Basic treatment for project ‘Mind Bubble’ (Working title)

Mind Bubble

Mind Bubble – An inflatable dome that provides a space for music festival goers to be creative and make video edits of bands that have played – either bands that they have missed, or bands that they particularly enjoyed. Alternatively, they can simply lie back and relax and enjoy other people’s videos as they are projected onto the inside of the dome.

The Dome will consist of a large circle with a projector in the middle facing upwards. Around the projector will be a large circular area for people to sit or lie down and enjoy themselves as people’s videos are projected onto the ceiling and walls of the dome. Around the edge of the circle will be edit stations with basic software that will allow users to edit footage of bands shot by the Mind Bubble camera crews at the festival. Users will be encouraged to be as creative as they like, mixing up the audio and visuals, and adding various audio and visual effects.

Once the user has created their video it will be placed in a queue with the other videos that have been created, and will eventually be projected onto the inside of the dome. Each video will have a maximum length of 5 minutes, meaning that users will not have to wait long until they can watch what they have created. Each video will also be uploaded to the Mind Bubble website so the videos can be viewed from home.

Walkthrough –

-          User enters the ‘Mind Bubble’ and decides whether they want to create their own video, or simply watch other people’s.

-          If they want to create their own, they must go to an edit station.

-          At the edit station they must pick which bands set they want to edit.

-          They will then be presented with simple tools to manipulate the footage, shot by the Mind Bubble camera crew.

-           Once they have finished their video, it will be saved onto the Mind Bubble computer and then projected onto the inside of the dome.

-          The video will also be automatically uploaded to the Mind Bubble website, where it can be viewed along with all the others.

-          Alternatively, the user can lie back and enjoy the work of other users.

Documentary proposal and budget

Search for the Alien Big Cats

Search for the Alien Big Cats – A one hour documentary investigating the numerous sightings and encounters with ‘Alien Big Cats’ (ABC’s) across Great Britain.

In the year 2000 Josh Hopkins (below) was playing outside his home in Monmouthshire, south Wales when he was attacked…by what he described as a big cat. Left with five long scars across his face, Josh described the incident – “At the start I thought it was playing, but when it struck its paw at me and I saw the blood fly past, I thought I was going to die”. Josh’s experience is only one of thousands of sightings and encounters across Britain, with the British Big Cat Society reporting 2,123 sightings between April 2004 and July 2005 alone. However, despite these statistics, nobody has been able to provide conclusive evidence that these creatures are living in Britain.

The narrative of this project will be split into two distinct parts. One aspect will focus on retelling the stories of those who have had close encounters with big cats across Britain. The other will follow a team of expert trackers as they scour the countryside and woodlands for evidence of big cats. The purpose of this documentary is to build a convincing argument that points to the existence of these creatures, and raises public awareness.

As well as Josh Hopkins, the characters featured who will be sharing their stories will be: Ted Noble, a farmer who, in 1980, captured a big cat on his land in Scotland, later to be named Felicity (below); William Rooker who managed to shoot remarkable footage of what appears to be a Tiger in Cambridge in 1994; and Anthony Holder, who was attacked at the bottom of his garden in London, after hearing his own pet howling. A team of trackers will also be involved, lead by Danny Nineham, an expert tracker who has investigated over 2000 cases in Britain alone, and worked closely with Gwent Police in south Wales on Josh’s case.

Josh, Tom, William and Anthony have all been approached and have agreed to take part and share their experiences. Danny Nineham has also been approached and is willing to be involved, and at the moment is putting together a team of trackers he feels will be suitable for this project.

The stories will be told through a mixture of interviews, eye witness footage, photos and dramatic reconstructions. These sections will be interspersed with experts offering their opinions and statistics. As well as this a camera crew will follow a team of trackers as they look for signs of big cats, and examine the evidence in front of the camera, explaining to the viewer what it is they are seeing, and why it is evidence of the creatures. This project is aimed at the Channel 5 9:00pm slot, for viewers with a love of animals, nature and mystery.

