Analytics, Data, Management
Ian Hawthorne
Data Cultures Part II: Breaking Free from the ...

An overemphasis on data-driven work within the nonprofit sector has been shown to result in cycles of disempowerment, driven by third-party data demands of funding bodies.. This compounds due to the many market orientations nonprofits need to adopt, particularly prevalent among the arts. A key to navigating these markets and funder requirements lies in identifying a specific data culture best fit for your organization and investing in resources and training in order to achieve that framework sustainably.

Data Cultures Part II: Breaking Free from the Cycle of Disempowerment
Accessibility, Artificial Intelligence, museums
Staff Researcher
Envisioning the Future of Museum Accessibility ...

With AI’s ability to automatically produce content and process complicated datasets with high accuracy, museums worldwide are exploring ways in which this innovative technology can help them better achieve their missions and advance accessibility efforts. Through case studies, learn about three applications of this technology: content digitalization, language accessibility, and visual description.

Envisioning the Future of Museum Accessibility Through Artificial Intelligence
Artificial Intelligence, Public Policy, News & Announcements
Ian Hawthorne
October News: New Policies and Possibilities ...

October was filled with new debates on AI policies, a halt to one of the most significant AI safety bills in the United States, and a host of new AI developments in video, music, and even podcasts.

October News: New Policies and Possibilities for AI
Data, Fundraising, Marketing
Ian Hawthorne
Data Cultures Part I: The Many Markets of Arts ...

Arts and cultural nonprofits often operate in multiple markets for earned and contributed revenue. With increasing attention on data-driven decision making, effective market orientation often depends on effective data use. This fundamental collection, transmission, use, and interpretation of data within an organization collectively contributes to what can be considered an organization’s data culture.

Data Cultures Part I: The Many Markets of Arts Organizations
Advocacy, Community Building, Public Policy
Ian Hawthorne
Democracy on Display: The Dynamic Role of Art ...

Museums have increasingly begun to volunteer their spaces as polling places, acting as a democratic vehicle for their communities and adding to the greater fabric of America’s election infrastructure. In doing so, they can support local democratic processes and prove to their communities that they are not unbreachable temples for the elite, but open platforms for the people.

Democracy on Display: The Dynamic Role of Art Museums in Elections

Film

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Emerging Trends in Documentary Program Distribution: Part 1

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Emerging Trends in Documentary Program Distribution: Part 1

Documentary content has long been a staple of culture and entertainment in the United States, but emerging technologies are changing the way this programming is consumed. Emerging Trends in Documentary Program Distribution focuses on understanding the current market for documentary programs and the current best practices to sell, distribute, and market documentary content. This research article is presented in two parts. The first lays out an overview of the documentary market and then moves into an analysis of how the consumption of video content has changed due to emerging technologies.

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The Streaming War During the Covid-19 Pandemic

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The Streaming War During the Covid-19 Pandemic

The Covid-19 pandemic has drastically disrupted all business sectors, including the arts, culture, and entertainment industries. Unfortunately, the Covid-19 pandemic’s impacts are far more permanent for an audience-oriented industry that requires a high level of engagement. The business model might be fundamentally changed and there will certainly be a shift in how content is produced and consumed. While lockdowns and social distancing measures to contain the pandemic have had a huge impact on the traditional movie industry, the video streaming model seems to be the greatest beneficiary in this difficult time as people are isolated at home, which is the ideal condition for binge-watching. This white paper looks at the status of the streaming industry before and after the first Covid-19 outbreak.

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Case Study of China’s Entertainment Market under COVID-19

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Case Study of China’s Entertainment Market under COVID-19

As we near the end of 2020, it is important to consider the emerging opportunities for live television as the world transitions through the global pandemic. Live performers sharing space is one aspect of a live broadcast. A second element is a live audience. The following case study focuses on how China restarted its entertainment industries and how other markets might adapt as well.

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How Covid-19 Has Impacted Live Audience-Based TV Shows

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How Covid-19 Has Impacted Live Audience-Based TV Shows

One of the areas of the entertainment industry that has been hit the hardest by the Covid-19 pandemic is live audience-based TV. Not only is it difficult for show participants to film in person, but social distancing guidelines also prevent live audience members from attending normally. To investigate the effects of the pandemic on live audience-based TV, this post will look at the political, economic, social, and technological factors that are impacting live entertainment in the United States.

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Virtual Production in Television and Beyond

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Virtual Production in Television and Beyond

As discussed in Part I of this series, virtual production (VP) is the unique intersection of physical and digital filmmaking that blends video game technology with filmmaking techniques into the pre-production and production process. VP is not just the technology that allows the integration of digital and traditional techniques, but also the methods through which it is used. If implemented in the TV industry, VP could lead to reduced costs since it allows for increased efficiency in the production process. Many other industries could also learn from this streamlined process, including live entertainment and the arts.

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An Introduction to Virtual Production and Its Use in the Entertainment Industry

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An Introduction to Virtual Production and Its Use in the Entertainment Industry

Virtual production (VP) is “a broad term referring to a spectrum of computer-aided production and visualization filmmaking methods.” It is not just the technology itself, but also the methods through which it is used. In Parts I and II of this series, we are investigating the technology as well as the methodologies of VP in the broadest definition. The types of VP we will discuss in this post are visualization, performance capture, and LED walls. While VP has benefited the film industry specifically, as innovation with the technology continues, other fields of entertainment—such as live entertainment, fashion, and news reporting—are also leveraging virtual production’s capabilities. The arts and entertainment sector could benefit from learning more about these methods and considering how they could apply these technologies to create engaging virtual experiences.

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Social Distancing Strategies in the Arts: Film and TV, Part 3 of 3

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Social Distancing Strategies in the Arts: Film and TV, Part 3 of 3

As the entertainment and arts industries begin reopening, they face new challenges in light of COVID-19. Each industry is developing unique solutions to keep their audiences and staff safe. Part 3 of this series highlights the emerging trends and new protocols being implemented in the film and tv industries.

Hologram Technology and its Application in Arts and Entertainment: Part 2

Hologram Technology and its Application in Arts and Entertainment: Part 2

CGI and motion-capture technology have disrupted filmmaking in the past two decades, and there are no signs that this trend is in decline. In part one, the history of and technology behind CGI and motion-capture is explained in detail. That framework and information will be applied to this second part of the series, which examines how similar technology is leveraged in the “holograms” that have become more prevalent in live performances and museum spaces in the past few years.

CGI, Motion Capture, and the Commercialization of Celebrity Images: Part 1

CGI, Motion Capture, and the Commercialization of Celebrity Images: Part 1

Over the past twenty years, computer-generated imagery has become nearly ubiquitous in film and television productions. This ubiquity is due to enhanced computing power and higher resolutions coupled with increasingly lower costs. To understand how these technological advancements and their artistic applications in recent years are disrupting the industry, there are three key technologies that must be understood and disambiguated: computer-generated imagery (CGI), motion capture, and holograms. Of these three, CGI is the most foundational technology for the current state of production.

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Hollywood Stock Exchange: A League of Its Own

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Hollywood Stock Exchange: A League of Its Own

First launched in 1996, HSX is a free web-based multiplayer gaming simulator of American film industry. The rules are simple: players use virtual currency to buy, sell, short and cover “shares” of films, directors, actors and other related virtual securities. Although the exchange is entirely fictional, it reacts to actual industry-related news, making itself a community and information hub for both professionals and enthusiasts in the film industry.