A huge decision awaits me!

[Alondro]

Well, I am in a bit of a quandary. There is a documentary being assembled by John de Lancie all about bronies. I could join in as a named producer or co-producer, but at a cost.

I'm still on the fence of going between the $5K (co-producer) and $10K (full producer credit) level. I can afford it myself. I have no debts and could pay off the credit card amount in just under a year.

My primary hindrance is that I always help my parents out with bills and I wouldn't be able to for this coming year. They're getting up there to the age where things could go south very quickly with little to no warning, and they have nothing to fall back on; no pension, almost no savings, and Social Security will not cover enough if neither can work. So I must think very carefully over the next two weeks before deciding, and see if they can manage without me for a year. Ah, again I am left to mourn the loss of my old job 7 years ago! There would be no question of this had I that position. The compensation was, shall we say, substantially greater than my current job. A pox on outsourcing and corporate acquisition!

On the plus side, it's just the kick of recognition my own little animation company (United Paws Animations, Inc.) project needs to get its work moving along. I've been thinking about what to do before I put up a Kickstarter of my own. The brony community is a huge international community of people with almost limitless creative talent. However, contacting people one by one is just too slow to solicit assistance from a production staff and fundraising standpoint, and I lack the means to reach a large audience of potentially interested individuals on my own. From a pure business angle, the name recognition this project would garner exactly what a small start-up dreams of. The potential for partnerships and industry interest expand exponentially. The buzz generated would be instant. And taking into account how potent a force having a production credit to ones name is, I cannot dispute the notion that going in for the full $10K amount would be an investment with a powerful potential return for my company.

And on a personal level, it would be quite an fascinating experience, and one in which I could gain a great deal of knowledge relevant to my interests and position as president of United Paws Animations.

Another negative is that it means all extraneous activities for the coming year or two would have to be completely eliminated. Every penny extra I have must go to paying off the credit card. I would be living a very frugal life. It may likely mean that Anthrocon 2013 will not be possible. And all personal commissions would cease.

Still, these are not necessities, and would allow me to do what is best for my company's future.

Any way, I just wanted everyone to know since this decision will mark a huge change in my life and online activity, as I will have do dedicate most of my time to pursuing professional development and let go of many little hobbies I won't be able to afford either time or money for at least in the coming year, maybe two if I need to help my parents catch up with their finances afterward.

[Ignuus66]

Alright so, from what I've gathered the positives are:

-Certain: Excitement, Experience

-probable: recognition which may garner enough attention for your studio.

-Possible: The possibility to start a kickstarter which reaches the set goal needed to "kickstart" your company.


However, the risks/losses/possible losses, are:

-Certain: Less spending on comfort, losing a large amount of money.

-Probable: having to cut back on activities, losing lots of time  WITHOUT any short-term gains (within 2 years)

-Possible (though by far not probable if most of the things seem stable) Financial crash of family, Or Healthcare crash of family, that can't be solved due to lack of funds.

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Best case scenario: The documentary proves to be a success, You manage to make it through the years where you pay for the check without any incidents, and you and your company gains enough notice to be able to kick off properly

Worst case scenario: The documentary is a flop, and you waste a lot of time and money on it, and your family runs into problems (serious or not so serious)  due to lack of serious funding, financial collapse, and other horrible things.

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I'd say another problem is that co-producers do not gain as much notice by far as the main producers, but if you go for main producer, you might waste way too much money to recover from if it isn't a success.

If I might inquire, IF the documentary is a success will money be earned from it? Or is it a purely nonprofit venture? If it earns money, will you get a sizeable paycheck?
If you do gain money (directly) from it, Then I'd say it's worth a shot.

Also, do you need to choose within a short period of time, or can you place the decision to a later date WITHOUT consequences. IF so, collect a reasonable amount of money in case things go badly for your family in the future, then by all means, go for it.

Also if you are willing to take the risk, then do it, as I like to say: Nothing ventured, Nothing gained!

Good luck!

EDIT: Edited for readability

[Qilby]

What worries me with this project isn't that a big name actor is asking the community for money via kickstarter, it's that I question the gain on the producer credit. What exactly do you get besides the flight and the dinner spot? Are you sure you're going to get anything other than a two second name cameo during credit roll and a little corner of a website somewhere? In that industry, it's all about networking and clout and "who you know" for sure, so I'd just hope that the money you put into the project gets exactly what you'd want it to get you.

