Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"That's not an easy task." Katzenberg laughed. "It's relatively easy to make an Oscar-winning movie or a box-office hit, but you have to make a movie that's always been successful." It’s not easy to make a movie that can stand the test of time.”

"Why? I don't quite understand, Mr. Katzenberg."

"Anyway, there is still some time. If it ends now, my secretary will bother me with the list of calls to be returned." Katzenberg was passionate about movies and simply chatted more deeply with Ronald.

“Do you know how many movies Hollywood produces in a year?”

Ronald shook his head.

"Today's film production has shrunk significantly, but there are still more than 300 films a year that can be released in theaters across the country. And Hollywood produces at least 10 times this number of films every year."

"In the golden age of thirty years ago, when there was no television, this number would have increased several times. But how many movies released before 1950 are still remembered today?"

Ronald was lost in thought. He had only watched nearly 100 old films in Scorsese's film classic appreciation class, plus the TV evening theater recorded on video tapes.

And this is a classic movie that has been filtered through thirty years of time from the birth of the movie to 1950, all the movie production in the past 50 years.

It looks like it will be circulated for thirty years, and there are still people who remember it. This is indeed a high request. But I just want to direct a movie that will be remembered. Maybe if I work hard towards this goal, plus luck, and the chance to dream of a movie, maybe I can achieve it?

"Yes, Mr. Katzenberg, I know how difficult this is, but this is also the goal I want to pursue in this life."

"Well said, I like young people like you." A middle-aged man opened the door and walked in.

"Mr. Eisner." Katzenberg and Ovitz both stood up and greeted the president of Paramount.

Michael Eisner shook Ovitz's hand and then pulled him into his arms for a hug. "How about I own Jane Fonda's new film?"

"As long as your bid is the highest, Jane Fonda demands fair play." Ovitz answered with a very professional smile.

Ronald also stood up and took a look at the most powerful person in Paramount.

Eisner's sunken eye sockets and square chin look a bit like Superman in the comics. He is wearing a yellow T-shirt and a lilac jacket. Wearing dark gray trousers, white leather shoes, and a white belt around her belly, she is very eye-catching. Only the birth line seems to be further back than Katzenberg.

Eisner looked like he had just come back from the golf course.

"You must be Ronald, the author of the script. I heard Jeffrey mention your name. Hollywood needs young people like you." Eisner actually remembered Ronald's name and shook his hand. , gave an encouraging word.

"Michael, you and Jeffrey continue to talk about the details. I'm waiting for the good news."

Like Caesar in purple robes, Eisner visited the centurion's tent, chatted with each soldier, and then walked away.

This style is completely different from that of Disney's top management, and it gives you the illusion of dealing with friends.

After talking about the bidding methods and details, Michael Ovitz took Ronald out of the gate of Paramount.

"With the first bidder, the subsequent negotiations will be much easier to handle."

As expected by Ovitz, the negotiations became smoother and smoother in the next few days. With each additional studio willing to bid, the next one becomes less difficult to negotiate.

In the film market, no one knows whether a project will make money or lose money, but since others are optimistic about the project, the prospects must be good. We can borrow the vision of popular producers in the industry like Katzenberg to judge the film's box office prospects. Several subsequent studios agreed quickly.

"So your script is definitely going to be sold?" Pfeiffer came to the hotel to stay with Ronald that night.

"I don't know, if it can be sold, it is also Jane Fonda's credit." Ronald and Pfeiffer sat on both sides of the dining cart pushed by the waiter, eating the dinner that was delivered.

"Now I don't trust anyone's promises. In the past two days, Mr. Eisner and I met with Paramount, 20th Century Fox, Orion, and Warner Brothers. I was responsible for selling the script for about half an hour. Speech, hoping to impress the producer.”

Ronald put a piece of pizza in his mouth and took a sip of soda.

