Storyteller Uprising

The unfinished conversation now includes book publishing

Sat, 30 Apr 2011 17:35:38 -0700

The unfinished conversation now includes book publishing:

Tomorrow, I’m a featured author at the University of Washington Libraries Literary Voices benefit dinner. I’m still not entirely sure why I was asked to host a roundtable; compared to keynote…

Storytelling and Design

Mon, 18 Apr 2011 16:29:21 -0700

Storytelling and Design:

The Universe must be trying to tell me something. Over the last few weeks, I’ve been inundated by the connection between Design and Story. This article helps me grasp the connection.

My on-air show-and-tell with iPad 2

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 14:57:00 -0700

Guest Post: “Meaning” — what Ann Hedreen thought of my SALu lecture

Wed, 16 Feb 2011 03:57:05 -0800

Guest Post: “Meaning” — what Ann Hedreen thought of my SALu lecture:

[Writer Ann Hedreen attended my SALu Storyteller Uprising lecture on February 9th, and contacted me later to share her thoughts about the lecture, posted originally to her Restless Nest blog….

Seattle Arts & Lectures U Presentation

Thu, 10 Feb 2011 06:37:08 -0800

Seattle Arts & Lectures U Presentation:

This Prezi was designed by MCDM’er Roni Ayalla, building off of my earlier presentations. Here’s my script:

1. Thank you for joining us tonight. We agreed to partner with Seattle Arts &…

Now on Kindle

Tue, 08 Feb 2011 17:24:45 -0800

Now on Kindle:

As I mentioned earlier. I’m exploring how I can produce Storyteller Uprising as an enhanced e-book (I even put that question out on Quora). It’d be pretty non-disruptive otherwise…

Wallflowers of the uprising

Sun, 06 Feb 2011 17:03:19 -0800

Wallflowers of the uprising:

Frank Rich’s Wallflowers at the Revolution in this weekend’s New York Times resonates deeply. It hits me both as an observer on the impact of social media platforms on such uprisings, as well as…

"Whether he means it to or not, here Morozov’s cyberskepticism renders a critique of..."

Wed, 02 Feb 2011 14:18:09 -0800

“Whether he means it to or not, here Morozov’s cyberskepticism renders a critique of Gladwell’s cyber-indifference.”

- Did Twitter Make Them Do It? The battle over social-media revolutions.

A new model for storytelling: transmedia

Tue, 25 Jan 2011 23:45:57 -0800

A new model for storytelling: transmedia:

Terrific insights on Media Space TV from transmedia storytelling (a.k.a. “multiplatform storytelling”) guru Brent Friedman, the importance of gaming, and how the Pacific Northwest has…

Good news for Snagfilms (and me)

Mon, 17 Jan 2011 08:41:00 -0800

Ahead of the Sundance Film Festival, the Wall Street Journal’s Kara Swisher reports that online professional documentary distributor SnagFilms (which also distributes both of my films — playlist embedded above) has just “snagged” another $10 million in financing. That puts the site at a $50 million valuation.

The service, unlike the subscription-based video giant Netflix, currently distributes free non-fiction documentary films with advertising, as well as offers rental streaming and purchase options.

And it is profitable, said Ted Leonsis, the former AOL exec who is the founder and has been the driving investor in SnagFilms.

“It was always my personal frustration as a backer of documentaries that you could not get distribution far and wide,” he said in an interview earlier today.

He noted that while Netflix is really now focused on big studio fare, “what we’ve discovered is a big supply of independent video that has never seen light of day, but that has a big audience.”

SnagFilms’ strategy is to give broader reach to these films, which often don’t even have a theatrical opening–or, if they do, are very small.

Microsoft CES Keynote "not so key worthy"

Thu, 06 Jan 2011 13:44:28 -0800

Here’s my KING5 TV discussion with anchor Brad Goode this morning:

I resolve (professionally) for 2011...

Fri, 31 Dec 2010 09:25:57 -0800

to bring Four Peaks to fruition, to create/publish an enhanced Storyteller Uprising e-book, and to use Media Space TV to bind them all.

Mobile Economics Will Trend Toward Web Economics

Thu, 30 Dec 2010 10:17:17 -0800

Mobile Economics Will Trend Toward Web Economics:

Can we create business models around content scarcity when the web is so media abundant? I recommend reading Fred Wilson’s analysis, especially in the wake of an apparent downturn in iPad magazine sales. A great discussion follows too.

A central issue with the Internet, no matter what device and presentation layer you use to access it, is that there is an unlimited amount of content available. Evan Williams calls it “a web of infinite information” in this chat with Om Malik. What is valuable is filtering and curation. Restricting access to content doesn’t work. Someone else’s content will get filtered and curated instead of yours. Scarcity is not a viable business model on the Internet.

