Exploiting Hollywood 1980

The movie had already started in the theater, and Ronald just missed the opening and title.

He saw a map of the African continent on the screen, and then the camera zoomed in to reveal a grassland. There were all kinds of wild animals on it: zebras, African elephants, gorals, giraffes, etc. drinking water and living by the lakes and rivers.

The narration of the film was a language that sounded like German, but Ronald was not sure. He repeatedly heard the pronunciation of Kalahari, which seemed to be a place name.

The rivers, lakes, and ponds on the screen slowly disappeared, the oasis turned into a savanna, the green grass turned yellow, and the leaves of the trees fell off.

Ronald began to move his butt. Is this a documentary? Talking about animals on the African grasslands? Or the importance of environmental protection?

There is no market for documentaries in American theaters, but it is possible to sell them to TV stations. If this documentary is of good quality, should we talk to Helen's father?

The narration changed, and the camera focused on several primitive people covered with leaves. Ronald began to wonder again. Is this a documentary about primitive people?

The language of these primitive people is quite interesting. There are many "tapping" sounds made when inhaling with the tongue and palate. It seems like the sound that children sometimes make when eating.

The movie focuses on how these primitive people find water sources on the arid grassland. They will dig roots and collect dew on leaves. The food source is some plant fruits, and they use bows and arrows dipped in venom to shoot small herbivores such as antelopes.

This kind of curious documentary has a considerable market in America. Ronald has seen some documentaries broadcast by PBS, which are filmed all over the world.

Just when Ronald began to think about how to sell this documentary to Helen's father, the picture turned to the aerial scene of the big city. Skyscrapers, highways, busy office workers, industrialized production lines, large-scale school education, etc.

This editing is interesting, Ronald thought.

The unhappiness of modern people in modern material-rich life contrasts with the happiness of primitive people in primitive poverty. Ronald's score for the film director has increased a little.

But how to continue? Continue to compare the various aspects of life of primitive people and modern people? This is also a good way.

The next shot turns back to the primitive tribe. A primitive man is walking and a plane flies above. A pilot finished drinking Coca-Cola and threw the Coke glass bottle out of the window, which fell right in front of the primitive man.

The primitive man thought it was a gift from God. After taking it back to the tribe, he found that the Coke bottle was harder than any natural tool and could be used to handle food, clothes, and even as a musical instrument to play rhythm.

But when there was only one Coke bottle, everyone started to fight and fight. The primitive man thought it was not a gift from God but an evil thing that destroyed the peace of the tribe, and was ready to take it to the end of the land and throw it away.

Ronald saw clearly that this was a drama.

The previous part used the method of fake documentary to quickly render and explain the environment of the story. When the second film was finished (about 22 minutes), the story had entered a huge suspense.

The rebel leader of a nearby country launched a coup and wanted to overthrow the local government. After the coup was stopped, the rebels detained a large number of innocent residents and fled to the Kalahari where the primitive people lived, hoping to use them as hostages to fight against the government army.

The primitive man who threw the Coke bottle into the city was sentenced to prison for shooting a goat raised by someone else. An zoologist understood their language and believed that the primitive people had no concept of property rights and should not be sentenced.

The judge asked the primitive man to serve as a guide for the zoologist to pay off his sentence. On the way to send the primitive man home, the two met the heroine, a school teacher, who was kidnapped by the rebels.

At the end of the film, the primitive man anesthetized the rebel soldiers with darts while rescuing the heroine and his students.

The male protagonist successfully rescued the heroine, and the two finally became a couple.

The primitive man walked to the sea and threw the Coke bottle into the sea. He returned to his tribe and lived a happy life.

The whole movie is a comedy, but it does not make people laugh with lines, but uses the contrast between primitive people and modern people to contrast the absurdity of some modern society.

Ronald liked this kind of high-level humor very much. Although he didn't understand the lines, it didn't stop him from laughing from the beginning to the end.

After the screening, Ronald found Mia, the manager who brought the film to the screening, and proposed to buy the American distribution rights of the film.

"No, no, no, we can't sell the distribution rights of this film in America now."

"Why?" Ronald was very surprised.

Mia Trotsky is the producer of this film, the sister of Boyet Trotsky.

She smiled bitterly and replied, "Our film was shot in South Africa. My brother Boyet's Mimosa Studios employs white technicians. From photographers to lighting technicians, makeup artists, and even printers are all white."

"This is contrary to the Sullivan principle, and your American legal system is a long-arm jurisdiction. If I cooperate with American companies, I will be on the blacklist of the divestment movement, and my brother's theater chain will not be able to introduce American films for screening."

Ronald was confused and hurriedly asked Mia for details.

