Unnatural History? Deconstructing the Walking with Dinosaurs Phenomenon

Abstract

In their book, Remediation: Understanding New Media, Jay David Bolter and Richard Grusin argue that digital visual media can best be understood by examining the ways in which they relate to earlier technologies of representation, a relationship that is a complex mix of homage, critique and revision. They also suggest that this process, referred to as `remediation' takes two main forms: immediacy, in which the presence of the medium is downplayed in order to achieve an effect of transparency and realism, and hypermediacy, in which the medium is foregrounded and draws attention to its own artificiality. In this paper, we explore Bolter and Grusin's ideas using the BBC series Walking with Dinosaurs, the related documentary entitled The Making of `Walking with Dinosaurs' and the official supporting BBC Online web site. We have focused on the process of remediation, by analysing the various ways in which Walking with Dinosaurs, one of the first television series to fully exploit the potential of digital technology, utilized codes and conventions from earlier media forms and technologies. We examine whether the overall effect achieved in these programmes can best be described as immediacy or hypermediacy, and have contrasted this with the associated documentary and web site. We conclude by exploring some of the broader issues relating to media representation that are raised by this ground-breaking television concept.