There's always been discussion in RTA about the interactivity of storytelling in the modern age.
If you think about it, in the past we only "listened" to stories being told - be it in television, radio, music, paintings, dance, theatre, and so on. Today, however, the division between medium and audience is fading, allowing us to take part in the storytelling! Early interactivity trends started with participatory art, fluxes, and in terms of technology the GUI - Graphics User Interface, the first computer that had graphics! Before this, computers were only used for writing. Introducing graphics into home computers introduced graphic editing, video games, and everything went from there. Then when the internet started in 1993, it opened a new world of possibility and storytelling! I think that interactivity is important because it stimulates and flourishes our creative minds and imagination (which we should have - not only at a young age). Watching is a passive action, you have no control - but when you can DO, you're being active and exercising your mind.
I'm going to talk a little about something I mentioned already: Fluxus. Fluxus was a type of participatory art that relied on the chance encounter between a participant and materials. An example I saw in my lecture was by an artist named Allan Kaprow.
He would place a plate in a public place and attach a note beside it, saying:
" This is a free plate. If you choose to take it, please leave a chalk outline of the plate and write what you plan to do with your new plate. Thanks and enjoy."
It's quite random but that's what makes it intriguing! I'd be interested in seeing the answers from people who took the plates. And that's the beauty of interactivity - people can view, share and react to others and communicate with each other thanks to this form of art.
I experienced a fluxus once in high school. As I sat in my desk I put my hand underneath the desk and noticed something taped underneath the flat writing surface. I forget what the note said exactly, but it was a list of rules relating to my high school written by various anonymous students. They were really random and funny and at the end they included an email for you to add to the list anonymously. They were taped under very few desks every month in the school.
In addition to interactivity flourishing creativity and your mind, I'd say it also gives us well-being, because bonds are created that weren't there before. For example, some modern forms of interactive storytelling is cross-platform storytelling. This is when a story is told through various forms of media. So if you're a fan of a music group that introduces a cross-platform interactive story, like when Nine Inch Nails were promoting their album Year Zero (check it out! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Year_Zero_(game), this gives the fan a intimidate connection to their group. The fan gets to meet and make friends with other fans in some cases, they could even meet the artists somehow or get closer to them, etc - simply a bunch of things can come out of the interactive story experience that are great, positive things.
Websites are obviously interactive and I have one now and trying to make it the best I can - it's my last assignment. Then it'll be bye-bye digital media (Time goes by fast, eh?!)
- Karoline
(week 12)
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