Chapter 196 There Is No Difficult Business in the World Version 2.0
For major Hollywood companies, the summer vacation in 1996 was simply a hell.
Apart from the existence of "Spider-Man" and "Independence Day", which are two big money-suckers that make them unable to compete at all, what makes them most uncomfortable is the public's attention, which is actually not very much in the movies. .
Because this year is the centenary of the Olympic Games.
The venue is in Atlanta, America.
Counting this time, the Olympic Games have been held in America four times. If people insist that people are not interested, then the attention of the public is definitely not as strong as that of the people who held the Olympic Games for the first time, but this time, the meaning is different.
Being able to defeat Athens on the occasion of the 100th birthday of the Olympic Games and prevent the return of the Olympic flame is a manifestation of national strength. This kind of gimmick alone has already made countless people excited; in addition, in the past few years, the entire The bad luck of the country continues, but now the whole country celebrates and enjoys the whole world, which is actually a means to stretch the national pride.
In this way, under the double-teaming of the two gold-absorbing predators and the Olympic Games, there are actually many "tragedy death" summer movies.
"A Different Miracle", which was released on July 3, received 16 million in the first weekend;
On July 12th, the box office of "Life and Death" released on July 12, even with Denzel Washington and Meg Ryan playing the leading role, and the future "little fresh meat" Matt Damon, the box office was only 1,000 yuan in the first weekend. 2.5 million;
The "Killing Hour" starring Matthew McConaughey and Sandra Bullock, joined by Kevin Spacey, also failed to escape bad luck, with 14.8 million in the first weekend...
As for others?
Sorry, under the pressure of "Independence Day" and the Olympic Games, these three movies are the only ones that can be sold in July.
Yes, no one expects the box office to explode, as long as the death is not miserable enough, it is a victory.
Of course, everyone can understand that the box office market is decadent. Corresponding to this is the eye-catching ratings of the live broadcast of the Olympic Games. After all, people’s entertainment methods in this era are only so small, and the box office has dropped. , TV ratings must rise, and TV ratings will drop, then the box office will definitely recover. As for both of them falling?
There is only one possibility—
The era of mobile Internet has come.
And what if it falls three times?
That has to wait twenty-four years!
Now the whole of America is under the shadow of Atlanta's Olympic economy, so that Peter Jackson, the future fat man, flew from Wellington to Oakland, then flew to Los Angeles, stayed for one night, and then rushed to the set in Baja California non-stop, The hats used for sunshade are all Olympic goods bought at the airport, not to mention the T-shirts on his body. The first mascot 'Izzy' made by computer is holding a torch and laughing like a sand sculpture.
Dressed like this, Roland sighed a lot.
‘Olympics can really stimulate the economy. What is the difference between making money under the banner of the Olympics and grabbing money? Such an abstract character doesn't even know the meaning, but after printing it on the clothes, it sells? '
Looking at Peter Jackson's attire, Roland finally understood what a heavy blow the postponement or cancellation of the Olympic Games would be to the host country. What is the difference between 100 million and 100 million?
Of course, the emotion in his heart will not be expressed by him.
After seeing Peter Jackson's slightly restrained face, Roland took the initiative to extend his right hand towards Peter Jackson.
"Hi, Peter, it's a pleasure to meet you in Mexico. Kate often mentioned you to me. She said you are a very imaginative director. She also recommended me to watch "Crossover". It was really fun. gone."
"Really? That's my experiment to imitate Troma, I didn't expect you to like it too?"
Hearing these words, Peter Jackson was full of surprises, and while talking, he didn't forget the hospitality he should have when asking for help.
"It's really my honor that you can take time to meet me while filming..."
"Oh! Peter! You don't need to be so polite with him!"
Seeing that Peter Jackson lowered his posture actively and came out with Roland, Kate, while smiling and stretching out her hand, continued: "Everyone is on their own, so you don't need to look outside like this..."
"Sit down, let's chat while eating..."
"If we can't get away, we will definitely go to New Zealand to find you, what a beautiful place! I miss her very much..."
Under Kate's greeting, the three took their seats.
Although Mexico's economy cannot be compared with America's at all, Baja California, which is next to California, is actually not badly developed, and the place to entertain Peter Jackson is a local restaurant personally selected by Kate—— In her words, New Zealand’s Pacific Rim cuisine is deeply influenced by the rest of the world. There are branches of Thai and other exotic cuisines in New Zealand, so it is enough to invite the other party to eat and taste the local taste directly.
Plus Peter Jackson came here for a request, so there is no need to make it tall.
is relatively ordinary, and the conversation can be less restrained.
This is actually where Roland is obsessed with Kate—it's so comfortable to do things.
After being seated, Peter Jackson’s sense of restraint gradually disappeared under the connection of Kate. While enjoying the local people-friendly food, he also talked about his life experience.
"Like many children, I also fell in love with movies when I was five or six years old. After that, I discovered "King Kong"."
"There was no Jaws and Star Wars at the time, so I was fascinated by the pictures in King Kong, because I also wanted to shoot that kind of story, so my parents bought me an 8mm for Christmas that same year. camera."
