Over the last few years you heard often the word “format”, when referring to TV, movies (usually along with the word “franchise”).
This article will try to use two examples that I created, to show different approaches to a cross-media format for the XXI century- or: building a cross-media presence.
One that is not focused on converting the public into a passive viewer.
After the May 2009 experiment, the daily delivery of the draft script of a series called GMN2009 (”Genome, Mind Mapping, Neural Networks”), a new step.
What was GMN2009? An attempt at creating “live” the material for a cross-media publication, that, if I had the budget, could be converted into a documentary, learning game, book, etc.
How will GMN2009 evolve? It will eventually have most of those components- except the first one (budget, unfortunately).
As part of my experiments in communication, I created a format 10-4-20: The Game Language (WGA Registered 1366431).
Both formats are built to be cross-media, and as a living experiment, encompassing both the usual format purpose (live game), and also potential online, gaming, and other uses.
The concept? To give a showcase on how a cross-media for the XXI century can be created not only to convert each TV viewer into a dumb idiot, but also to spur innovation and creativity.
This newer format will be used on my experiment in shared language learning, NLSchap (also on Twitter: @NLSchap).
The main section of this article is the Examples: 10-4-20- a gaming format – details.
But I suggest that you read also at least the introduction What is a format? What is a franchise? And a YouTube promo? if you do not have experience with cultural change and format creation.
If you are just interested in applying the concepts, read the introduction and Next steps: sharing the process, where I explain how I am currently thinking to apply the guidelines set in my articles Democratic technology access and A virtual news agency
What will be inside
What is a format? What is a franchise? And a YouTube promo?
Example: United Hamster Front
Example: GMN2009- an educational format
Examples: 10-4-20- a gaming format – details
Next steps: sharing the process
What is a format? What is a franchise? And a YouTube promo?
If you followed my scribblings, both here and in other online venues since 2007 (when I started being online, first as “aleph123″, then under my own name), you saw a certain structure in the publishing madness.
My structure derives from learning about scripts and acting and arts long long ago, during my childhood as an actor’s son, and tagging along in different media production environments, from newspapers printing rooms, to radio, dubbing, TV.
At the same time, I was also tagging along on operas, classical music concerts, vernissages, exhibitions, with two family friends (one has a contemporary art gallery in my hometown, mainly XIX and XX century, with a strong futurist component).
A book that about 20 years ago I discovered and bought in my serendipitous weekly visits to shops in Turin was “The Making of Star Trek”, by Stephen E. Whitfield and Gene Roddenberry, first published in 1968.
Let’s just say- this is one of the book that I read and reread most often… and bought and re-bought as well 
Most recently, I found an old copy online.
Why this book? Because it described not just the genesis of that series, that, funny, lasted but three seasons, but also the production process, and how the structure of each episode, the “personas” of its cast of characters, the planning activities, and so on.
If you want- it was a lesson in “format building” and “format production”.
The reasons why I appreciated the book was because, while tagging around with my father, I saw how most of the activities had a certain “organization”, that was not visible when the broadcast or dubbing were completed- you saw the effect and structure only before.
This article will discuss some of my own examples.
But my main concept is: right now, everybody talks about “format”- it is a transparent discussion.
My take? They talk about formats, because the content is becoming so irrelevant, that the format is moving from being a mean to becoming an end.
Look on TV: everything has a structure- but you could almost replace the content with silence, or a Monty Python-esque rambling, and nothing will change.
My reaction? Stopped watching TV in 2007. I asked the cable TV to be removed.
I think that there is space and demand for something more meaningful that seeing a bunch of fake twenty something or once famous behaving like idiots, so that the public can feel superior… and keep watching.
Yesterday I was looking for references that would be shorter and more interesting.
Well, go to Scribd, and search for “format”.
I suggest two articles, both from (by chance) a Dutch professor:
Ok, there is also additional material- but, while the first is in English, the second is in Dutch: being just a “laundry list” of items, you can do a guess on the meaning (Dutch is not that far from English) or use Google Translate to read it- it is worth the effort.
