"Ronald, have you read the Chicago Sun-Times?" Weintraub called again, "Let me read it to you. Albert said good things about you throughout the article and gave you a perfect score of four stars.
."
"I'm reading it," Ronald didn't bother Weintraub to read it this time. He looked at the words full of compliments and Albert's admission that he was wrong about his directing ability, and he felt happy.
"Ding dong", after making the call, the agent Richard rang the doorbell.
"Are we leaving now?" Ronald put on a new hand-sewn suit, which he found from Armani's tailoring studio in Los Angeles. It was Italian-style tailoring and matched his figure.
Richard had already changed to a larger Toyota Camry, and the two of them went to the headquarters of Twentieth Century Fox together. Today, Ronald received a third invitation from another studio that actively invited people to negotiate.
"We've got an appointment with Mr. Noel Black."
Noel Black was still in the meeting. Ronald and Richard had to wait at the door.
"Didn't we agree on this time?" Ronald was a little dissatisfied. Now he is considered a successful director who can direct medium-sized productions. Even if you are a senior executive of a studio, it is rude to not be punctual.
"Ronald? Is that you? Ronald?"
A shout of surprise came from another person with a strong South African accent.
Ronald turned around and saw that this was not the person he met when he was working for Roger Corman. When he went to the Montreal Film Festival... he was the producer of "God Is Crazy". What was his name?
…
"Mia Toski", the other party saw Ronald's dilemma and took the initiative to remind him of his name.
"Mia, it's really been a long time no see. Are you here this time?"
"God Is Crazy finally got permission for a large-scale release in America. This time we came to the top management of 20th Century Fox, hoping that they can give us more theaters. In any case, a mere fifty theaters are completely insufficient."
of."
"That's really missing." Ronald still remembered this unique comedy. "What? The sanctions imposed on you by the American government?"
"Yes, it has been loosened. Mandela of the African National Congress has been transferred from the poor conditions of Robin Island Prison to a prison with better conditions in Cape Town. The doctor is giving him a comprehensive physical examination. So,
After we made a special application to the American Congress, we were finally able to release the film in America."
"That's great. After we finish talking, we will find a place together today to chat."
"Definitely, we traveled to many places in America, and it's rare to see a Hollywood person like you who is so enthusiastic about helping us." Mia shook Ronald's hand and agreed.
…
"How about my script? I rewrote it based on my memories of my experiences when I was young. I am very attached to this memory and have been looking for opportunities to film it."
Noel Black finally finished the meeting and summoned Ronald in his office. When he came up, he handed him the script of "Heart and Soul".
"Written from memory," Ronald glanced at Blake, who was already in his forties, and thought to himself, "No wonder it smells musty. This is all a high school experience in the 1960s. Kissing in high school is out of bounds?"
Racing in classic cars and the prejudice that Latinos are bad people, how can young people in the 1980s tolerate this?"
"I know you are a screenwriter, and I respect your opinion very much. I can mention anything." Noel Black was eager to promote the film in a short time, so he treated Ronald like a corporal.
"Mr. Black's script is very exciting. I have to read it carefully before I can give a specific opinion. But from my simple reading, it seems that it is a little older. Those antique cars may not be understood by today's audiences.
."
"No, Ronald, those are the beauties of my youth. Anyone who owns one will find it easy to pick up girls."
It seems that he really likes his script.
"Then let's give the audience more ice cream, and let the male protagonist be seduced by this girl, and have a little revealing scene.
"Doesn't it have to be R-rated? I hope more people can see this movie, especially middle school children."
"This is a balancing act, Mr. Black." Ronald felt that he had nothing to say. He was so persistent with his script, so he might as well just direct it himself. There are no interesting shots, this kind of old script,
How to attract audiences?
"Well, I'll think about it."
The words were not in sync, and the two of them could no longer talk after talking for a while.
"It seems that he is also a commercial-first director. Should I listen to him and make an R-rated film? This way, although there will be fewer viewers, it may be able to be released for a longer period of time." Noel Black in Ronald
After saying goodbye, I began to think about my worries, "No matter what, let's go according to his opinion. If we don't start filming this month, we will have long nights and dreams when the new president comes."
Ronald found Mia Toski and his party, and they found a small restaurant to eat and chat together.
"So you have a deal with Fox?"
"No, they still insist on only showing it in fifty theaters." Mia shook her head. Hollywood has always been biased against South African movies, believing that such a small market cannot produce high-quality films.
"Then what are you going to do?" Ronald felt that it was a crime that such a high-quality movie could not meet more American audiences.
