$2,000,000 to make a Movie?!

I think I’ve mentioned this before, but in case I haven’t, let me fill you in. I was a full-on theater and film kid back in high school. 

I graduated in 2011, and let me tell you, things were different. 

TikTok wasn’t a thing, Vine didn’t even exist, and YouTube was still finding its legs. 

If those platforms were around when I was a teenager, I’m 100% sure I would’ve gone all-in on filmmaking or maybe even become a YouTuber. Who knows where that would’ve taken me.

But I digress—let’s talk about something that’s been on my mind lately: investing in movies.

I was connected with an individual that has years into movie production and set management. 

I’m entertaining a phone call with them. 

Now, before you get the wrong idea, I need to put a big disclaimer on this. Investing, as a rule, shouldn’t be exciting. When emotions get involved, you tend to make stupid decisions and lose your shirt. 

I’m not here to give financial advice—seriously, don’t take this as anything close to that. 

This is more of a personal project.

Here’s the thing: I view this as high risk, high personal reward venture. Not the kind of thing you throw your retirement fund at. To be perfectly honest, I’d be totally fine losing all my capital on this—just for the experience (and tax write-off). Would I recommend anyone else do this? 

Absolutely not.

The person who I will be speaking to, told me that some production studios function like investment funds. And example being A24. 

If you don’t know A24, you probably know their movies: Uncut Gems, Everything Everywhere All At Once, Midsommar, Moonlight, The Witch, and Ex Machina and many many more. This indie studio started small but has blown up into a major force, essentially a private investment fund for films. 

They’ve managed to break away from the formulaic, cookie-cutter bullshit we see so much of today (looking at you, Netflix).

Speaking of that—does anyone else think most movies these days suck? 

It feels like everything is a remake, a franchise, or some overdone reality TV show. I mean, how many Love Island spin-offs do we need? There’s a Netflix formula, and we’re drowning in it. 

But here’s my bet: the pendulum is going to swing the other way. 

People are getting tired of the same recycled garbage. Good stories matter, but they’re becoming rare. 

I think there can be tremendous opportunities for something different, especially if someone is an outsider, without knowing anything about the status quo of the industry, someone can come in and completely disrupt.

This is just the beginning of the conversation. Maybe it’s not the perfect time for this, or maybe it is, I’ll update you. 

Now, for some quick business updates:

Remember that opportunity I told you about in the luxury goods space? If you haven’t read that story, check it out here. 

Well, I decided to pass on it. 

The reason? The people involved. 

The key players didn’t see the vision for growth. They were too focused on squeezing every last drop of margin from individual orders and couldn’t grasp the bigger picture. It was frustrating, but that’s how it goes. In business, the people involved are often more important than the product itself.

On the flip side, I’m moving forward with the dog grooming business I mentioned. If you missed that story, read here for context. 

Now, I know what you’re thinking: “dog grooming?!”

It’s definitely less glamorous than luxury goods, but the difference is clear: the person running it has a drive that I can get behind. 

They have the vision and the passion to grow, and that makes all the difference.

My role in the dog grooming business is also less hands-on, which means it doesn’t demand as much of my time. That’s a huge plus because, as you know, time is the ultimate resource. 

The luxury goods business would’ve required me to be much more involved, so I needed to see a lot more upside to justify the commitment. In the end, I didn’t.

That’s it for now on the business front.

Quick reminder: Don’t forget to tune in this Sunday at 7 PM ET for my upcoming series: 

”10 Lessons That Took Me From $800 to $1,000,000 a Month in Profit”. 

If you haven’t seen the announcement, check it out here.

-Vessal