Collaboration, Exchange and Backup
With the new release of
Celtx there is of course much discussion and excitement directed at its new features but of equal significance is the overhaul of the Celtx on-line system known as
Project Central.
Project Central's features, whilst many and numerous, broadly fall in two directions. On one hand Project Central serves as an on-line repository for your project. With one click from the Celtx interface your project is uploaded to your own private site within PC and all manner of data disasters are immediately circumvented by an immediate and comprehensive on-line back-up. Moreover this space serves as perfectly structured collaborative environment where by multiple creators and production development team members can access and contribute to a central unified project. For collaborators by geographic distance this is obviously perfect but its also just as functional for any production to ensure all elements of production are feeding into the same body of work and singular production document. This is where Celtx certainly transcends the traditionally limited and blinkered scope of screenwriting systems to become a complete and holistic production development and management system. All this with a very Web2.0 concious paradigm of integrated on-line and off-line processes.
The other hand of Project Central that goes beyond on-line back-up and collaboration is about exchange and community based sharing of creative ideas. Projects mounted on Project Central can be made private or public, the later allowing for others to read, comment on and even contribute to the development of your project. Many of those using Project Central in this way do so as a way to attract other writers, directors, designers to their project or even to pitch ideas yet to be written and invite contributions.
Whilst traditionalist screenwriters may find this idea abhorrent in the perpetual paranoia of your ideas being 'ripped off', more forward thinking writers and filmmakers will see this an opportunity rather than a threat and embrace the collaborative opportunities.
As Celtx develops it will be increasingly difficult to discern where the local off-line tool ends and the on-line collaborative system begins as the two integrate into a highly productive system.
Posted at 01:00AM Sep 19, 2007
by Mike Jones in general |
