Hollywood Road

Milton Johnson thought for a while, then ordered the female assistant, "Call Jamie Winster."

A few minutes after the female assistant called, a middle-aged man in his thirties walked into the office and sat opposite Milton Johnson. Milton Johnson waved to the female assistant, and the female assistant walked out of the office. Closed the door.

"Is there any progress in the negotiations with Stanton Studio?" Milton Johnson asked directly.

"Not yet." Jamie Winster shook his head. "We have had several phone calls with Murphy Stanton. His cooperation is not very sincere, and the conditions he wants are a bit too much."

A new director, a shell company with only three full-time employees, wants to open his mouth to Lionsgate just because a movie has some selling points? Does he have the confidence and qualifications?

He also admitted that the film can indeed bring a certain impact to people, but this cannot conceal the fact that it is a rough and small production. The risk of such a production in the theater market cannot be ignored.

Milton Johnson frowned slightly as his fingers tapped on the desk table habitually, "What about CAA?"

Jamie Winster quickly came back to his senses, and replied, "I called Bill Rossis, these agents of CAA are greedy guys."

One party wants to obtain high returns through the film, and the other party wants to lower the price to obtain the maximum possible income. If the two parties do not make certain concessions, the cooperation will be impossible to achieve.

Negotiation is often a process of mutual compromise.

Milton Johnson is well aware of this, but is not prepared to compromise.

The speed at which he tapped on the desktop became faster, "Jamie, you've seen that film, and the people from the editing and review department also participated in the audition meeting. How long will it take for them to write a similar script?"

"Hmm... the script is easy to talk about." Jamie Winster understood what he meant, "Two to three weeks is enough time if the team works together."

What is there to say about this script? The film is good more because of shooting and production.

Milton Johnson silently calculated in his mind for a while, and his slightly old eyes were shining brightly, "What about the filming and production?"

Jamie Winster thought about it for a while, "If it is produced by a mature team that often cooperates with the company, I think it will take about one and a half months from preparation to production."

Obviously, from the very beginning, people from the editorial department participated in the trial meeting,

Milton Johnson is on guard or planning something.

He asked again, "What about the things I asked you to investigate?"

"Murphy Stanton joined the Writers' Guild, Directors' Guild, and Cinematographers' Guild following the release of Hard Candy."

These have long been investigated by Jamie Winster. He quickly said, ""Chain Saw" has been registered with the Screenwriters Union and the Directors Union, and it is a union registration project."

Milton Johnson's tapping on the table slowed down, "This is a bit troublesome."

Older people tend to be a bit more conservative, and while this back-up plan was first proposed by Milton Johnson, Jamie Winster was more radical.

"It will indeed cause some trouble." He nodded first, but then said, "Stanton Studios is just a small company at the bottom of Hollywood. Director Murphy Stanton, except for his agent and CAA, is only related to a few A young actor who is not well-known is very close, and there is no network worth mentioning. Even if the union finds trouble with us, it is routine..."

He raised his voice slightly, "And it is impossible for us to imitate his films, there will definitely be some changes. Themes and content collisions of mainstream Hollywood commercial blockbusters happen from time to time, not to mention blood plasma horror films with a completely routine production model?"

Unless Lionsgate is stupid, it will copy the other party's film. Based on that film, they can definitely make better.

Another advantage of this sophistication is that as long as it can be released first, the relatively rough film will look more like a poor imitation.

Milton Johnson nodded slightly, and the speed of tapping on the desktop accelerated again, "I will raise this project at the high-level meeting. If we can't get "Chain Saw", we will enter the project approval stage as soon as possible, and let the editorial department Have a script outline ready."

Jamie Winster responded, stood up and prepared to leave, and Milton Johnson urged, "Say hello to the legal department in advance."

If this project really appears, the biggest counterattack of the other party is undoubtedly to sue the law. On the contrary, this is the method that big companies like them care about the least. Let alone the countless Hollywood crash projects, the entanglements existing in it are difficult to explain, even if the court accepts it. Lionsgate Films can also drag on, it doesn't matter for a year or even two years, can a small company like the other party bear it?

Even, they can find someone at random and sue Stanton Studios for plagiarizing his ideas.

This kind of thing is definitely a lot in Hollywood. Think about those who can't wait to trouble James Cameron after the "Titanic" hits the market...

After Jamie Winster left, Milton Johnson was still thinking about it. As a veteran of horror films, he was really optimistic about this project.

