Film May Herald New Era Of Entertainment
It has been a relatively tame year for IT innovation, but maybe the most ground breaking development, while a simple one, has come in the closing weeks. A new film has been released and you can buy it from Apple, but this is less of a movie, more of an App.
The hero of Late Shift, Matt, played by actor Joe Sowerbutts, is forced to take part in a heist.
The action takes him across London to escape his predicament and prove his innocence.
Yet at each twist and turn, the viewer is asked to take his decisions for him.
The result is an amalgam of a thriller and a game.
Attack the security guard or try to sneak by him?
The viewer decides and the narrative changes track.
In total, there are 180 decision points in this network of story elements.
Which of these junctions in the tale a viewer arrives at, which sequences they actually see, is determined by the choices made. Consequently individual viewers see quite different films with various denouements.
Joe had a more testing time than most motion pictures stars. Just for starters, he had to film seven different endings!
Night Shift is also received ‘limited edition’ cinema screenings where the audience makes majority decisions using hand-held devices.
Does this herald a new era of entertainment?
Could the same drama in future satisfy both those who want the happy, romantic ending and those who want a thought provoking, dramatic one, with just a press of a button on a remote? Will interactivity become the de facto standard for future storytelling, or is it to be a passing fad?
