![Sample our Communication Studies journals, sign in here to start your access, 2013 & 2014 volumes FREE to you for 14 days]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/5927/TOC-Subject-Sample-2021-Information-Science2.jpg"})
ABSTRACT
Our previous study of the Open Content Film-making (OCF) community Revolution Postponed? Tracing the development and limitations of open content filmmaking, Information, Communication & Society, (10.1080/1369118X.2018.1464590) had shown how early expectations that Creative Commons (CC) licences would enable a viable alternative to mainstream film production, comparable to free/libre open source software (FLOSS), were challenged, in particular, by the difficulties experienced in establishing viable livelihoods with OCF. A narrative of the apparent failure of OCF may be premature, however. This paper reports on a subsequent study of how OCF practices became adopted as mundane elements in a film production and distribution system that itself has been, and continues to be, dramatically changed by digitisation. These developments broke down the dichotomy that had been drawn between existing commercial practices and visions of a new system of decentralised, non-proprietary, peer production. First, we show that OCF practices are conceptualised by our informants in relation to the mainstream independent film industry. Second, we account for how OCF tools and practices become adopted within the mainstream independent film production/distribution system. These observations highlight that limiting the scope of investigation (e.g., by only undertaking short term ‘snapshot’ studies, limited to particular settings or groups) may yield flawed interpretations based on narrow viewpoints and premature judgements. Instead, we flag the need to extend research – both longitudinally and across a range of settings/viewpoints – applying methodological templates from the Biography of Artefacts and Practices perspective (Hyysalo, 2010; Pollock & Williams, 2008).
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
Notes on contributors
Gian Marco Campagnolo is Lecturer in Science & Technology Studies and Turing Inaugural Fellow at the University of Edinburgh. His research empirically focuses on ICT markets with a focus on the relationship between technology and expertise. He has been visiting research fellow at Ecole des Mines in Paris and post-doctoral fellow at University of Trento (Italy), where he has also been a consultant for the government’s digital agenda [email: [email protected]].
Evi Giannatou is a social researcher interested in the interaction between legal innovation and ICTs and the possibilities it generates for innovative social and economic practises. Her doctoral thesis focused on independent film-makers’ use of Creative Commons licenses. She received her doctorate degree in Science and Technology Studies from the University of Edinburgh [email: [email protected]].
Michael Franklin’s doctoral research at the Institute for Capitalising on Creativity, The University of St Andrews focused on the performative role of digital engagement metrics as calculative tools in market boundaries. His current work (at the Institute for Creative and Cultural Entrepreneurship, Goldsmiths College, University of London) examines market devices in the context of risk perception and management in creative industries [email: [email protected]].
James Stewart is Lecturer in Science & Technology Studies at the University of Edinburgh and research fellow Edinburgh in the Institute for Science, Technology and Innovation. His interdisciplinary research explores the development of new technologies and the way that they are shaped, appropriated and become part of large-scale systems of technology and culture [email: [email protected]].
Robin Williams is Professor of Social Research on Technology in the School of Social and Political Sciences and Director of the Institute for the Study of Science, Technology and Innovation (ISSTI) at The University of Edinburgh. Building on research into the ‘social shaping’ of enterprise systems, his current work applies the Biography of Artefacts perspective to address the design and implementation of information infrastructures [email: [email protected]].
Notes
1 https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/iron-sky-the-coming-race--2#/ posted 5 Nov 2014, last sampled 20 March 2018.
2 https://www.invesdor.com/finland/en/pitches/545 posted 2015, last sampled 20 March 2018.
3 http://creativecommons.org/weblog/entry/8315 posted 23 May 2008, last sampled 20 March 2018.
4 http://opendoclab.mit.edu/futures-of-entertainment-5-mit posted 18 Nov 2011, last sampled 20 March 2018.
6 Braun (Citation2013).
7 These primarily include contributing to the organization of the Barcelona Creative Commons Film Festival in collaboration with the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC) as well as establishing a ‘Digital Creative Industries cohort’ of researcher and practitioners including former Edinburgh University Alumnus Will Page, director of Economics at Spotify, Turin-based entrepreneur Irene Cassarino and Ciclica.cc, organisers of the Bicycle Film Festival.
8 As in the case of the Barcelona based collective Kinoraw, https://en.goteo.org/project/kinoraw.
9 Our evidence resonates with Sørensen (Citation2012, Citation2015) who explores the unintended consequences of crowd-funding for the wider documentary film industry. However, our analysis primarily focuses on its consequences for production and distribution and less on the content of documentaries. A study addressing implications of crowd-funding on the topics of documentaries can be found in Koçer (Citation2015). We thank one of the reviewers for pointing us to these additional studies of crowd-funding.
10 These include Creative Scotland, EU MEDIA, Distrify, Film London, NESTA, Scottish Screen, Skillset, Sigma Films, UK Film Council, and the Wales Creative IP Fund.
11 For example, in visual effects and animation software like Alembic, see http://variety.com/2011/digital/news/ilm-sony-imageworks-release-alembic-1-0-1118041083/ posted 9 Aug 2011, last sampled 20 March 2018.
12 http://variety.com/2013/biz/news/step-aside-netflix-amazons-entering-the-original-series-race-1200749146/ posted 22 Oct 2013, last sampled 20 March 2018. http://variety.com/2013/digital/news/amazons-latest-bid-to-digitize-hollywood-a-free-screenwriters-virtual-corkboard-1200972562/ posted 18 Dec 2013, last sampled 20 March 2018.
13 http://momentsofinnovation.mit.edu/interactive/, last sampled 20 March 2018.
14 http://opendoclab.mit.edu/storytools-lets-build-tool-writing-non-linear-stories-david-dufresne posted 4 Feb 2015, last sampled 20 March 2018.
15 http://docubase.mit.edu/about/, last sampled 20 March 2018.
16 http://www.rocoeducational.com/particle_fever, last sampled 20 March 2018.
17 http://www.stemcellrevolutions.com/, last sampled 20 March 2018.
18 http://blog.scottishdocinstitute.com/drm_a_return_to_edison_and_the_mppc posted 11 Dec 2013, last sampled 20 March 2018.
19 http://blog.scottishdocinstitute.com/the_virtuous_circle posted 6 Feb 2006, last sampled 20 March 2018.
20 These developments include the rapid dominance of Streaming Video on Demand services like Netflix and the growing role of the social media and internet giants (captured with the acronym FANG Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google) in which OCF and FLOSS elements have arguably played an important role in technological facilitation of new modes of distribution (and as a result, production and finance). See, for example, https://medium.com/netflix-techblog/tagged/open-source last sampled 20 March 2018.
![Supercharge Your Next Research Paper: Research and write your next paper with Jenni AI.]({"type":"image" , "src" : "/sda/112447/MPU-L1HU.png"})