Support the pod! https://buymeacoffee.com/lowlevelbarbarians Need help with market expansion, product market fit, growth, or fundraising? Reach out! * https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexanderle/ Kicking off 2025 with something different. We sit down with Anna and Leo, two fearless indie filmmakers who left Russia to pursue free expression, true art, and their Hollywood dreams. Their journey is anything but ordinary, and they’re carving an uncharted path to greatness. Check out Anna and Leo's Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@motionandsounds Lets Connect! * https://www.linkedin.com/in/annakadykova/ * https://www.linkedin.com/in/leonid-shmelkov-82932ba0/ Raw Transcript: https://share.descript.com/view/JOgWqPbOVSE 00:00 Escaping Russia for Hollywood Dreams 01:12 Anna 04:36 Leo 07:19 Censorship in Russia 14:26 Getting Stuck in Sri Lanka 15:44 Countries With Big Independent Film Industries 19:29 Challenges Of Feature Film Funded by Russian Government 22:05 How Western People Perceive the War With Ukraine 24:53 Insider Insights On the War of Ukraine 27:56 What Would You Be Willing to Die For 28:40 Dying & Being Forgotten vs Being Remembered 32:37 Breaking Into the Film Industry 34:44 Contrarian Approach 37:28 Finding Authenticity In Your Own Voice 43:22 Forget the World Chaos By Surfing 45:29 Leaving the Sri Lankan Village 52:11 Re-doing the feature film 01:02:57 Most Ambitious Project 01:03:49 Blind Trust In Selling A Script 01:12:59 Balancing Art vs Commercial 01:14:19 Beginner's Mindset 01:15:46 Crisis As A Possibility & Thinking Big 01:23:13 Defining The Partnership

Support the pod! https://buymeacoffee.com/lowlevelbarbarians Need help with market expansion, product market fit, growth, or fundraising? Reach out! * https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexanderle/ The final LLB episode of 2024 with Dave, Alex and Jianggan. Jianggan just got back from his 8th China trip of the year and updates us on what is happening in China. We cover the attitude of the youth in China currently, SEA vs Chia logistics, and some thoughts around the impact of the new US administration coming in. We close out with some thoughts that characterized 2024 and some takes for 2025. Lets Connect! * https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidqchang/ * https://www.linkedin.com/in/jianggan/ Raw Transcript: https://share.descript.com/view/F4EYjIonWBB Chapters: 00:00 Intro 00:45 Updates From Shanghai/China 03:39 Current Attitudes of the Youths in China Right Now 05:46 Interest Rates in China 06:38 Logistics in China vs Southeast Asia Development 23:15 China in 2025 28:17 Takes on Trump & uncertanity going into 2025 30:44 Art Of The Deal - Anchoring 36:05 Joe Biden pardons 39:09 United Health Care CEO Assassination 46:50 How Would you Characters 2024 58:59 Contrarian Takes for 2025

Support the pod! https://buymeacoffee.com/lowlevelbarbarians Need help with market expansion, product market fit, growth, or fundraising? Reach out! * https://www.linkedin.com/in/alexanderle/ This is the first time I ever met Whei Chern & Dmitry. We barely exchanged maybe more than 2-3 messages before this episode. In this episode I do real time feedback of seeing this deck and meeting the the founders of MIEA health for the first time. Lets Connect! * https://www.linkedin.com/in/dmitriy-chekin/ * https://www.linkedin.com/in/whei-chern-ho-8015a235/ Raw Transcript: https://share.descript.com/view/Vho8S2YDmcw 00:00 Pitch Deck Breakdown - MIEA Health | E:53 00:18 The Premise & Context 01:26 Intro Of the Founders 01:35 Dimitry 02:43 Founding of MIEA 03:19 Original Idea of MIEA 05:06 The Hundred Year life 07:25 What MIEA Does Today 09:27 Give Me A Concise Elevator Pitch 11:53 Investor Sentiment In Southeast Asia 16:08 Founder Roles 17:04 First Feedback On Elevator Pitch 19:35 My Understanding Of The Pitch So far 20:42 Pitch Deck Review - Slide 1 24:00 Slide 2 - Purpose Slide 32:01 Slide 2 - Problem Slide 34:36 Slide 4 - Problem Slide 36:11 How Important is the USD150B Statistic 41:44 Slide 5 - Product 45:53 Why Solve THIS problem - Clarifying Original idea 48:46 General Feedback From Other Investors 50:28 Mismatch of Investor Expectations vs Stage of Venture 51:31 Slide 6 - Product Slide 51:47 Understanding Incumbent Solutions 54:02 YC Bible - Do Things That Don't Scale 57:31 Slide 7 - Market Sizing 01:03:04 Slide 8 - Competitive Analysis 01:07:11 Slide 9 - Competitive Advantage 01:11:40 Slide 10 - Go To Market 01:14:26 Slide 12 - Notable New Clients 01:15:25 Slide 13 - Team Slide 01:18:13 Learn More About the Founders 01:19:19 Founder Motivations