Fourth Story Media

Cowrite is a new, open-source screenwriting competition that is encouraging participants to develop a community created movie script. Every other week the best ten-page script entry selected by the Cowrite judges will be added to the developing story until the screenplay is completed and ready to be sold.

Each submission costs $10, with “packages” available ($40/5 submissions, and $75/11 submissions). Every submission that is chosen and posted will win $2,000, and one winner will receive $5,000 at the end of the process to help rewrite the script and attend the 2009 LA Film Festival.

The premise?

Determined to be a high-level Jason Bourne type operative, an awkward teenager enlists the help of a mysterious, supposed ex-CIA agent in his hometown and finds himself entangled in a dangerous plot that is way over his head.

Hmmmn. The first ten pages will be posted on January 26th.

(via Springwise)

Penguin UK is sponsoring Bookcamp, a user-generated conference centering around the future of books and “book-like technology” that will examine the role of books as delivery mechanisms for stories, information, and entertainment.

Our plan is for this to be a day of talking and doing – examining the role of the book as an object and as a delivery mechanism for content. We’re inviting authors, typographers, cover designers, printers, technologists, retailers, literary agents, publishers and geeks to come along and consider if and how technology can transform and perhaps improve on The Book. Will print on demand mean the end of the bookshop? Will ebook technology allow everyone to be their own publisher? Will printed books go the way of vinyl and become collectors objects? Are games the new novels? And does format matter or, to paraphrase Berry Gordy, is it what in the groove that counts?

Participants and guests will choose the agenda for the day, breaking into groups to discuss and create. Jeremy Ettinghausen, Director of Digital at Penguin & a listed participant, was behind last year’s We Tell Stories – a storytelling experiment that sought to create stories designed specifically for the internet.

From Jeremy’s post on the Penguin blog today:

It’s quite hard to know what to expect from Bookcamp which is now only a few days away… we’re hoping to see lots of things people have made or hear them discuss what they might like to make in the future. I’m looking forward to following discussions about how we get children hooked on reading, hearing about authors’ fear of the internet and learning why everything on the internet is the opposite of how it is in print! And I’m excited to meet some new people who share an interest in and passion for books and stories and, yes, technology.

(via PSFK)

It’s official. According to a recent study by the Pew Internet and American Life Project, the majority of American adults now play video games of some kind (e.g. console, computer, mobile, online, etc.). Age is still a large determining factor -  although more than four out of five US adults ages 18-29 said they were video gamers, only 23% of respondents 65 + identified the same way. The study also showed that men are slightly more likely to define themselves as gamers than women, and urbanites are more likely to game than those in rural areas. Income is a non-factor, but respondents with at least some college education are significantly more likely to game than their less-educated counterparts.

In a similar vein, The LA Times is reporting that video game sales are continuing at a “blistering” pace, with the video game industry recording a 10% sales increase last month to $2.91 billion, up from $2.64 billion in November 2007.

(via eMarketer, LA Times)

In 2006, The MacArthur Foundation launched a five-year, $50 million digital media and learning initiative to help determine how digital technologies are changing the way young people learn, play, socialize, and participate in civic life.

Over three years, [the research team] interviewed over 800 young people and their parents, both one-on-one and in focus groups; spent over 5000 hours observing teens on sites such as MySpace, Facebook, YouTube, and other networked communities; and conducted diary studies to document how, and to what end, young people engage with digital media.

Their website is filled with a metric ton of research on gaming, identity, civic engagement, race & ethinicity and more. The most recent study explores how time spent online is crucial in a teen’s development. From 901AM’s excellent run down:

The researchers identified two distinctive categories of teen engagement with digital media: friendship-driven and interest-driven. While friendship-driven participation centered on “hanging out” with existing friends, interest-driven participation involved accessing online information and communities that may not be present in the local peer group.

Some other findings:

There is a generation gap in how youth and adults view the value of online activity.

Youth are navigating complex social and technical worlds by participating online.

The social worlds that youth are negotiating have new kinds of dynamics, as online socializing is permanent, public, involves managing elaborate networks of friends and acquaintances, and is always on.

“Geeked-out” learning opportunities are abundant – subjects like astronomy, creative writing, and foreign languages.

(via 901AM)

Remember your childhood love of Choose Your Own Adventure books? Where you were the star of the story and could decide whether to stay and fight the ninja/dinosaur/spy, or run away screaming/fall in love/jump off a cliff?

Well now the format has been updated YouTube style.

