Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind. – Dr. Seuss

Ability is what you’re capable of doing. Motivation determines what you do. Attitude determines how well you do it. – Lou Holtz

Have you ever been involved in a low-budget film adventure? The most common question you get asked is about the favours you pulled in to get it done. I have been involved in a few of these inspired journeys and I can tell you this has nothing to do with favours. It is a combination of lessons learned, careful planning, a solid vision, and most importantly, it is a function of good people. They say ideas move mountains, but the truth is, people move mountains. You don’t need a lot of money to write a book, compose a song, shoot a film or develop software. You need inspiration and many late nights.

One has to be in start-up mode to attack a challenge like this. It is guerrilla style film making and here is the rulebook :

No catering
No chairs
No portable toilets
No drivers
No trailers
No parking
No cellphone allowance
No assistants
No attitudes
No nonsense
No offices

And here is the methodology :

Plan, plan plan
Triple check all details
One week off, one week on
Triple check everything again
Find closest McDonald’s (toilets)
Find closest garage (coffee and food)
Find grass patch (chairs)
Back-up all footage
Pray for good weather
Have fun, take chances

Making a movie takes time. The film shoot though is the quickest part. First you got to have a vision. Then a script needs be developed. This is easier said than done. A good script can take a lifetime. A mediocre script can take a month. Then you got to plan the production. The longer you plan, the better. In fact, if you never shoot the movie you will be ahead. Ok ok, that sounds crazy, but consider that there is a 1 in 20 chance an independent film will work. So, if you want to win this game the best bet is not to play. Planning, planning and more planning. And then it starts: lights, camera, action! All through this, with a handful of crew.

After the shoot ends the long, tough stuff, begins, Yes, the edit. This is where the dream is made or broken. This is where opinions clash, chirps fly in every direction, and tempers flare. If you survive this part the next thing to do are screen tests. You got to have nerves of steel to listen to other people criticize your work, but that is the name of the game. You make a product, that no one has asked for, that no one really needs, and then you see if anyone is prepared to recommend it to their friends.

There is a big difference between making a film (production) and selling a film (the film business); just like there is a big difference between writing software and selling software. Yes, then starts the real work, distribution and marketing.

Not an easy thing to get right at all. In my view, nothing is harder.

A company’s core purpose is the organisation’s fundamental reason for being. I know, you think that it is all about money. If it is, then why not have a mission statement that goes “We exist to make money”. Doesn’t sound that inspiring does it? And I know I have probably written this same piece a dozen times in various forms, but this is a subject that one has to re-visit often. And it is something that can take a lifetime to absorb.

The world is so cynical and so aggressive that it is not easy to get people’s spiritual juices stirred up. That’s why I love writing these kinds of things. The challenge has never been greater. No one has any time on their hands to think about the bigger picture. Everyone is so busy scheming and dealing, trying to get to their hands on the next million smackers. Yes, to inspire people to think about the “fundamentals” is not easy. So, let’s jump right in. Here are some examples of core purpose from some of the world’s visionary corporations. Read these over and over.

Hewlett-Packard’s purpose: To make technical contributions for the advancement and welfare of humanity. Merck’s purpose: To preserve and improve human life. Disney’s purpose: To make children smile. Wal-Mart’s purpose: To give ordinary folk the chance to buy the same things as rich folk. Sony’s purpose: To experience the joy of advancing and applying technology for the benefit of the general public. McKinsey’s purpose: To help leading corporations and governments be more successful. Marriott’s purpose: To make people away from home feel they’re among friends and really wanted. General Electric’s purpose: To improve the quality of life through technology and innovation.

I think you get the idea (you can read the book “Built to Last” for more insight here). A company exists to do something beyond just making a profit. A company is formed by a group of people who share a common vision and have common values. They ultimately want to leave a legacy. They want to make a difference in the world. They want to do the things they love to do. History has taught us that all the great companies, the real companies, the visionary ones, are those that were built as a labour of love.

If business is all about making money then each one of these great companies could have just added the words “make money” after the word “to” as in, “Our purpose is to make money.” Then all these companies would be the same. Rather boring isn’t it? Hey, what I am saying is simple. Even if money is the centre of your world then lie about it. You are not going to inspire anyone to work for you, over you, under you, with you, in fact, anywhere near you if you only talk about money. And who knows, you might even start believing that your life has more meaning if you start thinking about making a difference to other peoples’ lives. In the book, Built to Last, the author’s say “An effective purpose reflects the importance people attach to the company’s work – it taps into their idealistic motivations – rather than just describing the organizations output or target customers. It captures the soul of the organization.”.