It turns out that South Africa now implements the apartheid system. Whites and blacks are not allowed to use the same bus, eat together, or use the same tap... Everything must be done separately.

Sullivan is an American bishop and a director of General Motors. When he visited the General Motors factory in South Africa, he found that the black leader Mandela was imprisoned and South Africa implemented the apartheid policy. Shocked, Sullivan launched a boycott movement after returning home.

He called on all American companies to withdraw their capital from South Africa and not do business with South African companies if the South African government could not release Mandela, abolish the apartheid policy, give blacks the right to vote, and employ blacks on a large scale.

The policies he formulated are called the Sullivan Principle. If Mimosa Pictures sells the films it produces to American companies, the Sullivan Principle will be triggered.

The Trotsky brothers and sisters were afraid that they would be targeted by the news media if they sold their films to the United States and would be included in the blacklist of no transactions. In this way, not only could they not import American films, but they could not import film shooting equipment, technicians, etc., which would be a devastating blow to Mimosa Pictures.

"Then why don't you hire some black employees? Their wages are not high, right?" Ronald was a little suspicious whether there was a tendency among his brothers and sisters to support racial segregation.

"Of course not, you see in this movie, we hired a lot of black actors," Mia quickly denied, "My brother and I actually support the abolition of racial segregation."

"But your country's Sullivan principle is very harsh, only the proportion of permanent employees is calculated, and the wages of black employees must be equal to those of white employees. And we are a small company and cannot afford to hire so many incompetent employees for a long time.

You know we are not a production-oriented enterprise. Unlike General Motors, we can hire some low-skilled black employees. We hire technical talents who need long-term training."

Ronald felt it was a pity. If this movie could be Introducing the film to America at a low price is a bit of a deal. "What if I buy out the distribution rights of your film? Then the film will have nothing to do with you,"

"Look at those protesting people?" Mia pointed outside the door, "We tried to sell the film to PolyGram and release it in Britain.

These protesting people put advertisements in newspapers, revealing that the film was shot by a South African studio, and finally forced to cancel the release plan. Because Britain is also a participant in the divestment plan, the public has a bad impression of South Africa."

"This is really..." Ronald was speechless, and had to exchange business cards with Mia, and then talk about their South African film market.

"By the way, what is the name of your film? I didn't see it at the beginning." Ronald asked at last.

"The Godstbecrazy"

"So you speak German in South Africa? I didn't understand the lines at all. But the quality of your film is very good. I can laugh from beginning to end even if I don't understand the lines."

"No, that's Afrikaans, a hybrid of Dutch and Western German. We plan to add foreign subtitles and try the European and Japanese markets."

"Are those primitive people in the movie really living in their current state?"

"Maybe in the past, but now the governments of Botswana and Namibia have driven them into private plots, and their living space is getting smaller and smaller.

Because of this movie, our company now gives that tribe $200 a month, so that they can go to the nearby grocery store to buy some things to subsidize the tribe."

Ronald nodded. It seems that this is his own wishful thinking. Where in modern society is not affected? Even the residents of this primitive tribe can improve their living standards by making movies. It's also a good arrangement.

The two walked out of the theater while talking, and Mia was greeted by the demonstrators. She ran away quickly because of the eggs and slogans.

Ronald managed to avoid the eggs by chance and wanted to run away. He found that the beautiful college student who went to the movies with him two days ago was also in the crowd, so he hurriedly said loudly as he walked, "We are one, don't hit me, I just pass by occasionally."

The beautiful woman saw that it was Ronald, and hurriedly stopped her companions, and then asked him, "Do you want to buy the movie of the South African racial oppressors?"

Her companions also surrounded him, and it seemed that he could not get away without explaining clearly.

"I won't buy their movies, Sullivan's principle, Sullivan's principle." Ronald hurriedly explained with the terms he had just learned.

"Well, you have to shout slogans with us to show that you don't support South Africa." Another fat girl in the parade stuffed a placard into his hand.

"What do you want me to shout?" Ronald was forced to raise the "anti-apartheid" placard.

"Release Mandela."

"Release Mandela!" Ronald shouted.

"Multinational corporations withdraw from South Africa!"

"Multinational corporations withdraw from South Africa!"

The protesters were satisfied and let Ronald go.

Ronald asked the beautiful college girl he knew in a low voice, "This movie is about primitive people, there is no racial discrimination in it, right?"

"Why do South African film companies not make movies that expose the ugly side of South Africa's apartheid system, but make movies that glorify the harmonious coexistence of white and black people in South Africa?" The fat girl shouted beside him, "Not opposing is condoning!"

Ronald was forced to shout two more slogans and quickly got away.

"Don't mess with protesting girls, don't mess with them."