Studying at York
The Future of Story: Storytelling in the Digital Age - TFT00063H
Module summary
In this module, you will study stories that appear on computational platforms – stories as told on social media, mobile media, in Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, mixed realities, transmedia, through AI and data visualization. Specifically, you will gain an advanced understanding of how story designers leverage different platforms for their work, what are their storytelling strategies, how effective/different are their stories. You will examine various case studies of digitally told stories to understand whether and how their telling is effective, and how stories and meaning are shaped by their platforms. The narrative impulse is a universal one: in this module, you will learn how that impulse plays out in today’s shifting technological landscape.
Module will run
| Occurrence | Teaching period |
|---|---|
| A | Semester 1 2024-25 |
Module aims
This module aims:
- To provide an understanding of the practices through which stories are told in the 21st century media landscape
- To explore how digital technologies shape the experience, identity and notion of stories
- To critically think through the ideologies and other cultural ramifications of digital storytelling
- To broaden your understanding of the relationships between technology (including pre-digital precursors) and the changing cultural values, political contexts, and theoretical concepts of story
Module learning outcomes
Upon completion of this module, you will be able to:
- Understand the ways in which we tell stories with digital media
- Demonstrate an understanding of how digital media and technologies have changed the narratives that shape contemporary society
- Demonstrate an understanding of how digital stories create impact from form to production to distribution
- Demonstrate the ability to critique and analyse different narrative works created in computational environments
- Demonstrate the ability to critically think about digital storytelling and how it affects contemporary digital culture and practices
- Demonstrate the ability to analyse theoretical texts and apply theory to other media texts
- Demonstrate the ability to read and write critically about digital storytelling practices and applications
Module content
The module will focus on case studies to analyse diverse types of stories and approaches to storytelling. Indicative module content includes redefining the storyteller-audience relationship; immersive/VR storytelling; spatial storytelling; live/performative storytelling; mobile storytelling; algorithmic storytelling; and data visualisation.
Indicative assessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Special assessment rules
None
Indicative reassessment
| Task | % of module mark |
|---|---|
| Essay/coursework | 100 |
Module feedback
You will receive written feedback on coursework assessments using a proforma identifying key marking criteria and marks awarded for each section of the assessment. This will be in line with standard University turnaround times.
Indicative reading
Alexander, Bryan, The New Digital Storytelling: Creating Narratives with New Media, Praeger, 2017.
Dunford, Mark and Tricia Jenkins, Digital Storytelling: Form and Content, Palgrave, 2017.
Gitner, Seth, Multimedia Storytelling for Digital Communicators in a Multiplatform World, Routledge, 2015.
Klanten, Robert, Visual Storytelling: Inspiring a New Visual Language, Die Gestalten Verlag, 2011.
Knaflic, Cole Nussbaumer, Storytelling with Data: A Data Visualization Guide for Business Professionals, Wiley, 2015.
McCandless David, Information is Beautiful, Collins, 2012.
Miller, Carolyn Handler, Digital Storytelling: A creator’s guide to interactive entertainment, Focal Press, 2008.
Penn, W.S., Storytelling in the Digital Age, Palgrave, 2013.
Quesenbery, Whitney, and Kevin Brooks, Storytelling for User Experience: Crafting Stories for Better Design, Rosenfeld Media, 2010.