The Next Big Thing: The Black List

Movies are one America’s greatest loves. We love to get lost in the story being told on the larger-than-life silver screen. There are tons of moving parts that go into the creation of our favorite cinematic adventures. But none of them can start to move unless there is a script.

It’s no secret that the entertainment industry is hard to break into. Ask any screenwriter and they’ll tell you how long it took them to get to where they are. The traditional ways of breaking into the industry are nepotism, cold asking or wining a screenwriting competition. If the odds are stacked against you, it can be easy to get discouraged. But thanks to technology and the wonders of the Internet, a new fourth channel of entry has come along.

Founded in 2005, The Black List has been serving as a Hollywood internal distribution circle with its annual list of Hollywood’s most-adored unproduced scripts. In total, scripts that were discovered from the blacklist have made over $16 billion worldwide, and have won 25 Academy Awards. Most notably, best picture winners Slumdog Millionaire and The King’s Speech came from The Black List. 

Since its beginning, The Black List has had the philosophy of connecting filmmakers and screenwriters. Though previously limited to those within Hollywood, The Black List aims to expand its circle to a worldwide scale.

For a small fee, screenwriters from around the world are able to upload their scripts and have them read by professionals within the industry with the possibility of getting them made into a feature film. It’s like Reddit, but for screenwriters.  The Black List platform is better for everyone in the long run because it opens up the possibly of a wide range of different and new stories to be told.

But The Black List is not the first to explore this new platform. Amazon Studios ventured into the same realm of open source script discovery when it first launched. The Black List differs in the sense that instead of functioning as a studio (like Amazon), it serves more as a middleman to get it to the right people to help make great movies. 

The success of The Black List’s revamped model is still yet to be seen, but it does have the potential to open up a host of stories yet to be told.

Do you have a company or idea in mind that really Thinks Big? Please contact me via email at Bobby.Miller@thinkbigparners.com.  You could be featured in our blog as The Next Big Thing!  

The Next Big Thing: Path.To

Have you ever seen the movie Office Space?  As one of the funniest movies of all time (in this writer’s opinion), Office Space tells the story of Peter Gibbons, a disgruntled programmer at a software company called Initech.  Peter’s biggest problem in life is his job.  He hates it.  He hates his coworkers (well, most of them), he hates his boss and he hates that he has to work weekends.  In other words, Peter is 100% unhappy in his work life.

Lucky for us (and for Peter), Path.To, a new startup that exploded out of Jacksonville, Florida, is looking to rid the world of the Peter Gibbons attitude.  The founder’s vision says it all: “We want to create a happier workforce.”

In order to do so, the team at Path.To has launched an online platform that matches job seekers with compatible technology and design job openings.    Path.To integrates a better, deeper understanding of job seekers, searches for compatible companies, sprinkles in a little algorithmic sugar and finds the right company to match the job seeker’s preferences and experiences (i.e. résumé, work/life, benefits, culture, etc.).  The platform then recommends the applicants to compatible companies in the database based on a Path.To score.  Because of this unique, creative process, Path.To has quickly become known as “the eHarmoney for job seekers”.

The startup launched in April in the Bay Area and is now expanding to 19 other “tech centers” throughout the United States.  The startup prefers to launch in areas that foster strong startup cultures, which has made Kansas City a prime target.  The platform is now available in the Silicon Prairie region, allowing Midwest entrepreneurs, software developers and designers to easily find open positions. 

“Most software engineers have a job for 8 months and then quit,” explains Darren Bounds, founder and CEO of Path.To.  “We want to connect business applicants with opportunities and help form a deeper bond.  In the long run, we want this to increase retention rate.” 

But running a business like Path.To isn’t without its challenges.  According to Bounds, the company is extremely successful in analyzing its applicants 80% of the time.  It’s the additional 20% that is challenging.  In order to solve this issue, Bounds and his 13-person team at Path.To are constantly building and refining the product in order to reduce that 20%. 

“All of the challenges are worth it when I receive emails and tweets that someone found an amazing opportunity because of Path.To,” he explains.  “I once received a 3-page email from a girl who found the perfect company because of Path.To’s analysis.  It was a personal, heart-felt email.  That’s what we’re all about.”

How Does Darren Bounds of Path.To Think Big? “It’s something I’ve always had since childhood—it’s a part of my personality.  It may be a deficiency, but I suffered from ADHD as a child.  But I think that my mind wanders in creative ways—it explores concepts and takes paths that others may not consider.  I have learned to have confidence in my ideas.  It’s just part of who I am.”

The Next Big Thing: MoviePass

Thinking big is a trait we love to see from our entrepreneurs, investors and startups.  After all, thinking big means innovation, creativity, and no limits. 

And we love people who think as big as we do.  One startup company that recently came across our radar is MoviePass. What caught our eye about MoviePass is the goal of the company; to be the “Netflix for movie theaters”. The goal sounds like a lofty one and immediately the question of “how?” came to our minds.    

The model of movie distribution is a flawed one and is easily defeated by piracy. Because of piracy, the cost of a ticket to the movie theater is at an all-time high. Movie theaters have raised the price of tickets to account for piracy, which puts the burden on the wallets of the average movie-goer. In an effort to save theaters, MoviePass has come along to offer an unlimited movie service that everyone can enjoy. It’s a major undertaking considering the partnerships that need to be made with national theater chains as well as the studios. But here’s the kicker—MoviePass hasn’t done either.

If you’re confused right now, don’t worry, so was I. Let me explain how it works:   

• To have a “membership” with MoviePass, you pay a monthly fee (depending on where you live, between $24.99 and $39.99)* and you’ll be granted one movie ticket per day.
• To use your ticket, all you have to do is pull out your iPhone (not on Android yet), locate the theater (you need to be near the theater) and determine which movie you want. 
• Once you’ve done so, you have to check-in via the MoviePass app.
• When you arrive at the theater, you “pay” for your ticket with your MoviePass payment card. To the theatre, it looks like you’re paying with a normal credit card or gift card.
• Next, you’ll receive your movie ticket from the box office and enjoy your movie.

*This is all independent from the theaters because when you select your showing via the app, MoviePass loads the cost of your ticket onto your card. As of right now, this is only for the standard movie experience, but 3D and IMAX movies will become available later at a higher subscription price.

MoviePass aims to fill theaters, and so far it has done just that. During its private beta, the startup saw a 64% increase in movie theater attendance. MoviePass is clearly set out to target faithful moviegoers who patron theaters at least once a week. But it also appeals to those who previously avoided the high price of movie theaters by making them affordable.

If MoviePass is able to continue to provide an affordable option for moviegoers of all types, the startup really will save movie theaters all across the nation.

Do you have a company or idea in mind that really Thinks Big? Please contact me via email at Bobby.Miller@thinkbigparners.com.  You could be featured in our blog as The Next Big Thing!