From Word to Half-Life: engage and sell through story

Thu, 23 Dec 2010 13:30:55 -0800

From Word to Half-Life: engage and sell through story:

Here’s an excerpt from my interview with Seattle tech pioneer Monica Harrington on how she has engaged communities for decades, using storytelling to sell new products — from Microsoft Word,…

Sorry, this makes me happy

Mon, 20 Dec 2010 20:18:42 -0800

Sorry, this makes me happy:

A clear ROI of our MCDM program from one of our new alumna, as she wrote today in her personal blog.

I came into the program with basic video and audio skills and an enthusiasm for Twitter, Facebook and the changing media landscape. I leave the program with an arsenal of multimedia storytelling skills and an expertise in digital and social media strategy.

Oh, and congratulations on all your personal success too Amy!

Great read - 2011 Ford Explorer: The Pioneering SUV [i.e. America] Isn't One Anymore

Sun, 19 Dec 2010 02:15:00 -0800

Great read - 2011 Ford Explorer: The Pioneering SUV [i.e. America] Isn't One Anymore:

I loved how this writer smartly drew a parallel between the SUV and America’s no-longer sustainable exercise of power (while still trying to inspire the world with its “can-do” attitude) to something more in tune with our present era’s reality check. Makes me want to buy an Explorer! Here’s some excerpts:

So, in short, the quintessential SUV is no longer an SUV. How should we read that? It doesn’t take much imagination to see the Ford Explorer, once America’s cowboy sweetheart, as somehow now unhorsed, and part of a larger narrative of diminished expectations. After all, we are what we drive. Or—and this is where I come down—we could just be getting smarter…

I like it. Actually, I like it a lot better than before, when the Explorer seemed strained and uncomfortable, a SUV barbarian attempting to wield a napkin and fork. This is a much more livable, and drivable, product, and vastly more efficient. After 20 years, all that survives of the original SUV is the name Explorer and, with time, even that can be rehabilitated.

Independent America now on iTunes!

Wed, 15 Dec 2010 06:44:33 -0800

Independent America now on iTunes!:

It’s been more than five years since we finished our first film, so it shouldn’t be a big deal that it finally made it to iTunes — especially since it streams for free on Snagfilms…

A Seattle Take on Wikileaks — Washington News Council

Tue, 14 Dec 2010 15:38:22 -0800

A Seattle Take on Wikileaks — Washington News Council

I’m thinking enhanced ebook

Mon, 06 Dec 2010 20:36:10 -0800

I’m thinking enhanced ebook:

Since my dealings with a certain very large academic press are going nowhere fast (actually, nowhere very slowly), I think that it’s time once again to take my content creation fate into my own…

55 people think the iPad is more valuable than the Galaxy Tab

Thu, 02 Dec 2010 12:50:00 -0800

55 people think the iPad is more valuable than the Galaxy Tab:

…but that’s not why I returned the Galaxy Tab to T-Mobile (besides, as Engadget points out, that survey research was spurious at best).

For the last year, I’ve struggled to figure out my optimum device configuration. I never fell in love with the iPad, mainly because it can’t substitute for what I need a single computing device to do (flash-enabled browser so I can actually view my own film’s website, video Skype etc.) and because I actually find it cumbersome (too big, too heavy)! But my wife sees it as the ultimate home appliance.

I’ve resorted to the zen of the single-minded Kindle as an e-reader. I don’t like being locked into a carrier, and I like to switch out my SIM cards when I travel, so the iPhone has never been an option for me. I make things difficult by using a powerful, but UI-challenged Nokia N8 (freedom ain’t free), and I keep an iPod Touch 4G handy for dabbling in the iOS ecosystem. Actually, regarding iOS, I’m a big fan of the Netflix, Economist, Evernote , Radio Paradise, and Twitter apps — along with the excellent e-mail functionality.

What had I hoped the Galaxy Tab would bring? A better form factor (sorry Steve Jobs, but the 7” Kindle size is perfect for me), video VOIP, a full-fledged browser. But I have to admit to some disappointment with the Android platform. Flash is sludgy on the browser, Netflix isn’t supported, and I can’t even watch my own documentary films which stream on Hulu and Snagfilms. Skype doesn’t support video calling (yet) on Android. And the Samsung movie store is really laughable. The Kindle app is great, but I already have a Kindle.

Yup, this very spoiled gadget guy has to think further about what works. In the meantime, I’ve come to this very odd conclusion. If I need a relatively portable touch-device that can provide full browser functionality, video calling, with a powerful processor that can do everything I need (including video editing, slideshow presentations, blogging, etc.) but with an ultraportable’s battery stamina, then I’m just going to sit out the tablet wars for now. I’m sticking to…wait for it, my Windows 7 convertible laptop, an HP Elitebook 2740p (with a 160GB SSD drive and supplemental slice battery), which does everything that I need it to. It’s not a sexy solution, nor is it elegant — or cheap. But it’s highly functional with absolutely no restrictions.