Tuesday, March 24, 2009

SHINE Trailer Face Off

Please vote by commenting on which trailer you like better. Tell me why you picked the one you did -- what appealed to you, what didn't, etc. Each commenter's name will go into the hat to win a signed copy of SHINE, COCONUT MOON. Sorry, your name will only be put in once, regardless of the number of times you comment :).

[Edited to add: The comments are SOOO helpful!! A huge thank you to everyone who has commented so far. I will continue putting names into the hat until 11:59 p.m. Friday, March 27th. Then I will do that Random Number Generator thingie.]

Trailer # 1:



Trailer # 2 (props to Saundra Mitchell, author of SHADOWED SUMMER, for turning me on to Moviestorm):







32 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey, Neesha. I love both trailers but I can't get the voting window to open.

I like the look of the first trailer but love how the character speaks to you in the second. It grabs you right in and makes you want to hear more.

Soooo, my vote is for the second trailer.

Good luck with it!

Danette

Neesha Meminger said...

Danette, I've removed the vote button just to make it easier. Thanks for the alert, and thanks for the feedback!

Anonymous said...

If I can be brutally honest, the first one was interesting but didn't really grab me. All the questions being asked was a bit distracting. I like the map motifs, but it seemed a bit melodramatic.

On the other hand, the character talking to me, giving me the sense of what the dialogue will be like and the tone made me want to go out and learn more, since this girl was so likable.

Really interesting and as a NYer, nice job on tackling a hard subject.

Anonymous said...

i disagree with the above comment. i really loved the first one! it packed an emotional whollop. the second one was interesting but a bit boring for me. i see stuff like that all the time i guess. but the first one almost made me cry. so i vote for #1.

kara
truthtellit at gmail dot com.

Anonymous said...

I think these are both terrific, Neesha. You've done a fantastic job and I have your book in our library. We have a large East Indian community in this part of California and your book is garnering a lot of interest and enthusiasm!

If I win, would it be alright to request that the copy not be signed? I'd like to donate it to another library that needs books but has had its budget drastically cut this year.

I'm sending you an email with my information (to the address on your website). I would rather not put my email up on the web; I hope you understand.

- Maureen

Neesha Meminger said...

Maureen, no problem. In fact if anyone else would prefer to have an UNsigned copy to donate, just let me know.

Anonymous said...

Although both are very good, I prefer the second one. I think having the character speak to the reader is one of the perks of having a trailer (I'm in the process of thinking about my own trailer for next year). The second one gives you a better feel for what the tone of the book will be like and creates a desire to learn more about Samar. I would advise you to lower the music in the background though because it can sometimes be distracting.

Cynthia Leitich Smith said...

Is there some reason that you can't use both of them? I think they each accomplish something different. One suggestion: rather than suggest that readers order online, perhaps suggest that they order at the bookstore. Online retailers list everything--in or out of print. Brick-and-mortar stores look at demand in the stores in gauging future orders.

Anonymous said...

I agree with Cynthia that you could use both! Still, I preferred the first one. It was mysterious and intriguing. I like the unsettling questions with the backdrop of the sweet photos. Also, the music and the images came together to create a sort of resonance.

Alison Ashley Formento said...

I love the music background! I had more of a sense of your story in the second piece, with the character speaking to us. That said, the voice over actress sounds a little rushed when speaking, though I enjoyed her style and tone. The first 30 seconds of movie trailers/commercials are the most important, and I'd assume it would be the same for a book trailer, so you might want to trim a little off the second piece.
I didn't see the VOTE icon, so I've posted here instead.

Anonymous said...

Wow, those were both really cool!

The first one was visually much more interesting than the second, but didn't give as good an idea of what to expect from the book as the second one. I suppose if I were going to choose, I'd choose #1. But only by a slim, slim margin.

Tee Brown said...

Neesha, here's my .02 .

I'm a firm believer that a book trailer should serve as a commercial for the book. Honestly, I was not drawn in by the second one. It was wordy, had too much background info, and the graphics didn't stand out.

I really like the first one--but I'd cut that as well. I think it would be more effective at 45 seconds (1 min absoulute max)--modeled after your standard tv commercial. And at the part where you talk about 9-11, it would be nice if there was a crescendo, "boom" or abrupt silence, to emphasize the real impact of the moment when your MC's life changes forever.

Best of luck. I read your first chapter--it's fantastic.

Tee Brown

Anonymous said...

The first one was a lot more interesting because it said less. The second one started out okay but the music over the talking became noise to me and I found myself listening less and less, sort of like the way a teacher gives a lesson and your mind wanders.

The first one, as someone else said, had a lot more mystery and the simple questions made me want to read the book to find out the answers.

Anonymous said...

I liked the music but thought the first trailer was a bit static. The second one told us more of what the book is about, but I think it should be shorter, maybe a minute and a half. You might want to think about combining them, splicing the pictures and music into the character's monologue.

