Producer [American Entertainment]

The popularity of "ET" can be seen with the eyes, and it can cause crowds in North America, the largest film market. One can imagine how much money it can make.

Even if Spielberg had confidence in the movie and thought it would do well at the box office, he didn't dare to think it would be so good.

It is the kind of parents who say to their children, "Come on, work hard, you will definitely be able to pass the first-line exam", but accidentally work too hard and get a national champion in the exam.

In just one month and four weeks, ET broke the historical record of the box office in the United States, with a raging 3 million box office, achieving the highest box office in Hollywood since the film was born, and ascended to the championship.The broadcast copyrights of 19 countries other than the United States have been sold, and the video tapes and VCD discs have also been translated into multiple languages, and have been successfully sold to various countries around the world.By the way, the VCD player that Microsoft cooperated with China has also been promoted to these countries and has become the hottest emerging technology product.

In the same year, the popular computers capable of playing video tapes in the computer market have been replaced by desktop computers with optical drives that can play VCDs.

Sabatino, one of the founders of Microsoft, once again became popular in the United States.

It's not because the VCD player, which was not very promising before, quickly replaced the video tape market; nor is it because Sabatino's introduction of District 11 comics has become popular in middle schools across the United States; 1000 million, but in the end it was only 500 or 1000 million) and got a sky-high profit of [-] million...but he actually conquered the Chinese market, which is said to be the most closed, the most difficult, and rarely communicates with the outside world!

Think about it, how many people are there in China? !Why did European countries attack China in the last century? In the final analysis, it was because of China's vast market and resources!That's Mark.In Polo's Travels, Europeans have been looking for the ancient East that they have been looking for for centuries!

Although China, like all ancient countries with a long history, inevitably declined, it is still China after all!China, who won World War I and World War II with difficulty!

Perhaps the people's impression of China is still limited to the two words of poverty and backwardness, but in the minds of those who really have a vision for development, China is a virgin land full of business opportunities.However, China's ancient traditions have kept these businessmen from finding opportunities to trade with it, and it is recognized as the most difficult place in the industry to integrate into.

But now Sabatino seems to be very easy, and he conquered it quietly, which is incredible!

The "ET" and Microsoft system software that entered the Chinese market, as well as the joint-venture VCD players, are all deeply imprinted with the name "Made in Lesenbra".If one has two, there will be three and four. Microsoft has made a good start.

Lexenbra's undefeated myth continues, even to a higher level.

After the movie was released and the protection period of theatrical chains expired, TV stations all over the world also began to compete fiercely to buy and write ET broadcast rights.MGM’s prices for foreign TV stations are reasonable, but they are very stingy when it comes to domestic TV stations. They are only willing to sign the first broadcast and second broadcast contracts again and again, but they are determined not to sell the full copyright. Criticism, but there is no way, I can only follow the rules drawn by Microsoft.

There is not no voice of opposition within MGM to this. There are always some short-sighted people who feel that this will make them less money.But, well, without Sabatino's action, MGM's CEO Hugo can clean them up and make them cry and dare not question them.

William doesn't care too much about these, because he is busy with the relocation of United Artists at this time.

Relocating a Hollywood tycoon is a huge workload, at least a hundred times more troublesome than crew relocation.Even for the declining giant United Artists, it took more than a month just to pass the decision of "relocation" at the meeting.

Some high-level executives who had already stood on Sabatino's side, after getting the news in advance, expressed their agreement in a clear-cut manner at the meeting.

Naturally, there are also stubborn conservatives who don't want to leave Los Angeles.

Conservatives have many reasons, such as:

——"This is the place where the four founders of United Artists, Chaplin, Pickford, Fairbanks, and Griffith, established United Artists!"

——"As far as I know, in the early days of United Artists, it was just a small studio, and even the studio had to be rented from other giants. If the information I checked is correct, the studio where United Artists was born, It's next to the MGM studio that was later sold, and the specific address is..."

——"Los Angeles is the center of Hollywood movies. Leaving Los Angeles is like being sent to the countryside."

——"You have the ability to stand in Times Square and say this again, and see if the New Yorkers will kill you." The problem of big cities discriminating against small towns is not unheard of in the United States, and New Yorkers...except Manhattan All areas outside the district are discriminated against.

