Profesional

HOW TO
WRITE A
TRANSMEDIA
PRODUCTION
BIBLE
A template for multi-platform producers
By GARY P HAYES

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INTRODUCTION
This document is intended to provide a useful, best-practice guide to the
thinking, planning, documentation and supporting materials required when
developing a property across multiple media platforms. It is predominantly
aimed at the producers of suchprojects, who have responsibility for the overall
direction of all key areas, and should inform the input they need from their
various multi-disciplinary team members.
The bible that this document will guide you towards is not a production bible
in the traditional sense – a format document for franchising a TV property
into other markets – but rather a catch-all that covers key componentsof a
complex multi-platform service. Your bible may be extended to a full production
reference document as the sections it contains become more detailed. Some
sections across each ‘chapter’ may appear to be repetitive but should reflect a
different perspective and specialisation on common areas of the project.
The Transmedia Production Bible is primarily a document that captures keystory and design IP elements, rules of engagement, functionality and technical
issues across multiple platforms, and an overview of the business/marketing
plan. Each of the five main sections requires specialist members of the project
team to be responsible for its development as the service goes from conception
to production and the document becomes a fully detailed productionbible.
You don’t necessarily need to follow this structure precisely as the final format
will depend on the range of content, scope and scale of your proposition – the
amount of story, technical complexity, business elements or design thinking,
etc. The suggested length of each section is for guidance only, and the included
diagrams are intentionally simplistic to encourage your owninterpretations.

Template written non-exclusively by Gary P Hayes as a blueprint
guide for multi-platform producers. July 2011.

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CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION. ............................................................................................... 2
.
TREATMENT........................................................................................................ 4Tagline.................................................................................................................. 4
Back story and context .......................................................................................................4
Synopsis ..................................................................................................................................4
Plotpoints............................................................................................................................... 5
Characterisation and attitude ........................................................................................... 5
Scripts...................................................................................................................................... 5
User-centric scenarios........................................................................................................ 5
FUNCTIONAL.SPECIFICATION...................................................................... 6
Multi-platform form............................................................................................................. 6
Rules ofengagement .......................................................................................................... 7
Platforms and channels ..................................................................................................... 7
Service build overview ........................................................................................................ 7
User journey...