This paper reports on a recent collaboration between the Lansdown Centre for Electronic Arts at Middlesex University and the BBC Radio Drama Department, which was designed to investigate the narrative possibilities of locative media in a drama context. The locative drama Scratch is the first outcome of an ongoing research project, Locating Drama, whose aim is to investigate and develop narrative strategies that take full advantage of the current generation of GPS enabled portable computing devices for audio drama. In particular, we are exploring content and modes of interaction, which, while based on location awareness are not in any way site-specific allowing users to experience the drama in a location of their choice. We will refer to this approach as translocational as it allows the translation of locative media experiences to a wide variety of spaces. The translocational approach is of particular interest to broadcasters as it is more scalable than a site-specific paradigm, opening the possibility of downloadable location-aware podcasts featuring professionally authored content for a wide audience

Bendon, H.

Boyd Davis, S.

Moar, M.

Parry, N.

English

Middlesex University Research Repository

Exploring Narrative Strategies for Scalable Locative Audio DramaNye Parry, Helen Bendon, Stephen Boyd Davis, Magnus MoarLansdown Centre for Electronic Arts, Middlesex UniversitySubmission number: 128IntroductionThis paper reports on a recent collaboration between the Lansdown Centre for Electronic Arts atMiddlesex University and the BBC Radio Drama Department, which was designed to investigate thenarrative possibilities of locative media in a drama context. The locative drama Scratch is the firstoutcome of an ongoing research project, Locating Drama, whose aim is to investigate and developnarrative strategies that take full advantage of the current generation of GPS enabled portablecomputing devices for audio drama. In particular, we are exploring content and modes of interaction,which, while based on location awareness are not in any way site-specific allowing users toexperience the drama in a location of their choice. We will refer to this approach as translocational asit allows the translation of locative media experiences to a wide variety of spaces. The translocationalapproach is of particular interest to broadcasters as it is more scalable than a site-specific paradigm,opening the possibility of downloadable location-aware podcasts featuring professionally authoredcontent for a wide audience.Scratch was initially presented at the BBC Radio 3 Free Thinking Festival in Liverpool (UK). Thedelivery of the project was, briefly, as follows. Pre-recorded audio files are preloaded onto GPS-equipped iPAQ pocket computers, provided by Hewlett-Packard, using their MScape authoring toolas a prototyping platform (an iPhone version is also under development). These audio files areassociated with locations in a physical space, relative to the starting point, so, as participants movearound, they encounter a number of scenes triggered by the GPS sensor. One of the principal designdecisions was to create a wholly aural interactive experience: once the user has pressed Start thereis no need for further explicit interaction with the device. In our quest to make the technology‘transparent’ all interaction is achieved through movement in space and all feedback is diegeticallyembedded in the narrative. These ideas build on our previous translocational work such as ’Ere beDragons (Boyd Davis et al 2007).Scratch presents a complex narrative of interwoven stories in which the listener is implicated as aneavesdropper on increasingly surreal childhood events which are finally revealed to have been aninner journey taken under hypnosis.ContextAs Iain Chambers observes, the advent of the personal stereo has changed not only where andwhen we listen, but also how we relate to what we hear:Here as opposed to the discarded “grand narratives” (Lyotard) of the city, the Walkmanoffers the possibility of a micro-narrative, a customised story and soundtrack, not merelya space but a place, a site of dwelling. Our listening acts as an escape from our livedenvironment while also intersecting with this environment forming an accidentalsoundtrack to our real lives.” (Chambers 2004: 100)This leads to the possibility of what Siegfried (Siegfried 2006) calls ‘situational stories’, in which thelistening environment can be considered an active participant in the story-telling.The ready availability of portable media players such as smart-phones or PDAs that combine theability to play back audio with location detection using the global positioning system (GPS) or similartechnologies, opens up the possibility of audio drama that is directly responsive to the listener’slocation and/or movement in space.While artists such Blast Theory in the UK (Koleve et al 2001) or Katapult in Denmark (Hansen et al2008) have been exploring the potential of locative media for forms of dramatic storytelling, they havefocussed on specific sites and have often even involved live actors in the space. In contrast we areconstructing translocational dramas which may be experienced in any suitable (outdoor) location.Parks, beaches, station platforms are transformed into virtual theatres through immersive audio.Design and DevelopmentAt an early stage in the development of Scratch writers and producers were invited to participate indemonstrations of the technology, with the aim that their experience of this mode of