Budget:

	Number	Cost per day (£)	Number of days needed	Total (£)
Camera operator	3	150	15	6750
Sound man	1	150	15	2250
Producer / Director	1	150	15	2250
HD Camera	2	150	20	6000
Night Vision Camera	1	150	14	2100
Sound Kit	1	100	20	2000
Tripod	1	60	20	1200
Accommodation crew	5	30	19	2850
Accommodation tracker team	5	30	13	1950
Flights / Transport				3000
Contributors	4	200		800
Tracker team hire	1	800	10	8000
Editor	1	150	15	2250
Total				41400

‘How Green Is Your Car?’ cross-platform idea (revised), plus digital days excercise

How Green is your Car?

How green is your car (HGIYC) is a simple scheme that rewards people for lowering their carbon footprint, by offering them reward points that can be used to purchase ‘green’ products.

First of all, anybody participating in HGIYC must own either an iphone or ipod touch, and then must create an account on the HGIYC website.

On the website, the user will be shown clear and concise instructions on how to download the HGIYC app onto their iphone/ipod touch. The user then enters their car registration number into the i-phone. Based on the registration number, the app downloads the relevant information needed to calculate the cars carbon footprint from the DVLA database (model, engine size etc.).

On the website the user will set themselves challenges, eg. Lower their co2 emissions by a certain % over the course of a month. Depending on the scale of the challenge they have set themselves, and how close they get to achieving their goal, they will be awarded a number of reward points, which can be spent against the cost of certain ‘green’ products from participating companies, such as environmentally friendly clothes, furniture etc.

All the user needs to do is make sure that their i-phone is turned on in the car whenever they make a journey. The i-phones GPS will use the app to calculate the cars carbon footprint over a set period of time.

As well as being the place where users download the app for their i-phones, the website will provide information about which companies are currently taking part in the scheme, and which products the user is able to buy with their reward points. Products will be purchased through the website, as well as from the stores taking part. The website will also work as a forum for those taking part to discuss their experiences, and share ideas on how to reduce carbon emissions, such as organizing car pools etc.

Funding will come from sponsors such as environmental charities like Greenpeace or Friends of the Earth. All the participating companies will also be able to advertise themselves on the website and any other advertisement campaigns. It is also possible that this project may be able to receive government funding.

There is a huge need for a scheme like this. Not only could it help to reduce carbon emissions, but by encouraging people to purchase other green products with their reward points, participants may end up leading greener lifestyles in ways that they had not previously thought of.

Users will be made aware of this scheme through an advertising campaign that could span TV, the internet and magazines/papers as well as billboards and advertisements and displays inside participating stores.

This idea is unique in that, although reward points are not a new idea, they have never been used specifically in a scheme like this to help combat CO2 emissions. Participants can spend their points on any participating products which will eventually lead them to be green in areas of their lives that they had never previously considered.

There are many people who care about global warming, but lead busy lives and just don’t have the time to implement big changes that will lead to a greener lifestyle. HGIYC is unique in that it allows its participants to make gradual changes. All they have to do is reach realistic goals that they set themselves. The points that they earn can then be spent on green items, or if the user is finding it hard to reach their current goal they have set themselves, their points can be rolled over and added to the next challenge. The user can save up and amass as many points as they like to pay for more expensive items.

Many people are global warming skeptics, or are put off by other ‘green’ campaigns, finding them either condescending or ‘preachy’. HGIYC is different from other campaigns in that users will get out of it as much as they put in. There is no pressure for participants to take part, but there are incentives for them to do well. The scheme will even appeal to those who are not concerned about the issues at hand as they will be able to save money on products that they may want, regardless of the environmental aspect. Hopefully by taking part, the scheme will raise awareness amongst these people and help them realise that the problem of CO2 emissions goes beyond global warming.

HGIYC offers huge potential for widespread user involvement, as anybody who owns an iphone or ipod touch will be able to take part.

