I’ve been mostly offline and fairly quiet over the past month or so, mostly as a result of a lot of traveling. Here’s what’s been keeping me busy.
I joined fellow Transmedia L.A. member Kate McCallum on the “Reducing the Digital Friction with Transmedia” panel for the Digital Asset Management conference in late February. We had a great time, mostly because Kate pulled tougher an awesome panel.
Title slide from SXSW 2012 panel
Two weeks later I was Austin-bound for my third SXSW, where I joined Esther Lim and J. Craig Williams on a panel Esther put together called “The Rise of Co-created Storyworld Communities.” Unsurprisingly, I had a great time catching up with my media tribe.
I had two more weeks of travel before landing back home in Los Angeles in time to speak at the NALIP 2012 Conference last week. I joined Hardie Tankerlsey and Jesus Trevino on the “Social Life of Convergence” panel, which David James moderated. David did a wonderful job of guiding us through a lively discussion ranging from copyright infringement to participatory entertainment to the future of digital media.
Next up is the FMX 2012 conference in May, where I’ll be speaking about participatory entertainment and co-creating value with audiences. My panel, “Ignore, Impede, Invite: How to Co-create Value with Audiences,” kicks off the transmedia track, and I’m humbled to share the track with luminaries like Femke Wolting (Submarine Channel), Nuno Bernardo (beActive Entertainment), Dr. Henry Jenkins (USC), Alex McDowell (5D Institute), and Shekhar Kapur.
And after FMX? Well, I’ve been working on “Veil Wars,” an immersive experience (read: LARP) that I’ll roll out at Wyrd Con in June. “Veil Wars” is the official launch of a new project I’ve been quietly working on for a while called The Yamabushi.
What is The Yamabushi? The short answer is a fantasy world inspired loosely by medieval Japan and Japanese mythology. I’ll be exploring this world online and sharing my findings in various forms (audio, fiction, art, etc.).
The long answer is, well, long and still in the works.
But if medieval Japan, Japanese mythology, fantasy worlds, or swords and sorcery sound like fun to you, subscribe to “The Path,” the official (and free!) newsletter for The Yamabushi. You’ll be the first to know when the world opens and learn how you can walk the path of the yamabushi.
Finally, there’s the StoryWorld conference coming up in October here in Los Angeles. I’m serving my second term on the Advisory Council, and I can tell you the program is looking even more impressive than last year. Hope you’ll be able to join us for StoryWorld 2.O!
Whew. After writing this post, I know why I’m feeling so physically drained but mentally excited! It’s been an awesome start for 2012, and I’m looking forward to lots more awesome over the rest of the year!