Now if I can get my son to work on my book trailer...

Angela said...

Decisions, decisions ... I think overall, I'll vote for #1. Although, I like the suggestion to splice them both together since there are things I like in both of them.

cindy said...

i liked the first. i didn't watch the entire second. i think it's a bit too long and the sims character freaked me out. hha! but that's just me. i wanted to know more after the first. good luck, neesha!!

Erika Powell said...

I prefer the first one because I really like the simple pictures and love the music. Also, I tend to not like the cartoony characters, they kinda weird me out.

Anonymous said...

Personally, I like the first one better. It's probably because I'm not at all into these... animations? Anyway, the music in the first trailer really appeals to me a lot, as well as the pictures, being pieced together. From what I know about the book, I think this puzzle "metaphor" is very appropriate. And above all, some of the pictures are just plain beautiful!

Diana Dang said...

Both are quite interesting but I prefer the first one much more. It is more intense like it is a movie trailer. With little details, it makes you more curious about the story. I didn't like the second one so much because the shots of the girl is all over the place. And the music in the background was distracting as she talked. The first one takes me totally.

Anonymous said...

Hi Neesha,

I liked the first one better. I loved the maps and I wondered if the story would take the main character to a foreign country. The information intrigued me and really got me wondering about the book. Number two just didn't have that same impact on me.

Sharon Pavon

sweetmelissa818 said...

I wasn't a fan of the second one. The first one is definitely my pick!
sweet.me.lissa818@gmail.com

Jess (The Cozy Reader) said...

I liked the first one. Honestly, I couldn't even finish the second one. The second one was nice try at animated graphics but it just didn't work for me. I loved the suspense music and the fly by photos and text of the first one.

Anonymous said...

I liked the first one - I think the graphics and the music meshed really well together, and I liked how the intensity built.

Anonymous said...

The first one failed to grab me, and the constant twisting and turning was more of a turn off than a turn on - I ended up hitting pause halfway through. It was taking too long to get anywhere, and it seemed like so many other trailers out there - I wanted to know what makes this book stand out rather than vanish amongst the rest.

The second one is far more personable, we get to hear the character's voice shine through more and made me more interested in the book itself. However, trailer #2 is not without flaws: the music is very annoying, and I had to struggle at times to hear the character's voice.

My real advice would be to combine the idea of the two trailers. Keep the personable nature of the second trailer with the voiceovers and everything, but combine images, maps etc. of the first so we get a feel of the world around her as well. And tone down the music to bring forward the voice.

Anyway, if I have to pick one of the two, I'm going with #2.

pepsivanilla said...

I like #2.
It gives a brief peek into Samar's life without giving away too much. It makes me want to read the book.
For me, #1 is a bit boring because it's like all the other book trailers out there.

Anonymous said...

I'm really torn here, Neesha because #1 pulled me into Samar's big questions, "Who am I? Who do I belong to?" I liked #2 because I glimpsed some of the spunk in your character. However, I did think it went on too long for the audience you want to reach.

I don't think I helped here, but this comment reflects my first impression.

Katterley said...

Neesha,

I liked the first one, but it moved a little slow for me, I would move it quicker to shorten it, but the content was great!

I enjoyed the second one. I listened to all she had to say and found it engaging (I liked Saundra's, too!) I play Sims, so maybe that's why I'm comfortable with it. The dialogue was good.

My vote is for the second one, but both are good.

Llehn said...

Hey Neesha,

I think the first one looks more polished but if you want me to buy the book, I would go for the second one because I had more of a sense of what was going on. So I am team Trailer #2

Lesley

Michelle Kuo said...

Hmm, for me, I think the first trailer gave the viewer more things to think about, but then it didn't convey much as to what the story was about. In the second one though, I got a better sense of what was to be expected in the book. I think the 2nd one would be good because then people can see if it's a book they'd be interested in or not. But personally I'm not a big fan of an animated character kind of trailer, so I'm a bit indecisive with one I actually like better..

michelle.kuool(at)yahoo(dot)com

Anonymous said...

First one works better for me.

I like the interaction with the second video but I just can't hang with the Second Life avatar stuff. Too alienating for me and I don't think Brechtian is what you're going for. If you wanna talk, why not just have somebody film you?

Anonymous said...

Ah right! So, noo I didn't like the first one just because it was the first one I saw. Nono. I liked it because the music is catching and mysterious and I want to know more. Of couse trailer 2 gives some stuff away, so, even if I like spoilers, I liked not knowing those lil stuff on #1.

So, yeah #1 gets my vote, because I also liked the way the images where laid.

Yan said...

I much prefer the first one. I like the pictures chosen and the how it flows together. It gives the reader a hint of the book without giving a LOT away.

#2 I had a bit of an issue with. I think that the music background takes away from the girl talking. They mingle and interferes with each other.

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