[Sofox]

I'm kinda with Qilby here. Even if you go for the full 10k, what exactly are you getting out of it?

Networking
Networking is vital in any industry. So having a chance to talk to John de Lancie, Michael Brockhoff and Laurent Malaquais and maybe propose your business ideas, plans for United Paws and ask them for help or connections... well that could be vital. If you could get John or the others to mention United Paws online, or ask others to contact you... it could be all you need to give you that boost. Don't be afraid to talk about how you really need a boost, tell them what you've been doing and hope to do, just try to get them to support you some way just like you've supported them. If one of them, such as John, talks online about United Paws pursuing a noble endeavour that needs help, well it'll definitely get a lot publicity and Bronies paying attention to you (make sure there's a good way of contacting you and up to date information on what you're up to [ie. remove "2011" from your site frontpage], maybe have some way of giving regular updates). As well as boosting your standing with Bronies, the producers may also be able to refer you to other industry professionals who can help you with advice, support, or other contacts.
While a dinner would be a great networking opportunity to try to gain the above, I can't help but notice that the $2,500 donation level also has a networking opportunity with the above people. It'll be a meet and greet rather than a dinner, but if you prepare what you want to say and ask, and get their contact details while giving yours, and follow up afterwards, you might be able to get the essential things that you would otherwise have got from the dinner. (It may be faster paced and frantic, but you've just got to give it all you've got).


Publicity
I don't see how having "United Paws Animation" in the credits of a Brony documentary is going to boost your reputation. I mean sure, it's put your name someplace, but I don't see a correlation between your donation and a sudden rise in publicity. You're kinda putting your name in a list of names and they'll be a very delayed payoff. I don't feel good about you having to wait over a year or this thing to pay off, especially if it turns out not to give you that much of a boost and you've been waylaying other plans while waiting for it. Also, if you go for the tier I mentioned above, you'll still get the title "Associate Producer" which isn't bad.

The key thing here is to ask what you want to get out of this, and what you will get out of it depending on what you donate.

My advice: Go for the $2,500 level, milk the meet and greet for all it's worth, and be satisfied with the "Associate Producer" title.

[Alondro]

Well, at the $10K level, you get a private dinner with John De Lancie, the direction, and the other producers as well as full producer credit, an interview in the documentary, and all sorts of the little thank-yous from the lower level donations combined.

I've talked with a few people who know more about the industry and they tell me that this sort of thing could indeed be a big 'foot-in-the-door' moment. 

It also seems John is nudging other Star Trek actors.  He still keeps in touch with Patrick Stewart, and has done several projects with Leonar Nimoy.  Not to mention, last week he gave major props to the brony fandom at a Star Trek convention when asked what he'd been up to lately.

There's also the plus that Hasbro, Studio B (the animation studion behind FiM), and many of the voice actors are expressing interest in the documentary.  Several of the voice actors expressly wish to have an interview in it.  So right there is a direct link to the animation industry.  Lauren Faust will be at Bronycon, and I, as a producer, will have some access to her directly. She's becoming a big name in television animation now, and also has ties to DC Comics (produced several popular shorts pieces for Cartoon Network... ah yes, there's that connection as well).  So basically, every contact I could potentially make through this opportunity is highly relevant.

I've already talked with my mother, and she has indicated that they could indeed hold their own for a year.  As for being frugal for a year, it's not as extremem as you may think.  I'd have to skip one convention and simply cut a few non-essentias.  Basically, it'd be like a year in college again.  Nothing I haven't dealt with.

Others have also already pointed out that my two brothers have moved out and have families of their own.  What would my parents do if I had made the same choice?  They made the very good point that though as the eldest I have that typical feeling of responsibility, I'm not obligated to pay all their debts.  I have to admit that this is a very true statement, moreso because everything else I've done I've paid for myself:  every car I've had, my college tuition, my vacations.  And I've already helped them out to the tune of over $50,000 over the past 6 years.  The debt really is drastically lower than it was.

I'm going to push for them to shift the debt around a bit.  All of it is on credit cards, and I susopect the interest they're paying is too high.  They'rll save quite a bit moving it to lower interrest cards or a loan.

As a final point, I've watched and learned about many who had their start in entertainment.  There are always the few lucky ones who got their 'big break', but most worked their way up slowly, putting in vast amounts of resources and investing heavily before something paid off.  It's the chance one must take, and this one is certainly far better than anything I've ever encountered before. 