Why Dutch? Well, the company behind some of the most obnoxious and successful format was originally a Dutch company
From their own website:
Endemol was founded in 1994 when two highly successful television producers in the Netherlands, Joop van den Ende and John de Mol, joined forces and merged their companies.
Endemol was de-listed from Amsterdam Euronext in 2007 and is now owned by a consortium consisting of Goldman Sachs Capital Partners, Mediaset Group and Cyrte Group.
But what is a franchise
Let’s see an example that everybody tried or smelled at least once, by passing by- Mc Donald’s.
You have a shop. You have a concept of a shop- how it works, what makes it unique.
And you want to expand. Without investing.
So, you convert your own property into a concept, and find interested investors that would like to do the same, but without the same trial-and-error that you did.
Usually, you give them the right to use your “concept”, train and coach them, monitor occasionally that they are following the guidelines- but you do not necessarily own the place. And you get a “royalty” for the use of your “concept”.
There are other dimensions (e.g. you could centralize supplies, to lower cost and reap additional benefits, or manage also the marketing), but all those are ancillary to the main “concept”.
That is: a franchise allows you to generate additional revenue by “piggybacking” on a recognizable existing “concept”
Moving from restaurants and shops: look in movie theaters- it seems that Hollywood is trying to convert every movie into a “franchise”.
And, frankly, often it is quite boring- as they did not have material for the franchise, so, after one successful movie, they try to “stretch” the story- creating a “before the story”, or “resurrecting” dead characters.
But if you unite format and franchise, you obtain, again, the third element: merchandising.
Probably the best example was George Lucas with Star Wars.
The idea is that, beside your main revenue stream (e.g. movies), you can add further ones (e.g. toys, a joint activity with a corn flakes maker).
Or you can go cross-media, e.g. by adding an online component, books, cartoons, themed amusement parks- the sky (and investors’ pockets) are the limit.
But few format and franchises migrate successfully to cross-media- therefore, the trend from late 1990s has been to create a format by already identifying all the components listed above, as a way to show the potential.
I am always puzzled when I see some obvious cross-media potential that is not even considered.
Of course, budgetary constraints are there: but it costs less then 10 USD to register a domain, and nothing to register a twitter or gmail or blog or to create a Facebook presence (you do not even need a technician- just let your intern read this previous article on cross-media and campaigning without a budget).
As for books, movies, documentaries- well, think about it- but, of course, that could cost something more. But a small you tube promo will not cost that much.
Only: produce you tube promos for you tube: a max 10-30 sec attention span.
I wonder why companies still keep producing 3-5 minutes “ego trips” extolling the virtues of the company and dump it on YouTube- I think that not even their employees watch it more than once (if ever).
If you produce a promo and then reaches the low tens of thousands of views… think again about the structure- not just the lenght.
You have to “hook” viewers in few seconds, and keep “hooking” them- as soon as they can guess you argument, you lose their eyeballs 
Example: United Hamster Front
In 2007 I created an online mini-community within the stage6.divx.com community.
The purpose? To use a fictional entity- a kind of “Hamster rights” group, to view human news from a different perspective.
The take? Hamsters and pets are not there to entertain us, but to benignly watch over us
It is currently off-line, but eventually it had a Facebook group, an online website, an (almost monthly) magazine, occasional news releases.
I must confess- it was quite funny: I was able to joke about some concepts from my own part of the political spectrum (the left), and enjoy the ride.
My role? I was officially “the scribe” for the United Hamster Front (UHF- but available also on other frequencies), and I also wrote fake poems (like the Ode to the Mighty Hamster, a joke inspired, of course, by Animal Farm and North Korean ludicrous poems to the boss).
And created also hamster-oriented technologies.
The concept? Simplicity. And connecting the dots between unrelated issues using just a guideline- a humane, simpler approach.
