This paper was first presented at the ‘Graphic Justice Discussions 2017’ at St Mary's University, London. It argues that Legal education can learn valuable lessons from how transmedia storytelling has been approached by comic and entertainment franchises.

1. Graphic Justice Discussions 2017:
‘Why so serious?‘ - Could an immersive
transmedia approach enhance future
legal education…
Kris Lines
(k.lines@aston.ac.uk)

2. Current pressures
SQEREFTEF

3. Reimagining…
Source: Gage Skidmore (Flickr: CC BY-SA 2.0)
The New 52  Rebirth
Source: Patty Marvel (Flickr: CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
All-New…
Just as Legal education is being reconsidered, so the comics have already
undergone their own rebranding and reimagining, most recently:

4. Outline
o What is Transmedia?
o Approaches taken by comic & entertainment franchises
o Lessons that can be applied to Legal Education

5. What is Transmedia?
The leading definition seems to be this:
“A transmedia story unfolds across multiple media platforms, with each new
element making a distinct and valuable contribution to the whole. Ideally, each
medium makes its own unique contribution to the unfolding of the story.”
[Henry Jenkins, Convergence Culture (New York University, New York: 2006) 97]
[Source: Robert Pratten, Getting Started in Transmedia (2nd edn, Amazon: 2015) 3]

6. Types of Transmedia:
FRANCHISE:
“…grounded in big-business commercial storytelling. The stories in these
projects are interwoven, but lightly; each piece can be consumed on its own,
and you’ll still come away with the idea that you were given a complete story.”
EAST-COAST / PORTMANTEAU:
“…tends to be more interactive and much more web-centric. It overlaps
heavily with the traditions of independent film, theatre and interactive art.
These projects make heavy use of social medial, and are often run once over
a set period of time rather than persisting forever. The plot is so tightly woven
between media that you might not fully understand what’s going on if you
don’t actively seek multiple pieces of the story.
[Source: Andrea Phillips, A Creator’s Guide to Transmedia Storytelling (McGrawHill: 2012) 13]
FRAMEWORK / OPEN:
“…An existing world or brand is adapted by users to create interlocking but
independent visions of that world. No single author (or group) has control.”
[Source: Harry E Pence, ‘Teaching with Transmedia’ (2012) 40(2) J.Educational Technology Systems 131, 135]
Source: Global Panama (Flickr: CC BY-SA 2.0)
Source: Duncan C (Flickr: CC BY-NC 2.0)

7. [Source: Robert Pratten, Getting Started in Transmedia (2nd edn, Amazon: 2015) 160]

8. 7 Key concepts?
Pervasive: The story is built around the audience – connecting with them across devices
Persistent: The story evolves over time, reacting to audience engagement
Participatory: The audience interacts with characters and other audience members
Personalized: The story remembers decisions and conversations and becomes tailored to
each audience member
Connected: The experience connects across platforms and to the real world – allowing the
story to be contextual
Inclusive: A range of devices and engagement modes are accommodated so that as many
people as possible are allowed to enjoy the story, even if at different levels of depth and
sophistication
Cloud-based: A network intelligence controls the story and the experience from a central
core – able to see all content and all the audience
[Source: Robert Pratten, Getting Started in Transmedia (2nd edn, Amazon: 2015) 7]

9. LEGAL EDUCATION

10. Traditional Legal Education:
o Learning Management System (LMS): ‘PDF repository’
o Lectures: PowerPoints, Lecture Capture, Audience voting systems
o Seminars: Weekly / fortnightly tutorials
o Assessments: Exams, written assignments
o Communication: Cohort emails, Scheduled ‘Office Hours’
Source: University of Liverpool (Flickr: CC BY 2.0)

11. Shift to Skills-based…
Source: ELSA International (Flickr: CC BY-SA 2.0)
Source: Widener University Delaware (Flickr: CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