"The answers I heard were: We are willing to invest in any project that Jane Fonda approves of, we like the Vietnam War theme very much, and we like this script very, very much... But in the past two days, I have not heard from any studio executives On the spot, I was told to prepare bids to compete for the contract.”

"I'm not sure. In Hollywood, "very, very much" means "I like it", which is the same as New Yorkers saying "I don't like it"? "Very willing" means you can find someone else, right?"

"Giggle..." Michelle Pfeiffer was amused by Ronald and laughed, "I don't know the producer's speaking style, but her agent Limato said that many stars speak like this."

"So I'm not very confident that I can finalize the contract this time, and I have to meet with Frank Price, the president of Columbia, tomorrow."

"You're going to make it, Ronald," Pfeiffer said, shaking his hand.

"How are you? Are you adapting to the acting class?" Ronald held Pfeiffer's hand and asked about her situation.

"It's OK, but emotional memory often makes me collapse."

Ronald's hand trembled when he heard this. Memories of the New York Actors Studio came to his mind again.

"What's wrong, Ronald?" Pfeiffer felt Ronald's nervousness, "Don't worry, I met some classmates who are more experienced than me. Peter told me that as long as the emotional memory I choose is suitable for performance, such as crying scenes, there will be no big problem." Michelle Pfeiffer asked Ronald to relax in turn.

"Really? What memory did you choose?" Ronald drank water again and suppressed his nervousness, "Do you want me to help you analyze it?"

"Hahaha, you don't know if you are not an actor, emotional memory will not work if you say it out loud."

"Okay...you are right." Ronald remembered the method of emotional memory. That emotion must belong only to the actor himself to achieve the best effect.

When I have time, ask Diane's father Bert. He used to run an acting training class. Maybe there is a better way.

"By the way, who is Peter?" Ronald picked up another piece of pizza.

"Hahaha... I thought you wouldn't ask. Peter is also an actor, often plays supporting roles in TV dramas, and is my classmate in the acting class." Michelle Pfeiffer laughed at Ronald's jealousy.

"I won't come tomorrow. There are a lot of exercises in the afternoon acting class and body training."

"I will miss you." Ronald reached out and wiped off the tomato juice on Michelle's mouth, and the atmosphere in the room immediately became ambiguous.

"Are you an actor to become famous or to make money?" Ronald hugged Pfeiffer, and the two whispered on the bed. He remembered what Katzenberg said, making money and becoming famous is easy, but it is difficult to beat time and pass on.

"I don't know, I just like acting very much. After I became the Miss Orange County beauty pageant champion, I called the agents in the phone book and asked them how to act in a movie." Michelle said, resting her head on Ronald's shoulder.

"I was really naive at that time, but I was lucky. My first agent treated me well. Unfortunately, I met those two scammers later. He was old and didn't want to represent me. I heard that he retired later."

"Why did you enter this industry?" Pfeiffer talked about his original intention of entering the entertainment industry and asked Ronald in return.

"What about me? At first, I wanted to make money. Then I wanted to create something, and it would be best if I could leave some traces in Hollywood."

"Hehe..." Pfeiffer took the initiative to stick to Ronald. He liked the warmth of Ronald's body like a warm furnace. "By the way, who were your parents before? I have never heard you talk about them."

"They were just ordinary people. They lived in the suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts before they died." Ronald said, "We used to have a house, but after they had a car accident, I had no money to pay the mortgage, and the bank sued me and auctioned it in court."

"I have never heard you say this. You must be very sad."

"I stayed in the hospital for a long time at that time, and I also suffered from aphasia. Some insurance money and the remaining money returned to the bank after the house was auctioned were all used for medical expenses."

"Poor Ronnie..." Pfeiffer hugged Ronald tighter.

The next morning, Ronald met up with Ovitz again, and the two went to the last studio, Columbia Pictures, to promote "My Brother's Keeper".