The scheme will not only target those who are concerned with environmental issues, but will specifically target different users depending on which brands are part of the scheme. For example, a younger person may be taking part so they can save up enough points to buy some trendy environmentally friendly clothes, whereas an older person may be saving their points over a long period of time to purchase solar panels or furniture. Different groups of people would be drawn to the different products by the way they were advertised. For example, brands that appeal to younger people will be advertised in places where those people are likely to see them, such as on facebook.

It goes without saying that this is an important issue that many people feel strongly about, and is also a topic that receives a lot of media attention, therefore it stands to reason that a significant number of people will want to take part. As an example of the public’s willingness to help tackle green issues, in March 2009 the UK government halted its solar power grant scheme…as demand was too high!

Besides the fact that HGIYC users will be able to purchase a variety of products for free, or at least at a discount, there are also many obvious environmental benefits. Even if global warming does not concern you, there are other reasons to go ‘green’, such as conserving the Earth’s natural resources, and helping to create a cleaner atmosphere as air pollution has been linked to conditions such as asthma. The health of HGIYC users will also benefit, as cutting down on their car journeys will encourage people to walk more.

One of the key factors of HGIYC is its simplicity. After they have registered themselves on the clean, easy to navigate HGIYC website, all they are required to do is make sure that their iphone or ipod touch is on during any car journeys they make, and let the app they downloaded do all the work. This simplicity is an easy way to help people feel that they are doing their part for the environment, without making big changes to their lives.

Another quality of HGIYC is that it allows its users to commit to the scheme as much or as little as they want to. One user may only reduce their car journeys a small amount so that they can purchase one of the cheaper items on offer with their points. Even though they may not be reducing the carbon footprint from their car by much, the items they purchase as part of the scheme will hopefully make a difference in other areas of their life.

This project has the potential to attract a huge audience. The subject of global warming is one of the hottest topics of today’s society, and there a lot of people who care passionately about this issue. By engaging directly with these people HGIYC has an already established user base. HGIYC also has the potential to bring people together who share similar interests and concerns. The HGIYC website will have a forum where people can talk about their experience, offer tips to one another, and ultimately become friends through using HGIYC. The website will also feature a news page that will alert HGIYC user to environmental news, and also inform them of related events happening around the country, such as demonstrations or environmental protests.

Money given to this project would initially be spent on the research and development of the i-phone app. There are a number of British companies that develop i-phone apps, including Apple, The i-phone developers, Intellect soft, Maa designs and Tom soft. Each of these companies will be approached, along with others, to see who is most able to fulfill our needs for the most reasonable price. Money would also go to the research and development of the HGIYC website. Spring Digital, Web Creation UK, Pom Design and the Creare Group are all leading British web designers, and could all be approached to design the HGIYC website. Research will also need to be done into the logistics of downloading the relevant car information from the DVLA database to the users iphone.

A number of companies will be approached to offer their products to be purchased as part of the HGIYC scheme. Brands such as Credau-Funky Eco Clothing will make excellent candidates, and it would be in their interest to take part. The scheme will give companies like this exposure and also allow them to make money by increased sales from advertising. Other small companies like this that offer green products include Nigel’s Eco Store, which offers a variety of environmentally friendly products, from furniture to clothing. As the scheme gains momentum, larger companies can be approached that specialize in more expensive products, such as Evo Energy and Solartwin, who specialize in solar panels and energy efficient hot water systems respectively.

Money would be needed for advertising to raise awareness of the scheme. Advertising would come in the form of billboards, magazine, internet and TV adverts. Any participating stores could advertise the scheme in their shops or on their websites, directly appealing to the HGIYC audience. Participating companies would be able to advertise their own brands on the HGIYC website. This scheme could also be funded by grants or sponsorship from environmental charities and organisations such as Geenpeace and Friends of the Earth. As this scheme has the public’s interest at heart, there is always the possibility of government money being used as well.

