Abstract:

Transmedia narratives represent a dynamic storytelling approach that extends across various content platforms and languages, engaging an actively participating audience. This phenomenon is well-established in the audiovisual industry, evident in numerous films and popular series. These narratives construct expansive storyworlds across multiple platforms, fostering immersive experiences and encouraging audience interaction. Recognizing this trend, communication faculties have integrated curricular units aimed at preparing students to craft transmedia narratives, whether in fiction or non-fiction, and to understand the evolving landscape of transmedia production and research.

For instance, the Master's Degree in Communication and Multimedia at Universidade Europeia Online (Portugal) offers a course dedicated to Transmedia Narratives. Over a seven-week period, students undertake the challenge of creating a transmedia short film project within a fully online classroom environment, employing a flipped classroom and project-based learning approach.

This article seeks to delineate the teaching experience of Transmedia Narratives through the lens of short film transmedia projects. Employing a qualitative descriptive methodology, this study highlights the three key stages of the project: narrative ideation, transmedia expansion, and discussion. Additionally, the study presents and deliberates upon the project outcomes, evaluated according to predefined criteria encompassing narrative coherence, character development, world-building, user engagement, and discussion quality.

Through this analysis, the study discerns the progress of students in acquiring transmedia skills and competencies, suggesting the efficacy of short film transmedia projects within online courses. Moreover, the study identifies potential limitations and offers insights into future project design considerations.

Keywords:

Transmedia Narrative, Communication, e-learning.