How does one know what they were put on this Earth for? Every person has God-given talents. Every person has something inside them that they love doing. We all love to talk and express ourselves. This is what makes us human beings. We all have passions. When passion becomes purpose and purpose becomes passion then the wonderful becomes familiar and the familiar wonderful. In other words, when you do what is in your heart then real happiness follows. Merck was a doctor. Disney was a child at heart. Hewlett and Packard loved technology. And so it goes for the founders of these great institutions. The problem in this day and age is that all too often we only see are the end results of their years of commitment to what they believed in. Life is a journey. So don’t focus on the destination.

I often make use of this quote from the founders of the Merck pharmaceutical giant. I think we should have a look at it again. George Merck II made a speech in 1950 to his management where he explores their reason for being, “We try to remember that medicine is for the patient. We try never to forget that medicine is for the people. It is not for the profits. The profits follow, and if we have remembered that, they have never failed to appear. The better we have remembered it, the larger they have been.” Merck’s wisdom describes the relationship between purpose, trust and profit. Merck never said he never liked or disliked money. He simply stated that money is not what his company is about. Merck saves people’s lives with medicine. And the more they do that the more people trust them to do it time and time again. And the more people trust them the more they spent on Merck’s medicines. And the rest is history. Merck and his son were passionate about medicine. And their labour of love resulted in the world conspiring to reward them. They made a positive difference in the world. A difference that people respected and rewarded.

Greed is what motivates so many people these days. The world is obsessed with money. Merck’s speech was made well over 60 years ago but it’s really way ahead of its time. Merck represents the qualitative view on life; the paradoxical yet genius view that one can make a difference AND make a profit. Too many people are trapped by the tyranny of the “OR”, the quantitative view that one can make a difference OR make a profit. Merck never said anything against profit making. But then he never said anything for it either. He simply said that saving life was their core purpose. And the more they are true to that purpose the more the world rewards them. I know it is easy for us to look at companies like Merck and cynically say, “They got lucky” because we only focus on the wealth they have created – we do not see the journey they went on, only the destination. Yes, luck always play a role in everything we do. But more than luck, we need faith, and we need patience. Always try and remember that a journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.

I read this online now … an interesting thought :

“The brain is a malleable organ. Every time you do an activity, or have a thought, you are changing a piece of yourself into something slightly different than it was before. Every hour you spend with others, you become more like the people around you. Gradually, you become a different person. If there is a large gap between your daily conduct and your core commitment, you will become more like your daily activities and less attached to your original commitment.”

When I look back on all these worries, I remember the story of the old man who said on his deathbed that he had had a lot of trouble in his life, most of which had never happened. – Winston Churchill

I met an aspiring artist this past year and I read a synopsis for a feature film recently that he is working on. I liked the concept a lot but I felt the story needed to be explored quite a bit further; more importantly, I thought the characters had not been developed enough. But that doesn’t really matter at this point. What is important is the person who gave me this story. He had a good way about him, and that is why I was keen to read what he had put down on paper.

I asked him about how he intended to make the film. He told me that the budget was super tight and that they would be utilising all kinds of new technology to keep the costs down.

All of this sounds good, but it is not technology that gets a film made. People make movies, not technology.

We only ever invest in people. You don’t invest in film scripts or business plans. Think about this: a VC firm or a merchant bank sees many business plans in any given month. These ideas on paper are worth nothing. They are just words, and words come by pretty easily to most. Talk is cheap, as the saying goes. What makes these plans potentially worthwhile are the people behind them and the value they bring to the equation.

I remember back when Internet Solutions started off on its trajectory of exponential growth. The first customers that came on board were nervous. Many of them asked us tough questions, such as “You all look like a bunch of kids. How long are you going to be in business for?”

I know they never meant to insult us; they were just concerned, and rightfully so, that they would be investing their time with a bunch of green guys who may go out of business soon because those are the odds. In short, these customers were looking for peace of mind. They weren’t buying into technology; they were buying into people. They took it for granted that we knew what we were doing, but they wanted to know that we were going to be around to look after them long after they signed their contract.

Let’s get back to the film story now. When someone sends you a screenplay, there are a bunch of leading questions you should ask. What experience have you had making films? Do you have a distributor who is committed to releasing the film? What is the budget for the film? How do you intend to recoup your investor’s funds? Do you have any talent that have come on board the project, such as bankable actors? Have you done some market research? Will people be interested in the story you want to tell?

