So… looked at the next cut. It’s close. One thing that we hope people and most Toastmasters accept is that the film is more about the contestants and the World Championships than anything else. We can’t get into the ins and outs of a Toastmasters meeting because there’s just too much ground to cover in 90-100 minutes.
I worry that many Toastmasters will be upset that the film doesn’t delve deeply into the organization itself. I can already hear the note “You didn’t mention table topics, we are much more than just a contest, you didn’t talk about Ralph Smedley” etc etc. I hope we’re forgiven for this, because the contest footage accomplishes a lot of things:
- it’s inspiring to see people – speakers – pouring their blood sweat and tears into winning such a contest. Win or lose, I personally love seeing people who are passionate putting it all on the line to achieve their dream.
- it shows the general goodness of heart that is a hallmark of most Toastmaster members. Toastmasters, as a group, I think come across very well to the average viewer.
- it demonstrates the power of oratory, and our universal human need to speak.
- we talk about the fear of public speaking in a funny way that is also insightful.
We will also have different editions of the film – especially one that will have as much Toastmasters promotional information as you could possibly imagine. Maybe that’ll be included as a DVD extra.
But for the time being, you’re gonna see the contest in its full glory. We’re pretty damned psyched.