

1000Memories in 60 seconds (video, YC S10) - jonathanbgood
http://1000memories.com/blog/39-1000memories-in-60-seconds

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gregable
The value add for me would be if I felt the content was really going to last
"forever", but after navigating the site, I'm not offered any evidence that
would increase my confidence in this happening. How can you make sure that the
content will survive my (the surviving friend) lifetime?

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jamesjyu
Absolutely beautiful, and done in the most tasteful way. This is how you
communicate your product, especially for a potentially sensitive cultural
issue such as death.

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jkkramer
Nicely done. The tone seems just right for this kind of service: a combination
of celebration and reverence.

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rudyadler
Thanks, we spent a lot of time working on getting the tone right. There are
multiple elements - voice over, music, color, illustration, script - so the
trickiest part was bringing them all together in a way that felt genuine and
honest.

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jon_dahl
Did you do the production in-house, or hire someone? Definitely well done, and
a good tone.

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rudyadler
We started by writing (and re-writing) the script in-house. Then we hired a
very talented friend in Portland to do the illustration and he recommended we
hire a local animation house that he liked and had worked with previously. The
voice over was chosen after auditioning/recording 5 of our friends and my
brother composed the sound design. It was a very collaborative process with a
great group of people. We built slowly, allowing for feedback and
brainstorming at each phase of the process. It really helps to work with
people you like and whose tastes you trust.

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prabodh
That was a great effort...how long did it take to put everything in place

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rudyadler
We started writing the script mid-December. Launched today. So about 5-6
weeks.

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cj
Nice video. How do they/will they make money? Printed versions of their pages?

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beefman
This answer was unsatisfactory: [http://1000memories.com/forum/22-how-do-you-
pay-for-the-site...](http://1000memories.com/forum/22-how-do-you-pay-for-the-
site-is-there-advertising)

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solipsist
The only thing better than the video was the fact that they are using OLARK
for customer support. I've seen that YC-funded company popping up in a lot of
websites, and every time it continues to amaze me. So far I've only written
people to complement them on something, but this truly seems to be a powerful
tool that will companies the upper edge against competitors. I'm really
looking forward to see how successful 1000Memories, along with OLARK, will
become to be.

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Splines
Man, just looking at that site makes me think. I'm not scared of dying; I'm
scared of other people dying.

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pclark
How do people know to look for an obituary?

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mceachen
They don't -- that's why my grandmother looks at every one.

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mceachen
This has to have one of the highest production values of a YC video I've seen.
Well done.

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troyk
Best product video I've seen, short and sweet yet tells exactly what you do in
a very life is celebratory way (the humor with the newspaper bit is
brilliant).

Is the voice over a founder, and can you share more about behind the scenes?

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rudyadler
The voice over is a former colleague. We love his voice because a) he sounds
like Jeff Bridges and b) he has a slight lisp that is really endearing. We
tried younger voices but they just didn't feel as right. We felt it needed an
older, wiser narrator.

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allantyoung
Did you go down the route of hiring pros first and then just decided to go
with friends for the voice talent?

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rudyadler
We never thought about hiring VO talent. We just thought about people we know
that might have the right tone.

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ebaysucks
So will you sell memory related products to those who lost a loved one?

Edit: It appears you'll be taking donations for good causes. Maybe the culture
in America is different, but I don't see this work for anything except helping
to pay for the funeral. Most funerals are a moment of self-reflection on one's
own happiness, not so much the world's.

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qq66
That video was 72 seconds.

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Bretthuneycutt
Yes, the title just didn't have the same ring to it

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rkudeshi
Great job of communicating what the service is in an easy enough fashion that
my mother would understand.

Fortunately, I don't have a use for the service right now, but I will
definitely keep it in mind for the future.

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kineticac
This is a pretty amazing video. I like the tone it gives. It's respectful, yet
informative. There's so many subtle things that makes it just perfect for the
service. Huge props, you guys rock.

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ernestipark
Looks great! Classy feel to the video. Is this something you plan on making
money with or just something to help people remember their loved ones (or
both)?

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ericd
That was really, really good. I hope you guys run this on TV at some point (in
some shortened fashion - there are 60 second slots, though)

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rickyyean
Well done, guys!

