Speaking

			“Frank Rose's keynote presentation provided the context for what story­telling has been and will become. It was a great demonstration of the im­pact of digital media in our society and set the stage for a robust discus­sion on building the in­dustry in Kansas City.” —Maria Meyers, Kansas City Digital Storytelling Forum
			"Frank Rose and Matt Mason were excep­tional as speakers and a per­fect pairing—I cannot thank them enough for helping to kick off White Space in style. And a kickoff this really was; their support helped get the idea off the ground and provid­ed an exceptional ex­ample of what works going forward." —Lance Fensterman, New York Comic Con
			"Frank Rose's talk was spot on. It was fascinat­ing, exciting and amus­ing. It sparked quite some debate during the following days of the festival and people still talk about it, so it was memorable too!" —Mark Atkin, Crossover Summit at Sheffield Doc/Fest
			"I hardly need to tell you how much you wowed the audience: it has been generally agreed that this was one of the most suc­cess­ful events of the whole fair." —Linda Bennett, the London Book Fair

Navigating the digital world

Frank Rose speaks on the future of media and storytelling at film festivals, mar­keting conferences, and industry gatherings worldwide.

He has given key­notes at ad:tech Sydney, Social Media Week, Sheffield Doc/Fest, and the Guardian's Changing Media Summit; lent his voice to debates at South by Southwest, Ars Electronica, MIT, and the Bay Area's Churchill Club; participated in speaker series at the likes of Google and Lucasfilm and addressed internal marketing summits at companies ranging from Timberland to Unilever; and spoken to film, journalism, and business students at Columbia, NYU, and USC.

His key message, applicable to anyone in the business of communicating: How to navigate the digital world. Film­makers, agency professionals, and mar­ket­ers alike have found his talks to be engaging, insightful, and in­spiring. 

 

Download Frank's speaker information sheet.  

To invite Frank to speak, email CAA Speakers in Los Angeles or call +1 424-288-2898. 

 

Upcoming appearances

MoMA R&D Salon 5: Immersion and Participation Museum of Modern Art New York, June 11, 2013 MoMA R&D explores the role, potential, and responsibility of museums—MoMA in particular—as public actors. Part of this initiative is a series of salons on themes that are relevant to both MoMA and the wider world; topics that straddle physical and digital and apply to the experience of artists, visitors, and citizens alike. Salon 5 will dissect the interplay of immersion, interaction, participation, technology, and innovative communi­cation. Frank will appear with Aina Abiodun of Storycode, Deb Howes of MoMA, and writer/director Lance Weiler, with MoMA's Paola Antonelli moderating.

 

Topics

With 30+ years of experience as an author and business journalist for such magazines as Wired and Fortune, Frank has a breadth of knowledge that spans the worlds of entertainment, technology, and advertising. He can speak on a range of subjects of vital interest to filmmakers, game developers, enter­tainment executives, and mar­keters, including: 

▸ How the Internet is changing storytelling

Neuroscience—not to mention our own experience—tells us that stories are essential to the way humans handle information. But in a digital world, the old tools no longer work. Like other media before it, the Internet is giving rise to a new grammar of storytelling—one that's nonlinear, participatory, and above all immersive. Filmmakers, television producers, and advertisers alike need to adapt—but how? 

▸ When games and stories collide

The mass media of the industrial age—movies, broadcasting, print—confined audiences to a passive role. But now, digital technology puts the audience at the center of the action and engages them directly, often in a gamelike fashion. How is this supposed to work? And what role does it leave for the author? 

▸ What brands need to know about the future of storytelling

For brands, the move beyond mass media into a world powered by social media means that stories need to be more engaging than ever. No longer can marketers rely on paid media alone to tell their stories; they need to enlist consumers to carry the message for them. But how do you do this? And how do you handle the loss of control that comes with it? 

▸ From story to storyworld—and how to survive the transition

During the industrial age, we all learned to like our stories completed, finished. But audiences aren’t all that excited about that kind of story any more. They’re starting to think of narratives in a very different way—as story worlds they can enter and explore at will. Storytellers as diverse as filmmaker Guillermo del Toro and novelist John Lanchester have managed the shift. Here’s how.  

 

Insights

What Frank has to say can be surprising to some and validating to others. Here are a few examples:

▸ How social media has turned news on its head

“From the bombings of the London Underground to the devastation of the earth­quake in China to the uprisings of the Arab spring, roles have shifted. The role of the broadcaster is not just to speak, but to lis­ten. The role of the audience is not just to listen, but to speak.”
—"Reshaping Storytelling," TEDxTransmedia

▸ What branded content needs to accomplish

"It's not about pitching the product any more; it's about creating an ex­perience around the product—an experience people will want to talk about, an experience they will share."
—"Brands as Publishers," Festival of Media Global 

▸ The role of stories in the digital age

"We've been trained to believe for the last 150 years or so that stories are essentially passive—that they're there for us to consume, but not to take part in. But is that really true? Or is that just a product of the technology that we were living with at the time?"
—"When Games and Stories Collide," Sheffield Doc/Fest

 

Invite Frank to speak

To book Frank at your next event, email CAA Speakers in Los Angeles or call +1 424-288-2898.