12. Key Literacies needed?
o The ability to search for, remix, and distribute information on various media platforms;
o The ability to manage, analyse & synthesize multiple streams of simultaneous information;
o The ability to create independently within an integrated vision; and
o The ability to represent ideas using a combination of images and text, and to make effective
use of reading from a screen
Source: Doug Belshaw (Flickr: CC BY 2.0)
[Source: Harry E Pence, ‘Teaching with Transmedia’ (2012) 40(2) J.Educational Technology Systems 131, 136]

13. Multiple Intelligences
“For the student body, the use of multiple intelligences has the potential to make a significant
impact on both student well-being and the student learning experience. Lustbader also
suggests that taking account of diverse forms of intelligence could “broaden our definition of
diversity and enrich our understanding of the complexities involved in addressing diversity””
Emma Jones, ‘One Size Fits All? Multiple Intelligences and Legal Education‘ (2107) 51(1) The Law Teacher 56, 67
Source: Joāo Loureiro (Flickr: CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

14. APPLYING THIS…

15. Resourcing
Source: Sean MacEntee (Flickr: CC BY 2.0)
Source: Tessss (Flickr: CC BY 2.0)
Perhaps the biggest problem to introducing any transmedia elements to a course
is the need for it to be appropriately resourced (Time / skill / staffing / costs etc).
The complexity of the transmedia environment may mean that this takes
significantly longer than the equivalent face-to-face / distance provisions

16. The 1-9-90 rule
1
9
90
Heavy users / New Material
Editors / Intermittent users
Passive (Lurkers)

17. Audience Expectations?
o 3 Films: The Matrix (1999), Reloaded, Revolutions (2003)
o Website: EnterTheMatrix.com
o Animated Shorts: The Animatrix
o 3 Video Games: Enter the Matrix; The Matrix: Path of Neo,
The Matrix Online (MMORPG),
o 2 Comics: Bits and Pieces of Information
o Documentary film: The Matrix Revisited
Source: NickKemp (Flickr: CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
What does the audience have to engage with in order to fully understand the message?
Too Much!

18. “Unbalanced” Transmedia
Source: Sea Turtle (Flickr: CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)
Although Henry Jenkins advocated a balanced approach with all elements of the transmedia
being equal, in education (in particular), I would suggest a core platform, for example SKILLS
or LECTURES and any other elements merely supports / enriches this?

19. USE Breadcrumbs…
Source: Anssi Koskinen (Flickr: CC BY 2.0)

20. Academic term = Show season?
o 23x lectures, 10x seminars
o Most: specific content, need to allow time for revision  fillers?
o 1 x comics element / concept may not stretch for full course
o Season 4: 3x Show pods:
- Introduction of Ghost Rider [8eps]
- Life Model Decoys (LMDs) [7eps]
- Agents of Hydra ‘What if’ [7eps]
Culminating in a season finale which wraps all in together
Source: Zuko1312 (Flickr: CC BY-ND 2.0)

21. ‘Sticky’ Mise-en-scènes…
Source: The Conmunity (Flickr: CC BY 2.0)
Source: Andy Fisher (Flickr: CC BY-NC 2.0)
Source: Kris Lines (CC BY 2.0)
Source: KnowYourMeme
Consider using Mise-en-scènes as teasers or to enrich the scenarios?
Caleb Andrew Milligan, ‘The Viral Image: Transmedia Mise-en-scene in the Fictional Real’ (2016) The Journal of Film & Visual Narration
Source: Jeff Samsonow (Flickr: CC BY-NC 2.0)

22. Trailers…

23. Origin Stories…?
Alfred Pennyworth: Sir... I've seen you go through similar phases in 2016 and 2012 and
2008 and 2005 and 1997 and 1995 and 1992 and 1989 and that weird one in 1966.
Batman: I have aged phenomenally.
Source: Stavos (Flickr: CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