As the i-phone or i-pod touch will be a key element in the HGIYC scheme, there is a lot of scope for Apple to advertise it’s products through all aspects of the project. The logo could feature on all advertising such as billboards and on the website, making Apple synonymous with HGIYC, and also maybe convincing people to buy iphones who aren’t interested in HGIYC. There will also be those who do not own an iphone or ipod touch, so will buy one in order to take part in the scheme.

This scheme also presents a big opportunity for participating companies to advertise themselves and raise awareness of their products. The companies involved will be able to advertise the products that are part of the scheme, as well as products that aren’t. Even green companies or organisations that aren’t ‘selling’ anything will be able to advertise on the HGIYC website, helping with funding, and appealing straight to their target audience.

Digital Days

Zara Singer, 32, PR Promoter

06:00 – Wakes up with husband to alarm

06:15 – Checks emails, plans day on i-phone

06:30 – Showers / Gets dressed / Make-up

07:00 – Kids wake up, puts TV on

07:30 – Gets kids ready for school

08:30 – Drives kids to school, listens to car radio

09:00 – Arrives in office, makes calls to organise conference

09:30 – Has a briefing with staff

10:00 – Drives to hotel using i-phone as sat-nav

10:30 – Makes sure conference hall is ready

11:00 – Greets representatives, issues welcome packs

11:30 – Steps out to check emails on i-phone

13:30 – Makes sure caterers are ready to go

14:00 – Lunch

15:00 – Back to conference

17:00 – Networking and drinks

18:00 – Cleans up

19:00 – Drives home, listens to radio

19:30 – Arrives home

20:00 – Dinner

20:30 – Watches television

22:30 – Goes to bed

Mark Benton, 35, Freelance cameraman

07:30 – Wakes up to alarm clock

08:00 – Showers / gets dressed

08:30 – Checks filming equipment for the days work

09:00 – Drives to work, listens to music – takes a detour to get breakfast on the way to office

09:30 –Checks filming schedule at office, picks up crew and other equipment

10:00 – Drives to location – uses i-phone as sat nav

10:30 –Arrives at location

11:00 – Filming

11:30 – Drive to next location using i-phone as sat nav

12:00 – Arrive at location

12:30 – Filming

14:00 – Drives to supermarket to get lunch

14:30 – Drives back to location to eat lunch / checks emails using i-phone

15:00 – Starts filming again

17:00 –Stops filming for the day, packs equipment away

17:30 – Drives crew back to office, uses i-phone as sat nav

18:00 – Leaves office, drives home, listens to music in the car

18:15 – Buys dinner on the way home

19:00 – Arrives home

19:30 – Watches TV whilst eating dinner

20:00 – Checks emails at computer, spends time social networking

20:30 – Checks equipment ready for next day

21:00 – Relaxes in front of television

22:30 – Goes to bed

Documentary proposal plus video promo

Apocalypse When: How Bright Is Our Future?

Apocalypse When: How Bright is Our Future? – A one hour, myth-busting documentary that takes a reassuring,  scientific look at the Mayan 2012 doomsday prophecy, and explores what is actually going to happen, and whether or not it will affect life on Earth.

Quebec, 1989. Six million people are left without electricity for nine hours after a sudden and unexpected increase in Solar activity. This is just a small example of how the Sun can be our greatest enemy. A Solar flare of sufficient strength would fry our satellites, getting rid of all communication. Planes would drop from the sky. All electrical power would be lost. The world’s economy would collapse. Our over reliance on technology would see society crumble, and the human race would be reset back to the Stone Age. Some predict that it would take decades to recover. And some predict that this will happen in 2012. They are wrong.

Although there is a small amount of science behind the Mayan prophecy (the sun will come to the end of its current cycle in 2012 which will create a period of increased activity, showing that the Mayans may have had a basic knowledge about the cycles of the sun and magnetic fields) and solar events of a similar magnitude have been observed elsewhere in the universe, this documentary will set out to reassure those who may have fallen prey to the doomsday hype exaggerated by certain sections of the media.

