A Gamer's Journey (Shenmue Documentary) goes to Kickstarter

Does this mean it will be a one time live streaming that isn't available to people who can't make that specific time and date? I work a 12 hour shift that day so I won't be available. I'm hoping it will be left up and I can watch it when I'm available.
 
Speculation: In other words, an entity important to the documentary that they can't or don't want to remove probably wants licensing money, and if they give the issue more exposure they're afraid said entity will want more money because the doc will be deemed more valuable.

There aren't really a lot of possible situations that fit the description they provided.

Trying to read between the lines, this seems pretty feasible. And if that's true, that's really hurtful because this has been in the making for so many years. I'm hopeless when it comes to legal issues, but is that even possible to agree to do something and then change your mind down the line asking for more money? Given the circumstances of how this documentary was funded, it's a dick move on their part.

It begs the question of what could it possibly be that's holding it up. And does removing it harm the documentary?

Maybe they should get Werner Herzog on the line. His documentaries are fantastic and could probably give the documentary a push (wishful thinking).
 
Trying to read between the lines, this seems pretty feasible. And if that's true, that's really hurtful because this has been in the making for so many years. I'm hopeless when it comes to legal issues, but is that even possible to agree to do something and then change your mind down the line asking for more money? Given the circumstances of how this documentary was funded, it's a dick move on their part.

It begs the question of what could it possibly be that's holding it up. And does removing it harm the documentary?

Maybe they should get Werner Herzog on the line. His documentaries are fantastic and could probably give the documentary a push (wishful thinking).
I think it’s far more likely a case of them overlooking something somewhere in pre-production and a rights holder taking them to task for not gaining the proper approval before beginning production.

I’m a little curious as to exactly what it is that requires licensing though as I’d imagine that any footage that they are using of the game or any of its promotional material would be covered under fair use. I also doubt that Sega would risk the backlash they’d face for shutting down a high profile fan project celebrating one of their IPs.

I guess it could just be a case of a key contributor withdrawing consent to be included.
 
Does this mean it will be a one time live streaming that isn't available to people who can't make that specific time and date? I work a 12 hour shift that day so I won't be available. I'm hoping it will be left up and I can watch it when I'm available.
The last part of the update that was omitted from the quote on the previous page says "Video will be premiered live via...". This implies YouTube's premiere feature, which is where they upload a video ahead of time and set a go-live time for it and chat is available for that first stream. Additionally the link is not a live stream link, it's a normal video link. So they have already uploaded it to YouTube and just set to become active as a "live" stream at the specified time.

There is nothing stopping them from setting the video to private once it's done airing.

But that also means they could set hours in the future where they make it not-private available again if they wanted to. Also, because it's YouTube, there are unofficial means of time-shifting as long as you prepare them while the video is available. But that's not something to discuss how to do here for obvious reasons. Either way, every indication is that they still want to finish and release it, so this won't even be the "best version" because of the all the extra bonus materials they promised to backers for the full release. The only thing you'll be missing out on is not even final.

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Edit: The update they just sent out confirms that backers will get the finished film either way, even if they can't work out a licensing deal leaving them unable to sell it.
 
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The update sent an hour ago made me sad. Once again, it's the minority of idiots who are throwing their toys out of the pram who are ruining it. It's telling that they are saying "We're showing this cut now only in response to the complaints of a very few backers."

Also, you'd think that some people don't realise there's a pandemic going on...
 
Not sure who or where the complainers are. I don't know how volatile they were but kickstarter doesn't seem to be a great platform for getting things done so I can understand the frustration from backers, including myself, but not sure what was said...

That's a good update that clarifies some confusion. The original update kind of gave off the impression that they couldn't get it done and that this youtube posting might be as far as they go. This update says they will still push ahead and release the doc for backers, so that's good to hear.

Can't help but wonder who the stonewall is.
 
