©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Provocative Statement: Truly interactive stories have yet to be successfully done outside of live theater. Christopher Stapleton Director, Media Convergence Laboratory Faculty, School of Film & Digital Media Florida Interactive Entertainment Academy University of Central Florida

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Mission Statement: To create a truly interactive and immersive story experience story experience successfully outside of a live theater.

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory I create story experiences… Universal Studios Islands of Adventure

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Discovery Channel: Daily Planet By melting the boundaries between real and virtual with Mixed Reality

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory It’s more than technology… It’s more than content… It’s more than technology… It’s more than content… Mixed Reality Aquarium

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory It’s the Power of the Interactive Imagination “What is in the book is only one fourth of the story. It is like an iceberg where three-quarters of the story you don’t see, it is beyond the page.” Ernest Hemingway

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Media Evolution (without Interactivity) One hundred years of successful passive media From capturing motion to capturing imagination…

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Media Evolution Expanding capabilities to overwhelm the senses Leaving little to the imagination and participation of the audience

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Media Evolve = Audience Devolve Television even laughs and applauds for us

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Media Revolution, Beyond Interactivity From mechanical & electronic capture… to digital interactivity… to simulated experience...

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Experiential Media: Convergence of Media As immersive as Military Simulation As Intuitive as Play As Meaningful as education As visceral as a Theme park As compelling as motion pictures As interactive as video games

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory A hybrid of video game and theme park (on steroids) Story Experience

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Is it interactive story or game? Same Characters, Emotions, Events, Environments From Movie… to theme park… to video game… From Story…to Play… to Game

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Game Developer: “Too much story ruins a good game!”

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Game Developer: “Too much story ruins a good game!” “You stop the flow of the game… …but it is OK for a reward at the end.”

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Game Developer: Too much story ruins a good game! Story Teller: Too much game ruins a good story!

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Game Developer: Too much story ruins a good game! Story Teller: Too much game ruins a good story! “You stop the flow of the story Leave the interactivity to the game”

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Expanding the Interactivity of Story PASSIVE PASSIVE INTERACTIVE INTERACTIVE Games Stories Either / Or

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Expanding the Interactivity of Story PASSIVE PASSIVE INTERACTIVE INTERACTIVE Stories and games To Television MindlessCaptivatingEntertainingFun ExperienceEnthrallingNon-LinearAll-SensoryInteractive-Imagination Sports/Training

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Expanding the Interactivity of Story PASSIVE PASSIVE REACTIVE REACTIVE Television MindlessCaptivatingEntertainingFun INTERACTIVE INTERACTIVE ACTIVE ACTIVE TwitchingExploratoryStory-BranchingPeripheral-SensoryCuriosity PuzzlesGames AND ExperienceEnthrallingNon-LinearAll-SensoryInteractive-Imagination Sports/Training WigglingExhilaratingVisceralMulti-SensoryTactile ThemeParks

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Interactive Spectrum of Story PASSIVE PASSIVE REACTIVE REACTIVE WigglingExhilaratingVisceralMulti-SensoryTactileEngagingCompellingIntellectualEmotional Television MindlessCaptivatingEntertainingFun INTERACTIVE INTERACTIVE ACTIVE ACTIVE ExperienceEnthrallingNon-LinearAll-SensoryInteractive-Imagination DREAMS TwitchingExploratoryStory-BranchingPeripheral-SensoryCuriosity Cinema ThemeParksPuzzlesGamesMUDDsRPGsSports/Training User- Driven User- DrivenEngagingUnpredictableUser-CreatedContentHaptic PUZZLESTORYGAMEPLAY AND

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory GamesStories What is the difference?

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory GamesStories EMPATHY ME

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence LaboratoryPLAYGamesStories Author Intent Players Pursuit

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Experiential Movie Trailer Immersed like a theme park Immersed like a theme park Looks like a film Looks like a film Plays like a game Plays like a game

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Convergence of story convention Story Game Play

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Convergence of story convention Exposure Story Game Play Question

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Convergence of story convention Exposure Understanding Create Story Game Play Question

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Convergence of story convention Exposure Share Expression Understanding Create Story Game Play Question

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Convergence of story convention Exposure Share Memorable Experience Expression Understanding Create Story Game Play Question

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Entertainment, Training, Education The business of making memories for a lifetime

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Interactive Narrative in Cyberspace Environmental Environmental Encyclopedic Encyclopedic Participatory Participatory Procedural Procedural -Janet Murray, Hamlet on the Holodeck

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Interactive Story Research: Passive to Interactive to experiential Storytelling AgencyAbsorbingAuthoring Actor Audience Author Screen Play Interactive Acting Improvisation Theater Participatory Theater Screen Play Role Playing Games Video Games Artificial Intelligence Screen Play Author’s IntentPlayer’s Pursuit

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Procedural: Story Engine MR Engine: Modeling Human Experience Real-time, immersive, 3D, visceral multi-modal

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Mixed Fantasy Continuum (adding imagination to technology) Augmented Virtuality (AV) Augmented Reality (AR) Imaginary Reality (Story) Film Magic Show Novel Virtual Reality (Media) Compelling Mixed Reality (The Play) Traditional Theme park Aristotle’s-Media- Imagination Continuum Milgram’s Reality-Virtuality Continuum P.T. Barnum Reality- Imagination Continuum Physical Reality (Interface)

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory We have just begun inventing the future of interactive stories

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory We have just begun inventing the future of interactive stories We need to be Making Creative Leaps

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory We have just begun inventing the future of interactive stories We need to Making Creative Leaps Not just repeat success

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory Melting the Boundaries Between Science and Fiction The Shared Imagination © 2003 University of Central Florida

©2005 University of Central Floridawww.mcl.ucf.eduMedia Convergence Laboratory We wish to thank our partners Institute for Simulation and Training School of Computer Science School of Film and Digital Media