A close friend in my church told me this Saturday, "Not many people get a chance to be a part of something like this.  It could be a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  Sometimes you simply have to take a chance."  And, i do believe she's right.  I am very cautious, as evidenced by the fact that I've never gotten myself into any sort of trouble.  And my analysis of this project demonstrates a great deal of potential with relatively little loss. 

$10,000 sounds like a lot, but in the grand scheme of things, it's miniscule.  I have seen people blow far more money on utterly pointless garbage in my own town.  Expensive cars, vacations, high-priced jewelry, all for nothing.  This documentary, at the very least, has the potential to be a valuable experience.  All those things I just mentioned are mere objects and fruitless endeavors.

Every investment is a risk.  For instance, how many people lost money with the Facebook IPO?  (I suspected the hype was nonsense, and the offering price was vastly over-valued).  So, for once, I shall take a risk.  At the VERY LEAST, I will have an on-screen appearance, my name in the credits, and a chance to talk directly with John de lancie and the creative team behind Friendship is Magic.  So no matter what, it won't be a ttoal loss.  It'll be an experience acting/production students can only wish for in most cases... adn they spend quite a bit more than I will for their college tuition!  If I compare it to what they must shell out, I'm getting a major bargain!

I shall wait another week, to carefully plot out finances for the next year and see what I can do to restructure the remianing debt my parents owe, and perhaps to find some other small sources of compensation in my life to continue to provide some input. 

But the analysis I've done so far is weighing heavily in faavor of going for it.

[Alondro]

My advice: Go for the $2,500 level, milk the meet and greet for all it's worth, and be satisfied with the "Associate Producer" title.

I do indeed plan to update the website this coming month!  I have to sort out a couple of the company's commissions and ready my annual Pedaling Paws information (which I'm actually working on today).  I wish to do everything in a single update, for efficiency's sake.

I should also mention, I already found a source of income to cover $1,600 of the investment.  I had forgotten to take into account my vacation cash-out.  I take so little vacation that I was nearing the limit of days I can save up.  So I made use of an annual program wherein I can exchange 120 hours of vacation for wage-level compensation.


This actually still leaves me with 200 hours!  Yeah... I do work wayyyy too hard.  XD  That leaves $8,400, which I know I can easily pay off.  Possibly in less than a year.

See people?  Being thrifty is GOOD!!  because it allows you to eventually afford awesome things!  (goes back to stitching his underwear)  XP

[James StarRunner]

Heheh! Very nice! I'm pretty thrifty too, but don't have the greatest job and not enough hours. This is definitely a big deal! Seize it!

[Ignuus66]

Well then! Go for it!

As I said before, Nothing ventured, nothing gained! Go for it! Good luck! 

[Ravenscroft]

I have only one point of contention at this time: IF everything turns out alright, the doc makes a bunch of money and you get your name out there you will have your name on a documentary, not a movie, not a commerical, etc. You have to ask yourself, are you willing to do more documentaries? Success would associate your name with the Documentary process, ... and the bronies too of course. And while that may work for a few of the angles, is it the project you could look back on yourself and say "yeah ... that was worth it." IF your parents do have a problem.

Bearing those questions in mind, how much control over the project would you really have? Personally I wouldn't put up that much money ... not having it of course ... just to have someone else rush off and do something without some sort of quality assurance or something. But then I guess I may not be up on all the names available to me so i am not familiar with some of them.

By the end of the day making up our own minds is the only freedom anyone really has. Make your choice and be proud of it 

[Alondro]

I have only one point of contention at this time: IF everything turns out alright, the doc makes a bunch of money and you get your name out there you will have your name on a documentary, not a movie, not a commerical, etc. You have to ask yourself, are you willing to do more documentaries? Success would associate your name with the Documentary process, ... and the bronies too of course. And while that may work for a few of the angles, is it the project you could look back on yourself and say "yeah ... that was worth it."

I can do a documentary on ME!  And the processes of mutation that led to the unique entity that is The Charles.

It shall be the subject of philosophical debates for a thousand years!   

[Ravenscroft]

hurray mutilation! Now we just need to subcategorize down to emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual! Have fun guys hope everything works out for you!

[Alondro]

hurray mutilation! Now we just need to subcategorize down to emotional, physical, mental, and spiritual! Have fun guys hope everything works out for you!

No no no!  MUTATION, not MUTILATION!!

Mutation is what happened to my DNA to turn me into an all-powerful energy being.

Multilation is what I do to those who OPPOSE MY SUPREMELY POWERFUL POWERS!!