Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"So you think LaPuke is playing tricks? He wants Mr. Ovitz to give up on me and choose director Bridges? But my script is on file, how could they steal it?" Ronald asked after listening to Richard's analysis.

"I'm afraid they have some tricks we don't know about. I've heard some rumors inside the company that LaPuke doesn't follow the rules very much, and there are many old Hollywood conspiracies. In the current publicity plan, your name has not been reported by any media, which gives them some room for conspiracy.

We have to be prepared, and most importantly, Mr. Ovitz's attitude is unclear now."

Ronald nodded, yes, we have to be prepared.

"I need your help, Lindsay. Can you fly to Los Angeles? This matter may be more difficult than the last script signature dispute." After discussing with Richard, Ronald first called his lawyer.

Lindsay Doll listened to Ronald and Richard's speculation on the phone, "I've thought about it. You need more than just a lawyer who is proficient in law. You need a lawyer who is proficient in the operation of Hollywood's major studios.

Some things are difficult for outsiders in Hollywood to figure out. If you need, I can fly to Los Angeles immediately, but I suggest you hire a senior Hollywood lawyer for consultation first."

"Do you have a suitable candidate? In addition, I can't afford high lawyer fees, and I may not get my script fee."

"This matter is not a court appearance business. For senior lawyers who are familiar with the details of the film business, it may be a matter that can be explained in a few words. I will ask for you, and it should not exceed half of the option contract fee you get."

"This is a lot of money for me, but I am willing to take a gamble." Ronald made up his mind.

"What I want is an opportunity to participate in a big studio project, either to increase my reputation by selling a script with a sky-high price and being hyped in the news, or to actually participate in the filming of a movie so that I can gain experience.

Now my name is not in the news, and Columbia may not want me to participate in the preparation of the movie. If I can't get either, thirty-five thousand dollars doesn't mean much to me."

"Okay, do you still remember Mickey Kanter, the lawyer who represented MGM in the negotiations during the famous signature dispute? He invited me to practice in his law firm in Los Angeles, but I didn't agree. He was a permanent lawyer for MGM. I can make a phone call first. He also appreciates you and will give you a friendly price."

Ronald still remembers the lawyer with a pair of protruding ears and a pair of uncomfortable gray eyes. "Is it him? Then I have no objection." If this face is facing the opponent, it is still very pleasant. And he is proficient in the film business and has the ability to persuade others.

"Ronald. When I first met you, I had a feeling that I would meet you again in Hollywood, but I didn't expect that day to come so soon. Columbia, $350,000, huh?"

"Hello, Attorney Kanter. Nice to see you again, but I may not be able to get $350,000 yet." A few hours later, Ronald and Richard walked into the law firm of "Manat, Phelps, Phillips and Kanter". Kanter had been promoted to the named partner of the law firm, which gave them more confidence.

"Please sit down. I have heard about what happened from Miss Dole." Mickey Kanter, wearing a dark suit, sat behind an old-fashioned solid wood desk, reached out and took out two cups, poured two glasses of whiskey, and pushed them in front of the two young people.

"Miss Dole signed an agency agreement with me on your behalf. Now I am your representative lawyer. What we say between us is protected by the attorney-client confidentiality agreement." Then he turned over a time clock, pushed it in front of Ronald, and pressed the switch.

Kanter poured himself another glass of whiskey, then looked at Richard and said to Ronald, "With this agreement, I will keep everything you told me confidential, do you understand?"

Ronald also glanced at Richard, "Richard is my agent, I trust him."

"Very good." Kanter took a sip of whiskey, "Then I'll be frank, reputation or substance, you can only choose one."

"I don't understand, Mr. Kanter."

"Call me Mickey," Kanter took the script option contract from Richard, put it on the table, then turned to the terms, pointed to Ronald and said, "This kind of option contract, I believe you have already understood, guarantees that Columbia has the first right to purchase your script within 12 months."

"That is to say, during the 12-month period, even if other production companies are interested in your script, Columbia has the right to purchase it first. And after 12 months, the script is back in your hands, and you can also contact other production companies."

Ronald nodded to show that he understood.

"Columbia is a member of the Writers Guild of America, so they must abide by the contractual provisions of the Writers Guild. The option must be at least 10% of the total purchase price, and the option period must not exceed 18 months.

Producers that are not members of the Writers Guild do not have to abide by the regulations. For new screenwriters like you, their offer is much lower. You only need to pay 1-2% of the advance payment to purchase options for more than 36 months of the script. Columbia registered a lot of shell companies to circumvent the regulations of the Writers Guild."

Mickey Kanter took another sip of whiskey, suddenly leaned forward, and said to Ronald face to face:

"So tell me, Ronald, you're not the son of a big star or a veteran with a string of hits under your belt, why are they going to be so by the book and give you the best deal? Give you John Milley Urs, the price of a script that only Oliver Stone could get?”

Ronald frowned. He was really so dazzled by the good news that he turned a blind eye to the obviously unreasonable contract terms.

Why give such a high price to a fledgling screenwriter? I am afraid that I am not the screenwriting genius that others say. The real market value of "My Brother's Keeper" is difficult to say.

"This is because of the screenwriter-first strategy promoted by our CAA. We hope that Ronald's script will attract influential star actors and star directors. Then it will be sold to the studio as a packaged project..."

Seeing that Ronald was silent, Richard Lovett spoke briefly about what happened before and after signing the script.

"I don't comment on Ovitz's strategy, but what I want to say is that this is just the result of the matter. What is the real reason? In this game, Colombia is the one who pays, and they will evaluate CAA's business strategy. Interested? What do they want?"