Presented by world renowned astrophysicist Michio Kaku, this film takes the viewer on a scientific journey, using a combination of computer visual effects, interviews with experts and other scientists, and technological demonstrations. Scientists will explain to the viewer what causes Solar flares, and what kind of threat they pose to humanity. This documentary will also look at what steps are being taken to increase our knowledge of Solar activity, such as new satellite technology to monitor the Sun, and what we may be able to do to protect ourselves from the suns power in the distant future. The documentary will also explore the Mayan prophecy itself, and how they knew so much about our sun, going on location to ancient Mayan sites and examining their culture, and what it was that lead them to believe the world would end in 2012.

Michio Kaku has already expressed an interest in being involved in the project, and permission has already been granted to film and interview scientists and experts at the royal observatories in Greenwich, London and Edinburgh. Members of the team that built the SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory) a joint venture between NASA and the ESA which currently orbits the Sun have also agreed to contribute to the program.

This documentary is being made with either the Monday or Tuesday 9:00pm slot on Channel 4 or More 4 in mind. It is for people who have a passion for science, or even casual viewers with a passing interest in the subject matter. It is also for those who may be worried or concerned about what they have seen or read about the Mayan doomsday prophecy that has gained so much media attention recently.

Below is a short promo video for Apocalypse When: How Bright Is Our Future?

‘Treasure Hunters!’ proposal and walkthrough

Treasure Hunters treatment

‘Treasure Hunters!’ – A fun, interactive multi-platform experience spread mainly across television and the internet, and for some users, i-phones. Each week the public will submit riddles via a website that will lead ‘Treasure Hunters’ to interesting landmarks, locations and artifacts found in villages, towns and cities across Britain, with highlights of the treasure hunts being broadcast live on the internet, and also as a weekly highlights television show, shown on Channel 4 on Sunday evenings.

Key features of this project include the Treasure Hunters website which allows users to submit riddles to be used by the treasure hunters, catch up on previous episodes and watch live streams of treasure hunts currently taking place. A weekly television show that accompanies the website will broadcast highlights of treasure hunts that took place across Britain during the week.

This project is aimed at students, tourists, and people who are interested in, or wants to know more, about their local history. However, the fun of trying to work out the answers to riddles your self from home should ensure that this project appeals to a wide audience. Students with time on their hands will be able to dedicate time to writing clever, thoughtful riddles to provide a challenge for the treasure hunters. Tourists will be able to watch treasure hunts and discover things that they did not know about certain towns or cities, with history lovers enjoying the project for the same reason.

Walkthrough

After being made aware of the project by the advertising campaign, for most of the audience the entry point for ‘Treasure Hunters’ will be the website, displayed at the end of each episode. Once at the website, users can choose to watch previous episodes of Treasure Hunters, watch a live stream of current treasure hunts taking place, submit a riddle to be used or apply to be a treasure hunter themselves, by clicking on the respective buttons on the sites homepage. Those wishing to watch past episodes will have a menu displayed in front of them, from which they will be able to select past episodes. Users wanting to watch a live feed will be shown a page displaying a list of treasure hunts taking place in towns, villages and cities across Britain, listed in alphabetical order by location. Once they have clicked on the location of their choice, a live stream from the camera team following those treasure hunters will be displayed.

To submit a riddle, users will be directed to a page that allows them to submit brief, abstract riddles relating to points of interest in their home town, village or city. Users will be able to submit as many as they like, and they will then go on to be assessed by the staff running the website for their suitability for use in the show. Those applying to the show will be directed to an application form where they will have to explain why they should be chosen as Treasure Hunters. If chosen, they will be contacted by the Treasure Hunters team, and a date for their treasure hunt will be arranged. On this day they will be given an i-phone, allowing them to access the riddles they need to solve from the website, and will be followed by a small camera crew who will be recording footage for the live stream and the highlights television show, which can be enjoyed by all sections of the audience on a weekly basis.

