Minahan and Yoram contacted their colleagues in Los Angeles overnight and found a script about break dancing in the script libraries that were constantly circulating in various Hollywood studios.
This is a follow-up work after the success of "Flashdance". It mainly describes a female dancer who wants to enter Broadway musicals but has been unsuccessful. She met a group of black and Latino break dancers on the streets of New York and absorbed them.
Various elements of new dance are incorporated into my own dance.
During the next audition for a Broadway classic dance drama, she conquered the staid director and producer with this trendy and pleasing dance, and won the position of the heroine.
The two quickly contacted Ronald, but no one, including Ronald's agent, knew where he had gone.
Ronald has returned home to Staten Island. He is visiting his younger brother, Douglas Hansen III.
"Do you want to renovate your aunt's old house?" Little Douglas just had an excuse to come out of the big party at home and took Ronald to eat at the Maoguo Restaurant in the south of the island.
"Yes, this is my mother's hometown after all. I want to build a house here so that my aunt can have a place to live in the future. She didn't say it, but I can see that she still likes the neighbors and community here.
"
"Well, there is no problem. I can help you solve it. But it was originally a low-rent house built for laborers. The distance between the neighbors of the shotgun houses was very close. If your aunt bought someone else's house and renovated it, she might
There are unpleasant rumors.
Besides, she is now a little rich and can move to a better community. My family has a piece of land not far from your old house. If you need it, I can make the decision to transfer it to you."
"Then it's settled." Hansen, the largest landowner on the southern end of the island, nodded and his new house plan was completed.
"Actually, Staten Island has always been a base for the film industry, but after the late 1970s, it gradually declined." Douglas Jr. started to sigh after talking about business. If there were film crews coming to Staten Island often, he would still
As a producer, you can often socialize with those actresses.
"I didn't know that."
"Hey, you didn't go to school here at that time. When I was a kid, I went to see the filming of 'The Godfather'."
"Did The Godfather film here?" Ronald said it was the first time he heard of it.
"Yes, the house where his daughter's wedding was held at the beginning of The Godfather is in the middle of Staten Island. There is also a place on the north side of the island facing the Statue of Liberty. Several big stars used to live there."
"Paul Newman?" Ronald heard his aunt say.
"Well, Martin Sheen also bought a house there."
Unexpectedly, Emilio Estevez and his brother Charlie Sheen were also born in Staten Island.
"But after they became famous, they all moved away."
After the two of them finished eating, they simply took the train to the northern end of the island and looked for Paul Newman's former residence near the pier.
"Woo..." With a whistle, the yellow ferry boat used by office workers on Staten Island to commute every day began to dock again.
The two stopped and looked at the ferry. They often came here to see the scenery when they were in high school, waiting for the ferry to take them to Manhattan Island to compete with other high schools in wrestling competitions.
"Hey, is that Ronald?"
Yoram on the boat suddenly patted Minahan on the shoulder, "Ronald! Ronald!" The two fat men began to wave their hands and shouted Ronald's name loudly.
They finally found the phone number of Ronald's apartment through connections, asked Aunt Karen about going back to Staten Island to visit friends, and immediately took the only means of transportation between Staten Island and Manhattan.
"Why are you here?" Ronald looked at the two Israeli brothers who were sweating from exhaustion as they hurried off the boat even in winter.
"We are coming to you and asking you to make a movie."
"Making movies is great, I can invest in it," Douglas Jr. interjected from the side.
…
"What do you think? This is a subject that you are also optimistic about. Can this script be a big seller?" Minahan looked at Ronald with wide eyes.
Ronald was in Douglas Jr.'s mansion, turning over the script without saying a word. He was thinking in his mind that several fragments in his dream were inconsistent with the script in many places. Except that the protagonist was a female jazz dancer, and two Other than the collaboration between breakdancing masters, the stories have little similarity.
After finally waiting until Ronald finished flipping through the script and closed the cover, Minahan and Yoram became nervous, waiting for Ronald's verdict.
"Well, can I ask you a question first? Why were you not interested in the break dancing theme I recommended to you before, but you took the initiative to come to me this time?" Ronald was most confused about this point.
"Oh, it's my daughter," Minahan began to make up a lie. "My daughter called me and said that there are people dancing this kind of dance on the streets of Los Angeles, so I thought of you."
"Oh? Is there any other reason?" Ronald didn't believe this nonsense. He didn't want to film this break dance for Minahan.
