7 ms·

Stuck in Vancouver is hardly a terrible fate. Run the company from there - the city is crawling with tv/film/media people who cost half as much as the do in Ca

by ujibuip 17y ago

Stuck in Vancouver is hardly a terrible fate. Run the company from there - the city is crawling with tv/film/media people who cost half as much as the do in Ca.

kingsley_20 17y ago
Indee.tv was incorporated in the bay area and has been operational for almost a year. He's being refused re-entry. Like myself, Sharan's a first generation immigrant from India, and he doesn't actually have any connections/ roots in Vancouver. He just picked it because he was legally required to re-enter the country ("yes, to stay in the country, Alice, you must leave and re-enter" saith the INS), and Canada's a close "foreign" country.
- mrfish 17y ago
  Also Vancouver has a HUGE Indian community so I hope he was able to take advantage of that.
sharan 17y ago
I realize I may be left with no options, but it's not as easy as just saying run the company from here. For one, I am not a Canadian citizen so I need to apply for all kinds of immigration permissions to move the company and work for it from here. We have also been building momentum with filmmakers and festivals in the Bay Area and my team is based there. To not have access to any of that does create problems for a startup.
- pkaler 17y ago
  There is a very vibrant startup community here in Vancouver. Check out: http://launchpartyhq.com/ http://bootup.ca/ http://barcamp.org/BarCampVancouver http://www.newmediabc.com/ http://www.techvibes.com/index/vancouver
- potatolicious 17y ago
  FYI a man of your qualifications will get fast-tracked through the Canadian immigration process with zero problems.
  - ujibuip 17y ago
    In theory - however in practice "fast-track" and "Canadian government" don't naturally go together.
    - pyre 17y ago
      Make friends with a local and have them contact their MP. My status process sped up pretty quickly with a politician's office on the case. They can probe to ask what's going on with a particular application,etc. (I also believe that my application was 'fast-tracked' because there was an upcoming election too).
      - jacquesm 17y ago
        It very much depends on a large number of factors that are not under your control. It's basically a lottery. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't. I've had the local mayor, a case officer of the Ontario immigration department (from TO) and a whole bunch of others practically beg the office in Buffalo to finally do something and still time ran out (after 5 years we called it quits). The really sad thing is that it cost a lot of hardworking Canadians their jobs, and the area where we lived jobs, especially well paying ones with employers that have a different view of employees than so many lemons that need to be squeezed are very hard to come by.
        pyre 17y ago
        That sucks. Just a note to anyone attempting Canadian immigration (at least US->Canada immigration), the Buffalo office is supposedly the best way to 'fast-track' your application instead of sending it to Alberta... Even if all of the paperwork says that In-Canada applications must go through Alberta. But I am not an immigration lawyer so your mileage may vary. I'm married to a Canadian citizen so that might have helped. Instead of just trying to immigrate 'cold.'

by ujibuip 17y ago

Stuck in Vancouver is hardly a terrible fate. Run the company from there - the city is crawling with tv/film/media people who cost half as much as the do in Ca.

kingsley_20 17y ago

Indee.tv was incorporated in the bay area and has been operational for almost a year. He's being refused re-entry. Like myself, Sharan's a first generation immigrant from India, and he doesn't actually have any connections/ roots in Vancouver. He just picked it because he was legally required to re-enter the country ("yes, to stay in the country, Alice, you must leave and re-enter" saith the INS), and Canada's a close "foreign" country.

mrfish 17y ago
Also Vancouver has a HUGE Indian community so I hope he was able to take advantage of that.

sharan 17y ago

I realize I may be left with no options, but it's not as easy as just saying run the company from here. For one, I am not a Canadian citizen so I need to apply for all kinds of immigration permissions to move the company and work for it from here. We have also been building momentum with filmmakers and festivals in the Bay Area and my team is based there. To not have access to any of that does create problems for a startup.

pkaler 17y ago
There is a very vibrant startup community here in Vancouver. Check out: http://launchpartyhq.com/ http://bootup.ca/ http://barcamp.org/BarCampVancouver http://www.newmediabc.com/ http://www.techvibes.com/index/vancouver
potatolicious 17y ago
FYI a man of your qualifications will get fast-tracked through the Canadian immigration process with zero problems.
- ujibuip 17y ago
  In theory - however in practice "fast-track" and "Canadian government" don't naturally go together.
  - pyre 17y ago
    Make friends with a local and have them contact their MP. My status process sped up pretty quickly with a politician's office on the case. They can probe to ask what's going on with a particular application,etc. (I also believe that my application was 'fast-tracked' because there was an upcoming election too).
    - jacquesm 17y ago
      It very much depends on a large number of factors that are not under your control. It's basically a lottery. Sometimes it helps, sometimes it doesn't. I've had the local mayor, a case officer of the Ontario immigration department (from TO) and a whole bunch of others practically beg the office in Buffalo to finally do something and still time ran out (after 5 years we called it quits). The really sad thing is that it cost a lot of hardworking Canadians their jobs, and the area where we lived jobs, especially well paying ones with employers that have a different view of employees than so many lemons that need to be squeezed are very hard to come by.
      - pyre 17y ago
        That sucks. Just a note to anyone attempting Canadian immigration (at least US->Canada immigration), the Buffalo office is supposedly the best way to 'fast-track' your application instead of sending it to Alberta... Even if all of the paperwork says that In-Canada applications must go through Alberta. But I am not an immigration lawyer so your mileage may vary. I'm married to a Canadian citizen so that might have helped. Instead of just trying to immigrate 'cold.'