——"How can a giant move around casually!"

——"At present, except for Paramount, MGM and United Artists, no giant has set up headquarters in Los Angeles, and everyone has moved away."

——"The biggest movie stars, the best camera equipment, the most comprehensive theatrical distribution...these are all in Los Angeles!"

——"Your film is shot in Los Angeles? The photography base in New York has just been built, and it is newer and more advanced."

— “Our employees are all Angelenos.”

——"Most of your employees are people from all states in the United States, and even people from all over the world. They will be happier if they can go to work in New York and don't have to rent expensive apartments and spend hours on the subway every day. PS: Really Employees who don’t want to leave can still work at MGM or be fired.”

The very experienced industry employees recruited in New York have already been in place and started working in the building.

Sabatino has a special recruiting technique—acquisition.There are many small and medium-sized film companies in New York. If you comprehensively evaluate the one with the most potential, it will be OK if you directly incorporate it into United Artists, which saves time, effort and peace of mind.

However, this method of a blind cat meeting a dead mouse is only suitable for the reborn Sabatino and William with 2B250 cheating, and there is no reference.

Anyway, I repeated a word over and over again, the company has moved!

Sabatino has no intention of spending time with the conservative faction of the United States.The theme park built in the suburbs of New York has been under construction for several days, and the money has been paid by Microsoft in advance. Although the capital chain is sufficient, there is no reason for the head office to keep paying for the branch.

On July 1982, 7, the 27th Saturn Awards were held near the Avenue of Fame in Los Angeles.Last September, "The Man From Earth", which was not a big hit at the box office, had an unexpectedly strong standby time. At the Saturn Awards Gala, it finally defeated "Superman 9" and won the award for the best science fiction film.

William also met Spielberg and Lucas at the awards show.

ET is still in theaters at this time, and there are various follow-up copyrights. Strictly speaking, their cooperation is not over yet, but in fact they have rarely had the opportunity to meet each other.It is also a fate to meet each other at the Saturn Awards, which is unexpected and reasonable.

The once frustrated trio at the Oscars has now become the biggest winner at the Saturn Awards.Earthlings is best science fiction, best actor and some odds and ends, while Raiders of the Lost Ark is best fantasy, best heroine and some odds and ends.

The Saturn Award is also considered authoritative in the sci-fi and fantasy circles. It was once jokingly called an award that made up for the missing leg of the Oscars.

The Saturn Award for Best Actor this time is the biggest award Neil has received since he started making movies.This handsome and cunning young man looked calm when he received the award, but when William entertained guests at the club that night, facing familiar people, Neil finally showed real excitement.

"Do you know how many times in my short life of more than [-] years, I have heard others say that I'm useless? The number is too many for me to count. Growing up in a place like Bensenhe, Yes, I grew up on the streets of Bensenhe in Brooklyn. I was educated in the police station when I was a child, I was sent to a correctional center as a teenager, and I went to a prison as an adult...Everyone thinks that I was either locked up by the government to death, or beaten for exposing cheating To death. Even I feel that I have no future, because I can do nothing but deceive people.

"It was William and Peter from the FBI who told me that there is no end to the sky, and I don't just have to lie. When I first saw them in prison, I didn't believe them at all. The "Actor's Self-cultivation" I probably only read the first page, and haven’t finished it yet. I just don’t know where to settle after I get out of prison. I want to make a living first, or I’m lying.

"But now, I won't lie anymore.

"Because in the crew of the smoking gun, I met real family members. They inspired me and made me feel that I could change, and I really did. The feeling of being affirmed, the real shit is better than being constantly belittled and denied. Much better. And this is only our first award, it will definitely not be the last.

"To the eternal NOPQ!"

The protagonist of the smoking gun, the four-person group, raised the champagne glass together. They are all street gangsters with bad backgrounds, marginal characters who may not even be big bosses.Now they have changed their destiny because of a movie. They didn't even dare to think about it before, okay?Now, regardless of the size of the roles they receive, at least they have income; they can occasionally meet fans asking for autographs on the streets of Los Angeles, and everyone no longer shouts and beat them; the most important thing is that they met their lifelong brothers in the crew, NOPQ is What was used as a joke by the crew back then has really become a nickname they agree with now.

