[ecrea] Connected Viewing Workshop

Connected Viewing Workshop

Department of Cinema Studies

Stockholm University

18th of November 2011

Workshop Venue:

Filmhuset, Borgvägen 1-5

S-1155 Stockholm

www.sfi.se <http://www.sfi.se>

Over the last few years, Apple, Google and various content providers and 
distributors such as Disney, Amazon and Netflix have radically changed 
the way feature films and television entertainment are made accessible. 
The recent introduction of digital multiplatform distribution with its 
wireless streaming of arthouse films, Hollywood blockbusters and drama 
series certainly has altered the television and cinema experience. The 
proceeding integration of the web into home entertainment appliances, 
facilitated by affordable set-top boxes such as Google TV and Apple TV, 
and the world-wide adoption of video-suited mobile media gadgets such as 
Android smartphones and the iPhone constantly promise to ‹relocate› that 
experience to new contexts. ‹Connected viewing› is an important strategy 
recently adopted by the moving image industries. Connected viewing aims 
to change the experience with feature film and television by introducing 
digital, networked conversation into the process of media consumption. 
With patterns of media use customized by search and discovery 
technologies, and social networking sites beginning to figure more 
prominently as delivery platforms, connected viewing becomes 
increasingly important to content providers, distribution networks, and 
viewers alike. Warner Bros., for instance, recently introduced ‹app 
editions› of its blockbusters /Inception/ (2010) and /The Dark 
Knight/ (2008, both directed by Christopher Nolan) which allow audiences 
to download or stream the film, and offer bonus materials and full 
integration with social networking services. More than being just an 
experimental marketing add-on, these strategies testify to the 
fundamental shift in the overall make-up and the identity of the motion 
picture industry producing them. They exemplify the current redefinition 
of both the experiential and transactional character of media, and they 
also point to the fact that the commercial enterprises associated with 
Hollywood can no longer be described in conventional terms, analogue to 
other industrial sectors and based on a strict differentiation between 
who produces and who consumes. Connected Viewing epitomizes the advent 
of what economists recently have labelled as ‹social network markets›: a 
situation where aesthetic experience is now seen to be grounded on the 
experiences and transactions of others.  This international workshop 
will be the first of its kind, bringing scholars and industry personnel 
together to critically address key questions about Connected Viewing and 
transformative media culture.

Organizers: Jennifer Holt & Patrick Vonderau in collaboration with MINE 
– Media Industries Network Europe (www.mine-europe.com 
<http://www.mine-europe.com>) and with generous support from the Swedish 
Research Council.

Management / Registration: Kendra Williams, Chris Baumann and Dee Majek.

Attendance is free, but registration is required 
((kendra.williams10 /at/ gmail.com) <mailto:(kendra.williams10 /at/ gmail.com)>).

Program


9.00 Registration


10.00-10.30 Welcome to Connected Viewing

Jennifer Holt and Patrick Vonderau


10.30-12.00 Panel 1: Mobility

Brooke Allison „Brookers“ Brodack (Viral Video Maker)

Geert Lovink (University of Amsterdam)

Göran Bolin (Södertörn University, Stockholm)

Robert Dube (Editorial Director, Maxdome)

Moderator: Patrick Vonderau


12.00-13.00 Lunch


13.00-14.30 Panel 2: Programming

Stefano Semeria (Head of Programming TV, Swiss Radio and Television SRF)

Annie Wegelius (Director of Programes, Swedish Television SVT)

Paul Dwyer (University of Westminster)

Espen Ytreberg (University of Oslo)

Moderator: Paul McDonald (University of Nottingham)

Coffee Break

15.00-16.30 Panel 3: Platforms

Anuraj Goonetilleke (Warner Bros. Digital Distribution, SVP Business 
Strategy)

Richard Broughton (Senior Analyst, IHS Screen Digest)

James Bennett (Royal Holloway, University of London)

Philippe Brodeur (Managing Director, Hot Air Media, Ireland)

Moderator: Jennifer Holt

16.30-16.45 Concluding Remarks

Jennifer Holt and Patrick Vonderau