TRANSMEDIA STORYTELLING

For the last couple of weeks we have been talking about how effective transmedia storytelling is.  My favorite television show, The Office, currently uses transmedia story. When the Office first premiered in 2005, “The Office” struggled in ratings.  A year later, NBC released the episodes on iTunes for viewers to download.   Soon afterwards, NBC also created online content, including original webisodes and games, on The Office website. The addition of online interaction proved to be highly successful. Through transmedia storytelling, The Office has successfully enhanced the experience for the audience by allowing viewers to learn more about the characters and to be interactive with the show.

The Office successfully uses the internet, through character vlogs and webisodes, to advance character development by giving viewers information about the show’s characters that are not seen in its television episodes.  For example, prior to the start of Season 4, The Office website posted vlogs about what the characters did over the summer. These summer vlogs did not go into the next season of the show, but the audience was able to learn more about the characters. The many vlogs they have, have been successful in allowing the audience to connect more to the characters in The Office.

During its third season, The Office started creating webisodes, which are short episodes of a show that air only on the internet. The Office currently has seven different webisode series that portray the supporting characters in the show. These webisodes allow the audience to continue their enjoyment of The Office by watching additional mini-episodes on the internet. Although the audience does not need to watch them in order to follow the television show’s plot, the webisodes allow the audience to become more engaged with the characters and story. 

The Office successfully uses online games and interactive activities to generate more viewers and enhance the viewers’ experience. For example, fans can make an account for the online game Dunder Mifflin at Sabre , where they able to pretend that they are a part of The Office. Fans must join a branch of the company and participate in tasks and games in order to reach the top of the Dunder Mifflin Company. Every time a fan wins a game or task they are given points, which allow them to win rewards.

Here is a link to NBC website for the office. If you are a fan of the office, check out the website, and be apart of their transmedia storytelling.

http://www.nbc.com/the-office/