Brendan Coots
Forum Replies Created
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The WD Caviar Black drives are awesome in my experience. Solid, reliable and they really are faster than normal drives provided they aren’t super full.
As for the RAID options, I would personally do a 3-drive RAID-1 for the protection. Three reasons – using software RAID (i.e. OSX’s built-in RAID tools) results in less performance than a dedicated RAID card will deliver, and RAID 0 with less than 4 drives doesn’t tend to be worth the price in my experience. The third point is that the more drives you add to the RAID, the higher the likelihood of failure. Minimal performance boost and greatly increased risk of losing all your files doesn’t exactly sound worth it to me. If you want to fill your bays and get more storage space, configuring RAID-1 may be a better option.
The ideal RAID system starts with a dedicated card (even a cheaper one), 5 or more drives and a RAID 5 configuration. That’s where you start to see performance increases that justify the expense AND enjoy safety with your precious files.
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com -
hmmm, personally I think there’s cautious and there’s downright nervous-nelly.
Now I’m no lawyer, but I can confidently say that neither the Patriots nor the NFL are going to go after a local dealership for saying “go New England” or wearing blue/silver/red/white. You could even play it safe by putting a tiny disclaimer at the bottom of the screen stating clearly that neither the patriots nor the NFL sponsor or endorse the message, and that no relationship is implied yada yada.
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com -
Whether you are trying to find employees, a house or a job, Craigslist is where the bottom feeders lurk. Every time I’ve ever run a “contractor needed” ad on CL, I get hundreds of responses from people that never even read the ad or are from india offering outsourcing services.
The gigs section is full of asshats who are looking to make their crap indie flick without paying a dime, yet have the brass to demand only the best talent for their no-pay/credit BS. Like anyone wants a credit on your Alan Smithee snoozer…
As far as I’m concerned, Craigslist is DEAD.
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com -
I think you’re probably in the right neighborhood price-wise IF you can deliver. Since you are subbing out the work, you just better hope your shooter knows what he is doing.
As for margins/markups, I think most people here would be very hesitant to divulge such information. This is a very open community, but some things are over the proprietary/competitive line.
When people ask about pricing I always have the same answer. You need to calculate your price based on a thorough accounting of job expenses, overhead and estimated taxes, plus a profit based on future growth planning. Most businesses have some sort of future growth plan, with a cost attached. If you don’t, then you need to go write one up even if it’s a one year plan. Think of things like facilities expansion, gear, cash reserves, etc. and when you will need these things. If you need $100k in a year to meet your future plans, you will need to pull in a minimum of $8,300 in profit each month to cover that.
Short answer – You are the only one who can answer the question of how much profit to shoot for. It’s all based on what you need as a business and what you think you can get from your clients.
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com -
“we don’t roll that way”
Whoever said that is now rolling on down to the unemployment office, guaranteed. That line just lost them a lawsuit.
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com -
Awesome.
Wonder if you are expected to do both at the same time, LA multitasker style? If only the iPhone 3GS had FCP Lite as Walter “predicted.”
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com -
First of all, If you had a contract with your client, we wouldn’t be having this discussion. Secondly, you can’t just go and sell a client’s copyrighted artwork because they didn’t pay you. Recovering losses in a situation like this is limited to suing the client for failure to pay, but again if you have no contract or signed documents, good luck.
All around, it sounds like your business practices were pretty sloppy on this one and there’s a very real chance you are going to lose in court.
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com -
Several friends and I recently had a face-to-face run in with a full grown mountain lion (about 3-4 feet tall) in a state park here in the Bay Area. It approached us from about 20 feet away, and we threw rocks and yelled – finally it turned around and slowly walked away. We ran like hell…
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com -
I just have to add a few points to this great thread.
The first and most important is that, by NOT suing, you are sending a special kind of message, one that says “walk all over me, I like it.” That message is the collective message our industry has been sending out over the past several decades, and it’s time that we all start walking that back a few notches.
The second point is that ANY client who may frown upon you because you have sued others is a guaranteed grinder. Look at it as though they just saved you a lot of headaches if they walk based on something like this.
The third point is that, in a lot of cases, merely receiving a summons and/or Cease and Desist letter is enough to get them scared and sending cash your way. Either way, I agree with David that small claims is easy (by design) provided that you have your ducks in a row. I don’t entirely agree that you can assume you’ll win without contracts or any documentation, because word-against-word cases are ridiculous. If the defendent was shady enough to rip you off to begin with, you should assume they will be more than happy to lie in court. If you don’t have, at the very least, emails showing they agreed to pay for the work, you probably have a tough case ahead of you.
It’s well worth it no matter how much actual money is on the line. Your reputation, the industry’s reputation and general principals of fair play are ALL on the line whenever someone tries to rip one of us off. Don’t roll over so easily!
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com -
“$30k? That’s about $15 an hour. Minimum wage is about $15k now. Common laborers make anywhere from $15k to $20k. Who owns the equipment you shoot/edit with? Whose mics? Someone has to pay for repairs, new equipment, software, you name it. Whose pocket will that come out of.
$30k, in my book, is a joke – unless there’s things like full health/dental insurance… “
When someone has six months experience in ANY industry, especially one like this that requires real skills to get by, they are lucky to be one step beyond intern. $15/hr in SF is a joke, but elsewhere it is more reasonable given the experience level.
Also, unless I misread the original post, the poster stated that his employer provides all of the equipment.
I would never suggest that someone sign up for indentured servitude, but when you lack experience and a firm demo reel, and more importantly lack competing offers, in this economy you would be wise to take what you can get and plan for the future. The alternative is to sit there with your arms firmly folded and go broke waiting for what you “deserve.”
Brendan Coots
Splitvision Digital
http://www.splitvisiondigital.com