Storytelling

Storytelling is a method of creating imagery, emotions and understanding of events through an interaction between a storyteller and an audience. Traditionally, knowledge is communicated via storytelling orally, through the telling of a tale, visually, through films or still images, or textually, through novels and other text based mediums. However, in recent years, digital storytelling has surfaced - this involves telling a story using digital media, such as a computerized slide show, a digital video or educational software. Good storytelling requires a set of fundamental elements, these are; setting, characters, plot, invisibility, mood and movement.

Storytelling is used extensively throughout my interactive design work, Fox Feud. It is a vital part of the project and use of the fundamental elements of storytelling allowed it to be successful.

The first element, setting, orients the audience and provides a sense of time and place for the story. I created a setting in Fox Fued via a combination of language and imagery, such as a simple wooden sign containing the words “White Deer Park”, as well as through the general appearance of the project. For example, the background in which the characters are placed, is a woodland scenescape this combined with the words White Deer Park, suggests the story takes place within the wild, or in this case, a nature reserve.

The second element, characters, allow the audience to become involved in the story, and makes the story relevant. Fox Feud in its entirety, revolves around characters within a story, and features a detailed profile of each. These characters are initially identifiable through their gender, colours and markings. They are also identifiable through the team or side they are on; – blue or red. As the users explores the interactive interface, more information is given about each character, allowing them to be identified through qualities below the surface, such as personality, relationships with each other and roles they play within the story. Without the use of characters, Fox Feud would not exist as a project.

The third element, plot, ties events in the story together, and is the channel through which the story can flow. As Fox Feud is a medium through which users can learn about the characters within a 2D style game, based on the story of The Animals of Farthing Wood by Colin Dann, there is no actual plot within the project itself. However, parts of the plot in the game are revealed within Fox Feud.

The forth element, invisibility, is where the awareness of the storyteller fades as the audience focuses on a good story. The medium through which the story is told is forgotten. Fox Feud has a sense of invisibility as the information in it is presented as if one of the characters, The Park Warden, is sharing it. This allows users to get lost in the world of White Deer Park, rather than having the information given from an outside source.

The fifth element, mood, is an emotional tone of the story created through music, lighting and writing style. The mood created in Fox Feud, is done via the background sound effects, as well as the voices of the characters and their animated actions. For example, a woodland sound clip is used in the home page to create mood and enhance the setting, and a harsh voice has been used for the character of Scarface to create the feeling that he is an evil character. The background also plays a part in developing a mood, as one side has a lot of light and greenery, while the other is darker and less green. This creates a feeling of good and evil.

The final element, movement is the sequence or flow of events. Fox Feud flows clearly from the introduction of the project, to the home page, and then to each characters profile. Therefore, although it doesn’t have the movement of a story, because it is not a story itself, it does have a good sequence of events from a navigational point of view.