Something Ventured
Synopsis
Apple. Intel. Genentech. Atari. Google. Cisco. Stratospheric successes with high stakes all around. Behind some of the world's most revolutionary companies are a handful of men who (through timing, foresight, a keen ability to size up other people, and a lot of luck) saw opportunity where others did not: these are the original venture capitalists. All were backing and building companies before the term 'venture capital' had been coined: companies that led to the birth of biotechnology and the spectacular growth in microprocessors, personal computers and the web. SOMETHING VENTURED uncovers the ups and downs of the building of some of the greatest companies of the twentieth century, and the hidden dramas behind some of the most famous names in business.
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Interesting enough but as soon as I would really get interested in one subject's story, the movie would move onto another person and I felt like I was being short-changed.
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Another doc full of potential that it wastes. Directors Dan Geller and Danya Goldfine get access to some of the greatest financial minds of our time: Arthur Rock, one of the first people who invested in Apple, Intel, Scientific Data Systems, and Teledyne; Jim Gaither, one of the first venture capitalists, who basically set up the system; Mike Markkula, former CEO of Apple; Robert Campbell, founder of PowerPoint; the surviving members of “The Traitorous Eight,” and does nothing with them outside of ask questions that could be found in any Business History 101 textbook. And to ask these men to teach history is to miss the point. For one, they’re not particularly articulate enough to lecture on how they changed…
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Silicon Valley before it gained it's reputation, and an insight into how companies who changed our world came into being.
A highlight of the NZFF 2011, this film gives a fresh view of some of America's best known companies. From the perspective of the fathers of venture capitalism, the founding stories behind the biggest names are shared - Intel, Cisco, Genentech, Apple and others.
Interviews with the venture capitalists themselves give great insight, though this film struggles in parts for lack of footage to illustrate some of the stories. Somehow, it still makes a lasting impact and will send minds spinning - entrepreneurial, tech focused or otherwise.