BY YOU
By You explores a speculative media landscape where shows are not only recommended based on tastes and preferences but also remade in real time to fit a viewer’s emotions. Through the lens of a reporter, the project examines how this technology and its downstream effects through four organizations: Limbic, Neulu, the American Federation of Audiences, and CINE46.
METHODOLOGY: Primary Research, Secondary Research, Speculative Design, Design Fiction, Strategic Foresight, Backcasting
SKILLS: Opportunity Identification, Filmmaking, Graphic Design, Brand Building, Presentation Design, Exhibition Design
This project was done with A24 as an imagined client.
My research spanned various primary and secondary sources, including my personal experience working in entertainment, co-hosting an event called General Seminar on filmmaking's future, and leading the Green Pages project with the Near Future Laboratory, a separate project exploring the future of filmmaking.
Simultaneously, I absorbed cultural commentaries, media theory books and essays, current events, research reports, and films and shows to expand my perspective.
At the end of the scan stage, I decided to explore the intersection of intimate data collection and generative AI, envisioning their combined impact on media personalization and user engagement.
Drawing on research from the scan stage I developed a series of early prototypes. These artifacts explored how different signals might manifest in the future. Creating physical objects, rather than just imagining ideas, was crucial in identifying which concepts were rich and worth pursuing. This hands-on approach challenged my preconceived notions of media and entertainment, leading to a more comprehensive understanding of the landscape.
Through this process, I began to see a growing conflict between entertainment platforms' desire to optimize and humans' instinctual pull towards community.
Using diegetic artifacts to tell my story means my story is reliant on the audience connecting them themselves. Therefore, the internal logic of the artifacts is crucial. I interrogated my world through various graphic arrangements, examining each element more thoroughly through organizational lenses.
From this self critical process I was able to create four distinct roles played by four organizations. Limbic drove technological change, Neulu normalized it, the American Federation of Audiences provided the governmental response, and Cine46 represented the grassroots reaction.
The final outcome: a curated collection of research from the viewpoint of Larry Hoo, an investigative journalist and my quasi-alter ego. Instead of full articles, I used Hoo's notes to explain the artifacts. By presenting the objects through Larry Hoo's investigative process, I aimed to guide the audience towards three critical questions.
How do they currently discover and connect through media? How do recommendation algorithms shape these interactions? And, how might they envision their media engagement evolving in the future?
By prompting these inquiries, I hope to inspire reflection on the intricate dynamics between personalization, community, and the evolving landscape of media consumption.