Collaborative modes of audiovisual media: literature review and conceptual proposal

ABSTRACT

There is no consensus on the definition of participatory or collaborative practices in relation to audiovisual media. The same term has been used to name a range of similar practices although they have important differences that should be described. Moreover, different terms have been used to refer to the same practice. The present article provides a conceptual proposal for this mode of creation, which originated and has been essentially developed in the field of non-fiction. We first conducted a systematic review of the literature, which corroborated the starting premise and allowed us to propose the concept ‘collaborative modes of audiovisual media’ compared with other terms that are currently employed. We then explored the characterisation of the object of study and the historical uses of the different concepts that are applied to this type of audiovisual creation. The definition obtained recognises the plurality of the concept and reveals its basic characteristics. Then, we have compared this notion with recent contributions on collaborative creation in the context of digital communication. In conclusion, this article offers a theoretical model to further research this object of study, acknowledging the differences among practices and facilitating a deeper insight into the productive connections that they share.

KEYWORDS:

• Collaborative filmmaking
• participatory video
• non-fiction
• documentary film
• crowdsourcing
• collective cinema

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This article has been written as a part of the research project “Transmedialization and Hybridization of Fiction and Non-Fiction in Contemporary Media Culture” (FICTRANS), Ref. PID2021-124434NBI00, funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033 and by ERDF A Way of Making Europe. State Plan for Scientific and Technical Research and Innovation 2021–2023.

Notes on contributors

Juanjo Balaguer

Juanjo Balaguer is a PhD candidate at the Department of Information and Communication at the University of Granada. His doctoral project addresses collaborative audiovisual media with a focus on participation and representation. His research also includes interactive documentary and participatory video. He is a member of a research group, ‘Audiovisual and multimedia creation, production and post-production processes’ and also a member of the research projects ‘Transmedialization and hybridisation of fiction and non-fiction in contemporary media culture’. He has participated before in the research project ‘Transmedialization and Crowdsourcing in Audiovisual, Journalistic, Dramatic and Literary Fiction and Non-Fiction Narratives’.

Jordi Alberich-Pascual

Jordi Alberich-Pascual is Full Professor of Audiovisual Communication and Advertising at the Department of Information and Communication at the University of Granada, Spain. His teaching and research activity has been developed as an expert in Digital Aesthetics and New Media Communication. Since 2016, he coordinates the Research Group ‘Audiovisual and multimedia creation, production and post-production processes’ (SEJ-585) consolidated in the Andalusian Research Plan (PAIDI). He is also Principal Investigator of the research project ‘Transmedialization and hybridisation of fiction and non-fiction in contemporary media culture’, State Plan for Scientific, Technical and Innovation Research 2021–2023 (Ref. PID2021-124434NB-I00), among others ongoing research projects.