"We plan to release it state by state." Mia Toski is worthy of being the daughter of South Africa's largest cinema chain owner. She made up her mind, since 20th Century Fox, the only one of the seven major movie theaters that was interested in them, was not interested in them.
If you are willing to release it on a large scale, it will probably not be possible to find other people to do it.
“Showing past state by state?”
"Yeah, don't you know? In America, there is no law restricting producers from finding theaters for screening. Everyone looks for distributors because they think they are cheaper. I'm crazy about God too."
I am very confident about the quality of the industry. As long as we work on it one state at a time, we will be able to accumulate very good profits in one year."
Ronald raised his glass to express his admiration for Mia. This kind of distribution is very hard, and the screening laws of each state are different. They have to carry hundreds of copies all the way along the Americas, which is not a pioneering work.
If the American market is very thoughtful, it has no incentive to use such stupid methods.
"Since you said that, you must not have signed an exclusive agreement with Fox. I do know two small-scale distributors here. They may be interested in your movie, but most of their distribution theaters are relatively poor second-tier...
…”
"It doesn't matter, Ronald, we are willing to..." Mia stood up excitedly.
"Relax, since you're interested, I can call them both and we'll make an appointment to go see a movie."
Ronald had in mind Roger Corman's Concorde Company and Minahan's Cannon. As long as one of the two families was willing to distribute, he could still make a little money and participate in the domestic distribution market, which would be beneficial to the film industry.
The understanding becomes deeper.
"You're right, I was so excited all of a sudden." Mia sat down and finally found the right person to promote this matter.
The world's largest film market is technically very open. As long as people are willing to watch your film, you can distribute it here. However, it is also very conservative in terms of atmosphere. Audiences and distributors are not interested in small foreign markets.
The film was shot with a bias.
Ronald has watched his own "God Is Crazy" again, and he still thinks it's good. Just now at Fox, he had direct negotiations with Vice President Noel Black, and Black respected him quite a lot in his words and actions, so he must have respected it.
He is now an important figure in Hollywood. He is always accompanied by a man in a suit and leather suit who looks like an agent next to him.
Mia's business acumen made her begin to flatter Ronald, consciously or unconsciously. Ronald was the key figure in "God is Crazy" and entered the American market.
"Ronald, I didn't expect you to have realized your dream and filmed four movies." Mia was greatly moved after learning about his current situation.
"I know you directors want good scripts and actors. Are you willing to use foreign scripts and actors?"
"Of course, as long as they pass the test in English, I have nothing against it." Ronald confirmed Mia's idea, "Do you have anyone to recommend?"
"It depends on what you like. Those of us foreign filmmakers working hard in the American and American markets have a small circle, especially people like me who come from the southern hemisphere. We need to exchange knowledge more. We have one on the weekend.
Small party, if you are interested, I will ask my assistant to pick you up at that time...and your agent."
"That's great." Ronald thought to himself, it would be nice to meet foreign filmmakers.
Richard next to him smiled and had no objection. He took out his notebook and wrote down Ronald's itinerary.
"Do you think our movie will be popular here?" Mia started talking about the release of "God Is Crazy" again.
"I think it's really good. It's a rare high-quality movie."
"I don't quite understand why Fox is unwilling to release it on a large scale. They are not optimistic about the movie."
"Hmm..." Ronald recalled the plot he had watched that year, "If I have to worry about it, maybe it's because there are too many Afro-African slangs in this movie, which would make American people a little bit literate.
Due to the barriers, some of the humor is lost."
"We did encounter this problem. We can only explain it with subtitles during the screening."
"You have to pay attention to read the subtitles. Young people nowadays don't like movies with subtitles very much." Richard interjected from the side.
"That makes sense." Mia nodded.
"Have you ever considered dubbing it again?" Ronald recalled watching "Break Dance" in his dream, and it also spoke Chinese.
"Dubbing?"
"Yeah, find two local actors, rewrite the dialogue, and then replace the voices of the South African actors."
"This is a good idea," Mia suddenly realized. Who said English movies can't be re-dubbed?
After parting ways with Mia, Richard drove Ronald back again.
"Ronald, when you came into the office to talk, I thought I saw Barry Diller."
"Who?" Ronald was thinking about something and didn't hear clearly.
"Barry Diller, chairman and CEO of Paramount. I saw him in the offices of Twentieth Century Fox."
"Huh?" Ronald glanced at Richard, "Are you sure?"
"I'm sure. I have photos of the seven top executives. I'm afraid I won't recognize them and miss the opportunity. I will report to the CAA tomorrow."