The list of questions goes on and on, and these are all pertinent business points. Yes, they don’t have much to do with the art of filmmaking, but if you are going to ask someone for money for your art, then you should consider the business imperatives that go hand in hand with your proposed venture.

In my experience over the past decade of investing in artists, I have really struggled to truly connect with most dreamers (except for a couple of people) on the fundamentals that underpin a film venture. But when you do get this balance and alignment right, magic happens. We saw this magic with Material, and it still exists at IS. And speaking of IT, in the past few months I have been very privileged to connect with a group of talented and driven programmers who are doing some very cool things in the online space. And I am making an investment here, not in an idea, but in people. I have hooked up with some good souls this year again. Thank God.

Einstein once said that genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. I have met so many of these “genius” artists and IT wizards over the years and they all go on about how brilliant their ideas are. I do like many of their ideas, but I would love them more if someone was prepared to suffer for their art. I have not found too many people willing to put their money where their mouth is when it comes to their great ideas. And I am not referring to risking everything you got; I am just hinting at someone stepping out of his or her comfort zone.

Einstein said another compelling thing about which I have been thinking a lot this past year: “Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.”

If you are trying to make movies in SA then understand that the risks are sky-high. Have you ever tried digging for oil in the Karoo? You could go insane.

Luck certainly has not been on my side when it comes to my adventures in the local screen trade. Perhaps I have just been plain stupid. I read something online once where a guy had said, referring to a survey where successful entrepreneurs spoke about luck: “Everyone has luck, I just did something about it.” What I am trying to say is that trying to do something when the omens are telling you otherwise is just an uphill battle. Call it bad luck or call it just dumb. One thing is for sure, the next time I embark on one of these journeys I won’t do things the way I have done them before. And, most importantly, I will make sure that the place we go digging in does have some evidence of oil.

Yes, luck is something you need to recognise. I have been digging for a long time, and the more I practice the luckier I get. But, I still haven’t got it right yet and I am convinced, more and more, that I have been looking for oil in the wrong place.

What I am saying here is open to a lot of interpretation. Rest assured I am more positive than ever. I just needed some time and perspective to figure out where the oil is. My nose is itching again; I think I finally picked up the scent! Well, I hope I have!

But, this piece here today was not about where to look for oil, but rather about who to go digging with. Of course, the big question still remains. Are you convinced there is oil where you currently want to dig?

A wealthy old gentleman decides to go on a hunting safari in Africa, taking his faithful, elderly Jack Russell named Killer, along for the company.

One day the old Jack Russell starts chasing rabbits and before long, discovers that he’s lost. Wandering about, he notices a leopard heading rapidly in his direction with the intention of having lunch.

The old Jack Russell thinks, “Oh, oh! I’m in deep doo-doo now!” Noticing some bones on the ground close by, he immediately settles down to chew on the bones with his back to the approaching cat. Just as the leopard is about to leap, the old Jack Russell exclaims loudly, “Boy, that was one delicious leopard! I wonder if there are any more around here?”

Hearing this, the young leopard halts his attack in mid-strike, a look of terror comes over him and he slinks away into the trees. “Whew!”, says the leopard, “That was close! That old Jack Russell nearly had me!”

Meanwhile, a monkey who had been watching the whole scene from a nearby tree, figures he can put this knowledge to good use and trade it for protection from the leopard. So off he goes, but the old Jack Russell sees him heading after the leopard with great speed, and figures that something must be up.

The monkey soon catches up with the leopard, spills the beans and strikes a deal for himself with the leopard.

The young leopard is furious at being made a fool of and says, “Here, monkey, hop on my back and see what’s going to happen to that conniving canine!

Now, the old Jack Russell sees the leopard coming with the monkey on his back and thinks, “What am I going to do now?”, but instead of running, the dog sits down with his back to his attackers, pretending he hasn’t seen them yet, and just when they get close enough to hear, the old Jack Russell says …

“Where’s that damn monkey? I sent him off an hour ago to bring me another leopard!

Moral of this story:

Don’t mess with the old dogs … age and skill will always overcome youth and treachery! BS and brilliance only come with age and experience.

Many of life’s failures are people who did not realize how close they were to success when they gave up. – Thomas Edison

The purpose of life is to have a life of purpose. – George Bernard Shaw