Several years ago, as I was transitioning from film finance to film production and writing again, someone asked me how long I would try to get back into filmmaking before I gave up? My response was "giving up" was not an option.

Today the challenge is not visuals, but to be able to tell a riveting emotional story, something that can reach deep down inside the audience's heart and twist it like a toy to make them laugh, cry or jump out of their seats to root for the hero.

Today, with computer-generated visual effects, everything is possible. So we've seen everything. If it can be imagined, it can be put on screen.

My tombstone would someday read I died keeled over at my computer writing a screenplay or a business plan.

Get back up, shake the dust off and keep going. Keep going, because Hollywood is set up to make you fail.

You have to be willing to give it your all and sacrifice to make your dreams come true.

I've already made several friends-for-life from the latest movies I've worked on, and I know I'll make several more in the years to come.