Seems to be a common theme with kickstarter. You're always gonna have people throwing shite at you online. Usually you can just ignore it but with ks, youve technically got their cash, so you have to endure the shite talkers even if there is no merit to their argument.
 
5 PM Eastern Standard Time makes it something like 11 PM on a Sunday night or 12 AM on a Monday where I live so it's a no for me for the live stream.

I know a bunch of people who have lost their jobs or are on reduced hours now due to the horrible pandemic going on. I am grateful I still have a regular job and I'd like to keep it that way, so nope, I'm definitely not going to be watching YouTube at midnight on a Monday. Got some more important stuff to do. Sucks for me that I can't watch the live stream but that's life.

They said that everyone will get their rewards so I assume I will get my DVD at some point down the line.

It's a shame that some people are accusing Adam and his team of fraud and whatnot. Guess that's also part of life. Everywhere in the world, you're always gonna find some people who always find something to complain and bitch about.

Keep your chin up, Adam! Wish you all the best.
 
5 PM Eastern Standard Time makes it something like 11 PM on a Sunday night or 12 AM on a Monday where I live so it's a no for me for the live stream.

I know a bunch of people who have lost their jobs or are on reduced hours now due to the horrible pandemic going on. I am grateful I still have a regular job and I'd like to keep it that way, so nope, I'm definitely not going to be watching YouTube at midnight on a Monday. Got some more important stuff to do. Sucks for me that I can't watch the live stream but that's life.

They said that everyone will get their rewards so I assume I will get my DVD at some point down the line.

It's a shame that some people are accusing Adam and his team of fraud and whatnot. Guess that's also part of life. Everywhere in the world, you're always gonna find some people who always find something to complain and bitch about.

Keep your chin up, Adam! Wish you all the best.
It’s unfortunate, but that’s one of the pitfalls of relying on crowd funding.

Whilst I like the idea of crowdfunding in theory, I’d really like to see the major platforms offer projects a little more support (perhaps in the form of a project advisor). Quite often the people asking for money have great ideas but no real understanding of what it takes to bring these ideas to fruition (In terms of managing large budgets, manufacturing and distribution costs, licensing, etc) which then leads to long delays and/or projects running out of money before completion.
 
Sucks for me but actually I'm perfectly fine with it. These are always the risks of crowdfunding. If you don't want to take the risk, don't crowdfund then. Just wait till the finished product is out and available through regular sales channels.

AAdam probably underestimated the legal legwork you have to do to get such a project going. Can't blame him. It's probably the first time he's ever dealt with such issues on this scale.
 
My speculation is that it is SEGA's fault. Nothing to base that on other than SEGA's history of bizarre decisions regarding almost everything.

That's what I got from it. They basically said it without saying that SEGA is probably being assholes again.
 
We don't know whic the legal issue is or what company is involved. It can be a million of thing when copyright is involved, or even something violating some kind on NDA, some not approved visual assets or who knows. I am worried because I want this film to reach mainstream channels such as Netflix just because it will give more exposure for the franchise.

From a backer perspective, I think that the filmmakers have the right to try to solve any legal problem and delay it until it is legally ready. I still hate those fucking Kickstarter forums, btw.
 
That's what I got from it. They basically said it without saying that SEGA is probably being assholes again.
It could just as easily be YsNet. They already had one big misunderstanding over the initial kickstarter rewards, it wouldn't surprise me if they had another regarding the doc being a for-profit project. (Though that theory is unlikely as it sounds like their problems are with a US entity based on the implication that they wanted to do some negotiation in person.)


That being said, I appreciate them explaining the problem and re-iterating their plans. I had no doubts that Adam would get something done, given all of the work that's gone into it, but it's nice to hear from them when things don't go as planned instead of trying to hide it.
 
Hey everyone,

Just as an addition to the alert at the top of the forums, for those watching tonight, Adam has asked that we do not discuss the film/viewing publically at this stage. This is to avoid spoilers. When the situation changes we will of course update you.

See you in around an hour it you're watching!
 
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