Archonstine
patreon
68) Shark Tank
🕑 Added 2024-04-08 18:35:47 +0000 UTC4th February 1998 (Wednesday)
Jim Wayne (POV)
“-Thank you Mr. Keene, we’ll contact you with further details in 3 days.”
Keene chuckled good-naturedly, “Oh no Mr. Wayne, thank you. I must say, shooting your film in our lovely village of Coates will be a decision you will not regret. I’ll make sure of it myself, the townsfolk won’t make a huff about it. In fact, you said you were shooting a war scene, am I right?”
I nodded along, curious to see what he was getting at, “Yeah, we’ll be shooting a few scenes in varied locations, this village will be one of them.”
“Splendid! Now, humor me Mr. Wayne, for I am not particularly knowledgeable about the filming process. But am I right in the assumption that for a scene as… ambitious as the depiction of a war, you’ll need extras? Hulking men, running at each other, shooting with the- props and whatnot?” He raises an eyebrow almost hopefully… oh. I see what he’s getting at.
“Mr. Keene, am I to assume that the residents of the village will assent to being extras if we are short.” I speak softly, squashing my enthusiasm as soon as it threatens to spill out at his words.
His eyes wide, he looked like he had been caught with a hand in the cookie jar… yes. I can work with this.
Boss man will be happy if nothing else.
…
RING - RING!
“Hello?” His voice sounds through the company issued mobile phone pressed against my right ear.
“Boss? It’s me, Wayne the location scout… yeah that’s exactly who I am boss… no- I know you told me not to call you that but it just- it seems right… my prerogative- as you say boss, now, I just got done with the mayor of this little village… Yes, Coates. We got permission right away, had to sign a few legalese, standard boilerplate stuff… no yeah, he seemed more excited ‘bout it than you are boss… yup exactly. Now, he even offered to have a few villagers fill in as extras if we need them-... No I didn’t confirm it, I gave off a vague response, it’ll keep him occupied… yeah. Okay then, I’ll make my way to Gedney Drove End, and then Lincolnshire. Will give a sitrep by evening… yeah, I will call you boss, ASAP.”
And with that, I cut the call, depositing the thick metal contraption in my carry bag… it was too damn big and bulky to fit into my pocket of all places so, carry bag it is.
I made my way to the rental car, and turned the ignition.
All right then, next stop…Gedney Drove End!
A nice, relaxing hour long drive, with greenery passing by every mile.
Let’s hope the guy at Gedney is as co-operative as Keene here. It will certainly make my job way easier.
Col Needham (POV)
Mark, tell me the coffee machine’s fixed?” I ask in a desperate bid to extract any iota of good news.
“Just an hour ago Col, take a chill pill will you? He’s not going to judge us based on how good the coffee is for fuck’s sake.” Mark's snide shows itself in spectacular fashion as always.
So naturally, as the CEO and sole founder of the company, I take the high road, “Shut up.”
Mark snorts before leaving the room.
Damn it!
These chucklefucks… why in the bloody hell can’t they get how big this is? We’ve been doing good work here at this company, good hard work.
But we’ve stagnated for months now, and our cash-flow is dwindling fast. Our expansion has slowed down, and our liquidity is a fucking joke.
We’re caught in a vicious cycle, and in desperate need of funding to truly achieve what I have envisioned over the years for the future of this company.
And out of the blue, he arrives The hottest commodity in Hollywood, and a man who quite possibly is swimming in cash back in LA…
And that very man is set to arrive at our office in 10 minutes… oh fuckin’ hell-
“STELLA?!” I call out, my voice echoing through the narrow halls of our headquarters.
A click-clack of heels is heard, as Stella hurriedly arrives at the source of the voice, aka me.
“Yes Mr. Needham?”
“Is the conference room ready?” I ask her for the… umpteenth time, but really I am just being cautious. I can’t afford to screw this up no matter what.
She rolls her eyes in turn, “You asked me an hour ago, I said yes. Nothing’s changed since then… Sir.” She adds at the end to maintain the facade of a hierarchy no doubt.
Without missing a beat I shoot back, “Check it again, make sure the projector is working, and the seats are ready. Also, run the presentation again-”
“HE’S HERE!” Mark yells from down the hall, looking out a glass window facing the parking lot.
I freeze up a little for a second, before adrenaline floods my body.
I start walking towards the entrance, shouting instructions as I pass, “Stella, check the conference room, Mark, you’re with me. Victor, make 5 cups of coffee NOW! Emma, double check our numbers. I don’t want a single discrepancy-”
I continue as I make my way towards the elevator, intent on going down to receive him-
CREAK
The doors to the staircase by the elevator open up-
“Mr. Stirling! You-I, You could have used the elevator-” I began, in a desperate bid to hide the shock I felt that very instant.
The office is on the 8th floor… fucking hell!
He interrupted me seamlessly, busy smoothening the creases on his suit, “Oh I was going to Mr. Needham but it was on 9th, and I have never fancied waiting for a lift up the floors so… I climbed the staircase. Did a fair bit of cardio too, really helpful it was! To be honest, I arrived here on the 2nd, and haven’t gone to a gym ever since, far too busy to find time for it every single day and so- I make a workout out of the little things in life… Hope you didn’t mind?” He asked in a matter of fact tone.
Mind?! I wanna know how in the fuck did he climb 8 flights of stairs in a single minute! Wha- was he jumping one flight at a time or somethin’?! Seriously what the fuck?!
A glance to my right confirms Mark was wondering the exact same thing, staring at Stirling incredulously… and rightly so!
