YouTube Spotlight: Anna Burden

Anna Burden's famous cover video

YouTube is a powerful tool and has been proven to be so numerous times. Amateur film makers or musicians are using YouTube to get their name out there  to a large audience. All for free.

Source: Anna Burden YouTube Channel

One artist that caught my attention as well as the attention of about 2 million other people is Anna Burden, an aspiring singer with some real talent. Check out the video above if you don't believe me.

This video has helped her gain the attention of people like Ellen and Ricki Lake. She is now in the band Day Trip with fellow musician Sam DeArmond. Both of them together make a great duo and I would be shocked if they don't go anywhere with their music.

One hell of a Bobby Brown Cover

Writing fictional interactive stories

An excerpt from "Gerald Fitzgerald" celtx.com

 

          This year one of my assignments was to write a script that was interactive for the reader or "user". The focus was on character transformation which was part of basic storytelling structure and "If/Then Moments" where the story branches out in two different directions. It started off pretty easy until I had to figure out a way to re join those branching routes back into one shared direction. 

     

          This was the point when story mapping came in handy. I learned that I really had to organize the basic story structure first in order to work out the dialogue. It's hard to write meaningful dialogue when you, the writer, don't even know where it's headed or what the conflict is. 

          If/Then writing is far more difficult than it seems but I found it satisfying when I was able to pull it off and make it seem believable. I would definitely like to continue this type of writing because of the many things it applies to in media. Video game writing for RPGs like Skyrim or Heavy Rain utilize this style of writing but it isn't perfect. Not yet. I hope to one day write a video game that deals with branching story lines that the player has a real effect on.

This changes everything!

 

Grand Theft Auto V trailer

          It's been a year since the announcement of this highly anticipated title and we finally have a second trailer. This time focusing on the narrative of the game and introducing the new protagonists in the Grand Theft Auto series.

          In Gameinformer's December issue they reveal a plethora of GTA V info through an exclusive interview. One of the most significant details to me was that there are 3 playable protagonists.

          Michael, Trevor, and Franklin will be playable and its the execution that excites me. You will be able to transition character to character seamlessly at the touch of button. The camera warps you to the next character and puts you in the middle of their current situation, whether it be driving a car or even just sitting by the pool. In terms of mission structure Rockstar has made it so that the player always has something to do by playing the roles of the three protagonists simultaneously.

Source: GameInformer digital magazine

          The new info brings up new questions. Are we just seeing the tip of the ice berg? This mammoth of a game is set to release in spring 2013.

Drive

          One of my favourite movies of 2011 was Nicolas Winding Refn's film adaptation of James Sallis' novel of the same name. Ryan Gosling was convincing as the silent protagonist with a mysterious past. The cinematography is amazing utilizing blue and orange contrast in pretty much every scene. To me this helps set the mood and is consistent in its execution.

Source: IMDB

          The video above is my edit of Drive into 5 minutes. Please watch and enjoy. Mahala.

YouTube Spotlight: FiveAwesomeGirls

   

    Back in 2008 one of my favourite channels launched. It was based off the Vlogbrothers unique style of vlogging which wasn't really vlogging as it was a way of communication between people. The FiveAwesomeGirls channel consisted of daily vlogs by five different girls 5 days a week, each girl with their respective day of the week. These girls were for the most part strangers but as they conversed and shared their stories with each other and the world they formed a strong and very public friendship. All of this happening through over 600 videos within the course of about 3 years.

      Although they've stopped posting for about 2 years there is still a lot of great content on their channel. I'll admit to crushin' on one of the girls but how can you not?! They're so damn smart and cute. These girls live up to the name of their channel and produced some fantastic original content. Channels like these were what YouTube was all about and it was a great medium for storytelling.

      Check out the FiveAwesomeGirls channel to see their fantastic video archive.

Podcasting: The new talk radio

    

Source: Adam Carolla Official Website

      During my commute to work or school I enjoy listening to podcasts or audiobooks rather than pumping bass heavy beats for an hour. I, like many college students, have a lot of things in life to balance. Finding time to read a book or a newspaper is difficult especially when you're always on the go. A modern day solution for this is to use digital audio distribution. The concept of an audio book is nothing new. Remember when books were released on cassette tape along with the book? Now audio books are marketed towards mobile device users which is pretty much everyone excluding your grandparents.

      Adam Carolla is a great example of someone who uses digital audio distribution to their advantage. Before he created his popular podcast he was a popular radio host for Loveline with Dr. Drew. After getting canned from show he decided to gather some of his radio friends together to produce a free daily podcast on iTunes. The format and quality was definitely different from his radio show. The Adam Carolla podcast ran from about an hour to two hours and consisted of Adam's rantings about pop culture or calls from the listeners. The show was no longer live, instead it was readily available to download and listen to when you, the listener, chose to. Think of it like a take out meal; you can eat your filet mignon right then and there or you could wrap it up in a doggy bag and pick at it on your way home.

      What's most impressive to me is how they've evolved the show in terms of production value and content over 2 years. Adam Carolla and his crew have revived the Adam Carolla Show and built a new broadcasting company from it. Check out the ACE network on iTunes  which features several podcasts that appeal to a wide variety of people from movie lovers to car enthusiasts. If you like what you hear Adam even has two audio books out with a ton of great content.

Here's me and Adam last year in Toronto

     

Cinematic Storytelling in Video Games: Uncharted 2

    Source: Naughty Dog

     Following my last post on Naughty Dog's upcoming game The Last of Us I decided to take a closer look at this generation's most recognized title, Uncharted 2.
 
     The first title in the Uncharted series was Naughty Dog's first attempt at making an exclusive game on the Playstation 3 which was a brand new platform for game developers. The game follows treasure hunter Nathan Drake on his journey to uncover the secrets of Sir Francis Drake. As Nate delves deeper into his hunt for hidden treasures he runs into old enemies with armies of goons he takes head on alone and sometimes with the help of an ally. This game was received fairly well among gamers but the install base of the console at the time limited the actual audience experiencing the game.

      About one year later the sequel was announced and the reveal trailer was nothing short of amazing.

 

     

     As more of the game was revealed it started to become clear that this game was unlike anything you've seen or experienced before in terms of game quality. The graphics were top notch and the acting was fantastic. This game looked more like a Hollywood production than a video game and that got a lot of gamers excited to get their hands on a Playstation 3. 

    

     The game was a hit, winning multiple awards at the VGAs and receiving high praise from the press. Uncharted 2 made everyone rethink their preconceived notions about video games and their ability to tell a good story while maintaining fun and exciting game play.