"They want Jane Fonda." Ronald finally figured out the point of the whole thing. What Columbia wanted was not a script, but Jane Fonda. What Ovitz was interested in was not his own script, but Jane Fonda's interest in the script.

As long as Jane Fonda signs a contract with Columbia Pictures to make a movie together. It doesn't matter who wrote the script, or even... whether there is a script or not.

The director that Colombia is interested in, James Bridges, is a screenwriter himself. The two films he wrote and directed, "Chinese Syndrome" and "Urban Cowherd", both won box office and critical reviews. In Colombia's eyes, he is naturally better than As a novice screenwriter, I am much more reliable.

If he and director Bridges competed for control of the script, which side would Jane Fonda, a key person, stand on? Ronald thought for a long time and couldn't think of any reason for Jane to prefer him.

Bridges is now a popular director in Hollywood, and he also worked happily with Jane Fonda. With the movie "China Syndrome", he helped her escape the second Oscar curse and her career continued to become popular.

"But how can Bridges and his agent Rapke take away my signature? I have filed a record."

"This is not a problem. The Writers Association's filing requires you to prove that your interests have been harmed before you can file a lawsuit. But if the movie is not released, you will have no harm. The movie has been released, and you can only get a small amount of money. I helped promote the movie for free.”

"Why? Wasn't the script I wrote used by them?"

"Bridges is a screenwriter himself. I'm afraid he will significantly change the plot direction of your script. At most, you can only strive for one original story, which is the signature of 'Story:', and the Screenwriters Guild can only obtain a corresponding proportion for you. As far as I know, you don’t get much in this situation. After deducting attorney fees, you might as well walk away with $35,000.”

"But I also made a record at the Capitol Hill Library in Washington. If the record there is infringed, the defense clause will automatically be activated. I don't need to prove that my interests have been harmed."

"Your lawyer is very good and reminds you to go to the Capitol Hill Library to file. But this won't help you much. Do you know why?"

Ronald shook his head.

"Richard, you should know. The 1946 Oscar-winning plagiarism incident for Best Animated Film."

"Mr. Kanter, what do you mean, they will write a script themselves and then go to Capitol Hill to register it?" Richard frowned.

"Yes, the plot of Warner's animated film 'Bugs Bunny's Rhapsody' that year was almost exactly the same as that of MGM's 'Cats Concerto.' In the end, no one could confirm who copied whom, and the Oscars could only keep things vague. This kind of Things still happen to this day.”

"Moreover, you can only prepare a story outline when filing, and subsequent modifications will automatically be protected. Some screenwriters file dozens or hundreds of story outlines, and then try to settle out of court."

"Then what should I do, Mickey? What's the matter with the reputation and substance you said can only be one?" Ronald saw Mickey Kanter talking confidently and knew that he must have a solution.

"Of course, what we said above is only the worst-case scenario. In fact, the director doesn't need to write another script at all. They will act in accordance with the contract to achieve the purpose of squeezing you out."

"Look at this contract." Kanter took out another script option trading contract, turned to a page in the attachment, and pointed it out to him, "Your contract is missing this important clause."

Ronald followed his finger and looked at it, which was an additional clause called "Preferred Right of Refusal for Script Modifications."

"With this clause, if the studio buys your script option and wants to modify the plot direction in the middle, it must come to you first. If you refuse, they can find someone else to modify it. This can effectively prevent They mess with your script.

Of course, the bad thing is that they always want to modify it and may bother you again and again. Therefore, the fee for modification is usually agreed upon under this clause. "

Ronald picked up his contract and looked carefully, and found that there was indeed no such clause.

"In the industry, it is jokingly called a sincerity clause. If they like your script, they will generally give you this power. If they just like your story idea, but are not satisfied with the writing of your script and plan to have someone else rewrite it, they tend not to give you this power.

But if you insist and they really want your story, they will still give it to you."

"So they can use the lack of this clause to lead the modification of the script, and I can only take the money and leave, watching them arbitrarily change my script?" Ronald suddenly realized.

"Yes, if they are more ruthless, they can also abandon your script after the option expires, and resell the script that they have modified beyond recognition to Columbia. In this way, you can only get 10% of the option fee."

"You are very cautious and did not sign this problematic contract on the spot. This gives us two options.

First, insist on asking for the first choice to refuse script changes, so that you can deeply participate in the preparation of the film and get some substantial benefits. However, Columbia may take the opportunity of renegotiating the contract and will not give you such a high price again.

Second, insist that Columbia buy the script in full. If Ovitz helps you put pressure on you, and there is already a rumor in the media that you have sold the script at a sky-high price, it can be done. In that case, you have to take the money and leave, and then leave the script to Bridges to rewrite."

After getting a satisfactory answer, Ronald and Richard stood up and said goodbye, "I will send you the check. , Mickey. "

"I'm sorry, Ronald. I didn't see their plan, and my judgment afterwards was wrong. It seems that LaPuke and his clients didn't have the idea of ​​directly snatching the script signature. They directly took advantage of the loopholes in the contract. "

"No, this can't be entirely blamed on you. I also made mistakes. "Ronald said, "I wonder if my other two agents know about this, and if Mr. Ovitz knows about this. This contract was given to me by the new producer. Do they have any relationship with LaPuke? "

"We have to try to find out whether this is the intention of Frank Price, the president of Columbia, or LaPuke has exploited the loophole and wants to have a fait accompli. "

Richard also thought of this, "I will go to Mr. Rick Niceta and Paula first. Then tomorrow the three of us will go to Mr. Ovitz with you to talk. He always said that the corporate culture of CAA is a big family. A big family cannot fight like this. "