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I assumed this article was either or written by someone watching or reading about the episode. It seemed nearly impossible to not know about it in the internet
by plorg 8y ago
I assumed this article was either or written by someone watching or reading about the episode. It seemed nearly impossible to not know about it in the internet world I inhabit. For what it's worth, I understood the genesis of that project to be in the series creator's mind, that it was then brought to Netflix who developed a system to accommodate the project.
From what I've read I imagine the CYOA conceit leads to the the same kind of tradeoffs relative to more linear storytelling as in the books. The story ends up serving the structure, and the necessity of generating more content leads to a decrease in attention paid to to the stor[y,ies] as a whole. And there's nothing exactly wrong with that, I guess, since many pieces of art are dominated by structure over content. In particular, the interactivity leads to better engagement with the viewer, and may be used to explore concepts such as free will. Or it can allow there creator or viewer to engage in solipsism. Or it can just be a cheap gimmick that gains attention (clicks, hours of user engagement, sales, etc.).
- tialaramex 8y agoI don't know for sure, but I don't think Bandersnatch drove the Netflix interactivity work, rather vice versa. Charlie Brooker (whose previous work includes reviewing video games and TV shows, both of which underpin aspects of Bandersnatch, not least the name itself) is an obvious choice for Netflix to approach to see if this has wings, because if Brooker can't do anything with it, then it's not going to come off any better in someone else's hands. Also the Black Mirror anthology style means a misstep is easily forgiven / forgotten by fans. If you hate "San Junipero" (you are a weird person and don't deserve love) that doesn't taint "Nosedive" or "White Bear". If you found "Shut Up And Dance" too awful to think about, you can enjoy "Hang The DJ" or "The National Anthem" despite that. If "Bandersnatch" failed it wouldn't change anything else, at worst fans would be annoyed that time was wasted filming for Bandersnatch instead of some other episode. Netflix had previously landed several less important interactive works in 2018, such as Puss in Boots, before attempting Bandersnatch. And this approach is effective at reducing bootlegging - there aren't existing tools that let "pirates" make an interactive video, so if you want the actual experience you'll be stumping up for Netflix. That means it helps underpin their financials.
- philistine 8y agoJust to be clear: Netflix’s CYOA system existed before Bandersnatch. It was used for Minecraft: Story Mode for example.