Chapter 96 Why do you want to be a director yourself?
Ronald didn't remember why this person's name was so familiar for a while. Several Daydream executives continued to discuss business.
Daydream made a lot of money from "Dirty Dancing", but most of it was Ronald's property. It was only because of Ronald's generosity that several young executives received dividends every time.
When I paid the bill, I also got a fat check.
Filmmaking is a very high-risk investment, and a few people have limited their goals to these three novels. It would be great if they could daydream about making one of these large-scale productions in a year. The bulk of the company's business is still low-cost B
film, and videotape business.
"Maybe we can develop a new genre film direction, a modern revival of gangster suspense films." Michelle Cannold made a suggestion to Ronald.
"This kind of movie doesn't require a lot of shooting costs, and it's easy to select suitable plots from old movies, adapt them, and remake them. Warner Bros. made a lot of movies like this in the 1930s and 1940s."
Ronald understood what he meant. Today's video tapes are different from the shooting mode of theater movies. Due to the size of the TV, movies shot specifically for the video tape market often require the classical story mode.
After the rise of television, not many studios are willing to shoot this model. Who would go to the cinema to watch it if you can watch it on TV?
It happened that the rapid rise of the video tape market gave an opportunity for the revival of ancient genre films. As Ronald chatted, he felt that to a certain extent, the distribution channel determines the rise and decline of film genres.
What is needed now is high-volume, fast and low-cost manufacturing of type films. Quality is not the most important, but speed and stability are.
The result of the discussion between several people was that while the screenwriters were still on strike, they purchased more old movies and foreign movie rights, recorded them into video tapes and sold them. One was a romantic movie that women loved to watch, the other was a kung fu movie, and the other was a daytime movie.
With the investment direction determined by the dream, everyone began to work hard in these two directions.
Jackie Chan's kung fu movies are a very good target, because many of the jokes and big action scenes in his movies can be understood without the need for words, which is a good pastime for American audiences. The love story mainly focuses on the country, Spain
, and Italy. Latinos have special advantages in making this kind of film.
Ronald thought it was good, and made a note to call his friends in Xiangjiang later. They must be very interested in selling the movie to Hollywood.
"Look, some of the movies released in theaters last year did not perform well at the box office, but the video rental market is unexpectedly hot. I think the seven major studios will react one day. We have to seize the opportunity."
Cannold took out several prepared video tapes to verify the strategic direction they discussed, "This is 'No Way Out' released by Orion. They got four stars from Roger Ebert."
It received good reviews, but the box office was only a little over 30 million. Compared with the salaries of several major stars, the stars did not get their money back.
But the video tape produced by Orion sold to HBO has entered the top five on the video tape rental list. If we remove the stars, it can be filmed for less than five million, and the sales volume in the video tape market will not be much different."
"Michelle is right. I have seen this movie. It is actually a plagiarism of the plot of Paramount's 1948 'The Big Clock'. We can do it well as long as we pay a small fee for the remake copyright." David
·Simkins is worthy of being a script reviewer. He saw the prototype of the movie at a glance. This proves the re-emergence of this spy, thriller, and gangster genre.
"This type of film has actually been mainly produced by TV stations since the 1950s. However, due to the classification requirements of wireless television, many ice creams in the plot have been cancelled. With the current video market, we can add those ice creams back.
." General Manager Eddie concluded.
"That's great. In the future, we can also contact medium-sized studios like Orion, and we can also help them produce and sell videotapes."
Ronald felt that he had found another business direction, so he picked up the video tape box and watched it over and over again. The heroine of this film? The spy marine soul is the crazy woman Sean Young who he auditioned for. The male protagonist was brought out by himself.
Dow's former carpenter, Kevin Costner.
He has always been in a state of not being able to become a star. His previous western film "The Battle of Silverado" did not achieve box office success. It may be more suitable for the video market.