"To the eternal NOPQ!" The four drank the wine in one gulp.

"To William!" Neil raised his glass again.

"Respect William!" This time MiG and Wendy also joined in.

"To Mr. Wheeler!" Neil raised his glass for the last time.

"To Mr. Wheeler!" William also shouted, and the smiles on everyone's faces infected everyone.

While everyone was still drinking, Miguel took out four contracts, Wendy prepared a pen, and William said, "From November this year to April next year, don't you have any plans? How about continuing to be the leading actor and an important supporting actor for me? This time the budget is very sufficient, we are no longer a smoking gun crew that has to break every penny in half."

"Us? Lead actor? Important supporting actor?"

William has now produced a man who has broken historical records and holds the box office champion. It is said that even first-line movie stars have spoken to the media, saying that they are very willing to cooperate with William, and only wait for a call from him.

William is willing to give them a chance?Still not a small role?Is it really not a dream?

"Rather than follow others to create a myth, I would rather create my own myth. I think you are the same as me." What about first-line stars?Haven't they all come out of ordinary people step by step?

NOPQ looked at each other and saw the exact same thoughts in the brothers' eyes, with no answer other than "we do".

Chapter 99 No. 90 Nine Heavens Who Came to Earth: In order to be able to live together, my cousin also worked hard.

The total investment of "Back to the Future" is actually not too high to be scary, it's just slightly higher than the cost of blockbuster films that ordinary giant companies would have, 600 million.But that's not counting the money for the construction of the theme park. The actual hidden expenditure of the movie is not a small sum.Of course, in Sabatino's expectation, the future return will not be a small sum.

MGM's extra generosity to William this time is all thanks to ET.

ET, which is still in theaters, currently has a total box office of 3 million US dollars in the United States.The 19 countries that previously bought the copyright are expected to release ET one after another before the end of this year, which is another box office. The global total box office estimate given by the statistics company AC Nielsen is "at least 6 million". , it will become the number one in world film history.

MGM, who has made enough money, naturally doesn't mind being more generous.Old Samuel said that we were forced to be so picky back then. We were forced. After we got rich, we, as the century-old MGM, were also very generous, really!

Of course, it’s only one aspect that MGM has become generous. On the other hand, from the success of ET (and the foreshadowing of the previous double-doubling movies), the executives have completely convinced William’s vision and feel that William is worthy of being a Lesembla's cousin also gradually began to cultivate a blind trust in him, thinking that he would definitely not pay William any amount of money.Of course, at present, these high-level trusts are only William's ability to use movies to make money.

The most important point is that MGM originally wanted to support ET to become a series of movies like Star Wars to compete with United Artists' 007 series, but Spielberg denied it. He will not make a sequel to ET. , ET is a beautiful dream in his childhood, but no matter how beautiful the dream is, there is no reason to have it for decades.

A director of Spielberg said he would not make it, did MGM have nothing to do with him?

...that's true.

Because when the contract with MGM was initially signed, Spielberg added a particularly witty one-he has all the subsequent creation and peripheral decision-making power of the film.

In other words, no matter whether it is the second part of ET, or ET's peripherals (songs, game adaptations, etc.), no one can do it without Spielberg's nod. One accusation and one accuracy, not only the product must be removed from the shelves, but also Spielberg must be compensated.

MGM was able to agree to such an overbearing clause back then. Naturally, it was because at one time and another, MGM at that time did not have the confidence it has today.

William agreed because he very much agreed with Spielberg's idea that some classics cannot be copied, and only a rapid retreat can become a legend.

As a result, the high-level executives who had nothing to do with the slippery ET turned to the idea of ​​William's new movie. Although they, like other giants, were not very optimistic about "Back to the Future", which had a similar theme, but... Among the projects that William presided over, how many of them are optimistic about it?We all know what the result is.So generally speaking, they are still very optimistic about the idea of ​​developing "Back to the Future" into a new profitable sci-fi series.

The bigger the investment today, the higher the return in the future.

Adhering to such and such a lot of miscellaneous ideas, the MGM executives did good things with bad intentions, which made William cheaper once, allowing him to get the fastest and most abundant money since he became a producer. The capital chain is more than ET.

