© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Chapter 8: Multimedia Skills

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Overview Members of a multimedia team Roles and responsibilities in a multimedia team

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Members of a Multimedia Team A team of skilled individuals is required to create a good multimedia project. Team building refers to activities that help a group and its members function at optimal levels. The diverse range of skills required for a project is called the multimedia skillset.

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Members of a Multimedia Team (continued) A multimedia team consists of the following: –Project manager –Multimedia designer –Interface designer –Writer –Video specialist

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved A multimedia team consists of the following (continued): –Audio specialist –Multimedia programmer –Producer for the Web –Computer programmers Members of a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team The project manager is responsible for: –The overall development, implementation, and day-to-day operations of the project –The design and management of a project –Understanding the strengths and limitations of hardware and software –Ensuring people skills and organizational skills –Conveying information between the team and the client

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued) Project Manager Mark Williams Production of a CD-ROM reference guide at Microsoft involved a core team headed by project manager Mark Williams, along with additional specialists, technicians, and assistants, who were brought on board as needed.

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued) Multimedia designer – This team consists of: –Graphics designers, illustrators, animators, and image processing specialists who deal with visuals, thereby making the project appealing and aesthetic –Instructional designers, who make sure that the subject matter is presented clearly for the target audience

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Multimedia designer - This team consists of (continued): –Interface designers, who devise the navigational pathways and content maps –Information designers, who structure content, determine user pathways and feedback, and select presentation media Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Multimedia Designer Kurt Andersen Kurt Andersen is an instructional designer and was a senior designer at the George Lucas Educational Foundation, where he designed multimedia prototypes for middle school math and science curricula. Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved An interface designer is responsible for: –Creating a software device that organizes content, allows users to access or modify content, and presents that content on the screen –Building a user-friendly interface Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Interface Designer Nicole Lazzaro Nicole Lazzaro is an award-winning interface designer with XEODesign in Oakland, California, and teaches interface design at San Francisco State University’s Multimedia Studies Program. She spends her days thinking of new ways to design multimedia interfaces that feel more like real life. Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved A multimedia writer is responsible for: –Creating characters, actions, point of view, and interactivity –Writing proposals and test screens –Scripting voice-overs and actors' narrations Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Writer Domenic Stansberry Domenic Stansberry is a writer/designer who has worked on interactive multimedia dramas for commercial products. He has also written for documentary film and published two books of fiction. Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved A video specialist needs to understand: –The delivery of video files on DVD, or the Web –How to shoot quality video –How to transfer the video footage to a computer –How to edit the footage down to a final product using a digital nonlinear editing system (NLE) Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Video Specialist Oliver Streuli Oliver Streuli has worked as a post- production editor on several Hollywood productions (Silence of the Lambs, Family Man, and Rush Hour 2). He currently works in Switzerland, where he specializes in post-production of commercials, corporate marketing and educational videos, and broadcast programming. Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved An audio specialist is responsible for: –Locating and selecting suitable music talent –Scheduling recording sessions –Digitizing and editing recorded material into computer files Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Audio Specialist Chip Harris Chip Harris studied trumpet and electronic music composition at the Peabody Conservatory of Music, and he has worked with the noted composer Jean Eichelberger Ivy. He has recorded releases on major and independent labels, including Atlantic, RCA, and Warner Brothers; has composed music for CD-ROM titles for Virgin Games, Accolade, and E-greetings; and has created soundtracks for Clio and Joey award-winning spots. Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved A multimedia programmer, also called a software engineer: –Integrates all the multimedia elements into a seamless project, using authoring systems or a programming language. –Writes codes for the display of multimedia elements, and to control various peripheral devices. –Manages timings, transitions, and record keeping. Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Multimedia Programmer Hal Wine Hal Wine is a programmer familiar with both the Windows and Macintosh environments. In his many years of experience, he has worked in most of the important areas of computing and for many of the leading computing companies. Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Multimedia producer for the Web: –Web site producers put together a coordinated set of pages for the Web. –They also co-ordinate updates and changes. Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Producer Kevin Edwards Kevin Edwards is Senior Multimedia Producer for CNET, a publicly traded media company that integrates television programming with a network of sites on the World Wide Web. Roles and Responsibilities in a Multimedia Team (continued)

© 2011 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved Summary The diverse skills required to create a multimedia project are called the multimedia skill set. Team building refers to activities that help a group and its members function at optimal levels of performance. Roles and responsibilities are assigned to each team member in a multimedia project.