"Eh..." Ronald remembered that he had met the writer named Michael Blake when he was drinking beer at Kevin Costner's house. He had no money at the time and had not sold any scripts.
, the whole person slept in the living room of Costner's house.
At that time, Costner also asked him to stop writing scripts and write a novel first to become famous. Could it be this one...
"I remembered, call me..." Ronald excitedly took the phone and dialed his agent Richard's number, "I want to have a call with Kevin Costner, please help me contact him.
one time."
"What, you have a new project, are you looking for him to cooperate?" Richard became interested, and he and Niceta relied on Ronald for most of their business.
"He may know a best-selling author. Let me ask him about the copyright... Damn it, Kevin has already bought it, right?"
"He happened to be in Los Angeles to promote his new baseball movie 'Bull Durham'. He will come over to see you after meeting the media." After a while, Richard called Ronald back.
…
"Yes, that's the friend you saw at that time, who lived in my house." Kevin Costner was wearing a jacket, white socks and boat shoes, exactly like the powerful minor league baseball pitcher in the movie.
"Are you?" Ronald asked Costner, holding the wine glass.
This chapter is not over, please click on the next page to continue reading! "Yes, I bought the option. Originally, Michael wrote a movie script. Because no producer was willing to buy it, I encouraged him to write it as a novel first. Now.
The novel entered the bestseller list, but no one bought it... I had to buy the option to adapt it first."
Kevin Costner told the story of "Dances with Wolves". His old friend Michael Blake debuted at about the same time as him and played with him. By the time Kevin had already acted in "Night of the Comet", he gradually became
Even after becoming a star, Michael still couldn't find anyone willing to buy his movie.
The best-selling of the novel shows that the problem is not Blake's writing level, but that no one is willing to invest in such a classic western.
"I can consider investing. In fact, my creative director suggested that I consider it." Ronald made his intention clear.
"Of course, of course I am willing. Working with you is the most enjoyable shooting experience I have had in Hollywood. You don't know how troublesome it is to work with Sean Young. If she doesn't feel right, she will stop..." Costner told Luo
Nader was very grateful. After all, it was the other party who gave him a chance to debut.
"But Michael has a condition, that is, he must film all the plots in his novel, and cannot excerpt and adapt part of the plot. I have already promised him."
Kevin Costner was very happy to see that Ronald was willing to invest. After all, if this script were to be fully produced, it would definitely exceed the budget of 10 million.
"Shoot them all?" Ronald confirmed. After all, he had read through the novel. The story in it was quite large. Even two and a half hours of shooting might not be able to accommodate it. This is what the publisher least wants.
Types of films seen.
"Yes, and for the Indian part, the dialogue must be in the language of the Indian tribe. I plan to go to the Indian reservation to shoot on location."
Ronald touched his chin. This sounded like the delusion of a star. The dialogue was in Indian, so who of the American audience would go to see it? And he spoke as if he already had an overall plan for the movie.
"Who are you going to direct this movie?" Ronald asked him.
"Yours truly..." Kevin Costner pointed to his nose.
"Hmm... I don't know, Kevin. Maybe you can consider practicing with a small production. It's your first time as a director to challenge a movie like this..."
"I've thought about it a lot, Ronald. When I was making movies in the past few years, I paid close attention to the director's working methods. As you told me before, when making a movie, you first give a main lens and then shoot over the shoulder.
The camera was shot front and back, and some close-up reaction shots were added at the end.”
Seeing that Costner had fallen into passion, he began to talk about his designs for certain shots. Ronald knew that it would be difficult to persuade him to give up this unrealistic fantasy this time.
"I didn't expect you to have such a big idea, courage and ambition. My company alone cannot handle the distribution of such a large-scale production. If you can find the seven major studios to give you the green light, I hope to purchase a filming
Invest in share futures, so that after the overall plan is finalized, I can invest according to the share."
