NESTA suggestions:
"In this section please tell us about what creative/technical hurdles will remain to be overcome. We are interested in the next stages of creative / technical development that relate specifically to your product / idea rather then approvals or endorsements that are general to the market."
At the end of the NESTA funded phase, I will be in a strong position to produce SANCTUARY and establish the new company as a market leader in the interactive story-telling space. The demo will make it clear to investors what the potential of the product is and what the relevance of the re-mixable technology is to a range 3rd party film, television, console and web projects.
Projects like SANCTUARY will clarify the concept but it may take longer than anticipated to communicate this notion to a mainstream audience. This is the key creative hurdle for the team.
The next phase of the SANCTUARY project will be divided into production, marketing and promotion of the following deliverables:
1. a 35mm film master submitted to festival screenings
2. an online console DVD master for UK/Australian distribution
3. a web-based press kit and promotional materials
4. an open source web application (for editing and packaging MODs into the format that can be downloaded into a game console using FEEDER)
PRODUCTION
The idea is to secure further funding in order to immediately move into production of the short film SANCTUARY and the console product, the re-mixable film version of SANCTUARY. This activity can commence during the NESTA funded phase but full production funding is likely to hinge on the availability of a complete and polished demo (e.g. game industry funding).
To best leverage the development investment, I want to move swiftly into production of SANCTUARY and get the 35mm film and console DVD to market. The project is structured so that the key technical and creative obstacles will have already been tackled and solved during the NESTA funded phase. The production of SANCTUARY will be relatively straightforward at this stage, with considerable less risk to investors.
The aim is to excite a passive audience with a new interactivity concept, via publicity and 35mm screenings
The console development required beyond the NESTA funded phase will be considerably less than what is required typically in the game industry (e.g. after a game demo is produced). This is due to the idea of the film acting as a canvas for future creativity. The three core modules of the console product (GROOVER, SWITCH and FEEDER) will however require further development and extensive quality assurance to ensure that the overall experience works as desired.
The web application will enable people to alter the film either by simply replacing art assets or by completely transforming the experience by writing code handlers. By releasing the source code to the web application, the idea is that the tool be used as sample code for developers to extend and modify the film experience.
The SANCTUARY web site will feature stills, video trailers and press materials. The aim is to create a buzz for the project ahead of launch by collaborating with existing online communities favourable to the idea.
MARKETING
At this time I will also be in the position to market the re-mixable demo idea and demo technology for a wide range of other narrative projects, in-house and 3rd party, wherever there is an intention to build a two-way community around a story universe. The market potential for re-mixable film will be clearer by this stage, given current trends, and the company’s experience will be a valuable commodity. In parallel to producing SANCTUARY, the company will be marketed to film, TV, game, and web producers as an interactive content provider.
PROMOTION
The online community funded by NESTA will be maintained beyond the life of the initial phase. This community will act as a promotion hub for other re-mixable film projects (in the same way that machinima.com acts as a hub to promote machinima films).
After launch the community will be encourage to regulate itself. The company will continue maintenance and promote an auto-ranking submission system for reviewing and signposting the MODs that are available online.
The community will evolve in direct response to the take-up of the idea and the appeal of SANCTUARY once produced. A hurdle will be to develop a business model for the community (e.g. sponsorship) that allows it to become more self-sustainable without being too great a financial burden on the company.
One idea associated with this is to produce an online re-mixable film demo that, while less graphically rich then a console demo, will by virtue of being on the Web will be far more widely accessible. This could re-use the technology developed for SANCTUARY and form the basis of a competition so that the online community contributed the story.
Subscribers will be invited to participate in closed alpha and beta testing of the console product. The community will be an organic social network, enabling a wide group of interested parties to track the project as a social phenomenon and keep abreast of newly available MODs.
Coverage in the mainstream press will be sought to communicate the idea of the re-mixable film to lay people and further promote the idea of a re-mixable film community.
In additional to 35mm film screenings and presentations of the DVD at industry conferences (e.g. SIGGRAPH Electronic Theatre), I will give "live performances" of the film as a director and seek television coverage for this activity.
Outreach events and development for spin-off factual content will continue to go under the banner "What's the Story?". The long term plan for this activity is to increase awareness amoungst the general public of interactive story-telling projects like SANCTUARY.
SANCTUARY publicity will focus on influential events and channels in the film, game and online industries (e.g. BAFTA, PACT, SIGGRAPH, Wired magazine, 3D World magazine).
OVERALL PLAN
My overall aim is to sell the feature length script behind the SANCTUARY re-mixable film to a major studio for development as a feature film with myself attached as director, with a committment to develop a re-mixable version. The vision is of an interactive story franchise that secures a mainstream cinema release.
Leveraging NESTA funds, I will need to establish the new company as a market leader in the re-mixable story-telling space and use this experience to obtain interactive development funding for a slate of stories.
After the release of SANCTUARY, the focus will be on securing additional opportunities for myself (writing, directing and producing) and the project team, as a unit that can sub-contracted to larger film and game productions.
An eventual sale of "ten weeks in the head bin" as a re-mixable film project will be dependent on the development of the story universe into a compelling form and the take-up of film re-mixing as a form of audience participation. The latter is a key hurdle which cannot be underestimated. The project is structured so that the development funding will support an ongoing business regardless of shifting tastes in the market. The technology and process will be, by its nature, very re-usable.
A key technical hurdle will be to design SANCTUARY film assets so that they are as re-usable as possible. The proof of the pudding will be re-using assets in side-projects (e.g. content for the online community), and particularly in the re-mixable feature film based in the same story universe.
It will be necessary to strongly promote the re-usable aspect of the project to ensure that the market appreciates how and why there cost savings to be made. It may be necessary to seek out other companies and obtain commissions to create commercial branded MODs for SANCTUARY as a demonstration of its potential.
I would also seek to re-use art assets in two game spin-offs, as described in 2.7.
Development funding will be sought for the following slate to exploit the idea in various permutations:
* SANCTUARY
Ten minute re-mixable film. Film/console DVD
* ten weeks in the head bin
Feature length re-mixable film. Film/console DVD
* What's the Story?
Documentary on the future of interactive story-telling. 30min TV documentary/book/event series
* Car Story
Adults-only raunchy re-mixable film. Series of 5 minute TV films/console DVD
* Interactive exercise at home
Heart-monitor/exercise programme for the Sony EyeToy. Console DVD
* The Phonies
Truth is stranger than fiction as constestants try to spot phoney media. iTV pilot
* MOD music
Re-mixable clips for music acts.