In the dark, there must be some definite number in the universe.

Old Samuel recalled the scene when William knocked on the door of his office for the first time. He looked down on William in his heart as if it happened just yesterday. He felt that William would definitely open his mouth to invest tens of millions of dollars and shut up the big star , and then nothing happens.As a result, in less than four years, those events definitely became unbearable past events that made old Samuel blush, both ashamed and excited.William really relied on his own ability to achieve the first two items, and he did not fail. Instead, he soared into the sky, making people dissatisfied.

This is definitely on and off!

——Mr. Samuel is actually an old gentleman who likes to follow trends.

……

Because there are too many things to prepare, although "Back to the Future" was officially registered and registered at MGM in July, it is still far away from the actual shooting.

As written in the actor contract provided by MiG to Neil and others, the crew of "Back to the Future" will not be able to start operation until the end of 1982 at the earliest - around late November.The reason why I signed the contract with the actors so early in advance is to ensure that the main actors have enough time to complete the filming.

Miguel was planning for a rainy day. He was worried that the filming would not happen soon, but he was caught off guard because of the actor problem.

This suggestion made Sabatino finally look at MiG.Because Sabatino's biggest impression of "Back to the Future", apart from "it was a movie that William liked to watch in his previous life", is that "Back to the Future" was forcibly cheated by more than 300 million because of the actor's schedule problem Loss of funds.

For the prodigal son Edward's father, 300 million may be enough to buy him a new car and clothes, but for a film crew that is not very optimistic, it is undoubtedly a disaster.

If it wasn't for Spielberg being the producer in his previous life, a lot of favors were given away, and the profits were given up again and again, maybe the movie might not be finished in the end.

But what is certain is that after the explosion of "Back to the Future 1" in the previous life, hundreds of millions of profits went into the pockets of Universal, which invested in it. All the main creative staff, including the producer Spielberg, Didn't actually make much money.They all relied on the subsequent 2 and 3 series of works to truly enter the wealthy class.

From the very beginning, MiG was able to realize that the actor's contract must be bound. This has to be said to be a gifted skill with a reputation for foresight and foresight.but……

Sabatino was a little unhappy. My cousin naturally reminded me, what else would I do if I was reborn?

What's the matter with MiG? !

Sabatino treated Wendy and MiG equally at the beginning, thinking that they were all "playing" with William and had no important status.Later, the change happened for the first time, because MiG lifted his long hair, revealing that overly enchanting and aggressive face.

Sabatino has a sense of crisis about this.

To be honest, Sabatino has always felt that he is not particularly good looking, compared with his blond cousin with long legs.He felt that he was simply a copy of his grandfather, who belonged to the kind of ordinary one who was thrown into the crowd and was hard to find.Sabatino didn't pay much attention to this aspect before. As a man, shouldn't the focus be on stature, strength and ability to make money?

"...I thought you could talk about the beauty of the soul." Elizabeth's mother was a little speechless.

Sabatino was silent for three seconds, reflected on his own soul, and then said to his mother solemnly: "I would rather Will be a person who pays more attention to appearance."

Aunt Elizabeth also introspected her soul, was silent for three seconds, and finally nodded with a sad face, agreeing with the stupid statement.I still like the appearance, or the money is also very good, it is more secure than the pursuit of spiritual beauty. Her sister Margaret who ran away from home back then is a good example.

Grandpa is the happiest, without any pressure, because from the very beginning he didn’t feel that he has spiritual beauty, only money is eternal, baby Will buy whatever he likes, he must like me very much. ("..." Lesenbra mother and son are silent.)

In short, after Sabatino criticized MiG as useless from top to bottom, from inside to outside with critical eyes, he calmed down, completely ignored MiG, and pretended that he was not exist.Sabatino was afraid that if he paid attention to MiG for a while, he would uncontrollably do something that his cousin would not be happy about, such as letting his friend be destroyed humanely.

However, MiG, who has regained his confidence and grown better and better, has been constantly angering his sense of existence.

Good looking (← little three faces ah little three faces);

Is a good friend with William (← has a relationship basis);

All engaged in the film and television industry (← share common interests);

Now I can help William a lot (←Aunt Elizabeth said that the reason she and her husband got together in the first place was that they could help each other at work)

……

All in all, this product is simply too dangerous, okay? !