Ronald thought for a while and decided to use a small amount of money to lock in an investment amount first. No one from the seven major studios would be crazy enough to let Costner make his debut film in such an epic production. When the time comes, when he hits a wall, he can do it himself.
Slowly convince him to give up his unrealistic fantasies.
"Dances with Wolves" is a good novel. But a good novel may not necessarily be adapted into a good movie. After all, movies and novels are two completely different carriers, and often the more beautiful the novel, the worse the adaptation.
First-rate movies are often adapted from third-rate novels, retaining only the characters and story framework, so that they can be modified according to the filming rules without offending the readers of the novels, who don't have many die-hard readers anyway.
As for at least more than 10 million, the budget would be over 15 million including Costner's salary. Let this novice who has never been a producer give it a try and see what kind of torture he will suffer.
Anyway, either I said this to him, or people from the seven major studios said it to him. It would hurt feelings if it came from my own mouth, so it was definitely not as good as if it came from other people's mouths. When the time came, I would be here to persuade him.
…
In Dances with Wolves , we still have to endure Costner's delusions for the time being. The other two novels came to fruition very quickly.
"I'm sorry that I didn't understand the key behind it. The adaptation rights of Silence of the Lambs were sold before the publisher published it."
David Simkins came over to apologize to Ronald.
"What's going on?" Ronald was surprised. Selling the rights before publication was strictly a violation of a series of Writers Guild rules.
"That's right, when the author Thomas Harris sold the rights to the first 'Red Dragon' to De Laurentiis, he signed a special packaging contract. The sequel must also be produced by De Laurentiis.
Filmed in a studio…”
Simkins recounted all the information he heard from the author during his visit.
De Laurentiis, a native of Naples, had a lot of deceptive clauses in his contract. For example, if the movie adapted from the second series of novels was not shot by his company, he would have to pay him half a million dollars in compensation.
.
At that time, Thomas Harris heard that his novel might be adapted for the screen, so he signed a contract regardless of too much. At that time, the first Red Dragon might not be able to be filmed. Someone spent hundreds of thousands to buy the adaptation rights.
An unexpected surprise.
Who would have known that the first novel was a huge hit and very popular with readers. The adaptation of the second part was also very popular and was sought after by many producers. There are so many poor producers in Hollywood who want to become famous.
But after the first film failed at the box office, Laurentiis no longer wanted to make a second film. However, the contract was still valid. If the author Harris wanted to sell it to a producer who was truly capable of producing it, he had to first compensate De
Laurentiis half a million.
Obviously he didn't want to be taken advantage of. At this time, the famous acting actor Gene Hackman found him and was willing to pay 500,000 to buy the copyright.
Author Harris saw someone willing to pay, so of course he agreed.
But obviously there are no fools in Hollywood. Gene Hackman paid for it, and there were a few special conditions. That is, after the movie project is approved, first, he must play the senior FBI official.
Second, the actor who plays Hannibal must be confirmed by Hackman.
Third, Hackman wants to direct it himself.
The author Harris thought this configuration was good, and he didn't have to pay for it himself, so he agreed. Now Ronald's Daydream Company thought that they would be the first to come to discuss the adaptation, and the terms that had already been determined could not be changed.
Originally, film shooting required a lot of money, and it was not impossible for everyone to invest in a joint stock and share the risks. But when Simkins approached Hackman's agent, he was rejected again.
Gene Hackman wanted to use this movie as a springboard to transform into a director, and let everyone know in one fell swoop that he was not only an outstanding actor, but also a potential director. So he was quite wary of directors like Ronald who wanted to invest.
"This..." Ronald felt that he was really unlucky. Why do you think he can transform into a director now that he is an actor? It is really that easy. Why are there so few directors who are actors transformed?
Moreover, when actors have short schedules, they can rest after filming their scenes. The director also has to coordinate the shooting of the entire film, deal with various emergencies, and finally shape the film in the editing room, and finally fight with the producer to retain the editing.
version, we must also work hard for publicity.
