Made in Hollywood

"Fortunately, we got rid of it early, otherwise we will lose miserably this time."

As usual, Duke and Tina Fey were having lunch together, and no one else came to disturb them. The female assistant simply talked about the news she had just received in the morning, "Last week, the market fluctuated once, but many people I comfort myself that this is the adjustment of the market, the market will continue to rise, but since the day before yesterday, the Nasdaq has fallen sharply, and two days have passed, and there is no intention to stop..."

"There should have been signs before, right?"

In addition to retaining Apple's stock, Duke spent nearly a year until the end of last year to sell other stocks, the impact of the stock market crash has been very small.

Tina Fey swallowed the lettuce in her mouth and said, "There are signs, but most people believe that the stock index can last until the second half of the year."

Putting down the knife and fork, Duke picked up a tissue and wiped his mouth, "I thought it would collapse at the beginning of the year, but I didn't expect it to persist until now."

In his vague memory, the collapse of IT stocks was at the turn of the millennium, and the exact time was not known at all.

"If the stock market continues to fall, it will still have an impact on us." Tina Fey also ended the lunch, reminding Duke, "Apple's stock price has also been hit, and its market value has fallen below $8 billion. And your Google investment. , because of the general decline in IT stocks, two investment institutions have the idea of ​​withdrawing capital."

"Let David keep an eye on them." Duke urged, "If someone really wants to divest from Google, we'll take over, but pay attention to the shareholding ratio and don't break Google's internal balance."

The two founders of Google are definitely not fools.

Duke thought for a moment, and then said, "Tell David. Staring at Apple's sell order, IT stocks have plummeted, Apple will definitely be hit, and some people may sell Apple's stock, I have only one principle, he can see All the selling orders are eaten.”

Although I don't know if anyone will sell Apple shares in bulk. But according to the general situation, this should be a good opportunity to eat into Apple's stock.

"One more thing." Tina Fey raised her cup and drank the water that has remained unchanged for thousands of years. "After Ivanka returned to the University of Pennsylvania, she made a business plan and sent you and David a copy. , I put it on your desk."

"I'll take a look when I have time."

After shooting at night. Duke saw Ivanka's plan, but he was not proficient in business. After waiting for a few days, he got an answer from the investment team-the plan was feasible.

However, given the current slump in IT stocks. David does not recommend Duke to invest. Companies that are purely website-only, including Yahoo, are all worrisome in terms of profitability.

But Duke had a phone call with Ivan. Decided to take the plunge, after all the upfront investment of $300,000. It really means nothing to him.

If successful, the future benefits can be imagined.

During the telephone exchange, Duke also learned that Ivanka Trump will probably provide similar funds, part of which is the pocket money she has accumulated for many years. Another part comes from her family.

As Ivanka said, this website will initially be based on Wharton and the University of Pennsylvania, and whether it will eventually spread to the Ivy League schools is still unknown.

The stock market is gloomy, and the situation has not improved as most people hoped, but has become more volatile. This actually affects Hollywood. The stock market and real estate have always been the most important investment places for Hollywood movie stars and directors. There must be a lot of people investing in IT stocks this year. For example, Ian McLean in the crew lost a lot. He even asked Duke for leave and went back to North America.

From March to April, the North American stock market drove the global economic turmoil. There were some problems within the "Lord of the Rings" crew. Many people who invested in the stock market could not hide their disappointment or even panic on their faces. Even normal shooting They were all affected to a certain extent. Duke rarely got angry twice before the situation improved.

This is not only caused by the stock market, but also after more than half a year of filming, the crew inevitably has a feeling of burnout. After all, most of the staff and actors are from the United Kingdom and the United States, and the long-term stagnation in New Zealand will inevitably cause people to feel Mood swings.

Just like what Duke said, many things, such as continuous work, can be tolerated by the director, but the actors and crew members below may not be able to.

What's more, most of the remaining shots of the crew are relatively scattered. Except for the scenes in the studio, they often have to travel all over New Zealand. Sometimes they are busy all morning, just to shoot scenes that only last a few minutes.

Time is slowly approaching May. After the continuous running, the crew is really exhausted. Duke finally has a long vacation for the crew again. He also has something to leave New Zealand. The premiere of "Mission Impossible 2" will be released soon. Participate in. Before attending the premiere, I have to go to the United Kingdom. The "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" crew led by Robin Grande, after more than two months of vigorous hype and publicity, are ready to start the sea Choose an actor.