Chad Villella, Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Rob Polonsky (collectively known as CMR) have produced a series called The Timemachine about three 30-something office dudes (Chad, Matt & Rob) who are trying to make it to a 12:00 pm meeting. The trouble is that Rob has stumbled across a timemachine, and the three are now bouncing between multiple eras. Each webisode is a few minutes long with a choice at the end (”Do Chad and Matt get in the garbage can?” – “Get In” / “Not a Chance”). Clicking your answer propels you to the next mini episode in the series (which is surprisingly addictive).

According to BuzzFeed half a million viewers have started the journey, but only 100,000 have made it to the end.

Watch the first episode here!

(via Buzzfeed)

Think long term, think organic, think partnership. That’s the message Mobile Youth is promoting in their recent long post about successful youth marketing strategies.

Engaging youth is no longer about short term spiking (ie campaigns), but a focus on long term creation…make youth feel significant, make them feel they belong.

They define the practice as partnership marketing, and go on to break down three successful strategies for marketing to youth:

1. Customer Service: good customer service – aka real human contact – is key.
2. Value Communication: Show that you care. Youth increasingly seek out companies and brands that display a set of core values similar to their own world view.
3. Event Creation: Not just sponsoring events from afar, but actually actively creating events lies at the heart of the most savvy of youth brands. Red Bull, Jones Soda, Boost Mobile (see above video) and Nike are all died-in-the-wool event creators.

(via Mobile Youth)

On the heels of Forbes’ proclamation that Hipsters (or “walking dollar bills”) will save the economy, Burger King is promoting its latest hipster-kid candy – Burger King Studio.

Part art gallery, park think-tank, with a dash of mad scientist’s experiments thrown in for good measure.

The physical studio (replete with skate park) is in Chicago, while the online studio has a blog with emerging artist interviews and profiles, and a store where users can customize sneakers and tees.

In a similar vein, Urban Outfitters announced last week that they are opening Space 15 Twenty this Friday, November 21st, in Los Angeles. Trendcentral is describing the space as “Part shopping mall, part gallery, part event space, part community gathering spot:”

Not just a hipster mall, the retail space will also serve as a community gathering place. Surrounding each retailer is a courtyard which will be utilized for both commerce and performances. Space 15 Twenty will be supporting local art schools, museums, radio stations, and businesses, including Art Center, MOCA, KCRW and Amoeba Records, and will be highlighting content from these sources. The courtyard space will also host flea markets and live events such as concerts, art shows, and film series. In addition, a permanent gallery space will host difference collections ranging from fashion and photography to paintings and independently-published books.

UPDATE: Kitsune Noir has posted a bunch of pictures from the just opened Space 15 Twenty!

Following Lisa Holton’s recent presentation at the InCT 2008 conference in Utrecht, a number of international blogs and magazines have picked up the story of The Amanda Project and Fourth Story Media.

• Frank Watching has a long rundown of the Lisa’s entire InCT presentation (in Dutch)
• Beat Internacional is featuring The Amanda Project trailer (in Catalan)
• InCT Magazine has a lengthy article about Lisa & the creation of Fourth Story Media (in Dutch)

I had the honor and privilege last week of speaking at a cross-media conference for Dutch publishers.  The conference was run by inCT, a magazine, website and publishing company focusing on technology innovation within the publishing industry.

It was a blast.

For starters, the conference was held in Utrecht, which should translate into “heaven.”   Not only is it filled with cobblestone streets, picaresque canals, divine cafes and a community that bikes everywhere, but this is the statue in the center of the village.

The conference featured a variety of cross-media projects including a documentary filmmaker who was using Google Earth to extend the film’s exploration of the history of the Netherlands, and an executive from MTV Europe who discussed a TV/online property for kids.

I met some wonderful people, all exploring interesting ways to merge print and online media.  Piero Stanco, who runs Kluitman, a successful children’s publishing company based in The Netherlands, particularly impressed me.

Unlike many other children’s publishers who create sites for multiple users, Kluitman decided to devote most of its site to children. As a result, it is chock full of great games, activities, and book-related information for kids. Piero is a true visionary; I look forward to watching how he evolves his Internet business.

One of the most interesting people at the conference was David Huijzer, the man who ran it.  A dynamic entrepreneur, David is passionate about publishing, digital technology, and the great dialogue taking place between them.

I urge everyone to check out his site, brush up on your Dutch (or use google translate), and get inspired by David and his vision for a digital publishing future.

And if you are ever in the neighborhood, make a side trip to Utrecht—you won’t want to leave.

On Teens Today has a great post about The Mashup Syndrome:

Mashup Syndrome n. A disease often specific to millennials where they have the constant urge to take-apart, change and combine separate ideas into one.

From IKEA hacks to DIY fashion to Lipdubs to Video remixes to album sampling, teens love to interact with and redesign the content they consume.

So why not in publishing? Why not let kids help tell and retell the story?

(via Next Great Thing)