User walkthrough’s

Mark Edwards, 20, History student

“I have always been interested in the history of my home town and the surrounding area, so when I saw Treasure Hunters for the first time, I thought it would be great fun to take part. After watching the TV show I went on to the website to find out how to send in your own riddles. The website told me that ‘Treasure Hunters’ would be in my home town soon, so I decided to submit three riddles, the answer to each being an important historical location.  Whilst I was on the website I decided to check out some of the previous episodes that I had missed.

From then on I would regularly visit the website to check out the live feed. The day came when a treasure hunt was due to take place in my town, and I eagerly watched the live feed to see if my riddles had been chosen. To my surprise, they had! It was great fun watching the contestants trying to get their heads around what I had written, and it was a great feeling when they finally cracked it.

I then waited to watch that week’s episode on television, and the treasure hunt that had used my riddles had been selected as one of the highlights to be broadcast. It was great to have something that I was a part of being shown on television. I still regularly watch the live feed on the website, and have a great time trying to decipher the riddles myself. And as I am not always able to watch the treasure hunts on the website, I make sure that I never miss the highlights show!”

Albert Watkins, 45, Librarian

“I have always enjoyed a challenge, and when I first saw Treasure Hunters on TV I thought it looked like great fun. I logged onto the website that night and submitted a riddle. I also decided to apply to be a Treasure Hunter. After filling out the form and providing my email address, I sent it off.

A week later I received an e-mail from the Treasure Hunters team saying that although my riddle had not been chosen, they would like to use my wife and I as treasure hunters on the show! A couple of weeks passed, during which time I would regularly check the website, watching the live stream and catching up on previous episodes, until the day finally came that we would be treasure hunters in our local village. A camera crew turned up at our house early in the morning, and followed us throughout the day as we tried to solve the riddles on the website using the i-phone they gave us. The whole day was fantastic fun, and it was strange but exciting to think that a large audience was watching us online!

After we had returned home The Treasure Hunters team informed us that we had been chosen to appear in the highlights episode which would be shown at the end of the week! I still regularly tune in to the show, and regularly visit the website to try and solve other people’s riddles, and have since submitted more of my own – no luck yet though!”

Initially this project is designed to run for a set period of time of 12 weeks, visiting 12 towns, villages and cities across Britain. Every week for 12 weeks the highlights show will be broadcast, with this being enough time to explore a wide variety of locations. If the project proves to be a success with high television ratings and a large enough percentage of viewers logging on to submit riddles and applying to take part themselves, then there is scope for future series.

Online strategy

Treasure hunters will be accompanied by an online marketing campaign that will see the project advertised across a number of different websites. The marketing will take place in three stages, the first being to appeal to the local people of the locations that Treasure Hunters will visit. Secondly, the campaign will move onto social networking sites to create a community of people who are interested in the project, and finally onto the Channel 4 website, where it will try and attract a larger audience for television.

Town, Cities and Villages that Treasure Hunters will visit will have local newspapers. Treasure Hunters will advertise on the websites of these local papers, as well as on local council websites. The project could also be advertised on the websites of local museums, and on sites which specialize in local knowledge or historical points of interest, as this will attract people with an interest in history. By marketing the project in these places, the project can appeal directly to the local people of the relevant towns and cities, and the Treasure Hunters target audience.

Social networking sites will play an important role in raising awareness for this project. Many people’s contacts on these sites will be people that they know locally. As Treasure Hunters requires people to partake who have local knowledge, it will be important for groups to be set up on social networking sites that bring together people from the various places that Treasure Hunters will visit. As more and more people join the groups they will be able to invite people that live locally, or who they think will be interested in the project. This will be an effective way of creating local interest in Treasure Hunters. Social networking sites such as Facebook could also have an online, simplified version of Treasure Hunters implemented into them, where member of the online community could challenge others to guess the answers to their riddles.

