Monday, August 21, 2006

Run Lola Run

Finally...

3. Narrative, interactivity and play – how does Run Lola Run reflect these concerns? How does this relate to Manovich’s concept of transcoding?

Narrative:
It brings the viewer through the story from the start to the end. There is a transition between two states and there is a climax.

Play:
Even though the story base is about the same, there are still unpredictable points as the character explores different options in the show. THe entire show is essentially about exploring options, finding out some possibilities and the outcomes. The choices we make and the response of lola in the show does influence the outcome to some extent. Each time Lola goes through the entire story, she learns something new and tries to make a change in the subsequent attempts or to get around a barrier. It evokes several questions such as 'what if...'. THis brings about the 'pushing against the rules' tendency. In the show, Lola seemed to be able to have the option of 'restarting' the story and making necessary changes but within a defined boundary and structure. ANd this happens as long as the ending which she wants to see is not achieved. This gives the sense of control..

Interactivity:
We make the connections ourselves. In this case, it is not so much of the affect of two actors as it doesn’t really respond to us. I would say that it is fixed interactivity as the paths are preprogrammed. We, as viewers, have no option of deciding what other moves she should take. However, there is the illusion created that we are helping her to make a choice, to some extent.

How does this relate to transcoding?
We experience the cultural layer without seeing the underlying component - the computer layer. This is important for the overall experience.

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