Douglas Jr. is by his side, as well as his agent Eddie from New York, and CAA is paying more and more attention to him. As long as he waits for the release of "The Dragon King" and revise the script, he will soon be able to attract investors and distributors. , you own a large proportion of the investment, aren’t you happy?
"Alas, speaking of which, there is another reason."
Gu Yu
It was rare that Mina could not hide it from Ronald, who was experienced in the industry, so he had to tell the truth, "Orion Pictures has also invested in a movie with a similar theme. I came to you to complete it before them and to release it before them."
"Orion is also filming?" Ronald was surprised, "Did you get the synopsis of the story?"
Could it be that the movie he dreamed about was invested by Orion?
But that’s not quite right. Orion is famous for its investment in art films, so how could it produce a simple Roger Corman-style low-budget exploitation film like the one in the dream?
"Hey... I asked about it through a friend." Minahan told Ronald the outline of the "Hot Street Kid" story that he had learned.
"This is right. What kind of race, liberation, blacks and Latinos are trapped on the streets, and mainstream white society accepts them, this is what Orion likes."
"I actually have some ideas for a breakdancing movie. I can rewrite your script. How do you want to collaborate?"
Ronald felt that if he wanted to make this movie by himself and then take the opportunity to go to China on the other side of the Pacific to pursue the traces, he must cooperate with Minahan. Since the project has been approved, he would definitely be unable to catch up by finding the distribution channels from scratch, so he might as well work with Minahan Minahan is cooperating with Cannon. They have good distribution capabilities in Europe. Let's see if MGM is willing to distribute it in North America.
"We want to fight quickly and find experienced people in the market. That's why we came to you first. If you don't want us, we will consider other people."
Ronald waved his hand, he didn't like this poor flattery.
"Oh, that's what we think. I will give you a director's salary of 200,000 US dollars, and then give you a 5% profit share." Minahan made the conditions.
"Of course, if your friend Mr. Hansen is interested, we can also open up some investment quota for you." Yoram looked at the little Doug next to him and quickly added.
"I can shoot, but I want 20% of the share, and then my friend will get 20% of the investment share."
"Seven percent, we can't give more. A budget of about one million US dollars. If you are willing to convert the director's salary into a percentage, the most we can give is this amount." The two brothers Rio Ram are better.
business negotiator.
"Why do you give my directorial works, um..." Ronald began to calculate their estimated total box office in North America.
"Twenty million dollars? My friend Ronald can't compare with low box office results. This is another subject he is good at. He should get 15%." Douglas Jr., who comes from a business family, took over
negotiation.
"Eight percent"
"Twelve percent at least"
"Ten percent?"
"Can?"
The two agreed on the share ratio and looked at Ronald.
"I don't need the director's salary, but I want a share of the copies you sell overseas." Ronald proposed a new condition.
"One percent?" Minahan agreed bitterly.
"Deal!" Ronald was very happy. Overseas distribution has always been forbidden by the studio. He proposed the share because he wanted to understand this piece of fat.
"If I have time then, I will go to Europe and the British Film Market with you."
"That's no problem. I originally wanted you to go look at works from other countries and help me choose." Minahan was very painful about letting outsiders get involved in overseas distribution, but in order to get Ronald to agree, he didn't bother.
He is a director anyway, and artists are unwilling to interfere with this kind of commercial behavior.
"Well, we can sign the contract after the lawyer comes to review the contract."
"Then make a call." Minahan said to Ronald.
"Today is New Year's Day, don't be so anxious, right?" Ronald didn't want Ms. Dole, the lawyer, to express dissatisfaction with him.
'We only have three weeks'
"What?" Ronald was shocked, "How long did you say?"
"In three weeks, two weeks of shooting, and one week of editing, we have to get the first cut and promote it to movie screenings in North American theaters."
"No, there are only two weeks of shooting, and there is no finished script yet? Then why don't you hire someone else?" Ronald thought to himself, what a joke.
"Don't be like this, Ronald. I can add another 200,000 yuan as director's salary to you, and other conditions remain unchanged. This is not impossible for you. I know your filming efficiency. If you are in Israel,
Gav Desert, I made up my mind at that time and asked you to take charge of the director, so that MGM would not be willing to release my 'Sahara' like it is now."
Minahan became anxious and revealed all his biggest difficulties.
"Is that so?" Ronald thought for a while, and the scale began to move to the other side again. His aunt's new house still needs money to buy land for construction. Besides, he also wanted to film Break Dance and go to China to see it.
"Then I'll make a few calls to see if I can find suitable people and places, and then we'll see?"