There must be a way to separate them, must!Alarm bells were ringing in Sabatino's mind.

On August 1982, 8, the crew of "10: Octopus Girl", which was launched in Germany, gave Sabatino a reason to leave William and MiG confidently.

"Although you are not the main producer of 007 this time, it is good to learn more from the crew of blockbuster films, isn't it? It can gain experience for your future work." Sabatino spared no effort to persuade his representative Brother, I hope he can follow the 007 crew to study abroad.

The naval battle between Britain and Argentina has now ended for almost two months, the fifth Middle East war has not yet started, and William will not go to the Middle East, so there should be no major security issues for the time being.

William readily accepted this suggestion, thinking that for the blockbuster "Back to the Future", he really should take MiG and Wendy to learn from it.

"..." The cousin who dug a hole and buried himself was heartbroken.Fortunately, he has a smarter mind and is very quick to find a reason to make a turn. He also said, "MiG is gone, who will be busy with the preparations for "Back to the Future"?"

Just like what William realized when he first entered the producer industry, not shooting does not mean that the main creators are not busy, on the contrary, the preparatory period is the busiest.

William thought about it, so he could only bring Wendy with him.

==Are you cheating me on purpose?Surely? !Sabatino, who had planned to enjoy a wonderful but short crew trip with his cousin again, had a violent Tyrannosaurus rex in his heart.

"After Wendy leaves, who do you trust to hand over Lianmei, which is still moving?" The cousin could only continue to find reasons.

Lianmei has almost moved, and there is only one finishing touch, which is also the most troublesome stage.Because the old building needs to be inspected, and the new group company that bought the building has to be handed over; the other party is urged to pay the final payment as soon as possible, so that the money that Microsoft has advanced before can be repaid; It's really expensive and inefficient. As a legitimate and conscientious enterprise, Lianmei cannot illegally hire cheap migrant workers... If you say too much, you will be in tears.

Such a tedious but important job would definitely not be done by the biggest BOSS himself, but he couldn't just assign someone to do it, as that would probably cause immeasurable losses.

"Be patient, careful, and responsible. The most important thing is to be loyal. Lively and cheerful can encourage people." Sabatino inspired William with persuasion, and made him subjectively feel that Wendy is in charge of these things. Candidates.

William also really thinks that Wendy is very suitable, and with this qualification, he can turn Wendy from an assistant to a special assistant earlier.

The change of this position is not just a change of name and salary. Although many people think that they are the same thing and always confuse special assistant, assistant and secretary, but...the truth is not like that.

Assistant and special assistant are two completely different things.

If Sabatino sends Mr. Special Assistant out, he is fully capable and qualified to serve as the general manager of the branch, and become a big man like MGM's Hugo; while Wendy... went to other places, at least Mostly it is a department director, or even the team leader of a small project.

Let's put it this way, the assistant is still a service person who serves tea and water, but the special assistant is an executive who can influence the boss's decision-making and make suggestions for the company's management.

The gap is really big, it is a qualitative leap.

Therefore, although William wanted Wendy to be his special assistant a long time ago, he couldn't make it because of Wendy's lack of qualifications.William can also directly promote Wendy regardless, and no one can stop him, but in that case, Wendy's "special assistant" will only be an assistant in nature, and everyone will not respect Sabatino's side. Respect Wendy like Mr. Special Assistant.

"You're not helping Wendy by doing this, but harming her." Lawy and William had talked about personnel appointments for a long time in their lives.

But if Wendy can successfully complete the relocation of United Artists, the situation will be different.

"But can Wendy do it alone? She only has some experience in moving crews."

"And Roy, as I said, before the relocation of United Artists, I will send Roy to you, and you will still send him." Roy, a gold medal lawyer, is really, really special.

Wendy is also very happy to be able to work with the twin brothers of the idol (Mr. Special Assistant), anyway, she still hasn't figured out who the twins are.

Roy was also weirdly happy, smiling like a fox who saw a litter of rabbits enough to survive the whole winter.

Laughing... so "disgusting".Sabatino thought so.Well, forget it, don't care about the details, he just needs to know that he and William can live together. ~(≧▽≦)/~