Preliminary results from the Uses of Fantasy project, part of The World Hobbit Project, presented at Finncon 3.7.2016.

1. USES OF FANTASY
Finnish sub-project of The World Hobbit Project
University of Jyväskylä, Department of Art and Culture Studies,
Research Centre for Contemporary Culture
Presentation at Finncon 3.7.2016
http://2016.finncon.org

2. • The World Hobbit Research Project is a
global research network
● https://globalhobbitca.wordpress.com/home-a/
● https://www.facebook.com/WorldHobbitProject
• The World Hobbit Project survey (Barker et
al. 2014–2015), an international internet
survey on audience reception of
The Hobbit films
● in 46 countries, in 38 languages, 36 000 responses
● data collected and cleand at the University of
Aberystwyth
THE WORLD HOBBIT RESEARCH
PROJECT

3. THE USES OF FANTASY – FINNISH
SUB-PROJECT
• Funding by the Finnish Cultural Foundation
• Research questions:
● What is the meaning of fantasy to the respondents, and
what does fantasy bring to their lives
● How are questions of identity, fandom and cultural
consumption visible in the meaning-making processes of
the respondents
● What kinds of transmedial strategies of media use can be
found through the practices of media use as reported in
the data
● How do conceptions of national, territorial and cultural
identity affect the processes of meaning-making as well as
strategies of reception within the audience of the Hobbit
trilogy?

4. PhD Irma Hirsjärvi (University of Jyväskylä, responsible
researcher)
PhD Aino-Kaisa Koistinen (University of Jyväskylä)
PhD Jyrki Korpua (University of Oulu)
PhD, Professor Raine Koskimaa (University of Jyväskylä)
PhD Urpo Kovala (University of Jyväskylä)
PhD student, MA Maria Ruotsalainen (University of
Jyväskylä)
PhD student, MA Tanja Välisalo (University of Jyväskylä)
Research affiliate PhD student, MA Minna Siikilä
(University of Jyväskylä)
PROJECT TEAM

5. THE FINNISH SURVEY
• Finnish survey organized by the Research Center for
Contemporary Culture
• The Finnish survey: N = 1614
● “Female” 1078
● “Male” 536

6. AGE DISTRIBUTION OF THE
RESPONDENTS

7. OCCUPATIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF
THE RESPONDENTS

8. EDUCATIONAL DISTRIBUTION OF
THE RESPONDENTS

9. TRANSMEDIAL USER
PRACTICES
Koistinen, Ruotsalainen, Välisalo

10. TRANSMEDIAL USER PRACTICES
• Transmedia storytelling (Jenkins 2006):
● Telling a story via different mediums
● Each expansion contributing to the overall
storyworld
• Transmedial User Practices
● Engaging “the Hobbit” via different mediums
● Also practices that are not directly tied to a
medium, such as visiting filming locations -
understanding of medium
● Focus on user experience instead of storytelling

11. HAVE YOU TAKEN PART IN ANY OF THESE
OTHER ACTIVITIES CONNECTED WITH THE
HOBBIT FILMS?
The respondents were able to choose as many options as
they wished. The options were:
• Producing fan art
• Blogging
• Role-playing
• Writing fan fiction
• Collecting merchandise
• Seriously debating the films*
• Commenting online
• Gaming
• Making fan videos
• Visiting filming locations
In the global data: participated 66,7 %, not participated 33,3 %

12. THE ACTIVITIES TRANSMEDIA
USERS PARTICIPATED IN
Respondents were able to choose several options.

13. TRANSMEDIA USERS
• Most of the transmedial users were 16–35 year
old women who had completed secondary
school and were currently students
• Different meanings/uses of fantasy:
● personal
● societal

14. TRANSMEDIAL MODE OF
READING
Hirsjärvi, Korpua, Kovala

15. TRANSMEDIAL MODE OF READING
● Transmedial mode of reading:
approach to reading that radically draws on
the resources associated with several
mediums
● Transmediality is becoming more salient,
due to technological and cultural factors –
can we say that a specific transmedial mode
of reading texts is emerging?

16. TRANSMEDIAL MODE OF READING
● The Hobbit as a transmedial cultural text?
● Editions of the book, adaptations on theatre, radio,
television and cinema, re-imaginations,
transmedial practises (computer and console
games, internet debates, fan fiction, role playing
games, live action role playing games, board
games, cosplay, etc.)
● ”The Hobbit phenomenon”

17. • Is there a transmedial mode (or modes) or
reading to be identified in the Finnish data?
• The Hobbit book, media texts: animations,
trailers, LOTR trilogy, Oscar gala
presentations - It seems to be impossible to
watch films without these contexts and
other media texts?
TRANSMEDIAL MODE OF READING

18. NI LASSUI!
KIITOS!
THANK YOU!
https://theworldhobbitprojectfinland.com
https://www.facebook.com/hobbitfinland
hobbitprojectfinland@gmail.com