Michael Munkittrick
1
COW Coin
Forum Replies Created
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Why sell? It boils down to two simple factors. First, my children growing up and I’m missing some of it. I was diagnosed with a stomach cancer a few years ago and time has now become a very, very finite. My work isn’t so overwhelming that I am completely denying my family, and while the cancer has gone dormant, there is no guarantee of tomorrow. Cheesy? Yes, but true.
Next, the initial offer that was made is, in my opinion worth some real consideration. I’m definitely not going to retire based on the amount, but it would buy a few years of “playtime”. To clarify one point, I have never shopped my company around in an effort to find a buyer and probably would not have considering the freedom that this offers. This is the second time in my career where I have built a business from scratch and made it interesting to potential buyers, even though that was not the intention.
All of the tools are more or less over-the-counter solutions. Three fully stocked Final Cut Pro suites including a 2TB SAN, a respectable array of MiniDV, DVCam and Sony HD cameras, a host of lighting from HMI lights to my own fluorescent lights, a 48 channel Yamaha studio mixer, literally 50 different Ion, Rhode and Senheiser mics, 4 flight cases, portable blue screen setup
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[Ron Lindeboom] “you are clearly one who loves to have a vast arsenal of tools at your disposal”
Man, if I could live up to the ideas that people have of me…well, I’d have a lot more stuff with which to make money.
[Ron Lindeboom] “you are also someone who uses them to make money and to make things happen”
Do you suppose I could have you call and say that EXACT phrase tomy wife? I think it would do wonders for my life at home.
As to the post, I was also only adding a generalized commentary about the otherwise obvious choices made by the people who work in our industry. God knows that each and every one of us has bought something that was beyond what we needed in spite of that fact, but not every one has made a perfect choice at every turn. I was just making clear that I agreed with the idea of expansion of services based on a functional need as opposed to a deep seeded desire to have a new toy. I can respect the point of the original post, but at the same time I didn’t want to sway anyone’s idea of the need of these “toys turned tools” as there are entire industries based on their sales alone.
And it is true that I have, and continue to make money with the tools that I have bought, earned and have been bequeethed over the years…many long after their industry accepted usefulness has passed, but often I find that my interest in something leads me to find clever uses for them in my own business and creative life aside from work.
I love this place! You can start off talking about how to get the space-bar disloged and end up chatting on how to make effective decisions in the modern creative world. No other forum can make such a boast!
“THE CREATIVE COW TOTALLY ROCKS!!” said Bill. “Totally! And the babes are HOT” replied Ted.
Michael Munkittrick
Gainesville, Florida USA -
Yeppers. You’re out of physical RAM. Either stock up on more or dedicate a non-project essential HDD as your virtual RAM drive.
We’ve got a single dedicated SCSI RAID comprised of 4 older 36GB Ultra 320 drives on a new GigaPC PCI Express card and it’s literally the same preview speed as our older PC400 RAM machine and we’ve created short-work of projects that necessitated 2 minute previews without a lot of waiting. It’s not even close to the newer DDR3 RAM we use in all of the newer machines, but if you don’t like dropping coin every few months for the lastest itteration of RAM module, it’s a simple solution providing you have a few parts around.
It’s a bit more costly than adding more physical RAM, but you can NEVER have too much…and until we go to a completely 64 bit environment (or 128 bit as is anticipated in a few years) this is one of the few ways to get as much functioning RAM as you want.
Michael Munkittrick
Gainesville, Florida USA -
[Ron Lindeboom] “Once again, you toss a grenade as an understated offhand remark”
No kidding! This guy is our version of King Midas. Hey Tim, could you drop by my office and do a few ritual chants?
[Ron Lindeboom] “t’s what you do with the tool, not the tool itself, that determines if you are a pro or an amateur.”
Ah, the wisdom of our mystic leader. Always the truth and always worthy of the read.
