As part of our continuing 101 series on Transmedia and Alternate Reality Gaming, The Mission Business will present ARG 101: Zed.to on Tuesday, July 17th at InterAccess Electronic Media Arts Center.
The Mission Business is an adventure laboratory based in Toronto that designs connected live-action and online experiences to thrill you, challenge you, and make you think. After setting forth from their shared educational foundation to a broad range of expertise, the founding members of The Mission Business have reassembled in order to explore new platforms for creative development. The team includes experts in theatre, digital content creation, and game design. The first project of The Mission Business is ZED.TO, an 8-month interactive narrative experience. The centrepiece of ZED.TO is a series of interactive theatrical events, including the upcoming Fringe Festival show [ZED.TO] ByoLogyc: Where You Become New, running July 4 – 15.
Additional information on Alternate Reality Gaming will be presented by ARG blogger Geoff May of 4D Fiction. As Geoff explains, “With technology becoming ever more ubiquitous for the layperson, storytelling is hot on its heels. Being confined to a single medium is no longer a limitation for many eager storytellers. And while ‘Transmedia Storytelling’ describes this creative space ripe for exploration, Alternate Reality Games are the essence – where an interactive narrative plays out using the real world as its platform. Here, the story is the key — the element that seamlessly connects every medium together, and ultimately weaves willing players into the story itself as it takes place around them in real time — and it’s also why they’re destined to a niche, albeit significant, existence.”
Geoff May has been immersed in the Alternate Reality Game world since he was ‘stung’ by the I Love Bees ARG in 2004. Since then he’s been active in the community, providing wiki resources, moderating the Unfiction forums, and running two websites: 4DFiction.com – geared towards transmedia storytellers and creators, and Wikibruce.com – reporting ARG news for players and the community. Geoff has also written for ARGN.com, appeared in the ARG Netcast series, and occasionally consulted and created content behind the curtain for a few smaller ARG projects.
Due to the number of speakers we will be having this night, the ticket price at the door is $8 cash. To register, please visit: Transmedia 101′s Meetup.com page.
