend of cross-media convergence, the content development of Chinese most popular IP, Daomu Biji (Grave Robbery Note) set a good example, which inspires me that the content innovation and brand setting have become particularly important within the environment of digital media, moreover, it is crucial for IP owners to set up special cross-media development strategies for their contents.

Daomu Biji starting with the Intenet platform as a network novel series, which tells a story about the grave-robbing adventure of Wu Xie, a young guy hailing from a tomb-raiding family, and this IP has attracted a lot of fans in China based on its novel theme, suspense stories and compelling writing. Under the impetus of the fan effect, Daomu Biji extended its development to multiple media platforms such as webcomic, drama, TV play, film, and Game (PC and mobile). As the writer and IP creator, Na Pai San Shu  has ensured retains its original tone and a complete narrative on multiple media platforms,  thus, all of them have achieved remarkable success, which has caused the “tomb raiding” craze in China.

 

In addition to working with professional media corporation, San Shu also pays great attention to the maintenance of fan traffic and interaction with the audience. He has ever publicly solicited comments from fans and viewers about the animation of Daomu Biji on Sina Weibo (Chinese Twitter). However, this behavior also reveals an obvious commercial purpose.

The transmedia storytelling on multi-media platforms constitutes the complete cross-media series of Daomu Biji. Nan Pai San Shu has ever revealed that the development of Daomu Biji IP’s derivatives market would give it an economic scope of more than 20 billion yuan. A good cross-media IP development strategy helps him kill several birds with one stone.

However, the increase of IP value has simulate the ‘IP price war’ between SVOD services and television sations in China, which could not be regarded as  a positive competition.

 

Siying Yu

Feb 12, 2018

 

References

Henry Jenkins (2008), Convergence Culture: Where Old Media and New Media Collide. New York: New York University Press, 93-130.

 

MAROON5 「SUGAR」: A success music publicity achieving through music video

After watching Maroon 5’s “Suger” music video, countless girls make a decision, “I definitely use ‘Suger’ as the theme song at my wedding”. This music video was extremely popular online and engaged lots of traffic on Facebook and Youtube, and most views express their love towards the plots of “Suger”, as well as the music. The wonderful combination of visual and music in this music video has not only promoted the music but also added some functional value to guarantee its sustainability.

Who wouldn’t love that? Meeting the idol at the wedding and then watch he sings a love song to you face to face. This music video’s director, David Dobkin, who is also the filmmaker of Wedding Crashers （2005）has continued his film ideas to it. In this documentary music video, this band crashes several real weddings across  Los Angeles at that day as introduced by Adam Levine at the initial narrative.

This music video has well presented the advantages of the performers. They dress in smart suits and drive an expensive car to begin their wedding crash journey, they look charming and confidence with the bright music and sunshine. Promoting the performers’ popularity via visual affect,  which achieved through elaborately editing: The huge billboards with performer’s pictures, people’s surprised faces and screams when they show up, the pretty female fans meet on the road.

The director also pays great attention to the Synaesthesia of music and images. The images match the rhythm of the music, as the curtain always falls at the climax of the song and cooperate the cheering sound of the crowds.

without any impressive or special techniques, it seems that this music video is not in line with the public’s expectation for the future music video’s quality. However, the director of ‘Suger’ let viewers love this song by touching them through a novel idea, aesthetic pictures and tuneful rhythm.

Siying Yu

Mar 16, 2018

 

Reference

Carol Vernallis (2013), Unruly Media, New York: Oxford University Press.

Vernallis, Carol, Amy Herzog, and John Richardson. The Oxford Handbook of Sound and Image in Digital Media. OUP USA.

 

Recalling a sad history by walking into a family then going through a war

‘I feel that I just walked into this family, and went through a war with them’ my friend gives such a feedback after she watched the TV series Battle of Changsha recommended by me.

The story is set against the backdrop of the battle of Changsha in 1939 during the Second Sino-Japanese War. Although it is a war story, the director Kong Sheng has avoided most conventional elements of war films, such as the grand narrative, the fierce fighting and the great man, instead, it focuses on an ordinary family in Changsha, Hunan Province, China from boom to bust during the Anti-Japanese war between 1938 and 1945, portraying the desperation and resistance of the Chinese people under the brutal war.

Battle of Changsha pays great attention to the historical sense, from props, costume to the scene carefully references the time background. The most notable is the use of the archival footage at the beginning, which has subtly brought the audiences into the era.

The story start forms a long take dominated by black and white video data documentary, in which the images slowly shrinking from the big scene with a melancholy music: from the Japanese bombing, crowds fleeing, the wave of marriage liberation to the student street protests.

