Anyone working on a M2 Mac Mini with 16gb RAM? (mostly 2k and 4k cleanup and roto work)

You have to ask, how much is your time worth? Mini with max RAM is about $700 less than the Mini Pro with max RAM. If you get the extended Apple Care for three years (highly recommended) and consider upgrading your computer after two years, it will cost you about $350 per year for the more powerful, faster rendering and more compatible machine.  If you work 500 hours per year (full time is 2000 + two weeks vacation), then the more powerful computer will cost you about 70¢ per hour worked over the next two years. Now, the question you have to ask yourself is how much more productive can I be with a computer that is less likely to have rendering problems, previews a little faster, and has a greater likelihood of not meeting the minimum system requirements for software that is updated every few months? 

For me, it's a no-brainer. I work about seven hundred hours a year on my computer. I'm full-time and charge slightly above industry standard rates for the LA area. I work mostly on the MacBookPro, so my machine is a fully loaded, top-of-the-line MacBookPro replaced about every two years (because the trade-in value is still great at two years and falls to next to nothing at three). The reliability and speed of the most powerful machine I can buy is such a small percentage of my annual billable jobs that the choice is obvious. I do not know anyone who gets to bill by the hour for most work. We have to bid on the job. If I do pick up a rare by-the-hour job, I need to knock them out as fast as I can so my clients will call me again, and I can get back to the higher-paying by-the-job projects.

If you are a hobbyist or don't really have a solid business plan designed to make you a profitable and sustainable business, then the decision may be easier. How much money do you want to spend?