

Ask HN: Would you fund this show? - ed
http://johnaugust.com/archives/2009/the-remnants-in-full

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jfornear
I'm not sure if the creators of this show will read any HN comments, but this
is HN so constructive criticism is expected...

I liked the pilot, I thought the length was perfect for an online show. I
think the cast is pretty good too, which shows overall potential.

Things I would consider: The show's name (and the title typography) make you
expect something like The Sopranos. Perhaps it should be changed to further
differentiate itself from that show?

Plot-wise, the show should distance itself from LOST by excluding characters
like 'them' or 'the others'. I could see how a studio type could dismiss this
show as a LOST ripoff which could affect opportunities to raise funding.

Either way, I really like the idea of a show based on economic apocalypse
(Peter Schiff callers asking about stocking guns and ammo is funny and ignites
your imagination).

The dialogue about the demand for Wii's was pretty cool to me, though I could
see how the use of Wii's and Helvetica t-shirts could attract super trendy
tech-types while turning off others.

Also, words prone to pronunciation mess ups or confusions like 'edible' or
'eatable' throw the audience off (or maybe just me).

~~~
Zev
Since when is the wii super techy? And the Helvetica shirt isn't big enough to
be noticed by non-techy people imo.

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shaunxcode
I would watch it that's for sure, I totally want to know what the deal with
the grand canyon is.

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speek
I would fund a show that shows only clips from Japanese game-shows in the US.

~~~
tlrobinson
You've seen MXC, I take it? <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/MXC>

~~~
speek
I have, but there could be so much more!

I think there are a few subtitled japanese game shows on hulu.com

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jmackinn
John August's blog is part of my regular reading. He is a great screen writer.
If you are at all interested in screen writing or the business of Hollywood in
general then I would highly recommend his blog.

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vaksel
I think them hosting on Vimeo is the reason why sponsors aren't taking them
seriously. I mean what does it tell the sponsors when they can see that only
149 people "liked" the episode.

They should reupload to youtube, where they can avoid that "like" metric

~~~
jmackinn
This was only uploaded after they had fallen through getting a sponsor for the
series. John August decided to show it to people because it was unlikely that
it was going to be seen anywhere else.

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pclark
apply for YC!

~~~
jonknee
Why would John August need a few grand from pg? That wouldn't fund anything in
terms of making a TV program. For hackers it's worth more than a few grand
because of connections and advice, but pg is nobody in Hollywood and his name
attached would be worthless.

