This is a resource list of movies, TV series, and documentaries about entrepreneurs. It is still under construction; I am posting it as is for feedback and suggested additions.
Movies, TV Series, and Documentaries about Entrepreneurs
An admittedly idiosyncratic list of movies, TV series, and documentaries about entrepreneurs that I believe provide valuable context or practical insights for entrepreneurs in the 2020s. Your mileage may vary, and it’s still under construction, so I welcome your feedback and suggestions. You can leave a comment or email me.
My rationale for whether to include a movie, TV series, or documentary is whether or not it offers an accurate portrait of modern or historical entrepreneurs, their challenges, and their insights.
Documentaries
- Kitchen Nightmares – Gordon Ramsey original show – sheds a lot of light on operations management and introducing new business / new products / plus turnarounds
- Taking Care of Business (series where 4 experts go into different retail establishments and advise on business and space re-design.
- Wahl Street – follows Mark Walhberg doing business, shows live negotiations
- Shark Tank documents interactions between founders and funders
- Startup.com (2001) documentary watches dotcom era startups crash and burn
- E-Dreams (2001) another dotcom era documentary
- “Call of the Entrepreneur” Acton institute documentary on three startups. Highlights spiritual aspects of entrepreneurship and need for prudent risk-taking
- Something Ventured – profiles of VC’s quite informative
- I blogged about it at https://www.skmurphy.com/blog/2016/10/10/something-ventured-make-money-and-change-the-world-for-the-better/
- similar to Robert Noyce and his congregation / Tinkerings of Robert Noyce
- Jiro Dreams of Sushi– good documentary about a family business in Japan, stresses value of continuous improvement of craft and impact of a commitment to excellence.
- “Light & Magic” Lucasfilm / Pixar documentary series
- related https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-real-story-of-pixar
- related Creativity Inc. by Ed Catmull
- Silicon Cowboys – a very good documentary about Compaq
- Print the Legend documentary about 3d printing startups with a focus on makerbot
- Triumph of the Nerds – the rise of accidental empires https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0115398/ (on youtube) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c1yzXkH5Pfo
- based on Robert X. Cringely’s “Accidental Empires” (recommended)
- Related book “Soul of the New Machine” by Tracy Kidder
- See also sequel Triumph of Nerds 2.0 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qvUYPm2nVXM
- Clarkson’s Farm Jeremy Clarkson buys a thousand acre farm in the Cotswold and
- Men who built America Focuses on the lives of Cornelius Vanderbilt, John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, J. P. Morgan, and Henry Ford. Documents how their industrial and business innovations transformed America society. Profiled in “Men Who Built America.”
TV Series — Fiction
- Halt and Catch Fire Fictional but good on Compaq computing, networking, web
- Silicon Valley Offers a lot of truth about realities of technology startups in Silicon Valley.
- Startup (2016-2018 TV series) shows realities of development and financial negotiation but gets a little over the top
Movies
- The Founder profiles Ray Kroc and the MacDonald brothers and how they created MacDonald’s. The tennis court scene where the MacDonald brothers mock up new layouts for the kitchen in chalk and pretend to make hamburgers is worth the price of admission
- Related Ray Kroc’s book “Grinding it out“
- John Love’s book “Behind the Arches” quite good
- Sam Walton Made in America a very candid autobiography (Walton had put off writing his autobiography but he was diagnosed with advanced cancer and it was now or never.)
- “Twelve O’Clock High” [Wikipedia] shows challenges of leadership in very challenging situations.
- Smithsonian Magazine: “Some of Us Have Got To Die”
- Ulee’s Gold Ulee is a beekeeper who has a lot of complications in his life. I liked it because it shows the challenges freelancers and small business owners face in keeping the lights on.
- A Most Violent Year A complex story rooted in the realities of New York in the early 80’s. A businessman pursues a real estate deal that will enable substantial growth. The negotiation scenes were compelling and show how he compromises on tactical setbacks to achieve his strategic vision.
- The Dish profiled in “Four Movies to Renew Your Gumption.“
- Apollo 13 profiled in “Four Movies to Renew Your Gumption” and “Movies to Renew Your Sense of Wonder.“
- Interstellar profiled in”Movies to Renew Your Sense of Wonder.“
I have not watched these but others have recommended them.
- Generation Startup https://www.generationstartupthefilm.com/
- Founders Valley may look more like what you are contemplating
- Mary Queen of Shops
Some Other lists
- https://startupsavant.com/startup-center/best-startup-tv-shows-for-entrepreneurs
- https://startupsavant.com/startup-center/best-startup-movies-for-entrepreneurs
- https://startupsavant.com/best-startup-books
- https://startupsavant.com/startup-resources/
- https://www.99signals.com/best-documentaries-entrepreneurs/
- https://www.99signals.com/best-books-for-entrepreneurs/
Related Blog Posts
- Four Movies to Renew Your Gumption
- Movies to Renew Your Sense of Wonder
- Men Who Built America
- Entrepreneurial Innovation Comes More From Borrowing and Combining Than Invention
A recap of “What Drives America’s Greatest Innovators“ by Harold Evans, who is also the author of “ They Made America” which was made into a four hour PBS special
Photo Credit Andrés Nieto Porras: El árbol de las ideas (tree of ideas) used with attribution under Creative Commons.