interaction wouldinform every aspect of the production, from script development to recording techniques and editingstrategies. We presented them with a range of examples of audio experiences in clearly definedvirtual spaces and experimented with various layouts or storyshapes.Following these demonstrations, the writers pitched to produce a locative drama. Penelope Skinnerwas selected on the basis of a concept that became Scratch. Her script involved a journey through anumber of distinct soundscapes: a garden, a house, the mysterious east wing, and finally a surrealcircus or fairground. The script was driven by the sonic possibilities and described many features ofeach soundscape in great detail. The layout of scenes in the space was suggested by her in thescript. It drew on many of the features presented in the demonstrations and the subsequentdiscussion, in particular, the idea of unique sonic environments, separated by clear audioboundaries, through which the listener could walk from one environment to another. Charactersplayed out various scenes within these defined spaces.Figure 1 shows the layout as it was implemented for the Liverpool trials. The overarching lineartrajectory of the story was mapped directly onto the space so that the end of the story occurred at thefurthest point from the start, with alternative routes available through the space. There was anemphasis on creating a detailed geography with sound effects such as clocks and fountains placed inspecific positions within each virtual environment. This layout required the system to be calibrated asthe scale and orientation of the virtual space needed to be matched to the listening environment.ReturnWhen designing for a translocational experience, we cannot rely on the extrinsic associations of site-specific media experiences. In a site-specific piece story elements are associated with particularlocations (e.g., this is the actual location where a battle took place). In a translocational drama thisrelationship is reversed as locations become intrinsically associated with characters or moments inthe story, wherever they were first encountered (e.g. this is where I heard the gardener). Thisbecomes meaningful when listeners are allowed to return to locations they have already visited as ithelps them to fully recognize their role in the listening experience. Re-visiting a place must have ameaningful result: a recurring character or a sound environment that is noticeably related. It can alsoallow us to introduce the temporal into the narrative, as revisiting a space can offer a progression intime (e.g. listeners might encounter the same character, only older). In the Liverpool trial return to alocation signified memory. Auditory scenes were replaced by collages of already heard materialsummarizing the ‘story so far’ which allowed the user to rewind their experience and connect newmaterial to old.Beyond the TrialIn response to extensive evaluation of the Liverpool experience, incorporating questionnaires, filmedinterviews and feedback meetings, two further layouts have been tested by the team, which will bediscussed below. The second of these in particular satisfies the requirements of translocationalitywhile also addressing issues of responsiveness and control that were raised by the evaluationprocess.1.Islands modelThe seamlessness of the sound design made it hard for users to distinguish between aural changesinherent in the unfolding scene, and those initiated by their movements. In particular, the fact that anumber of scenes could be found within a single soundscape, such as the garden or the house,made it hard to appreciate that two adjoining scenes were separate localised entities. Theconsistency of the background sound design caused some listeners to describe the experience asbeing like listening to a cd or the radio, with little sense that they were either controlling or uncoveringlocalised events.We believe this to be partly due to the fact that more than one scene could be found within eachsoundscape. The explicit reference by individual characters to sounds which formed the boundariesbetween soundscapes (e.g. references to an oncoming storm and the sound of thunder) may alsohave reduced the clarity of the spatial mapping. One feature that consistently elicited a positiveresponse, however, was the first transition, walking forward through a seascape into a gardenenvironment. This clear movement from one soundscape into a quite different one, seemed toemphasise the sense of control due to the high level of contrast between the spaces.A version was therefore devised in which all scenes were located as isolated islands in a ‘sea of theunconscious’. (Figure 2) The listener would wander through a seascape until a scene was located.The sea would then fade to reveal the scene, played out in the appropriate atmosphere (house,garden, east wing). At the end of the scene or if the participant moved away, the sea would encroachon the action and drown out the narrative.This islands model did indeed seem to increase the listener’s sense of control, particularly whenmoving away from a scene and stepping back into the sea. However the loss of the clear geographyprovided by the individual soundscapes and boundaries was lamented and participants felt lost andliterally ‘at sea’ in their search for the islands.This emphasised a problem that had been reported in the Liverpool trials, that people were afraidthey were missing important scenes and wanted to know where they were in ‘the story’. While