Digital storytelling tools combine traditional storytelling with a digital element such as digital recordings, online posting, or linking stories with other digital media.
Digital storytelling is often used to collect oral histories on specific topics, places, or issues, though other projects are more open-ended. According to the BBC Wales Digital Storytelling Guide (see link), Digital Stories follow a strict format: 250 words, a dozen or so pictures and two minutes. In a community planning process, digital storytelling can be an effective way of gathering information on what's important to community members and what makes a particular community unique. Individual or composite stories can be created to share this information.
For example, the Envision Victor project began with storytelling as a way to establish community values for the subsequent planning process. In a more general effort to collect a range of personal histories, the BBC Capture Wales project spent seven years providing training so that individuals could produce their own digital stories to add to the project collection.
As with any project activity, it requires careful planning in terms of how the stories will be used to inform a planning process.
The cost of equipment and operation for a digital storytelling endeavor varies based on the scope of the project, the technology used and the skills and resources available in the community.
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