How Far Is Up? Storytelling through digital platforms

Research at RMIT – Betty Sargeant | RMIT University

(Transcript with notations)

VISUAL: Research at RMIT. Betty Sargeant discusses her book app, How Far Is Up? RMIT University logo.

VISUAL: Betty Sargeant, Higher Degree by Research (School of Media and Communication) speaking to the camera.

Betty Sargeant: The research project that I'm working on is called How Far is Up?

VISUAL: Close up of title page of the How Far is Up? book app. The title page is quite colourful with brocade fabric running across the top of the screen with a rose in the centre above two vertical strips of brocade which are separating two pages. The title, How Far Is Up?, on the left side of the page and the characters of the book are on the right page ie the words: Featuring: Rusty, Buster and Ting. Each character has their image drawn beside their name (Rusty looks like a girl with pointy pigtails; Buster is a dog with a pink face and purples ears; and Ting looks like a yellow cricket). In the centre of the screen a hand pointer points to the small gap between the vertical brocade strips.

Betty Sargeant: And it's a book app for kids aged between about four and six.

VISUAL: Camera quickly enters the book between the gap and on screen is a green grassy hill with a larger mountain on top of it. A tiny house with a tree beside it is at the bottom of the mountain. The character Rusty is standing on top of the mountain beside a rocketship and is looking up. In the background is a night sky with lots of stars. The camera pans from the top of the mountain up to the moon or another planet in the starry night sky.

Betty Sargeant: The story's about these three friends and they're curious about distance and space ...

VISUAL: Betty Sargeant speaking to the camera.

Betty Sargeant: ... and they go on a bumbling escapade to the ...

VISUAL: A page of the eBook. Rust and Ting can be seen inside the rocketship looking out of the round windows. Below them is a colourful black?hole with a swirl of light coming out of it. The text above the black hole reads: Black holes are far, far, far, away from earth. Black holes gobble up space objects. Two hands on the bottom of the screen are for navigation – one in the left corner pointing backward and the other in the right corner is pointing forward.

Betty Sargeant: ... outer reaches of the universe. They get themselves lost and struggle ...

VISUAL: Another page of the eBook. The three characters with their backs to the camera are in the foreground looking out of the window of the spaceship at swirling light in space. The text at the top left of the screen reads: Over time, galaxies move. These two galaxies could be dancing. A hand pointing at the characters flashes and the characters turn to face the camera. The rest of the background remains the same.

Betty Sargeant: ... to find their way home. So it's a piece of entertainment ...

VISUAL: Betty Sargeant speaking to the camera.

Betty Sargeant: ... but it also has a lot of educational value in it, as well.

VISUAL: Close up as Betty is touching the screen of her tablet and camera pans up to show her face as she is looking down at the screen.

Betty Sargeant: I had to write it so ...

VISUAL: Betty Sargeant speaking to the camera.

Betty Sargeant: ... with creative writing; I had to illustrate it ...

VISUAL: Close up of Betty’s finger moving across the screen of her tablet. In the foreground is a wooden flip down toy (ie Jacob’s Ladder) joined with ribbon with the word Mexico stamped on the front of it.

Betty Sargeant: ... animate it, do the interaction design ... 

VISUAL: Betty Sargeant speaking to the camera.

Betty Sargeant: ... and what surprised me is the writing aspect, the exegetical ...

VISUAL: Camera is looking over Betty’s shoulder as she is holding a tablet and looking at the title page of her eBook – How Far Is Up?

Betty Sargeant: ... side of it and how much that ...

VISUAL: Betty touches the image on the screen of Rusty who then leaps up some stairs. Buster is at the bottom; Ting is at the top.

Betty Sargeant: ... has really informed my craft.

VISUAL: Betty is touching the screen to manipulate the image on the screen which is of a house and a tree. Rusty is swinging on a branch of the tree with the words Yipee beside her. Buster is speaking out of the house window and the speech bubble reads: Come down, you are too far up.

Betty Sargeant: Good interaction design, to me, has to do with aesthetics ... 

VISUAL: Betty Sargeant speaking to the camera.

Betty Sargeant: ... the craft and the materials and the way in which it’s formed ...

VISUAL: Betty Sargeant sitting at her desk touching the screen of her tablet as she reads what’s on the screen.

Betty Sargeant: ... as well as the functionality of it.

VISUAL: Betty Sargeant speaking to and smiling at the camera.

Betty Sargeant: I'd say if you are doing interaction design, come to RMIT; it's a great place to be.

VISUAL: RMIT University Logo and website www.rmit.edu.au. This video features the song “Motivation to Win” by Music for Hope Production. Available under a Creative Commons Attribution licence.

End of video

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