24. Remixes & Adaptations…
Source: DeepSkyObject (Flickr: CC BY-NC 2.0)Source: Jing12345 (Flickr: CC BY-NC 2.0)
Source: Nigel Horsley (Flickr: CC BY-NC 2.0)Source: Gage Skidmore (Flickr: CC BY-SA 2.0) Source: Steve Baker (Flickr: CC BY-ND 2.0)

25. Unreliable Narrators…
Source: Alex Eylar (Flickr: CC BY-NC-ND 2.0) Source: Wikipedia (WP: NFCC#4)

26. The Quantum realm…?
“There are several reasons why some faculty may
resist true transmedia. Transmedia narratives are by
nature fluid and fragmented. Universities have
always tried to work with a standard text or exemplar.
In transmedia, meaning changes with exploration.
Transmedia is like a fractal; the deeper you go, the
more detail that is revealed. This suggests that
knowledge is fluid; it changes with time.”Source: Mr.Pony (Flickr: CC BY-NC 2.0)
[Source: Harry E Pence, ‘Teaching with Transmedia’ (2012) 40(2) J.Educational Technology Systems 131, 137]

27. Origami Unicorns…?
“[Electronic Arts game designer] Neil Young talks
about "additive comprehension." He cites the
example of the director's cut of Blade Runner,
where adding a small segment showing Deckard
discovering an origami unicorn invited viewers to
question whether Deckard might be a replicant:
That changes your whole perception of the film,
your perception of the ending...
The challenge for us, especially with the Lord of the
Rings is how do we deliver that one piece of
information that makes you look at the films
differently?"
Source: Yosuke Muroya (Flickr: CC BY-NC 2.0)
[Henry Jenkins, Convergence Culture (New York University, New York: 2006) 97]

28. BUT…
Source: (Wikipedia)
Source: Steve Snodgrass (Flickr: CC BY 2.0)

29. Comic & Graphic Novel Adaptations
Source: ‘Almaz Story’ at PositiveNegatives.org

30. Social Media Interactions…?
Source: AndreasEidh (Flickr: CC BY 2.0)

31. Alternate Reality Game (ARGs)…
Source: Wikipedia
Source: Wikipedia
Source: © KrisLines, 2016

32. ARGs in Law
See also the recent approach by City University:
“The aims of our mixed-media story-telling approach were extensive; having the action set in a (fictional)
place and building a series of characters who will pop up in different parts of the course gives them some
sense of familiarity and continuity, which is often a challenge on a distance course. This also helps with
the engagement – the variety of materials (video, audio, visual) and situations (TV/radio show, vlogs,
WhatsApp message conversations, neighbourhood interactions, fight in a bar) keeping them interested.
What this also means is that we have been able give students opportunities to think about the characters
as potential clients, to build empathy and look at how information may be provided to them, getting
practice at sifting what is irrelevant/emotional rhetoric.”
Emily Allbon, Morris Pamplin & Ness Lyons, ‘Lagon Legal: Creating a Transmedia Storyworld for the LLB Legal Practice’ (2017)
Learning at City Conference

33. Location-based mapping…

34. Fan Fiction = Assignments…?
Source: DiegoMedeiros (Flickr: CC BY-NC 2.0)
Source: Wikipedia

35. Moots = Cosplay…?
Source: Michael Curl (Flickr: CC BY 2.0)
Source: MaxPixel (CC0 Public Domain)

36. Easter Eggs…?
Source: LucyMay6 (Flickr: CC BY-NC 2.0)
Longing
Rusted
Seventeen
Daybreak
Furnace
Nine
Benign
Homecoming
One
Freight car

37. Conclusions…
Transmedia is like Marmite…
Some people will love it, some will hate it!
As well as the ‘Edu-tainment‘ question….
Some will think there is too much interactivity and
enrichment, others will be discontent because
there is not enough!
Ultimately, the challenge is to ensure that all
groups and learners are catered for and involved…
Answers on a postcard to…
Source: Adam (Flickr: CC BY-SA 2.0)

38. QUESTIONS?