As Treasure Hunters is, in a sense, a puzzle game, it will be appropriate to advertise on puzzle and gaming websites, again appealing directly to the audience we are aiming for. The television show will be advertised on the Channel 4 website near the time of broadcast, to attract a wider audience.

Below is a visual representation of a possible online marketing strategy for ‘Treasure Hunters!’

After 7 seconds

The ‘Treasure Hunters’ audience will consist of 3 groups of people. The first group will be a casual audience who will watch the highlights show, and may also watch live ‘Treasure Hunts’ being streamed on the website. The second group will be a more dedicated audience, who will actively take part in the experience by submitting their own riddles to the Treasure Hunters website for use in the show. The third group will be people who wish to take part as Treasure Hunters, and will do so by applying on the website.

The entry point for most users will be the ‘Treasure Hunters’ website. After typing in the site into the internet address bar they will be greeted with the project homepage. From the homepage different buttons will direct the user to different areas of the site, such as a stream where they can watch current treasure hunts, or to part of the website dedicated to previous episodes of Treasure Hunters.

Those wishing to take part in the experience by entering their own riddles will need to visit the ‘Riddles’ section of the website. Users should be able to reach this stage in the website in around 7 seconds with 3 mouse clicks – once on the internet browser, one click to search the website, and one click on the ‘Riddles’ button on the homepage. Participants creating riddles for use on the show will need to apply some thought, and so are likely to sit down to take part on a weekend, or during a quiet evening, when their schedule may be free and they are able to carefully consider what they write.

Those wishing to take part as a ‘Treasure Hunter’ will need to click on the ‘apply’ button to be taken to an application form. Like anywhere else on the site, to get to the application form should take no more than 3 clicks.

After 7 minutes

After 7 minutes, casual users will be watching either live streams of current treasure hunts, or watching previous episodes of Treasure Hunters. The live streams will last the length of time that it takes for the Treasure Hunters to complete their task, which could be a number of hours, but the previous episodes will be 30 minutes long.

After 7 minutes, those who have chosen to will have entered riddle into the website. The riddles will be short, around 4 lines, and the user can submit as many as they like. They will then click on the ‘Home’ button to take them back to the homepage, from which they will be able to explore the rest of he website.

Users who have decided to apply to become a ‘treasure hunter’ will be in the process of filling out an application form. The form will be easy to fill out, and will simply ask potential participants why they feel should be the ones chosen to feature on the show.

After 7 days

Users who are not submitting riddles or planning on taking part as a treasure hunter will find value in checking the website occasionally throughout the week to watch live treasure hunts. The highlights show shown every week will be shown on Sunday nights, and aimed at the more casual viewer, the same audience that might visit the ‘Treasure Hunters’ website to watch some of the live streams, but not heavily partake. For this section of the audience, the experience will be spread across the internet and possibly television.

Those who have submitted a riddle will regularly check the website’s live streams to see if their riddle is being used by the ‘treasure hunters’. The ‘stickiness’ of this project is achieved through the fact that the audience are able to have a direct impact on the projects outcome. The audience that have submitted riddles will want to stay with the project, at least until they can see whether their work has had an impact. For this audience, their experience will be spread across the internet and television.

Those chosen to be treasure hunters in their area will spend a day as a treasure hunter being followed by a small camera crew. They will be given iphones to access the riddles left on the website, and will have to find the artifacts that the riddles refer to within a time limit. After their experience as a treasure hunter, they will be keen to watch themselves on the highlights show, shown at the weekend. For people who become ‘Treasure Hunters’ the experience will be spread over the internet, television and mobile phones.

Below is a chart to represent the flow of the ‘Treasure Hunters’ experience

‘Bamzooki’ and ‘Bow Street Runner’ reviews plus visual schematic

Reviews

Bamzooki

‘Bamzooki’ is a cross platform project spread across television and the Bamzooki website. Created by the BBC for ‘Cbeebies’, Bamzooki fulfils part of the BBC’s children’s programming remit.

