A 42-year-old entrepreneur sold his startup for $1.3 billion, despite initially struggling to afford a $17,500 camera.

The Moment series by CNBC Make It features successful individuals discussing the pivotal moment that altered their career paths and lives.

Emery Wells pursued his dream career by impulsively purchasing a $17,500 camera despite his inability to pay for it.

In 2014, Wells, 42, founded Frame.io, a video collaboration software business that he later sold to Adobe for $1.275 billion in 2021.

Over twenty years ago, he was a 25-year-old freelance video editor who had recently left bartending in New York to pursue a full-time film career. At an industry trade show in 2006, he witnessed a startup called Red Digital Cinema reveal its plans to create a high-quality digital camera suitable for big-budget Hollywood productions.

"I was taken aback when my colleague put down a $1,000 deposit to secure a spot on the product's waitlist. Out of jealousy, I decided to sign up as well," Wells shared with CNBC Make It.

He recalls that his credit card's $1,200 limit was nearly maxed out by the deposit he made, which left him in debt. However, when his Red One camera shipped a couple years later, he managed to find the funds to cover its cost.

The few individuals in New York who owned an altered version of the product changed the course of Wells' career, he claims. His demand skyrocketed. By 2014, his post-production company, Katabatic Digital, generated over $1 million in annual revenue from clients such as Coca-Cola and Pfizer.

The real money was in a software built by Wells and Katabatic engineer John Traver, which allowed people to collaboratively give feedback on videos during post-production. When they launched Frame.io as a standalone tool, over 15,000 clients signed up.

Katabatic was shuttered by Wells in order to focus on Frame.io full-time, as he faced a decision between concentrating on the established, secure business or pursuing an unproven but promising startup.

Over the next five years, the startup secured more than $80 million in funding. Meanwhile, as Wells and Traver considered an IPO, Adobe presented them with a billion-dollar offer that they couldn't resist.

Wells discusses the dangers of forsaking a guaranteed outcome in favor of a potentially greater opportunity, as well as the imprudent acquisition that led to it all.

What prompted you to consider giving up Katabatic Digital for a larger opportunity?

Post-production is a form of client service work. Occasionally, you may have clients, but other times, there may be no work to do.

John Traver, who had a minor in computer science, was hired by me for post-production work. However, as we worked together over several months, we began to explore software ideas and tinker with them. We didn't have a clear objective of creating a software company, as we were unsure if it was possible.

Let's consider the idea of creating something that we are highly skilled in, has a market demand, addresses a problem we can solve effectively, and has the potential to generate income.

How did you decide to shift your focus away from Katabatic when you realized Frame.io might become big enough?

In 2014, we were seeking funding for Frame.io. A serial entrepreneur advised us, "I would never invest in you until you're fully committed. Not 99%. You must have all-in investment. This is not a side project. I'm not providing money for a partial commitment."

The statement really struck a chord with me. I felt like, "Oh no, do I have to shut down? What do I do?"

As the launch of Frame.io approached, my focus shifted towards it, causing me to decline work from clients as we spent all our time preparing for it.

To truly succeed, we must fully commit.

Did it feel like a significant risk to forsake Katabatic for something far less secure?

I had spent nearly a decade constructing my post-production company from the ground up. With a few hundred thousand dollars in savings, I invested a significant portion of that money into Frame.io. Consequently, it was a substantial risk.

The decision to take more risks with Frame.io was based on signals of success from both customers and investors, which encouraged me to do so. In the first 90 days after our public launch, we generated $30,000 in monthly recurring revenue and secured a $2 million seed round from Accel.

At that moment, I realized I wouldn't take another post-production job.

Was it always your belief that Frame.io would eventually become a billion-dollar company?

Frame.io was the concept that grew larger and larger as we spent more time contemplating it. At the time of our launch, I did not have a strong belief that it would become a billion-dollar enterprise.

Many founders share the belief that their businesses will not achieve significant growth. Unlike Mark Zuckerberg, I do not wish to compare myself to him, but I recall interviews with Mark from the early days where he expressed doubt about Facebook's potential to expand beyond college students. He stated, "I don't think we're ever going to [grow beyond college students]."

You go from $1 million in revenue to $3 million to $6 million. Then you're pitching how you're going to get to $10 million, $20 million and beyond. And I'm like, "Are we really going to achieve those numbers?"

In every fundraising round, you must pitch to every investor you speak to, but if I'm being truthful, I [didn't] know.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.

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