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Brief
The brief came from BBC Switch to create a thriller for their teenage audience (13 – 17year olds) that was enthralling and scary but could still play in their Saturday afternoon slot on BBC Two. The project had to be a true multiplatform event, where the digital media aspect was key to the overall delivery rather than an add-on. The project has to live for a number of years online after the initial television broadcast.
Strategy
The strategy involved bringing together the storytelling expertise of one of Britain’s most acclaimed children’s novelists, the production team and television drama experience of Britain’s biggest teen soap opera (Hollyoaks) and the digital media experience of Conker Media.
Conker Media approached award-winning novelist Melvin Burgess and asked him create a horror story for teenagers that was more traditional ghost story than ‘slasher’ horror, thus making it suitable for the young audience and pre-watershed time slot.
The result was ‘The Well’, a classic spine-chilling tale created for a contemporary teenage audience. The Well tells the story of four teenagers who uncover an old well beneath a house they are renovating and unwittingly disturb an evil sprit. They must confront the spirit and solve the mystery of the well before it’s too late.
This story was then given further depth through a back-story which was set over 100 years ago in the same haunted house. The back-story told the tale of the last time the well was opened and the sinister consequences which ensued. Along the way it revealed what our modern day characters needed to do to placate the evil spirit and restore order to their world. Within both stories the characters ‘crossed over’ appearing as ‘ghosts’ to one another, linking the two stories further.
The intention was to tell the contemporary story through a high-end television production comprising of 4 x 10 minute episodes. The audience would then be driven online to the website at bbc.co.uk/thewell where they were invited to explore an immersive 3D scale replica of the haunted house which they could explore, discover games and unlock the video of the back-story.
If the audience did not go online and unlock the hidden content, they could still enjoy The Well as a stand alone television series. However those who explored the house between episodes would not only find fun games relating to the story, but they would get one step ahead of the characters in the show in uncovering the secrets of The Well.
Execution
To produce The Well, Conker Media effectively created a production model that successfully integrated the television and digital media production processes to sure a seamless flow in the narrative and the visual style.
3D Design Agency Milky Tea was commissioned to create the scale replica of the main location, the haunted house. Every room was dressed, lit and created by the Conker Media team and through lighting, music, sound effects and the odd scary moment, the experience of exploring the house was created to be as spooky and immersive as the drama.
The audience (or users), were able to explore all rooms of the house, including those not seen in the television series. Within each room they found a series of Flash games which took elements of the story or the physical environment to create a puzzle or skill game. Upon completion of each game the user was presented with a video of one of three ghosts who occupied the house back in the 19th century who told the sinister story of what happened the last time the well was disturbed.
Results
The result is a spine tingling drama with high-end production values and an immersive online experience.
Once an episode was broadcast on BBC Two, the video of the episode was published to bbc.co.uk/thewell where the entire event could be experienced in full. The story flows from the television episodes into the game level and back again.
For example, in one episode we see one of the ghosts hide clues around the house (over 100 years ago) to help the teenagers solve the mystery. The episode ends on a cliff hanger as the teens uncover one of the items, a diary. Those who only watch the drama must wait until the next episode to see the result, however those who go online can go directly to the place the diary was hidden, play games to recover it and discover the secrets it holds.
This new model of storytelling was created by integrating the creative and production teams from television and digital media to produce a truly cross platform multi layered experience for teenagers.
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