Artists change the world, not technology
If you look at all the interesting concepts for how the iPad will fundamentally shift how we think about content, each one is the result of clever writers integrating creative narration into their work. Artists change the world, not technology.
Addendum: The above was inspired by the comment conversation on the PSFK post linked above:
Michael Kowalski: Hm, so the iPad could be a good platform for multimedia, games and augmented reality. Not much of a surprise there. I expect the textbook industry in particular will be utterly transformed in short order. But what about, you know, *real* books? I would have liked to have seen how, say, the next Martin Amis will be “enhanced” on the iPad.
Kyle Studstill: @Michael I tend to think of this about a variety of media/story content in general as well. Movies, for example. Everything about a movie, promotion and all, is about getting you into the theater, and once you’ve seen the film you’re done. I’d be fascinated to see a movie written such that the experience of “watching the movie” continued in some way outside of the theatre. Perhaps something is written into the script such that some common event occurs that everyone can be a part of (and anticipate) months after people have seen the film opening week. I don’t know. But I do think that the kind of “enhanced” you’re talking about comes from within the work itself, not necessarily the iPad that holds it. I think you’re right if you’re saying the iPad gives storytellers a fantastic opportunity to create something with the ability to be “enhanced,” and I hope they do.
To which I was referencing a thought that occurred to me once upon a time:
From the future: The evolution of movie-based entertainment
It occurs to me that every movie-based campaign focuses entirely on getting consumers into the theatre to watch the film. There have been more and more interesting ways of doing this, through events leading up to launch day, but everything culminates in seeing the film in theatre and then the experience is over.
Seeing this today got me thinking: 'what if the Batman: Dark Knight experience were still something ongoing?' Something we were still excited about today. What if inherent in the plot and script of a movie there was something that made the story much more than a 2-hour experience? Something in the script that took the movie into real life, an event that could be held months after opening day, once everyone has had a chance to see it and understand how the event is an extension of the plot.