To do that, I had to build a short “concept” on the cultural identify of hamsters, their role, and so on.
I was helped not just but my childhood learning, but also by my experience in building/changing the corporate identity and culture of any companies I worked in as an employee (hey, I started working after a brief stint in politics- changing minds comes as a second nature!), some customers (on request), and startups.
Why did I pull the plug (temporarily)?
Well, my concept and format of communication started on the stage6.divx.com community issues (to de-escalate some flaming battles), but eventually I resumed my old interest in technology, international politics, and so on.
And, unfortunately, I found every month either research or events that would be easily solved by the “Hamster approach”.
Ok- then, it became way too often something close to a new international order, or new roles for UN.
From the management of Arctic and Antarctic.
To the use of the “commons” worldwide (including the cyberspace)
To a new Space debris collection agency, to a maritime transit and international waters administration (after some cable were “cut”)
To a nuclear transit authority to police the “sea highways” of nuclear submarines, after two friendly nations had an accident that sounded like a chickening game on the right of passage, from the news reports
If you ask how did I come to be able to write about that… well, read my blog
Seriously: before starting to work in ICT, my ideas were either physics or philosophy of language (I discarded the international relationships branch, as in Italy “Scienze Politiche” was mainly a relaxing time through university for students unwilling to really study).
So, before 19, I knew a little bit about particle physics, read anything and everything about nuclear reactors, treaty protocols, and so on A real bookworm!
So, I decided that maybe it was a little bit too far fetched for an individual without any organizational support, and stopped it- before publishing the “nuclear transit authority” issue
But not before I registered the main offspring, the “what if stories format” and other concepts.
The cross-media and franchising potential? Of course toys (I had designed also an “hamster computer” to replace the Amazon kindle, and a lava-lamp and hamster-based encryption machine), cartoons, learn-science-etc-with-the-hamsters, and so on.
Example: GMN2009- an educational format
The GMN2009 (”Genome, Mind Mapping, Neural Networks”) series was structured like a written documentary on technology, organizational planning, and innovation in human sciences that could influence everyday activities.
If you want- this is the main subject of this blog.
But it was something else: if you read the articles, you will see a certain “pattern” on the way each article is structured, and links to the following articles.
Every single article in the series was a chapter in a virtual book, and the draft of the script for a documentary (my target was 30-45 minutes, a typical TV episode).
Also, I wanted to prove that, once you design a structure and outline of a format for a series, plus the “plot” for each episode, it was feasible to work on a rolling basis: everyday I was finalizing the research for the next article, updating links and so on, while writing the details of the daily article- published the following day.
Why this crazy schedule? Because I had already done an online publication with a quarterly, monthly, weekly schedule- and I wanted to test not a daily rambling, but a daily chapter writing and researching.
The cross-media and franchising potential? Training courses on planning and budgeting, a documentary series on the impact of technologies, a book, some joint merchandising opportunities with books and other suppliers of training material or professional services..
Examples: 10-4-20- a gaming format – details
As part of my experiments in communication, I created a format 10-4-20: The Game Language (WGA Registered 1366431).
The format is built to be cross-media, encompassing both the usual format purpose (live game).
And also potential online, gaming, board game, and other uses (including automating part of the process), and a voting system to “elect” stories.
And yes, in my format, each vote will count, and each vote will be electronic- no hanging chads
The concept? To give a showcase on how a cross-media for the XXI century can be created not only to convert each TV viewer into a dumb idiot, but also to spur innovation and creativity.
And maybe inspire non-gaming activities.
This format will be used on my experiment in shared language learning, NLSchap (also on Twitter: @NLSchap).
The first segment is 10-4-20 The Language Game
Let’s confess it: language learning is boring.
When you learn the first foreign language as a kid, it is often a rota-learning affair.
But, as I learned with Latin, you do not really need to learn the language to be able to understand it and use it.
You need patterns- something that is consistent with rules that you do not know (yet),
And this is also the way how we learn our first language.
