When Vietnamese refugee Senh Duong fled after the fall of Saigon, he could never have imagined he’d one day co-found one of the most influential movie sites in the world - Rotten Tomatoes.

A kid who grew up on Hong Kong kung fu flicks, Senh was obsessed with Jackie Chan.

So when Jackie tried to break into Hollywood again, Senh went looking for honest reviews...

But couldn’t find any.

Every critic said the movies were great (even when they weren’t).

So Senh decided to build a site that told the truth.

What began as a side project coded through sleepless nights turned into a cultural phenomenon - one that raised $1 million (2 months before the dot com bubble burst!!), sold for $10 million, and changed how audiences everywhere judge movies.

In this episode, Senh opens up about:

🔸 Fleeing Vietnam and growing up in a refugee camp in Hong Kong

🔸 How Jackie Chan inspired the birth of Rotten Tomatoes

🔸 Almost quitting Rotten Tomatoes due to burnout

🔸 Being treated as “second-class citizens” by film publicists at screenings (and when that changed!)

🔸 Raising $1M, surviving the dot-com crash & selling too early?!

🔸 Why he says he’s proud to be a “one-hit wonder”

This is the story of how a movie-obsessed refugee created one of the most iconic brands in film history - all because he wanted Jackie Chan to get the credit he deserved.

Highlights:

• 2:08 The Fall of Saigon
• 4:48 Arriving in the US
• 6:01 Falling in love with Hong Kong movies & TV series
• 8:55 The mafia controls the film industry?!
• 10:14 Studying computer science at Berkeley
• 13:14 Dreaming of becoming a PIXAR animator?
• 14:00 Founding a startup design studio with friends, Patrick Lee & Stephen Wang
• 15:52 Landing Disney as a 7-figure client due to pizza party?!
• 20:52 Launching Rotten Tomatoes as a side project
• 23:58 What kept you going?
• 26:22 Leaving Design Reactor & feeling lost
• 28:52 Rotten Tomatoes’ traffic explodes
• 31:34 Turning a side project → company (+ raising $1 million)
• 35:30 Building a relationship with film critics
• 36:52 Tomatometer
• 38:42 Investors saying, ‘Are you crazy?!’
• 43:46 Internet bubble bursts, layoffs & living in the office
• 47:02 What kept everyone going?
• 48:49 Major turning point
• 53:18 Selling for $10 million
• 54:47 What’s next?
• 56:03 IGN buys Rotten Tomatoes for $650 million (1 year later?!)

🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/

🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/pWO2IVYZvlI&list=UULFSZlcS5ooyCjj_MkrmH_WhQ

📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/154

💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile

Hui Jing’s life reads like a TVB drama.

Her mum was forced to be the sole provider for the family after her dad landed them in bad debt.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, Hui Jing understood the importance of money & joined the work force young - at the below-legal age of 15 - for a mediocre RM4/hour.

It wasn’t easy.

But it kickstarted a series of jobs that saw her go from working as at McDonald’s to The Body Shop to becoming a finalist for the Red Bull Female Driver Search in 2009 (they were offering a cash prize) to becoming an insurance agent (where she learned the joys of passive income) to joining a radio station as a road runner and finally…

Co-founding one of Malaysia’s fastest growing local convenience store chains, Bila-Bila Mart.

Which is on track to hit a whooping RM150+ million in revenue & 100 stores by the end of 2025, with an IPO on the horizon!

Not bad for a Brickfields girl who was once kidnapped & held ransom due to bad family debts.

If there’s one thing that clearly stands out about Hui Jing’s story, it’s this: Taking risk

During the interview, she spoke of how:

“Throwing everything outta the window (i.e. leaving corporate) sounded like an adventure. I wanted that adventure.

 Because I was just thinking, okay, now I have no commitments. I don't have a family… If I don't do it, if I don't risk it, I don't really see how is the world outside, when am I gonna do it?”

That said, life hasn’t been without its challenges.

Once at a bar, she was told, “Jing, you talk too much as a female. Can you shut up?”

And also advised to stop working and to “ask your husband to feed you.”

Needless to say, that lit a fire in Hui Jing that led to the founding of Bila-Bila Mart, where she also spoke about:

✨ How Dettol saved Bila-Bila Mart (they opened their first physical store during MCO)

✨ Their first breakthrough (pivoting from the idea of selling hot food → kedai runcit model)

✨ The process for local SMEs getting their items into Bila-Bila Mart

✨ Dealing with chauvinistic men who question Jing’s very young team

✨ Why you are the decision maker of your own fate

Don't forget to subscribe for future STIMY episodes!

Special thanks to Bila-Bila Mart for sponsoring this episode.

🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/

🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/MyM_uFevyJI&list=UULFSZlcS5ooyCjj_MkrmH_WhQ

💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile

✍🏻 Leave a review on STIMY: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/so-this-is-my-why/id1521191442

We're back with Part 2 with Ken Perenyi, arguably one of the art world's greatest and most successful conman?!

In Part 1 of Ken's STIMY interview (do check it out if you haven't already done so), we covered his journey including how he first launched his art forgery 'career' (hint: it involves a broken bathroom that crashed through the ceiling to the restaurant below!).

In Part 2, Ken discusses his motivations, the thrill of creating and selling fake art, and how he managed to avoid capture by both the mafia and the FBI.

Highlights include a $750,000 art piece he painted, adopting his daughter due to a CNN documentary by Christiane Amanpour, and the psychological tactics he employed to fool art experts.

Despite the rather questionable nature of his work, Ken views his career with a mix of pride and reflection, acknowledging missed opportunities and his philosophical outlook on life.

He also recounts his controversial friendships with high-profile figures like Roy Cohn (the notorious lawyer/fixer who helped Donald Trump gain a footing in New York) and his thoughts on the challenges for contemporary artists breaking into the industry.

Highlights:

• 01:44 Ken's Artistic Journey and Motivations
• 05:46 The Art of Deception: Techniques and Challenges
• 10:53 Close Calls with the Mafia and FBI
• 16:04 The Investigation and Its Aftermath
• 33:32 Reflections on Life Choices and Missed Opportunities
• 38:23 Rescuing a Daughter from Sex Slavery
• 39:47 A Life Transformed by Art
• 40:04 The Rescue Mission in Ghana
• 43:52 Adopting Bridget and Her Journey
• 46:02 Reflections on Life Choices
• 01:04:28 The Art World and Its Challenges
• 01:15:22 Final Thoughts and Legacy

🙊 Want to support STIMY for as little as $0.10/day? https://www.sothisismywhy.com/support-stimy/

🍿 YouTube: https://youtu.be/MoZ5YOdHyJ4

📍Show notes: https://www.sothisismywhy.com/152

💌 Weekly STIMY Newsletter on the art of storytelling + building your personal brand (+snippets of STIMY behind-the-scenes): https://sothisismywhy.ck.page/profile