Nevertheless, I was not interested in pissing off my company’s one chance at salvation and so I went along for the moment, “Not at all Mr. Stirling, not in the least! I commend such a healthy approach to life as it is. And please… call me Col.”
“Only if you call me Ricky. Now,” He clapped his hands together, producing what I can only describe as a localized sonic boom by the sound of it, “Let’s get right to it shall we? I’m sure we have a busy day ahead of us after all.”
I scoff playfully, “Oh, you have no idea Mr. Stir- Ricky. Today’s been very hectic for me and my staff. Though I’m guessing it’s not exactly been rainbows and sunshine for you?”
He sighed deeply at that, “No. It’s been a very busy couple of days actually, my next movie is set to commence filming entirely on English soil after all. Forgive me for my candor but… scouting viable locations has been a bitch and a half.” He profaned casually, his attempts at reducing the tension working like a charm as I finally feel myself unwind a little.
“Anyway,” He continued, “Shall we get to it?”
…
“-is more than just a database of movie information. It's a platform that connects people with the world of entertainment, providing them with information, insights, and a sense of community. With the rise of the internet, we have an opportunity to revolutionize the way people discover and engage with movies, TV shows, and more.” I pause to take a deep breath as I glance at Ricky’s face… and I couldn’t gauge anything.
Millions of angel investors in the world, and I had to get the one, with the best poker face I had ever seen in my life.
He nodded, gesturing me to continue and so I did.
“Our user base is growing rapidly, and we have plans to expand our services to include not just movies and TV shows, but also video games, actors, and filmmakers. We want to create a one-stop destination for all things entertainment, where users can find everything they need to know in one place… In conclusion, our company is poised for exponential growth, and we are confident that with the right investment, we can take our platform to new heights. We believe that it has the potential to become the go-to source for entertainment information worldwide, and we invite you to join us on this exciting journey.” I finished with a flourish, that honestly looked more like a flounder.
He stared at the projected screen showcasing our balance sheet for a second before requesting to review the complete financial docket, that we swiftly passed on to him, eager to hear his thoughts.
He spent a few minutes at most, going through the binder, flipping pages at a speed that would have had me convinced he was putting on a show. Too bad I knew exactly who he was… and what he was capable of.
A man who graduated from the most competitive film-making course summa cum laude at the age of 18 with a Masters no less... He's a bloody genius. A prodigy.
He finally reached the end of the docket, and proceeded to down the cup of coffee in his hand before setting it on the table, and addressing me.
“Col, correct me if I’m wrong here. Your firm’s valuation is close to $20 million approximately, so 12.2 million pounds. And you are looking for 2.4 million pounds for a 20% stake in your venture, am I right?”
I nod in response, confirming his words.
He closed the file, and set it on the table, “Ok then, I only see one way out of his buddy. I reject the offer.”
Oh… shit.
“I have a counter offer though, if you’re open to it Col.”
I grab the lifeline and nod rapidly, as he outlines his offer, “I’ll give you $25 million… I want to acquire your operations effective immediately.”
I stand there, frozen in shock at the offer, before rejecting it without a second thought, “No, no way Ricky. This, this firm? It’s my life’s work! I’m not selling all of it Ricky, no way-” I shake my head.
“Wait, wait! Col, hear me out ok?”
“... Fine.”
“You know, fun fact about me. I don’t invest in projects or ventures Col… I invest in people. And throughout this little ‘pitch’, if there is one thing that filled with confidence, it’s you. With you at the helm, and me signing checks, we’ll be unstoppable! Listen, I’ll fork over $25 million, and then to assure you that you will remain in charge, we’ll sign a contract at your earliest convenience. It will stipulate that you shall be the CEO and General Manager, and your position will never be revoked, unless you engage in unethical industry practices- eh, you know what? Let’s not go there. Just imagine it Col… I am Ricky Stirling. You take this deal, and you will have the one thing you desperately need as of now to develop your database… industry connections Col. I’ll provide you access to Stirling Studio servers and databases, heavily supervised of course, but nevertheless… your expansion will flow far smoother than the coffee I just drank a few seconds ago. Plus, I’m interested in your vision Col. I have looked through the papers, I’m sure there are 4 more companies that do exactly what you’re doing right now… but I’m not investing in the firm as I made clear before I’m here to invest in you.”
He stood up, and walked towards me, all the while I stayed rooted to my spot.
“The contract, my salary-”
“Will be discussed later. I can assure you that the number we reach shall satisfy the both of us… provided you take the deal… You’re never gonna get anything like this again Col, I know it and deep down, you know it too.”
Ricky Stirling (POV)
I stare off at the bozo, who was busy being paranoid in his head as he went through the implications of my offer, again and again, without reprieve.
He’s smart, no doubt about that. A stand up guy, and not a skeleton in his closet. His social skills were lacking to say the least, but he more than made up for it with his technical knowhow, and sheer ambition for his venture… and what a venture it is.
…
10 minutes of back and forth later, he finally shook on it, and sealed the deal… a handshake deal, but we’ll make it official soon enough.
“Ricky I-I can’t believe this is happening, it's all just… surreal.”
I smile at him, noting his assistant behind him blushing to her roots… Stella I believe. Nonetheless, I pat his shoulders as I say, “Welcome to the Midas family Col. I have tremendous expectations from you, and everyone here at IMDb… together, we shall build the most comprehensive database in international cinema!”
![[SYK] from patreon](https://patrefans.com/kistorage/56232.jpg)
