Page 33 - AC/E Digital Culture Annual Report

speed of computerised cut & paste routines, and the intuitiveness of Photoshop and After E ects. As Lev Manovich maintains, modern software brought to life a scenario where operations for selecting, building, editing and publishing data became so easy that we can predict a period of “total remix” in which everything can be mixed with everything else.We are witnessing the impact of collective creation with phenomena such as NetArt and examples like Jodi and the Santo le group. Another example is what is happening with anime music video. According to Wikipedia,an anime music video (commonly abbreviated as AMV) is a music video consisting of clips from one or more animation shows or lms, set to an audio track. They are mostly music videos which have not been o cially released by the musicians but are rather fan compositions which syn- chronise edited video clips with an audio track. Most AMVs are distributed over the internet. Many anime conventions often run contests or exhibitions of AMVs. Digital artistic expressions of this kind are ceasing to be marginal and are becoming common.The internet has brought a new paradigm for how we get together to collaborate, create and re-create, either among ourselves, users, or through the initiatives of artists who allow others to take part in their creations.All over the world, every day, we are nding more and more examples of the importance of openness and collaboration between people. The internet has brought a new paradigm for how we get together to collaborate, create and re-create, either among ourselves, users, or through the initiatives of artists who allow others to take part in their creations, companies that decideto back their clients’ ideas, or governments that collaborate with people in a real way. The spirit of sharing and real online initiatives is gaining more and more importance and reaping truly positive results.The potential of the internet as a tool for collaboration is ushering in a new era in people’s development, growth and productivity – a new era in which collaboration is changing the game rules for companies, institutions, governments, artists, musicians and people. Initiatives are springing up in this eld which are having a huge impact on how music is created and consumed. Indeed, eight of the ten most frequently viewed videos on YouTube are related to music and many of them stem from creations of unknown users who remix, cut and paste, create and co-create new products based on existing materials and those created by artists. Remix culture is playing an increasingly signi cant role in the music in- dustry; it has always been practised by musicians, but for the rst time it is open to the creation and creativity of people and internet users.As Alejandro Piscitelli points out, “content should not be based solely on originality, but also on transforming that which exists. On the remix idea: I take, mix and upload content which can also have a high degree of innovation and talent”. Recalling Manuel Castells: “much of what sur- prises us about the internet derives from the four cultures that helped create it: technical-scienti c, which gives the internet transparency; hacker, which is based on the value of creativity, the generosity of its members and respect for the pioneers; entrepreneurs; and virtual communities, which are responsible for giving a voice to anyone, whatever their interests. These elements lend the internet a transparency that clashes with the basic structures of society, which need to be adapted to this new reality, such as intellectual property (remix and free culture).”All over the world thousands of people are creating new things from what already exists. Interesting initiatives are springing up all over the world to foster this remix culture. One of the most successful initiatives is undoubtedly the Creative Commons licenses, which support creators in disseminating their work by transfer- ring some rights to those who consume them and at the same time allow them to defendAC/E DIGITAL CULTURE ANNUAL REPORT 201733Smart culture. Analysis of digital trends