As an important long-term meal ticket in the future, and as a producer, Duke also needs to go to London.

"Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone" has secured Chris Columbus as director, and he forms the project's triangular power structure with Robin Grande and Joanna Rowling, although Duke has the title of producer , but except for major affairs, the crew is basically dominated by these three people.

Of course, the most powerful of them will never be the original author, but Robin Grande, the agent of Duke and Warner Bros.

This is a ten-day vacation, and almost all the main members of the crew will leave New Zealand except for those who are on duty.

Before leaving, however, Duke summoned the main cast and crew to the large dining room on the set and gave some exhortations and warnings.

"I know that the recent economic shock has distracted you from being able to fully focus on filming."

As a director who rarely gets angry, Duke's voice is very serious now, "I can understand you, so I will give you ten days off to deal with personal matters, and after ten days the crew will gather again in Wellington, I ask you to resume before March In this state, what I need is a dedicated person!"

He finally said, "If you are still in the same state after ten days, then I can only say sorry."

In the busy studio in the past, the crowd quickly dissipated, and the silence gradually recovered. The entertainment reporters gathered at the entrance of the studio also chased their respective targets of interest. Since the beginning of shooting, "The Lord of the Rings" has not been interrupted. The book fan protests, like the filming of the crew, temporarily came to an end, and a large number of die-hard book fans receded like a tide, accumulating energy for the next outbreak.

Duke was one of the last to leave the set, flying directly to London from his private tarmac at Wellington International Airport in his own business jet.

Before the plane took off, Tina Fey got a call, and after the plane was in the sky and in steady flight, she said to Duke, "News from Nancy, Marvel invited you to Twentieth Century Fox in July. Mid-season premiere for X-Men."

"X-Men?" Duke unbuckled his seatbelt and thought for a while before saying, "Tell Nancy, don't answer for now."

It's still early, and Duke isn't sure if there will be time.

However, not counting "Blade Runner", which has an extremely limited influence and was made as a B-grade film, "X-Men" can be said to be the beginning of Marvel Comics' real success in movies. After this film was released, Marvel Comics' situation Although there will not be a particularly obvious improvement, it will make their executives realize the value of their superheroes.

It is no exaggeration to say that he was able to invest in Marvel Comics because he was completely stuck at the last chance. Otherwise, it would be dozens of times more difficult to get such an opportunity when "X-Men" was released.

And that little spider, that would make the nation realize the cinematic value of Marvel.

"One cup of coffee, one cup of water, thank you."

Asking the flight attendant for a drink, Tina Fey pushed the coffee in front of Duke, who put the coffee cup into the card slot and asked, "Tina, do you know what's going on at Sony Columbia Pictures?"

"Huh?" Tina Fey obviously didn't know where to start, after all, there were so many things to do with the big studios.

"They invest in the movies they make and distribute," Duke reminds. "The big ones."

"Sony Entertainment's $140 million 'Spider-Man' has entered the preparatory stage." Tina Fey recalled, "The director is Sam Neill, the director of the 'Ghost Man' series, and is said to be writing the script. , finding the right actors for Peter Parker and Mary Jane."

Sure enough, "Spider-Man" is also on the agenda of Sony Columbia Pictures.

With a sigh, Duke couldn't do anything. He paid attention to Marvel Comics too late. Spider-Man was taken by Columbia Pictures as early as the late 1980s. If he wants to take it back, unless the Japanese head It's full of water or the film fails miserably.

Both are unlikely in the near future.

Duke just thought about it this way, the world is so big, it is impossible for all good things to fall on one person.

There are some things, even if you know in advance, you are often powerless.

Picking up the coffee cup, Duke took a sip. The bitter taste dispelled the unreliable delusions in his heart. The copyright that once cooperated with Marvel Comics and Walt Disney could not be recovered, can it be done by just his director?

"One more thing, Sony Entertainment is leading."

Relevant things kept coming out of Tina Fey's mouth, "I've heard people mention that Sony Entertainment is negotiating with Hasbro to buy the movie rights to one of its toys."

Duke raised his head and looked at Tina Fey, "Which toy?" (To be continued ~^~)

PS:   I was dizzy and depressed today. . . .