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Last week we launched the interactive section of NFB.ca. A few of our projects, includingOut My Window, have been getting a lot of good press and are generating some buzz. Rob McLaughlin, head of our interactive team, has been speaking at conferences and festivals around the world about our new media endeavours. To complement his sessions, he and his team have put together a list of 10 things to remember when looking to produce cross-platform media. Here they are: 1. Pick your spot. Not every film/TV project needs an interactive game, original webisodes, extended interviews, director’s blog, a mobile app, mash-up tools, user-generated content, podcasts, online chats, screensavers. Avoid spreading yourself thinly across multiple platforms and play to the strengths of your project: one thing done very well is usually better for your audiences and your budget. 2. Involve the audience. Capitalize on the unique opportunity to engage audiences more deeply through forms of interactivity – non-linear narratives, customization of content, remixing and sharing tools, community-building features that increase dialogue and discussion. 3. People connect with people. Digital or otherwise, audiences connect with stories through people. The more you work to humanize and add emotion to digital programming, the more you’ll connect with audiences. Avoid over-focusing on the details of specific technologies at the expense injecting personality and creativity into your content. A blog is nothing without a blogger.