Reluctantly, Lionsgate's conditions were unacceptable to the other party, and he also could not accept the large appetite of the other party.

An unknown little person, why should the lion open his mouth? Just because you have a movie with a selling point in your hand? Without suitable channels, the value of such a movie can only be zero.

Milton Johnson called the female assistant in again, and told her to keep an eye on the project, and to inform him of the latest situation in time, so that he could adjust the strategy at any time.

Similarly, he did not completely give up the idea of ​​winning "Chain Saw". The previous one was just a backup plan. If the other party hits a wall in Hollywood one after another, there may be a possibility of negotiation and cooperation between the two parties.

After all, Milton Johnson never believed that Stanton Studios had the qualifications to cooperate with Lionsgate on an equal footing.

Whether it is a production company or a distribution company, they are all commercial companies. Commercial companies naturally pursue profits, and as long as possible, they must maximize profits.

Lionsgate is not the only company that is optimistic about the distribution company of "Saw". Murphy, whose price can meet his psychological expectations, has not met one. Even Miramax, who has the most favorable conditions at present, is also thinking about how to use the smallest For the price, get this movie that seems to sell a lot.

The smallest cost can also reduce the risks that inevitably arise with investment.

Harvey Weinstein stood by the floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Burbank and asked Jones Butler behind him, "Murphy Stanton hasn't answered yet?"

Jones Butler took a step forward, "Not yet."

The big fat man's face was not very good-looking, and the other party seemed to think too highly of him. It was just a little money and a few promises to get rid of a geek like Quentin Tarantino back then.

Those who can be admired by him today can be used as capital in the industry.

What about the little director Murphy Stanton? Not only did he not give him any reply, but he took the film to and fro among different distribution companies, hoping to sell the film with the help of Bill Rossis' small agent relationship and the little capital brought by "Hard Candy". Offer a high price.

This is just wishful thinking. Hollywood distribution companies are like him and Miramax, cannibals and never spit out bones.

However, Harvey Weinstein cannot guarantee that all distribution companies will maintain the tacit tacit agreement with small production companies. After all, the selling point of "Chain Saw" is still very clear. As long as it operates properly, no low-level mistakes will be made. If so, profitability should not be a problem.

Based on his years of experience and understanding of the market, he judged that "Chain Saw" has a very low chance of failure. As long as the funds invested are well controlled, it is nothing more than a question of how much profit it will make.

What Harvey Weinstein is most worried about is that some companies ignore the tacit understanding and rashly offer excessive conditions.

"It's time to put some pressure on him." He nodded slightly.

Harvey Weinstein turned around, glanced at Jones Butler, strode back to the back of the desk, sat on his chair, and said without any emotion, "You go find someone to put it outside information."

Jones Butler looked over there, pricking up his ears.

"Miramax is preparing a new project," Harvey Weinstein said unhurriedly about the fake project, "The film is a blood-blood horror movie, and some suspense will be added appropriately. The script has already begun to be written. Get Robert Rodriguez or Quentin Tarantino to direct."

He thought for a while, and then said, "Call Robert Rodriguez and Quentin Tarantino and ask them to be interviewed by the media recently, and mention this incident by the way."

Hearing these words, Jones Butler just nodded and didn't feel any surprise. His boss' methods have always been very clever, otherwise he wouldn't have created a murder like "Shakespeare in Love", let alone put Gwyneth An actor of Silk Paltrow's level won the Oscar for Best Actress.

Although this may be the worst actress in Oscar history, but it is also the real actress, isn't it?

"Go." Harvey Weinstein waved to Jones Butler.

Jones Butler left the office and started to operate these things. She didn't need Harvey Weinstein to order. She also knew what scale this matter should be maintained. It couldn't make too much trouble, but it must reach Murphy Stein over there.

This kind of work is not difficult for her at all.

In any commercial activity, there is always a torrent of light or darkness, some things you can see, and some things you cannot see.

Just like the current Murphy, after the Fox Searchlight audition meeting, he could see that Tony Guzman and the two Fox Searchlight executives who accompanied him were very interested in the film, but he couldn't guess that they would be able to start the film for the film. bid price.

These need to be negotiated to decide.

Fox Searchlight was the last company. Murphy made careful preparations for this. He also made a special call to Kara Firth, who was studying in New York, and learned about the company's current situation through her relationship. (To be continued.)