Preliminary Research and Summation #1

Empathy - Emotion - Story - meaning 

Story is a powerful tool for catching an audience's attention, and telling that story well keeps them engaged. Stories are a way to show messaging in a genuine way and connect with the audience on a deeper level. I really love stories as a medium and I want to really push what I can do with stories in design I want to bring people together even for just a moment of time through story.

says, Kate. “5 Reasons Motion Graphics Help You Connect With People.” Column Five, July 25, 2017. https://www.columnfivemedia.com/5-reasons-motion-graphics-help-your-brand-tell-a-strong-story.  

Amini, Fereshteh, Nathalie Henry Riche, Bongshin Lee, Jason Leboe-McGowan, and Pourang Irani. “Hooked on Data Videos: Assessing the Effect of Animation and Pictographs on Viewer Engagement.” In Proceedings of the 2018 International Conference on Advanced Visual Interfaces, 1–9. AVI ’18. New York, NY, USA: Association for Computing Machinery, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1145/3206505.3206552. 

- distills information and makes it concise 
- Evokes a more emotional connection then other froms of media
- This article refers to Motion graphics as a passive experience that viewers don't have to work for. What would a more active experience with motion design look like? Would it be more or less successful then a traditional video experience? Does Interactivity breed more excitement? 

Motion graphics distill information to make it concise. This approach could be applied to storytelling to potentially evoke more emotions in the audience.

Conversation with a few friends on advertising and what does / doesn't work for them. (Ages 18- 25)
- personalized advertising? targeted ads based on search history know what people want and tend to work better.
- Most ads before videos or as popups are seen as interruptions and are tuned out almost instantly.
- Ads that are out of the box but don't push it to the point of pandering are seen as more positive.
- False sincerity doesn't work
- Pandering doesn't land. People catch it.
- Ads that are completely unrelated to the current page just breeds resentment and makes the viewers dismiss it. (ex. Car ad on video game website)
- Repetitive ads are frustrating. 
- Forced advertising is disruptive
- However, having social creators do the advertising is less disruptive. 
- Ads that are to the point are better then ads that drag the point along
- boring to lavish the product
- let the product speak for itself

Newman, Daniel. “Research Shows Millennials Don’t Respond To Ads.” Forbes. Accessed September 3, 2020. https://www.forbes.com/sites/danielnewman/2015/04/28/research-shows-millennials-dont-respond-to-ads/.

Millennials communicate with each other far more than any advertising campaign can. When trying to figure out whether something is worth buying, millennials will go to their friends and social networks to see what people think. 

Communication - Targeted advertising - Community engagement - Trust

I have seen a rising resentment among peers my age and younger towards current advertising techniques. Video and online ads are met with mocking tones and dismissive glances. The current way of doing ads doesn't work as well, and many businesses are failing to reconnect to their audience and just appear to try and pander to their audience, which is seen right through for many people. In a world where the current traditional way of doing ads seems to be failing, what other ways can audience engagement be sparked in younger people? 

Jordan, Judith V. “The Role of Mutual Empathy in Relational/Cultural Therapy.” Journal of Clinical Psychology 56, no. 8 (2000): 1005–16. https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-4679(200008)56:8<1005::AID-JCLP2>3.0.CO;2-L.

Jordan, Judith V. “Relational Development through Mutual Empathy.” In Empathy Reconsidered:  New Directions in Psychotherapy, 343–51. Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association, 1997. https://doi.org/10.1037/10226-015.

Connections with others brings many benefits to society and I feel empathy is one of the key things needed to come together with others. Caring for others, wanting to better society not just for yourself... Empathy is the source of all of these ideas. I have always been empathetic towards others and I wonder how design can help bring people together and help people be kinder and more empathetic to each other.

Klimmt, Christoph. “Escapism.” In The International Encyclopedia of Communication. American Cancer Society, 2008. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781405186407.wbiece033.

Press Enter or Escape to Play Deconstructing Escapism in Multiplayer Gaming
Vorderer, Peter, Christoph Klimmt, and Ute Ritterfeld. “Enjoyment: At the Heart of Media Entertainment.” Communication Theory 14, no. 4 (November 1, 2004): 388–408. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2885.2004.tb00321.x. 

Oliver, Mary Beth, and Arthur A. Raney. “Entertainment as Pleasurable and Meaningful: Identifying Hedonic and Eudaimonic Motivations for Entertainment Consumption.” Journal of Communication 61, no. 5 (October 1, 2011): 984–1004. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1460-2466.2011.01585.x.

Entertainment - Psychology 

We live in a world where we are constantly connected, constantly aware of daily problems and world wide problems of which we have little control to change. While it's important to stay informed, knowing when to disconnect is important as well. Designing experiences for people to take a break and relax for even just a moment is something I have always been inspired to do.

Robehmed, Natalie. “Behind The Screen: The Art Of EDM Visuals.” Forbes. Accessed September 3, 2020. https://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2013/08/14/behind-the-screen-the-art-of-edm-visuals/.
“New Order’s Experimental Stage Art Creates a Visual Language.” Accessed September 3, 2020. https://www.vice.com/en_au/article/bmy33m/new-order-stage-art-creates-an-experimental-visual-language.

I always viewed activism as vital for our society, to point out the injustice and make change where it is sorely needed. I want to see how I can do my part. Perhaps not on the front lines, but maybe I can help change minds and bring new voices into these different causes. 

Chok, Lionel. “Virtual Reality Is Reshaping Story-Telling For The Better.” Forbes. Accessed September 3, 2020. https://www.forbes.com/sites/lionelchok/2017/06/12/virtual-reality-is-reshaping-story-telling-for-the-better/.

Saxton, Sam. “27 Ways To Tell A Story In VR.” Medium, July 2, 2018. https://blog.prototypr.io/27-ways-to-tell-a-story-in-vr-bda425e694cb.

Immersive - Storytelling - viewer engagement - active engagement 

I adore vr and I think its the future of entertainment and storytelling. I want to see what new ways we can use this medium to engage viewers in ways that were never possible before.

Luwisch, Freema Elbaz. “Understanding What Goes on in the Heart and the Mind: Learning about Diversity and Co-Existence through Storytelling.” Teaching and Teacher Education 17, no. 2 (February 1, 2001): 133–46. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0742-051X(00)00047-0.

Horsley, Katrice. “Storytelling, Conflict and Diversity.” Community Development Journal 42, no. 2 (April 1, 2007): 265–69. https://doi.org/10.1093/cdj/bsm002.

Empathy - Diversity - Communication

This is kinda a hot topic it seems, since as we move forward movies and shows are getting more diversified. This has always been a long time coming, but I believe we can still bring people together with diverse media and stories through empathy and understanding, if some people are open minded enough to try.

Ismailov, David. “The Future of User Experience Is Visual Design.” Medium, June 6, 2016. https://uxplanet.org/the-future-of-user-experience-is-visual-design-af2fc818bc9.

Education - Engagement - Immersive 

The rise of new technologies means we can push interaction in ways we could never before. All these types of venues such as art exhibits and museums can engage viewers much more actively. The implications for this in the future of entertainment is something I want to dive much deeper into.