Something Ventured (2011)

Directed by

Daniel Geller, Dayna Goldfine

Genre

documentary film

Country

United States

Runtime

1h 24m

Rated

PG

Rating

6.4 of 10 from 28 voters

Elsewhere

IMDb

How it feels

This documentary tells the story of early venture capitalists in the United States who helped start major technology companies. It covers how these investors worked with people building companies like Apple, Intel, and Genentech.

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What happens

Something Ventured is a 2011 documentary film investigating the emergence of American venture capitalism in the mid-20th century. The film follows the stories of the venture capitalists who worked with entrepreneurs to start and build companies like Apple, Intel, Genentech, Cisco, Atari, Tandem, and others, and looks at the influence of Georges Doriot. It is a full-length independent film which includes interviews with prominent American venture capitalists and entrepreneurs of the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, as well as archival photography and footage. The film has aired across the US on local PBS stations as well as on public television in Norway. Something Ventured features the venture capitalists Arthur Rock, Tom Perkins, Don Valentine, Dick Kramlich, Reid Dennis, Bill Draper, Pitch Johnson, Bill Bowes, Bill Edwards, and Jim Gaither. The entrepreneurs featured in Something Ventured are Gordon Moore (co-founder of Intel), Jimmy Treybig (founder of Tandem), Nolan Bushnell (founder of Atari), Dr. Herbert Boyer (co-founder of Genentech), Mike Markkula (second president/CEO of Apple), Sandy Lerner (co-founder of Cisco), John Morgridge (early CEO of Cisco), and Robert Campbell (founder of what would become PowerPoint). Something Ventured premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival in March 2011. The film was co-executive produced by Paul Holland and Molly Davis. Something Ventured was directed by Emmy Award-winning filmmakers Dan Geller and Dayna Goldfine (co-directors of Ballets Russes (film) and Hallelujah: Leonard Cohen, A Journey, A Song). Something Ventured’s North American distribution partner is Zeitgeist Films. (from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA)

Trailer

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