Children visit the website, where they are able to download a tool called the ‘Zook Kit’ which will allow them to design and build their very own ‘Zook’. After they have done this, they upload their Zook and see how well it does in battle against other Zooks, with some Zook battles being shown on the TV show. The website features league tables for participants to see how well their Zook is doing, a game called Zookimash which allows player to create a Zook just for fun without entering it into competition, help videos which offer tutorials on how to use the Zook Kit, a forum for users to discuss their creations and links to BBC iPlayer where you can catch up on previous episodes of Bamzookie that have already been shown on television.

The Bamzookie project is clearly aimed at a young demographic. Although the website does not specify an age range, I would guess that Bamzookie is aimed at 7 – 12 year olds. It is very bright, loud and colourful, which will obviously be appealing to children, although I felt it may be slightly confusing for children at the younger end of the demographic. From the homepage it is not immediately obvious what you are supposed to do, and that may alienate some of the audience. The Zook Kit tool also seemed fairly complex for young children, so maybe simplifying the process of creating a Zook may be one thing the developers could do to improve the experience.

Showing Bamzookie as part of CBeebies on television is the quickest way for the BBC to engage children, and is the entry point for the project, with the audience then directed to the website. The interactive nature of the website is essential for allowing the audience to create their own Zook, and this aspect is a great way of encouraging children to be creative. Each episode of Bamzookie is roughly eight minutes long, and I would estimate that it would take roughly one hour to create a Zook, including downloading the Zook Kit and uploading your creation to the website. As the TV and online aspect are directly linked, the audience will be largely the same on each.

Bow Street Runner

‘Bow Street Runner’ is an online ‘point and click’ game created by Channel 4. Set in London during the 1750’s, the player is cast as a ‘Bow Street Runner’ and is required to solve crimes. The game is designed to compliment the Channel 4 TV programme ‘City of Vice’, and so will go towards fulfilling the factual and educational part of the channels remit.  The channel 4 website houses the game itself, along with a forum for users to talk about the history, the game, and links to Facebook, Digg, Del.icio.us, Reddit, Stumbleupon, Myspace and Bebo, where users can share a link to the game with other users.

The game is aimed at 14- 19 year olds, although the documentary would also appeal to an older audience who may be interested in this area of London’s history. Both these groups would find value in the forums and social networking sites. Although social networking sites generally attract a younger audience, the game comes with a warning that it may not be suitable for young children. The game is very successful in reaching its demographic. It is very atmospheric with high production values, utilizing a great mix of CGI and live action, and as a result is very engaging and entertaining for 14-19 year olds and adults alike. Making the project available across social networking sites is also a good idea as most 14 – 19 year olds will already be signed up to at least one.

As the ‘Bow Street Runners’ project is designed to be educational, making it into an interactive game is the perfect way of engaging the target audience, and it is very easy to use. However, the game seems very linear, and it is unclear how much the user can influence the game. By providing a link for users to share the game on Facebook and other social networking sites, Channel 4 have created a great way of making its target demographic aware of the game. Although the game could be seen as a stand alone project, as mentioned it is designed to compliment the television programme ‘City of Vice’. The show would be the entry point that gets viewers interested in the game, and then from the game users are directed to the forum. Another entry point would be the social networking sites where people may stumble upon the link taking them to the website and the game.

The game is specifically aimed at 14-19 year olds, so an older audience watching City of Vice may not play the game. The social networking sites that accompany the game are likely to have the same audience as not only do most people within the 14-19 year old demographic  have a social networking account, the games website leads you directly to these sites. The game is time consuming, and is made available episodically, so a number of hours could be spent with it over a number of days. The amount of time spent discussing the game and the history in the forum would depend on the users interest in the game and the subject. The amount of time spent on the social networking sites is very brief, as all that is required to do is to click on a link to take you to the game, although this time could be extended if users decide to discuss the game and the television show on these sites.

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!