Moving Docs to the Web, part II

How is a webumentary different from a documumentary?

1. Expand beyond linear narratives. The linear, time-born form of the documentary arose in the age of movie theaters and evolved to fit the scheduling demands of broadcast television. A single linear narrative is NOT essential to the Web – now we can create multiple narratives offering different points of access into a complex topic. Different audiences have different interests and information needs. Viewers also bring different kinds of intelligences to their viewing – some are visual, others intellectual, some mathematical, others engage through emotional connections – and while a single narrative style can often hit many of these notes – some audiences are inevitably lost when their needs or interests aren’t addressed. The web allows us to present multiple story lines that offer news and information in a variety of way to appeal to different ways of apprehending information.

2. The Story never ends. Once production stops and editing is completed – the story telling ends for a traditional documentary – even though the story itself continues to evolve and change. Web technology now allows for continually evolving storylines. This means that new story elements can be continually added, revised or supplemented as events unfold. The story telling – and the shape of the narrative – doesn’t have to end until the story is played out.

3. Truly engage your local audience. Most films are only seen after they have been completed. This means that the only interactive possibility for community engagement or comment occurs after the film is finished. The rise of easily accessible community-generated content (from simple text comments to uploading photos and videos) shifts the interactive dynamic entirely. Webumentaries can directly engage their audience and take advantage of user generated content to increase the depth and scope of the coverage.

4. Making Connections. In addition to actively educating different audiences, a webumentary can also act as a resource for connecting different stakeholders. Working closely with existing social service providers, webumentaries can provide interactive tools that link people in need with responsible and well-vetted service providers – or community members with journalists – or politicians with the citizens they represent.

5. Sharability. Each story element will be “actionable” meaning that it can easily be easily shared – emailed, exchanged, printed, downloaded or embedded in another web site or blogg – so that element – and the story line it is embedded in can be travel freely on the web. Snagfilms.com has a very developed example of this concept.

6. Empowering Communities. Knowledge is power. So is the ability to express oneself publicly. By creating a local forums for education, information, and self-express individual community members can extend their social and political reach. And since it is a local forum, it also has the ability to hold public servants and politicians accountable to the people they represent.

7. Personalization. Each movement can be tracked and can be used to generate personalized “story paths” that can guide the viewer/participant through a meaningful educational experience. This guidance can be ignored, of course, depending on individual interests – but each user’s movements and interests will be tracked via a smart content rating systems so site can make smart recommendations about new relevant material or story developments that advances or complements their interests– like the Netflicks.com movie recommendation system.