CASE STUDY
This blog post is introducing the idea of conglomerations, by using Harry Potter and it's global audience as an example.
Harry Potter as a franchise has turned into more of an experience than just a book or film series. There are many forms of media that Harry Potter has been formed across, including:
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These many forms of media contributed to the fictional experience which J.K Rowling created, allowing Harry Potter fans to interact with each other, and the franchise, from all around the world. This idea of a multi media franchise supports Jenkins' statement that "more and more, storytelling has become the art of world building, as artists create compelling environments that can not be fully explored or exhausted with a single work or even a single medium." (Jenkins, 2006, 114) Without the many successful transmedia elements surrounding the original book series, it is likely that the Harry Potter franchise would not be the global phenomenon that it is today.
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Reinforcing this, the Harry potter franchise can be described as multi- platform, due to it being more of an experience, occurring over many different forms of media; "In the current context, “multi-platform” refers to a strategic approach where media companies are focused on making or putting together products and services with a view towards delivery and distribution of that content proposition on not just one but across multiple platforms." (Doyle, G, 2015: 51) The franchise simply would not have excelled as much as it has if it was not multi platform.
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There are global editions of Harry Potter which have been diversified and localised in order for them to fit the culture of these countries.
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In France, the translator eliminated many of Rowlings details which didn't make sense to the French culture, at the same time as emphasising the more educational features of the novel. (Untappedcities.com, 2012)
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In China, illegitimate, unauthorised copies of the book were being sold, which was based in China and featured a different storyline, whilst Japan changed the cover of the book to a large sketch of Hedwig the owl, due to owls being an important Japanese symbol of good fortune. (Untappedcities.com, 2012)
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These adaptations were allowed to be made, due to the literal translations in some countries making no sense. Because of this, Rowling gave the translators freedom to do what was best for the book in their country, which had a positive effect on the global success of the franchise. Denmark has the highest per capita movie sales ($1.67) of Harry Potter of all 58 countries with data available, closely followed by the rest of Scandinavia. (Untappedcities.com, 2012)
However, many aspects of the novel were standardised, for example in every country, Harry wears glasses. This is because glasses are a globally recognised symbol of intelligence.
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Furthermore, it is arguable that a main reason for the success of the franchise is its reach to so many different audience demographics. Although the element of fantasy creates the child like excitement for the audience, the variation of media forms means there will always be something Harry Potter related that anyone will like. This could be branching from the theatre production, or the figurines and toys. The Wizarding Worlds immerse the consumer into the environment, giving them the opportunity to feel as if they are experiencing Rowling's magical world.
Including a Harry Potter theme park attraction is a smart way of creating a larger audience. You do not have to be a Harry Potter fan in order to be taken aback by the immersive world that has been created. Therefore these attractions encourage people to involve themselves with the rest of the franchise. This is supported by Gordon and Lim (2016), when they state that 'Transmedia storytelling thus leverages a constellation of diverse and dispersed media platforms to tell a series of interconnected stories, each of which can also be stand-alone.' Though the theme parks can stand alone, they are a tool in encouraging engagement from a wider audience, multiplying the profit for the franchise.
Due to these immersive experiences being relatively recent, a lot of exposure and publicity was built up around it. It was expected to be very popular; Gunelius suggests that transmedia culture is used to create hype for the attractions, saying ‘Universal included pictures of concept art on the theme park’s website to increase excitement and speculation' (Gunelius, 2008: 111).
The hype and excitement surrounding the opening of the attraction in Florida proved to be successful due to the rise in visits since the opening of the first Wizarding World attraction;
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"Wizarding World has been a massive boon for Universal Studios since the first one opened in 2010 at the Islands of Adventure park in Florida. Attendance at Universal Studios’ theme parks rose 80% to 47.4 million from 2010 to 2016" (Cuccinello, Hayley C., Forbes, 2017)
There was a sharp increase in attendance in 2010 when the Harry Potter World opened. (Forbes, 2019)
In conclusion, the physicality surrounding the Harry Potter transmedia franchise was absolutely vital in assisting the rise of the global success. This example proves Henry Jenkins' statement of world building to be true, as if Harry Potter was not a conglomeration, the active audience members would be left bored and unimpressed with only the books and the films- the immersive and creative atmosphere that engulfs the franchise is what makes it so attractive to the prosumer, enabling them to get involved with the product, rather than passively consume it. (Jenkins, 2006, 114)
Bibliography
Cucinello, H. C, (2017) How J.K. Rowling Earned $95Million in a year. Forbes.com. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/hayleycuccinello/2017/06/19/how-j-k-rowling-earned-95-million-in-a-year/#aa81b26d4291 (Accessed: 18/10/2020)
Doyle, G (2015) 'Multi-platform media and the miracle of the loaves and fishes', Journal of Media Business Studies, 12:1, pp. 49-65, DOI: 10.1080/16522354.2015.1027113
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Gunelius, S. (2008) Harry Potter: The Story of a Global Business Phenomenon. Hampshire: Palgrave MacMillan.
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Gordon, Ian & Lim, Sun Sun (2016) Introduction to the special issue “Cultural industries and transmedia in a time of convergence: Modes of engagement and participation”, The Information Society, 32:5, 301-305, DOI: 10.1080/01972243.2016.1212614
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Jenkins, H (2006) 'Searching for the Origami Unicorn: The Matrix and Transmedia storytelling', convergence culture, where old and new media collide. New York: New York University Press, pp. 93-130
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Robinson, S (2012) Harry Potter and the Magic of Global Culture. Untappedcities.com, Available at: https://untappedcities.com/2012/06/19/harry-potter-and-the-magic-of-global-culture/#:~:text=Denmark%20has%20the%20highest%20per,by%20the%20rest%20of%20Scandinavia. (Accessed: 17/10/2020)
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Sylt, C (2019) 'Revealed: The World's Fastest Growing Theme Park'. Forbes.com. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/sites/csylt/2019/06/30/revealed-the-worlds-fastest-growing-theme-park/#430e09335cd9. (Accessed: 26/10/2020)
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