“How Gaming Director Keith Arem Developed His First ‘Transmedia’ Film” reveals all the elements in a well-rounded transmedia project.

These include:

• an April 8 debut for the UFO conspiracy docudrama film, Phoenix Incident
• festival screenings in February and March
• viral marketing that began four years ago
• an interactive app version of the film for Apple TV
• gamification elements in the app that reward more active users
• corporate partnerships

Arem, a video game industry veteran, says:

“With companies like Steam and Apple, the idea is to move away from traditional distribution, and turn the model around to get creators involved in changing the way people experience entertainment.”

The article concludes:

“Arem is planning Phoenix Incident spin-offs, including a virtual reality experience, a television series, and prequel films inspired by other unexplained incidents.”

My take: I think the smartest move here is the choice of subject and genre: UFO sci-fi/cover-up conspiracy/documentary. This guarantees a dedicated niche audience. One thing that surprises me is how long the viral campaign has been active. For the transmedia bible, see Gary Hayes’ “How to Write a Transmedia Production Bible”.