Kevin
Geiger started out as a computer animator for the movie Species. Kevin also was a digital artist
for Disney’s Fantasia 2000, and the
movie Reign of Fire. Kevin was the CG
supervisor for Chicken Little. Kevin Geiger was a CG
supervisor for The Walt Disney Company. After leaving Disney he co-founded and
is now the CEO of Magic
Dumpling, an animation development company. Kevin Geiger has been known for
his seminars around the world discussing topics from development to
distribution. His workshops are geared for producers, directors, investors, and
more.
Chuck Blakeman has a
different approach to business. Chuck Blakeman
believes that a business plan to start up one’s company is not necessary. Most
of the time, you ditch
that plan anyway because life gets in the way. Chuck Blakeman does more
than 100 public speaking and workshops internationally per year. He has been
featured or referenced by CNNMoney.com,
NYTimes.com, as well as many other business websites. Chuck Blakeman has also
built seven successful businesses in the last 25 years. His book Making Money is Killing Your Business is
listed as the “#1 Business Book of the Year” by NFIB
according to Small
Business Influencer Awards.
Some of the components that investors are looking for are not
only your creative plans, but also your business plans as well. The most
critical component for an investor is to show them how they are going to get a
return on their investment. A step-by-step plan with details on how you are
going to make a profit.
According to Kevin Geiger’s indie film business plans
he suggests the development funding process. That includes having a production
plan, preparing an activity projection of that production plan, having
projections of cash flow, making sure you have development and advisory teams
in place, have an investment strategy, make a investor presentation, and get
investor funding. This allows investors
to know that even during the development process, they are going to get their
money back. This process is crucial to
prove to your investors. It shows not only are they getting their money back, but
also how they are going to get it.
According to Chuck Blakeman it isn’t about the “how”
in the long-term process. It’s about the “how” in the short-term process. It’s
about how to get to the next step, and then the next step, and so on. If you
continue on the path of how do I get from step a to step b each time, you will
get a lot further. Instead of asking how do I get from the start to the finish,
you may never find yourself at the end.