At 01:07, Hu Xiangxiang’s back goes into frames to join the procession, the scenes switch from the narrative of black and white history to living character’s story by rendering the images to chromatic with gradually upbeat music. Like entering a time tunnel, which immediately brings the plots, characters as well as audiences behind the character into the era.

In addition to the ingenious use of the archive footage at the beginning, the black and white documentary footage has also been inserted into all the narratives of the big events including the ending to ensure that both the story and characters never slip out of the historical time. This also explains why Battle of Changsha has such a compelling effect on viewers.

 

Siying Yu

Feb 22, 2018

 

Reference

Kong Sheng and Zhang Kaizhou (2014), Battle of Changsha.

Jussi Parikka (2012), “Media Archaeology of the Senses: Audiovisual, Affective, Alogrithmic”.

 

 

The Truman Show (1998): the most terrifying comedy ever in post-cinema world

‘Everyone is afraid of the loop, the temporal trap means the infinite loop and the spatial trap is The Truman Show‘ This explains why Peter Weir’s classic satirical science fiction film has been regarded as a horror or suspense film often. This film contains abundant dramatic and absurd scenes and the collage of these shots clearly shows a distinct perspective of post-cinema, affect and sensibility could be more significant than narrative.

The Truman Show‘s biggest highlights including the innovation of story and shooting technique, as well as the use of the lens. In this film, a television production company cultivates an infant, Truman, and record his life for producing the world’s most popular reality television program. Truman’s hometown, Sea haven Island is equipped with thousands of cameras to monitor all aspects of Truman’s life and all of the residences including his families and friends are actors, however, Truman was the only one who has no idea about the truth until the appearance of his ‘dead father’ actor and the girl he loves because of the program director, Christof’s mistake.

The Truman Show filmed the shooting itself, which is the shooting process of the TV show, therefore, it has subverted the traditional film genre and shooting technique by using the concept of transmedia creatively. For example, Truman’s wife often places advertisements on camera, which presents the typical business model of the television industry.

Most of the time, Truman has been placed on the camera monitors and on the television screen. The whole film contains 30% of the camera viewpoint lens, which used for reminding that Truman’s private life has been constantly monitored.

In addition, the shooting for Truman’s appearance on the television screen and the ‘real world’ that watching The Show give film viewers dual identity, since we not only watching the show within the television but also watching those audiences who are outside the television screen but still in the film screen. This could easily provoke audience affect.

The deeper thinking of this film is about the definition of realism and the threat of privacy in post-media world.

 

Siying Yu

Feb 28, 2018

 

Reference

Shane Denson & Julia Leyda (eds), Post- Cinema: Theorizing 21st-Century Film, Falmer: REFRAME Books, 270-296.

Cormier R. (2015). 15 truths about The Truman Show. Available online: http://mentalfloss.com/article/64649/15-truths-about-truman-show

When Disney encounters Chinese folktale

Mulan is Disney’s first animated film featuring Chinese traditional female characters, which adapted from a household Chinese folktale “Mulan joined the army for the father”. There is no doubt that Mulan is the product of globalization. Disney follows the original storyline and main characters but innovates the detailed content and ideas. While retaining most Chinese traditional elements, Disney has added some own interpretation to make it more accessible to global audiences while maintaining cultural diversity.

According to the original storyline, Mulan disguised herself as a man to fight for her father when the government forced conscription, whereas, there was only one old father in the family; She returned with glory years later but she refused the emperor’s reward and returned to her family.  The original tale is aimed to promote Filial piety, however, Disney has added more details about feminism and patriotism to the story. In the film, Mulan is portrayed as a deviant girl, as emphasized in the theme song, she doesn’t want to be bound by “girls should…”.

According to the producer Pam Coates, the final frame that the crowd saluted Mulan has represented the core idea of this film: encouraging girls to be themselves. When you are willing to face your true self, so can this society.

The film has given a new and appropriate meaning to this feudalistic and outmoded folktale to make it be accepted by viewers all over the world and was especially popular among feminists.

Even if it is recognized as a positive work of globalization, the film has not gained the desired fruit in China. Chinese audiences have questioned the heroine’s image and the plot that is not in line with the historical setting. For example, Mulan finally embraces the emperor, which is considered impossible.

Overall, the smooth motion picture and vivid character image in Mulan has not only brought a good reputation and commercial revenue to Disney but also well publicized Chinese traditional culture, even though some localized adaptations have been criticized in China.

 

Siying Yu

Feb 2, 2018

 

Reference:

Mulan. Disney, 1998. Film.

Thomas Hylland Eriksen, Globalization: The Key Concepts, Oxford, New York: Berg.

 

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