suchproblems are to an extent inevitable when novel technologies are applied to a dramatic form whichraises traditional expectations, a primary objective was to construct an experience that wasdramatically satisfying. A solution was found which allowed the listener to navigate the space withgreater confidence and simultaneously removed the need for calibration.2. The return modelThe theoretical importance of return to the design of translocational drama has been discussedabove, and allowing users to discover that content changed on returning to a location, was alwayscentral to our intentions. However, our evaluation revealed that few users explored this option, evenif it was explicitly suggested to them. It is likely that the underlying linearity of the layout and thedevelopment of the story itself discouraged this mode of use.A version has now been created in which each space contains only one scene. Return to a spacethrough a boundary replaces that scene with another, taking place in the same familiar environmentand often involving the same characters. This allows the user to have clearer expectations of whereto find scenes and more control over the movement of the story. The end of the narrative now takesplace on return to the start-point forcing the listener to return to already visited areas.Technically the spaces/scenes are laid out in concentric circles around the starting point allowing theuser to set off in any direction (Figure 3). This solves most of the problems of calibration leavingdistance as the only fixed parameter.ConclusionsScratch was perceived to be a positive experience. Listeners were excited by the possibilities oftranslocational drama, reporting they would like to experience more pieces like Scratch in future. Thewider Locating Drama project will continue to investigate the implications of the medium in greaterdepth.In particular the following areas need further investigation.1. A more Iterative approach to content developmentThe writing process, the layout and the interaction design should be intimately linked. In Scratchmany interaction design decisions were made after the script had already been recorded. What isrequired is a more iterative approach in which interaction design and story development areintimately tied together.2. Diegetic user instructionThe ideal of a plug-and-play experience in which users need no prior knowledge of the layout andmodes of interaction has not been fully realized. We are interested in finding diegetic solutions to theinstruction of users. How can the user be led through the story so that their role is clear to them andthe interaction possibilities are suggested subtly but comprehensibly?3. The relationship of the listener to the storyIn Scratch the listener is frequently referred to and even addressed in the story, but not all listenerspicked up on this. We will investigate further the roles of the listener as eavesdropper, witness andactive participant in the narrative.4. The overlay of the virtual space onto real spaceThe translocational approach establishes a relationship between the actual listening location and thestory. Many listeners report moments when confluence of the real and the fictional occurs (e.g. a dogrunning across their path while the fictional characters are searching for their pet) or moments ofdissonance where the real world intrudes on the virtual.While serendipity will continue to play a major role in this, it may be possible to create deliberatepoints of contact either by devising dramas for particular generic types of location (e.g. beaches orcemeteries) or even by allowing the system to interrogate POI (points of interest) databases to findout more about the actual listening environment chosen by the listener.The notion of translocational audio drama promises to open the field of location-aware mediaexperiences to a wide public, retaining the physicality of the interaction and the strong association ofplace and aural memory without restricting access to a geographically limited area. Scratch has beena first step and opened up a vast range of possibilities for further development.ReferencesChambers, I., The Aural Walk (pp. 98 – 102.) in Cox, C., Warner, D., (eds.) Audio Culture, Readingsin Modern Music. New York: Continuum, 2004.  Print.Koleva B,  Taylor I, Benford S, Fraser M, Greenhalgh C, Schnädelbach, H, vom Lehn D, Heath C,Row-Farr J, Adams M, Orchestrating a mixed reality performance (pp.38 – 45). New York: ACM,2001. Print. Proceedings of the SIGCHI conference on Human factors in computing systems, Seattle,Washington, United States.Hansen F A, Kortbek K J and Gronbæk K, Mobile Urban Drama, Setting the Stage with LocationBased Technologies (pp 20 – 31)  in Spierling U. and Szilas N. (eds.) Heidelberg: Springer-Verlag,2008. Print.  Proceedings of the First Joint International Conference on Interactive Digital Storytelling,ICIDS 2008.Boyd Davis, S., Moar, M., Jacobs, R., Watkins, M. and Capra, M. 2007. “Mapping Inside Out” in:Magerkurth and Röcker (eds) Pervasive Gaming Applications: Volume 2. Shaker, Aachen.(199-226).Siegfried, W., Soundtracks to Reality, http://www.ariarium.de/stracks.htm(1996) Web. 21 Jun 2009.Hewlett Packard Mscape: http://www.mscapers.com/. Web. 21 Jun 2009.

Moving tales, exploring narrative strategies for scalable locative audio drama.

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Moving tales, exploring narrative strategies for scalable locative audio drama.

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