Isn't it good for you to be a quiet star?
By the way, Gene Hackman is not a star, just an actor. Ronald kind of understood.
There are many celebrities and actors who can do both, but in fact there is still a huge gap between the two, and that is beauty.
Although Gene Hackman has good acting skills and the audience is familiar with him. He has played many famous blockbusters, such as the villain in Superman. But no audience will think that he is a star and come up to ask for his autograph.
Because he looks really average and has no special features. With his acting skills, he can play good guys or bad guys. However, he can never be fixed into one type of role, so that the audience will know what kind of role he plays as soon as they see him.
Because of this, Hackman has no box office appeal. His desire to transform into a director may be a reaction to his frustration.
Everyone really has their own troubles. Some big stars desperately want to broaden their acting horizons, while actors with wide acting horizons envy stars who can do whatever they want. If a star wants to act in this novel, why does he still need to pay for it himself?
Ronald went to Niceta to find out more and smooth over the relationship, and found that Gene Hackman's attitude was quite tough, so he had to give up temporarily.
"What about Steel Magnolias?" Ronald thought of the third possible script for bid. This play is not a novel, but a play written for Off-Broadway and has already been released on Off-Broadway.
"Robert Harlin, the screenwriter, is open to adapting the film, but he also has conditions. He needs to interview all the directors and producers who want to bid for the film script. After negotiating with all the bidders, he will decide to sell it to
who."
"This man has enough arrogance." Ronald replied. It had been a long time since he had been picked on by someone.
"I also think he is a bit excessive, but he treats everyone equally. I asked that this story was adapted from the true story of his sister. Her sister had diabetes and the doctor said she was not suitable for childbirth. But for the sake of her husband, she still
A boy was born.
Later, his sister also worsened her diabetes due to childbirth, causing kidney failure. His mother donated a kidney to her, but the transplant was not effective, and his sister passed away a few years later.
So this story is very important to him, and there is a reason why he is so cautious."
"Okay, then you contact him on my behalf and I will find time to meet with him."
"When are you free? I can chat with him."
"Am I not busy with the new movie?" Ronald glanced at Simkins, "I have a friend who knows Gene Hackman, and I want to find him through connections to see if I can be accommodating."
"Understood, I will contact the author of Steel Mulan first."
Ronald nodded. Among the three scripts, he was still more optimistic about the suspense thriller genre The Silence of the Lambs, which was in line with the trend of the video era. Western films like Dances with Wolves and Southern female misery films like Steel Magnolias needed more attention.
Be careful, priority comes last.
"By the way, the satirical novel you mentioned, Forrest Gump, looks very interesting to me. Who bought the adaptation rights in the end?"
Ronald thought of the Winston Groom novel that several people discussed last time. This novel's subject matter, plot, and the protagonist's somewhat intellectually deficient temperament are all the same as the one he wrote when he first started his career.
The script "My Brother's Keeper" is somewhat similar.
Ronald was a little bit unwilling that the script could not be made into a movie. So he wanted to know more about the adaptation of Forrest Gump.
"It was bought by Steve Tisch Jr., the son of the founder of NYU Tisch College. His father is also the chairman of the New York Giants."
"Isn't that Michelle Cannold's former boss?" Ronald laughed. He had conflicts with Xiao Dishi before for "Dirty Dancing", and now he has hired Cannold to Baidu.
Daydream and Dirty Dancing’s earning power have been somewhat guessed in the industry.
Now that "Forrest Gump" has been bought by him, it is impossible for me to cooperate with him, a proud second-generation rich man. I can only think about it in the long run and see if there is a chance to buy it as a whole in the future.
Don't tell me, although this novel is written in Forrest Gump's tone, it is full of typos and incorrect grammar. But it does not affect the reading at all. Ronald read it with gusto. The last time he saw Forrest Gump, he became an astronaut.
Landing on the moon, and because I played table tennis well, I participated in the table tennis delegation’s visit to China.