Steadi succeeds by serving the studios.

Richard D. Schoenberg came to Hollywood's American Film Institute as a student in the early 1980s to become a director of photography. Problem was, he says, he just wasn't as good at it as he wanted to be.

What Schoenberg did find he was good at, however, was buying unused surplus film stock from commercial production companies, then turning around and selling it to independent film producers - a part-time job that helped to pay his college bills.

By the time graduation came, Schoenberg had a choice to make - hang around the entertainment industry trying to make a name for himself as a Steadicam operator, or go into business for himself. He chose business, and in 1983 Steadi Systems was born in the living room of a house he was renting in Hollywood.

"We made money from the very beginning," Schoenberg says. "There was never a quarter where we lost money."

The first couple of years, Schoenberg stayed in the surplus film business. Then he went into selling videotape as well for such vendors as Sony and 3M.

Business was good, and by 1985 the company opened up a New York office, headed by Schoenberg's brother Robert. By the early 1990s, a Chicago outlet opened its doors as well.

"But we decided that we needed to diversify the company even more," Schoenberg explains.

So on Jan. 1, 1994, the company purchased Walt Davis Enterprises, which is in the business of selling hardware - with a heavy concentration of professional video equipment - to the entertainment industry.

With both the hardware and the videotape markets underfoot, the company's fortunes began to soar.

Revenues rise.

Steadi Systems revenues for 1993 were $23 million. By 1994, they had reached $44 million. Schoenberg says 1995 revenues should be "more than $50 million."

Steadi Systems is now the nation's leading independent supplier of raw film stock and videotape. It also sells and leases a wide range of computer, video and audio products used in the production and post production of films, commercials, television shows and computer-oriented mediums.

The company represents some 450 vendors such as Avid, Data Translation, JVC, Sony and Videotek.

"Steadi Systems is an excellent company, and Richard is a very sharp businessman," says Bill Wildman, western regional manager with Sony Electronics' business and professional products group, who uses Steadi Systems among his many vendors in the Los Angeles. "He has one of the most professional logistics systems going.

"We look at our relationship with Steadi Systems as a partnership," Wildman continues. "We set high standards for them, and they exceed them."

Steadi Systems' customers range from major motion picture studios to high-end hobbyists looking for top-notch equipment.

"Where Circuit City leaves off," Schoenberg says, "we pick up."

The company employs about 130 people nationwide, about 70 in two Hollywood locations of about 8,000 square feet each.

Wide reach

The acquisition of Walt Davis Enterprises added new offices in San Francisco, Phoenix and Orange County to Steadi Systems' growing empire. Since then, the company opened for business in Miami and Atlanta too - anywhere there is a lot of film activity.

"The L.A. market isn't the only market where there is growth," Schoenberg says. "There are a lot more people out there across the country who know about and use the products we have. That has helped to fuel our growth too."

About 10 percent of the business is in the film stock side, with 80 percent involved in video and another 10 percent in digital and computer sales. Those percentages will change, however, as the digital revolution continues to take over the entertainment business.

Schoenberg says that change should be good for his business too, creating a larger client base.

"I think a lot of entertainment product will come out of groups of 10 to 15 people using computer-driven video technology," Schoenberg says. "More people will have access to powerful tools to communication on the level of big companies. And the more people using that stuff, the more products they are going to need. Steadi Systems is like the lumberyard of the digital future."

And as for directing, Schoenberg's first passion? He smiles and says that running his own company has proved to be just as creative as working on any movie could ever be.

"I find a huge amount of enjoyment in starting and running my own business," Schoenberg says. "This company didn't come with a book of instructions for me to follow.

"I'm discovering new things about this business every day."

Spotlight 

Steadi Systems

Year founded: 1983 No. of employees then: 1 No. of employees now: 130 Revenues then: $112,000 Revenues now: $50 million-plus