Do Ex 3 and 4
Script
Track 055
Presenter: Hi guys, today on the StreamingTVBlog, we’re going to talk about interactive TV.
So just to clarify, that’s programmes where the action pauses at certain points in the story, and you the viewer choose what’s going to happen next on-screen.
Now my first guest here is Hassan Ajab, who works as a scriptwriter for TV dramas, including interactive shows.
Hassan: Hi everybody.
Presenter: So, Hassan, what’s the secret of writing scripts for an interactive drama, in which any number of things can happen on-screen?
Hassan: I wish I had a simple answer!
First of all, I’d say you need to create an underlying story that gives the episode a structure, but set up moments within it when a viewer can decide the story for themselves.
While these decision-moments can add new dimensions to the main story’s structure, they must also allow the underlying plot to be able to pick up where it left off even if the action went off on a detour because of the choice made, and even if that affects the subsequent outcome.
A key decision that I make when I’m coming up with a new story is at which points am I going to get the viewer to step in and choose the on-screen characters’ next moves.
For me it works best if the viewer can’t predict when these decision moments are going to arise.
Those are the ones that get the most interesting audience reactions, I find.
Presenter: I see. Now my second guest is no newcomer to the idea of creating alternative scenarios. Tomoko Ono has worked as a video games designer, and now works as a consultant for interactive TV dramas.
Tomoko: Hi there.
Presenter: Tomoko, I guess interactive TV is basically like a cross between a computer game, and a traditional TV show, right?
Tomoko: Well, kind of. With most modern video games, you are actively in control throughout and they are designed so that the order of events can change based on the gamer’s decisions.
With interactive TV, logistically speaking, this level of open world control is impossible. The audience can only participate at certain points that change specific controlled aspects of the storyline development.
Suppose the viewer is given three different choices about which door to open that’s three separate scenes and narratives to film to show what happened.
And these new scenes may affect details of what happens later in the main storyline.
So as you can imagine, compared to a standard TV show, the requirements on time and resources are much higher.
Presenter: Sure.
Do you think drama is the genre most suited to the interactive format?
Tomoko: That’s arguably the most tried and tested one.
But there’s a case for say, learning about history, and viewers could find out what might have happened if, say, Fidel Castro had been caught and arrested before taking power in Cuba.
Hassan: Yeah, well I think that particular example might involve more guesswork than solid historical interpretation.
But things like cookery, where viewers could suggest how much sugar could be included in a dish for example, or which ingredients to put in … that certainly has potential.
Tomoko: Well, I’d question what would be the point of seeing any dish being created in any way other than that which the expert was recommending.
Hassan: Fair enough, what I think this highlights is that, until a certain interactive show is actually made, no-one’s in a position to ascertain whether it’d be a hit.
Tomoko: Or whether it’d be a flop, right? I suppose if I watched your interactive cookery show, and there was Hassan tipping far too much sugar into the dish, I might love it!
But until that happens, how can we know?
Presenter: And thinking about the viewers out there on their sofas, watching one of your interactive dramas, and being hooked … how do you explain the appeal of that?
Hassan: Well, initially, with programmes like Bandersnatch back in 2018, with its alternative scenarios for the viewer to choose what the main character says or does, and alternative endings … which was seen as being quite innovative, there was a sense of ‘wow you’ve got to check this out!’
But after that kind of thing has been around for a while, we can’t expect people to engage with it just for its own sake.
But I think everyone has experienced these what-if moments themselves in their own lives, you know, ‘what if I’d never met so-and-so’, or ‘what if I’d chosen a different career’.
And while, of course, we lack the power to go back and change the past in reality, it’s stimulating to be able to see what happens to someone else, a fictional character, when they make the choices we didn’t.
Presenter: Well, Hassan and Tomoko, thank you both, it’s been fascinating.
Vocabulary:
underlying important in a situation but not always easily noticed or stated clearly. Sp. subyacente
E.g.
The underlying assumption is that the amount of money available is limited.
Unemployment may be an underlying cause of the rising crime rate.
underlying story
the underlying problem is that ... Sp. el problema subyacente
pick up: to start again; to continue. (=resume) [+ conversation, narrative] Sp. continuar [+ relationship] Sp. reanudar.
E.g.
Let's pick up where we left off yesterday.
guesswork: the process of trying to find an answer by guessing when you do not have enough information to be sure. (conjecture, supposition) Sp. conjeturas.
E.g.
The new guidebook takes the guesswork out of the process. Sp. La nueva guía elimina las conjeturas del proceso
It was pure guesswork on our part
ascertain: /ˌæsəˈteɪn/ to find out the true or correct information about something. Sp. determinar, establecer.
E.g.
The police are trying to ascertain what really happened.
Could you ascertain whether she will be coming to the meeting?
flop: (failure) a thing or person that is not successful, especially a film, show or party Sp. fiasco nm fracaso nm
opposite: hit
E.g.
The company's new marketing initiative was a flop. Sp. La nueva iniciativa de marketing de la empresa fue un fiasco.
a box-office flop
The share sale has been a flop with investors.
The show was the biggest flop in TV history.
tip:(=pour) tip something/somebody + adv./prep. to make something/somebody come out of a container or its/their position by holding or lifting it/them at an angle.
E.g.
She tipped the dirty water down the drain.
The bus stopped abruptly, nearly tipping me out of my seat.
to tip sth into sth: tip the vegetables into a bowl Sp. eche las verduras en un cuenco
they tip the rubbish into the river Sp. vierten or tiran la basura en el río
he tipped some sweets into her hand Sp. le echó unos caramelos en la mano
she tipped her things out of the suitcase Sp. volcó la maleta y sacó sus cosas
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