University of Central Florida STARS Honors Undergraduate Theses UCF Theses and Dissertations 2020 Representation in the Story: The Social Impact of Diversity in Transmedia Tiffany S. Tanaka-Cooper University of Central Florida Part of the Creative Writing Commons Find similar works at: https://stars.library.ucf.edu/honorstheses University of Central Florida Libraries http://library.ucf.edu This Open Access is brought to you for free and open access by the UCF Theses and Dissertations at STARS. It has been accepted for inclusion in Honors Undergraduate Theses by an authorized administrator of STARS. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Recommended Citation Tanaka-Cooper, Tiffany S., "Representation in the Story: The Social Impact of Diversity in Transmedia" (2020). Honors Undergraduate Theses. 826. https://stars.library.ucf.edu/honorstheses/826 REPRESENTATION IN THE STORY: THE SOCIAL IMPACT OF DIVERSITY IN TRANSMEDIA by TIFFANY TANAKA-COOPER A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Honors in the Major Program and for the Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing in the College of Arts and Humanities and in the Burnett Honors College at the University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida Fall Term 2020 Thesis Chair: Peter Telep ABSTRACT The purpose of this thesis is to take a more profound and nuanced look into the effects of diversity in transmedia storytelling (also known as transmedia narrative or multiplatform storytelling) on society, more specifically, how the representation in these stories affect the minority groups that interact with transmedia. This thesis investigates the depiction of minority groups in transmedia storytelling and the influence of identifiable characters and plotlines. The research and following interviews I have engaged in will encapsulate into a screenplay set in a fictional court that offers the discourse of "forced diversity" within the transmedia narrative: whether or not this exists and is necessary for the success of telling a story across multiple platforms. By exploring the human condition in both the documentary and the screenplay, I conclude in a critical reflection accompanying the creative works that the inclusion of minorities in transmedia is vital to its success. When creators include minorities in transmedia, audiences can draw connections that are more personal to them; they can participate in the symbolic "hero's journey" with the character in the story. By further diversifying transmedia works, intellectual properties' appeal is widened to a broader audience, allowing for potential success, both economically and socially, that transcends both domestic and international borders. I further conclude that failures with diversification efforts have detrimental socioeconomic consequences that could impact both transmedia and its audiences. ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS To my parents, who have supported me throughout my academic and professional journey; without their encouragement and enabling of my passion for books and cinema, I would not be here at this moment in my life. To my mom, Karen, that dealt with my obsessiveness moments in completing this thesis, beating cancer while lifting me, and to my dad, Leroy, who would always be willing to read a new page to give me the confidence needed to continue when things got too rough. To Professor Telep for taking a chance on a stranger a long time ago in a classroom far, far away. You guidance and leadership has been insurmountable and I could not have asked for a better thesis chair. I hope I made you proud! To Dr. Grajeda for agreeing to be on my committee when he absolutely did not have to. The time you’ve taken out for a student you’ve only interacted with online is truly appreciated! I honestly did not expect this, and your knowledge is unparallel. To Dr. Stanfill and Dr. Rhodes for their insightful and influential classes on Fandom Studies and Screenwriting, respectively. I think I have grown significantly due to your tutelage and I thank you both for taking the time out on me. To the ladies at the #Gingerrose hub on Discord for spreading the word and participating in the data collection for this thesis. Without them, I would not have been lost. Thank you all for being open and willing to help support this thesis. To the wonderful owners of Collector’s Comics who allowed me into their shop with my cameras to film B-Roll footage when COVID decided to throw this thesis into a panic. And to UCF, for having an amazing English program that encouraged and fostered creativity. Thank you all, from the bottom of my heart. Tiffany Tanaka-Cooper, 2020 iii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ........................................................................................................ vi GLOSSARY .................................................................................................................................. vii INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................... 1 i. What is Transmedia Storytelling .............................................................................................. 2 ii. Purpose .................................................................................................................................... 3 iii. Methodology .......................................................................................................................... 4 iv. Orthography ............................................................................................................................ 6 - Translation of names and words .......................................................................................... 6 - Places and titles ................................................................................................................... 7 - Abbreviations ...................................................................................................................... 7 CHAPTER 1 – You’re Probably Doing It Wrong: Finding a Space for POC Voices ................... 8 1.1 Early Transmedia and Fandom Communities ..................................................................... 10 1.2 Social Media, Racebending, and “Check Your Privilege” .................................................. 12 1.3 To Diversify or to Forcefully Diversify .............................................................................. 17 CHAPTER 2 - The Queer Stormtrooper: Gender and Sexuality in a Galaxy Far, Far Away ...... 25 2.1 Queerbaiting for Ratings ..................................................................................................... 27 2.2 It’s Just Subtext: Erasing Queer Representation ................................................................. 30 iv 2.3 Genderbending and Slashing ............................................................................................... 36 CHAPTER 3 - The People v. Hollywood: A Court Room Drama – A Critical Reflection .......... 40 CHAPTER 4 - Conclusion: Where Do We Go from Here? ......................................................... 45 REFERENCES .............................................................................................................................. 52 APPENDIX A – Table of Figures ................................................................................................ 60 APPENDIX B – Conversation with Dr. Mel Stanfill ................................................................... 61 APPENDIX C – Conversation with Diana Miller ........................................................................ 77 APPENDIX D – The People v. Hollywood, Thesis Draft, November 2020 ................................ 82 v LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AAPI – Asian-American, Pacific Islander BIPOC – Black/Indigenous Person(s) of Color Con – Convention. Fanfic – Fan fiction. LFL – LucasFilm, Limited. POC – Person(s) of Color TMS – Transmedia Storytelling TPTB – The Powers That Be vi GLOSSARY Acafan – Academic + Fan. Academics who are also fans and study fandom. Allyship – The act of being an ally to minorities Anime – Animation originating from Japan. Canon – Relating to the officially sanctioned narrative, characters, and other related aspects of a creative work. That which is not official is called “non-canon”. Cisgender – Identifying as the sex they were assigned from birth Counterpublic – Spaces, usually within a fandom, that run counter to the established norm Fanfiction/Fanfic – Fictional narrative works created by fans based on an existing work (book, film, television show, etc). Fanservice – Content of sexual nature added to a creative work in order to appeal to its audience and/or demographic. Genderbending – Changing the established gender of a character in a transmedia work Headcanon – Fan theories about a creative work widely accepted as canon despite official word stating otherwise. Ship – A relationship Transmedia Storytelling – Multiple narrative written across multiple digital and analogue platforms to tell a bigger story. vii INTRODUCTION A young girl sits in front of the television and is enthralled by the images she sees on the screen. Wizards fly across the screen on brooms chasing a mythical creature in a high-stakes game; in her hand, the book that was the source for the movie. On her shelf, a videogame inspired by the events in the movie. As she sits there, she does not inherently notice the differences between herself and the characters on screen – her skin is darker, and her