Pecha Kucha

Pecha Kucha is a new style of presenting that has specific rules. These rules are designed to foster your creativity by establishing clear parameters for the presentation. Lots of examples of Pecha Kucha exist online, and are a useful resource for those folks seeking to break out of the horrible cycle of mind dulling Powerpoints. While you will probably need to read further to explore and understand this new creative style of presenting, we will follow the guidelines below: 20 slides....20 seconds each. 6 minutes, 40 seconds total. There are some Do's and Don'ts when it comes to Pecha Kucha. This information comes from the blog, Remixing the Humanities, by Richard Edwards: Don’t use too much text 1. Avoid bullet points 2. Avoid reading directly from the slides 3. Avoid images that don’t advance your topic or contribute meaningful visual information 4. Avoid text-images relations that would take more than 20 seconds to digest (i.e. overly crowded slides will be a blur in a Pecha Kucha, unless you want to intentionally create a sense of “blur”) 5. While a consistent slide design is good, avoid most PowerPoint templates. Neutral backgrounds and easy to read sans serif fonts are best. Here's what you should consider in a good Pecha Kucha: 1. Consider your 20 slides as 20 panels in a graphic storyline. How do your 20 “panels” flow together to create a cohesive statement or a consistent through- line. 2. Consider the impact of text on your audience – Is there a single word or a short phrase that captures the essence of what you are saying in that 20 second time span? Frequently, a single word can be used metonymically — to “stand in” for your entire 20 seconds of information. 3. Consider your images very carefully. In a Pecha Kucha, images are frequently the only information on the entire slide. Yes, visual data is just as valuable as textual data. A well-chosen picture is likely worth a thousand words. Why did you select that image? Did you manipulate an image you found to make it even more compelling and precise? Would it be better if you cropped the image? Is this image easy to substitute for another image? If so, have you truly considered why you selected this image and not the other one? How does this image connect to other images in your slide set? 4. Don’t use slide transitions. Use direct cuts from slide to slide. Avoid all dissolves, and clever transitions like “curtains” or “barn doors.” 5. Avoid sounds or video clips. There just isn’t time, and these features are just distracting in a Pecha Kucha. Your voice is your sound instrument in this presentation. 6. What is your design style? What is connecting these 20 panels? Is there a similar textual strategy? A consistent visual design? Are you playing with or against audience expectations? Have you completely considered the arrangement of these 20 slides? Would your presentation change dramatically if the slide order was reversed, or changed in any way? If so, why did you select the order that you did? 7. Rehearse your spoken remarks. 20 seconds is an amazing short period of time. Most students who do not practice end up speed-talking as the slides change over. A good Pecha Kucha is not about talking faster or talking over the wrong slide. Timing is of the essence of a good Pecha Kucha. Practice really helps. You will set the slideshow on automatic advance, so the slide will change in 20 seconds even if you don’t finish your remarks. Think about how your slides and your spoken remarks match up. They are two parts of a whole, and a successful Pecha Kucha is both well designed and well spoken. In many ways, you should consider yourself a performer, and you are attempting to deliver a compelling erformance. To find out more about Pecha Kucha, you'll want to start by exploring the following sites: http://www.pechakucha.org/ http://chronicle.com/blogs/profhacker/challenging-the-presentation-paradigm-in-6- minutes-40-seconds-pecha-kucha/22807 http://remixhumanities.wordpress.com/2010/11/03/pecha-kucha-in-the-classroom-tips- and-strategies-for-better-presentations/ http://avoision.com/pechakucha/guide-to-making-a-pecha-kucha-presentation-slide- design Source: https://ed270week3.weebly.com/pecha-kucha-presentations.html