Of all the senior executives of the studios Ronald had met, Frank Price was the least like an executive. He looked more like a senior accountant or a high school math teacher. He had a big forehead, but his suit was not very close to his body. A red tie made his shirt wrinkled.

"Welcome, my friend Michael. And welcome to you, little Ronald." Frank Price hugged the two of them, very enthusiastic. This sales was more like a discussion between friends about the script.

Ronald didn't expect that the president of Columbia would be so familiar with his script, and asked a lot of questions about the details. How did you come up with the name "My Brother's Keeper", why set up a fool, and why let the fool become the protector of all soldiers?

Ronald answered one by one.

This made him feel that all the previous studio executives might not have read his script seriously. Compared with Price, Katzenberg was more like asking his subordinates to read the script and write an outline. He only read the synopsis and the comments of his subordinates.

"Who is your favorite director?" Price asked Ovitz.

"James Bridges, the director of China Syndrome," Ovitz replied, "He and Jane work well together, and Jane also likes him."

"I know him. He also directed the "Urban Boy" that Paramount just released. The male and female protagonists are John Travolta and Debra Winger, both of whom are notoriously difficult actors. I agree in principle."

"Jane also hopes that Bruce Gilbert will be the producer..."

Frank Price scratched his head, "Ronald, can you give me and Mr. Ovitz a private space to talk." Then he pressed the button on the table and called in his secretary, "Please take Mr. Li to the lounge for a while."

Ronald followed his secretary to the lounge and drank the coffee brought by the secretary. Knowing that Ovitz might discuss some key issues with Price, he couldn't help but worry about gains and losses. Frank Price is the most careful person to read the script among all people, and perhaps he is the most likely to pay for the filming.

At the same time in the office, Frank Price was a little angry, "Michael, you have increased the conditions again. Do you want Jane's IPC Films to participate in the investment?"

"BGO, Orion and Paramount have agreed to the conditions."

"But they can't afford a shooting budget of 3.5 million US dollars."

"Yes, but they haven't been bitten by the hyena."

Frank Price was silent. Last year, Kirk Kerkorian, the Las Vegas tycoon who controlled MGM and then ruined it, set his sights on Columbia again, and increased his holdings of Columbia in the capital market, holding nearly 25% of the shares.

After that, the Department of Justice launched an antitrust investigation into Kerkorian. He controlled the two major producers, MGM and Columbia, and some theaters, touching the antitrust red line.

Kerkorian has a very deep network of contacts, and he managed to turn the antitrust lawsuit into a ruling in his favor. He was not allowed to increase his stake in Columbia or any major Hollywood studio, but he was not forced to sell the 25% stake he already had.

During this period, Kerkorian was even preparing to sue Columbia Pictures for the strange reason that he failed to do his duty to create benefits for shareholders. This was a combination punch aimed at executives such as Price, intending to clean up the original management, unite other non-film industry shareholders to take control, and then slowly hollow out Columbia like MGM.

After seeing what Kerkorian did with MGM, most of Columbia's shareholders were very dissatisfied with this casino owner coming to mess things up, but it was also a reality that Columbia lacked profitable star productions.

Now Price needs this movie starring Jane Fonda more than anyone else to win the support of all shareholders.

"So what are your complete conditions?"

"A production budget of 3.85 million, Jane Fonda as the lead actress with a guaranteed contract of 2 million, James Bridges as the director, Bruce Gilbert as the producer, and IPC Films as the partner."

"What other conditions are there?"

"Announce a 12 million investment, and I will help you stir up the media, starting with the young screenwriter selling a sky-high script, how about that?"

"Do you have a complete publicity plan?"

"Yes, let this news ferment slowly and appear repeatedly in the media. It would be best if Ronald, a young screenwriter, fired the first shot. The 20-year-old screenwriter wrote a Vietnam War script that attracted the attention of Oscar winner Jane Fonda. In the end, five Hollywood studios bid for it, and Columbia won..."

"I like this media headline."