The sad thing is that I suppose I actually fall into both of the camps that you mention at some point. I DO work within my budget and limits, but I always strive to do one more thing than I did yesterday…so I’m sort of guilty of that crime. However, knowing one’s limitations and accepting them as borders of service, ability or design does not always make the most dynamic business model. The evolution of a person’s ideology toward their work and the desire that they harbor to learn as much as possible while working in their respective field often require the acquisition of tools that make this process or path, as it may be possible.
As a frame of reference, I decided that we’d make the shift to HD so that I could keep working in adjacent markets like Orlando and Tampa, both of which now offer a fully high definition delivery path and both of which derive large sums for our business byway of regular projects. That decision necessitated the purchase of vast amounts of new tools to augment our current tools in order to do what we propose effectively. Did we NEED to buy all of the little extras? Certainly not, but we are far better prepared to deal with jobs as they come with more efficiency and less waste, but realistically we could have functioned without most of those pieces and at far less cost to us.
The truth is that doing what we do, with respect to each individual market and/or studio is considered a creative endeavor and such a business often requires new “paints” with which to create our art, even at the cost of having too many. We recently stepped into the realm of 3D animation, a skill set that is highly specialized and very, very difficult to learn let alone master. However, we have been getting requests for over a year to take on projects that required just such an investment and our market, sadly is far from having an abundance of skilled creatives with those exact talents. We could have brought in a specialist or hired an out-of-market freelancer, but the cost of buying our own tools and teaching ourselves how to create at a reasonable level was, in my mind a better investment. Granted, I’ll not be making Toy Story III anytime soon, but in all fairness, there is nothing in that range anywhere near our market.
In closing, I think that there are so many different possible paths to take that the presumption that growth beyond our assumed means would prove fatal, when in fact it challenges us to create outside of our admitted limitations and find new and exciting boundaries. I suppose that the desire to specialize is outweighed by the desire to grow at some level, so while our budgets say “don’t grow” our hearts scream “you can do it”
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[Mark Raudonis] “PS, thanks for a rare glimpse inside what is usually a private, confidential process.”
It may normally be confidential, but I always discuss big decisions with friends and family. Since I’ve no fear of falling, I don’t mind asking questions that I feel need answers…besides, there was no confidentiality clause within our contract. After the slew of NDA contracts I’ve signed over the years, sadly I know what to look for.
Thanks…
Michael Munkittrick
Gainesville, Florida USA -
Great words of wisdom tim, as always. That is actually the main focus for me at this point. Do I cash-out and vegitate or do I button down and sail this ship forward? The offer is very good, the terms are legitimate and fair, so the undecided question is more about my love o the work
Good luck on your adventure and I’ll let you know what goes on.
Thanks so much…
Michael Munkittrick
Gainesville, Florida USA -
[tony salgado] “he could always claim somebody else hijacked his computer and assumed his COW identity”
That is highly unlikely…but I’ll keep that one in my notes, ha, ha, ha…
Michael Munkittrick
Gainesville, Florida USA -
[Bob Cole] “What’s going to happen to your staff?”
My staff has been relegated to just three employees, so the plan to pay them sovereigns pay is only fair. It’s not great, but they’re aware of the possibility. Like many people who love what they do, these guys are sticking it out right down to the wire. In fact, one of them asked how much it would cost to transfer the business to him. A very thoughtful gesture, but not feasible.
As for the buyer doing a bit of research and the possibility, however unlikely that they buyer would shift their MO this late in the game would be a lot of time wasted on both our parts. Besides, if they read this and decide that they do want to back-out
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[tony salgado] “Only you can answer faithfully what your inner voice is telling you.”
Tony, if I did half of what that voice said I’d be in a straight jacket…but joking aside, I obviously have some hesitation simply based on the fact that certainty is no longer a certainty. I guess my instincts are to complete the deal, but there is a kid inside telling me not to follow through.
Tough questions, tough answers.
Thanks
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To tell the truth, I had very little to do with the success that the station has seen except to say that I have been there as it all happened. At present, the station is doing very well and since our contract with the city is coming to n end very soon, I am more than likely going to do away with the additional stress of working for no-pay. Foundations laid in stone are always the most stable…but the efforts of the many always make a process more apt to succeed.
Michael Munkittrick
Gainesville, Florida USA