So, while on my stop-and-go affair with Dutch from late Spring/Summer 2008, I thought something.
“Would not it be better to build a memorable personal journey through language, instead of studying stupid, quaint dialogues made by somebody that does not know what is relevant with you?”.
But it is a chicken-and-egg issue: you cannot do it without having some grasp of the language.
Therefore, the solution came out of a simple consideration.
As already taught by others a couple of thousand of years ago, if you build memorable images to visualize a concept, you can easily remember the concept.
This is still used here and there, but as a mnemonic technique, not as part of the learning process.
My concept is to achieve two smaller objectives: recover some creative writing skills that everybody had in their childhood, and learn, in the process, a new language.
The basic requirements are:
- basic language skills (in Europe: A2 in reading/writing)
- a book containing fully conjugated verbs
Of course, the book is not an issue. As it is not an issue how you get to obtain the basic skills.
If rota learning is fine with you, do it. If conversational/intensive week-end courses are your cup of tea… drink it!
The secret is: use a simple method to build the list of verbs/actions that have to be covered by the shortest possible story.
My method with Dutch was… alphabetical.
200 verbs divided 10 per story, means 20 stories. Verb number 1 was for the first story, number 2 for the second, and so on. Verb 21 was again for the first story, and so on.
The result? A seemingly chaotic list of verbs- but that is the purpose.
You have then to create a story with your list, first in your own language (English, in my case), trying to keep it within the grasp of your foreign language skills.
This will help your brain build the connection between specific patterns between your “source” language and the foreign language.
Does not matter if the story is quixotic- what matters is that it makes grammatical sense, and uses all the ten verbs.
And, the more quixotic the story is, the easier is that you will remember the language patterns and verbs and words that you used.
If you want to follow the game, read 10-4-20 The Language Game.
I started with Dutch for practical reasons.
But I will then add other languages, maybe with the help of others.
If you want to join this experiment, see on nlschap.wordpress.org or contact me on robertolofaro.com (@robertolofaro on twitter.com)
Of course, beside the online website, this series will be converted into a story about the writing process itself.
But there will be other bits and pieces related to this process- that will become visible in due course.
For you information: the 20 stories are all drafted- in one day
That’s the beauty of a creative and innovative process: it has a geometric progression embedded: the more you do, the faster you become in doing it!
Next steps: sharing the process
As you can see from the previous sections, I share online not just commentary, but articles and training material.
The main reason is simple- let’s say that for reason not related to my own choices, from July 2008 I had more spare time that I had expected (see a summary here).
I have some over 20 years of experience (see here for my 3-pages CV and other information on my profile), and therefore I used the spare time to have the opportunity to both structure my knowledge and experience, and produce some useful material online.
I currently keep doing my activities “pro bono”, either for non profit, or to prepare for my future activities.
The Examples: 10-4-20- a gaming format – details is the first example of applied methods that I will share online.
Considering that, after one year, there is an high probability that I will have to shalve my idea of getting into a corporate structure (something that I stopped being part of in 1992) where I could use my skills and experience inside the organization, I am currently preparing the potential next steps.
For some of my pro bono activities, I am also starting to produce scripts, and I plan to share all these processes online.
More than as an independent, I am currently looking for potential local organizations that would like to try a joint-employment experiment, to lower their cost, with additional shared benefits due to the presence of multiple activities and the possibility of brainstorming activities.
The main target is: delivering online presence, visibility, and community-building, but while asking them to do nothing more complex than sending text messages (SMS in Europe) or e-mail messages.
If you want: my extreme case would be somebody that does not even want to have a computer- just create the content and communicate with potential customers or a community.
Or limit the computer infrastructure to, say, a netbook with e-mail and skype- nothing more, nothing less.
Following the guidelines set in my articles Democratic technology access and A virtual news agency.
Stay tuned!
Tags: 10-4-20, building, cross, election, format, game, gaming, gmn2009, language, media, online, presence, roddenberry, star, trek, tv, voting