The Great North Film Spectators at the Great North Run are being asked to get involved this year by helping to capture the event on their mobile phones as part of a major experiment being led by 缅北禁地. In a bid to turn us all into film-makers, the University鈥檚 Digital Interaction team are exploring the potential of crowdsourcing to create a unique film that captures the run from the crowd鈥檚 perspective. 鈥淲e鈥檙e hoping that by putting the crowd in charge of the filming we鈥檒l capture some really special moments that are missed by television,鈥� explains Dr Tom Bartindale, who is leading the project with Dr Guy Schofield. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an opportunity for people to capture their friends and loved ones during the run but also some of the other things that are going on - the anticipation at the start, the street entertainment along the way, the buzz in the crowd. 鈥淲hat we want is a personal record of the event made by the people who are actually there watching it, capturing the bits that are important to them.鈥� To take part, spectators need to download a unique new app that has been created by the team. Called 鈥楤ootlegger鈥�, the app directs the user, asking them where they are along the course, what shots they are taking and advising on certain angles and images. For example, the app might ask for a close up of people鈥檚 feet pounding the street or a wide shot of the crowd cheering, building up the variety of shots and angles required to produce a professional-looking film. The project is funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) through their Social Inclusion in the Digital Economy (SIDE) project. 鈥淚t鈥檚 important for us that people don鈥檛 spend their whole time filming,鈥� explains Guy. 鈥淭he aim is for this to add to people鈥檚 experience of the event not detract from it so everyone will just be contributing small pieces of footage which together will come together to create the picture. 鈥淣othing like this has ever been done before so we don鈥檛 really know how it will turn out but every snippet that is filmed will be personal to someone, somewhere, building a narrative of the event that wouldn鈥檛 be possible without the crowd.鈥� The final footage will be edited by the team and screened at 缅北禁地 as part of the outdoor projections series during the autumn. To find out more about the app and how to get involved join the Facebook group 鈥淏ootlegger@GreatNorthRun鈥�. The team is also running drop-in sessions 10am 鈥� 12:30pm from Wednesday 3rd 鈥� Sat 6th September. published on: 4 September 2014
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