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Charles wrote:I didn't suggest that you were a professional filmmaker, so it is a defense where no charge was lodged. In essence, a defense against nothing.

It wasn't a defense. Just a true statement.

Charles wrote: You look for constructive feedback. I look for people willing to act on feedback.

As I have and will continue to do, thanks in part to you. We'll be in preview mode and making adjustments until I'm satisfied that the overall consensus tells me we're ready to go.

Charles wrote:As to the rest of your new video, which I viewed in totality, this morning, I think that it is a visual hodgepodge with instances of poor video quality and a patchwork feel to it. I think that your choice of going for a voice over approach, rather than inject yourself into the video in video form - where your human depiction is on the screen doing the actual talking, is substantially less persuasive than it might otherwise potentially be. I think that you need to strike a better balance of audio versus video, in the actual video.

It's a demo video designed to have a patchwork feel to it, while communicating the various elements of the project in a short time. I'm actually working on an update with a completely different open and new voice over, but the style will be the same. When we do the full length episodes the flow will be much smoother.

Charles wrote:I think that your strongest potential selling point is the Route 66 idea. I think that vastly more people will connect with Route 66 than will ever connect with the John's Old Truck moniker. I think that your insistence on sticking with that moniker will effectively cut your project off at the knees.

Forgive me Charles, I just don't understand this one. Establishing a human connection by mentioning who owns the truck cuts the project off at the knees? How? If the popularity of television shows like the ones mentioned in my preview is any indication, there are a lot of people with an old jalopy that's been sitting in the garage or back yard for years who can identify with the dream of restoring it, going on road trips and using it to share a passion for all kinds of classics with others. That's what this project is all about.

Thank you again for the continued dialogue...

JohnsOldTruck wrote:Forgive me Charles, I just don't understand this one. Establishing a human connection by mentioning who owns the truck cuts the project off at the knees? How? If the popularity of television shows like the ones mentioned in my preview is any indication, there are a lot of people with an old jalopy that's been sitting in the garage or back yard for years who can identify with the dream of restoring it, going on road trips and using it to share a passion for all kinds of classics with others. That's what this project is all about.

If your project isn't appearing on any of those television shows, then the analogy is suspect, because you are comparing apples to oranges.

You want to grab people's attention, right? Lots and lots of people, right? Which of the two do you think has greater, more widespread name recognition? John's Old Truck or Route 66?

On a personal level, it really doesn't matter to me what you name your project. Likewise, it will be of no consequence to me, personally, what level of funding that your project accumulates. You wanted feedback on the rest of your video, and I provided you some.

The Route 66 angle opens up a preexisting force for you. It is its own entity, its own beast, of a sort. There are lots of people in the world restoring old vehicles. They are scattered all over the place. Route 66 conjures up nostalgia of a magnitude well beyond what any particular ordinary individual truck restoration project is likely capable of conjuring up in people on its own. How big is the beast of nostalgia that you intend to try and tap into, John?

To tap into nostalgia can be beneficial to your project's funding pursuit. I think that Route 66 can be the road to better funding more so than a project named John's Old Truck. John is what, the second most common male first name in the United States? Maybe lots of people named John will gravitate toward your project, based upon that name.

Or, if you prefer, here's another way to look at it, John. Consider the name of your project within the context of what message that you are sending. What was it that you, yourself, posted on your Facebook page for this project, back on August 23rd, 2014?

"I did get one response to the new post that was generally nice and wished me well, but even he took half a sentence from my blog post about the project completely out of context, as he tried to claim that I was "sending a mixed message." Of course, had he read the ENTIRE sentence, or better yet the entire blog post, the intent would have been clear. To most people, anyway."

Regardless of what message that you sought to send, with your posting on a Chevy truck message board (one which I have never visited, by the way), what was the message that your intended audience received?

Calling your project John's Old Truck isn't offensive. No one will likely be offended by it. It has personal meaning to you - but, what about to others?

The Route 66 angle opens a new door to you, with regard to your messaging for this project. It will, I think, give you a foot into many doors that you otherwise might not get a foot in the door with, as far as opening your project up to a wider and more diverse audience.

Route 66 = Memories
Route 66 = Nostalgia
Route 66 = Americana

John is you. To call it John's Old Truck makes the project about you, as much as it does about the truck - or about what the truck's restoration means on a broader level.

My interest in this matter is very limited. I provide feedback to you on your project, to try and help you to enhance your project's chances for success. I see more potential in the Route 66 angle than in the John's Old Truck angle.