Right now I'm really jonesing for a thunderbolt RAID. I'd also love to order a short stack of what the smart money thinks will be new, kickin' Apple laptops, and hand 'em out to the team. The Apple World Wide Developer's Conference starts this week, and the latest coolness from Cupertino promises all sorts of speed, efficiency, and future-forward sleekness. Coupled with a new set of Canon cameras for a big new gig we're currently developing, hot software upgrades, and a fabulous motion control system, our purchasing spreadsheet starts to look awesome.
In the meantime, we've got work to do.
The funny thing about gear is that it can become a means to an end for people who aren't careful. It's not about wasting money, per se, although that risk certainly exists. The real danger is about thinking that some piece of hardware or software is going to make your work better. You know the type: some people geek out on acquisitions for their own sake. They buy fabulous guitars without learning how to strum more than a few chords. They spend big money on rounded, gleaming kitchen appliances without knowing how to cook much more than microwave dinners.
The right tools most certainly matter. Roads are not built with carpentry tools, and you can't expect a cell phone camera to stand in for an Alexa. When we need to use specialized gear, we do. (Don't even think of looking in our cable closet!)
But more important than the latest and greatest gear is mastery of what you have at your immediate disposal. The most powerful tool in your arsenal, no matter what business you're in, will always be your willingness not to compromise on your vision. The right tools can help you say what you want to say, and we strongly believe there's almost never a reason to use anything less than the best tools you can put your hands on. But tools are only just means to an end. Would you rather your bright idea lose some of it's luster while you spend days upon days grinding away on new user manuals, or would you rather dive in to the project like a pro and make that idea shine right now?
New gear--of all sorts-- is fun, no doubt about it. New gear also facilitates acts of creation that you might not be able to do otherwise--and that most certainly makes it valuable and essential. In the production world, new gear isn't a luxury but an endless part of the landscape. But new gear in and of itself…is just stuff. Ideas, in contrast, are transcendent.
This week at Apple's WWDC Jonathan Ive's Elves will undoubtably give us glimpses of shiny futures, and I'd be lying if I said we weren't watching the event with close, geeky interest. But before we start pricing new kit, there's a set of cool storyboards we're working hard to refine, and when we get it smoothed out in a couple of days the shot is gonna be awesome! Then we'll think about what we need to bring it to life.
Thanks for reading. Next week…what's that? They're going to give clues about the new iPhones? Right on! I just know that everything will be better if I can snag one of those…!
-MS