Chewing the food in his mouth, Peter Jackson, who has no excellent grades, let his eyes go blank, "That camera has been with me for ten years. When I got my first salary, I spent money to buy a 16mm machine. At that time, "Star Wars" was released, and I was fascinated by the cool pictures. After watching the movie, I thought in my heart, how great it would be if I could make "Lord of the Rings" one day, and I must make "Planet The epic sense of "Great War"..."
"Unfortunately, the New Zealand film company gave my cover letter to Pass, so I can only do it myself."
"The "Group of Corpses" you mentioned was my first film that won an international award, and it was that film that allowed me to get more filming funds, and then..."Sinful Angel" was born .”
Speaking of which, Peter Jackson glanced at the two people in embarrassment, while the two people sitting opposite him...
Well, Roland and Kate rested their cheeks on the left and right, smiling and listening to his story.
Seeing that the person involved didn't care, he didn't stop, but continued: ""Angel of Sin" won me the Silver Lion Award at the Venice Film Festival, and it was also this silver lion that made me know Harvey Wayne. Stan, he bought the North American distribution rights of this film, and it was also the first time I knew that the copyrights of "Lord of the Rings" and "The Hobbit" were in his hands."
"When I heard the news, I was ecstatic, but since I didn't have any outstanding achievements, so..."
"Harvey rejected my project request."
"I'm also to blame for my recklessness, but I really want to shape the world of Middle-earth, so like most directors, after winning the award, I took on a film that can reflect business, Universal's "Ghost of Horror."
Hearing this, Roland interjected, "Just like Ang Lee, after he won the award, he also accepted "Sense and Sensibility."
Received such a response, Peter Jackson also nodded repeatedly, "Yes, this is the traditional promotion route for directors, but compared with Ang Lee, my choice seems too risky. He is continuing to explore in his own successful field, while I , is to immerse oneself in the development of the unsuccessful field... Therefore, "Ghost of Horror" died suddenly."
"Because of this, Harvey suggested that I make a few more medium-budget films instead of working on "The Lord of the Rings". However, you should know better than me that directors like us have no chance to choose talents in Hollywood."
"In this case, I just want to emulate George Lucas because the technology is here and I can't wait...Of course, I'm also afraid to take over other projects and continue to fail and lose the opportunity to shoot "Lord of the Rings" forever." missed the opportunity."
"But alas..."
"The Big Six are unwilling to invest in me, and Miramax is also unwilling to establish a project for me."
“Some guys wouldn’t even read a script my wife and I wrote.”
"So after I heard the news of your relationship, I couldn't wait to call, because I wanted to communicate with you. I think you who can invest in "The Seven Deadly Sins" and buy "The Shawshank Redemption" are willing to spend some time , read my notebook."
While speaking, he also wiped his hands, opened the file package, and handed the neat script to Roland.
It’s not that Peter Jackson wants to sell badly, nor is it that he’s doing one thing before his friends and Roland, but that he doesn’t have any dazzling works to discuss with Roland.
No way, who made the experts in the circle kill his projects one after another?
In this case, wouldn't it be boring to talk about the content with Roland, who is also professional?
But for Roland, who had read the reference answers, the reason why he listened quietly was because he wanted to know about Peter the Great's creative experience in the future, and secondly, he wanted to know why this guy came to him.
While Warcraft Films and Television successfully released The Seven Deadly Sins and The Shawshank Redemption, but—
Who owns Warcraft Movie and TV? This matter has never been made public!
Since the birth of Warcraft Film and Television, there have been very few news about it, and Roland's 25% of the overseas distribution company's shares have not been widely reported. Those who know about it are all at the top of the pyramid in the circle. The guy, no matter how harsh it is, at the current level of Peter Jackson, Roland doesn't think that the other party can find him.
If it was just relying on Kate and his love news, Roland felt that Peter Jackson should want him to be named on the producer list so as to continue negotiating with other film companies, but now, they are obviously here to attract investment !
This situation is wrong!
So, after taking the book, Roland did not choose to read it immediately, but asked curiously: "Did Harvey Weinstein tell you about the fact that Warcraft Films is controlled by me?"
"Didn't you say that he suggested that you make a few medium-budget commercial films first, and then plan "Lord of the Rings"?"
Hearing this inquiry, Peter Jackson, who had already been honest with each other, was taken aback for a moment, then pursed his lips, smiled and shook his head and said, "Of course not, it was actually Robert Zemeckis who told me about this."
"Robert?" Roland raised his eyebrows, even more surprised, "Do you know each other?"
"Yes, we know each other." Since he was asking for help, Peter Jackson didn't hide his intentions, and nodded directly: "You should know about the project "Contacts", right? There is a scene in which Jodie Foster needs to be present. In a short period of time, several facial conflict expressions were displayed, and that scene was produced by Weta Digital, so we talked a lot about things other than movies, of course this includes you...DreamWorks and Warcraft Pictures , are all recommended by him.”
Okay!
Roland understands!
Answer honestly and reveal everything!
The impoverished and white Peter Jackson relied on his own hands to fight against the Weinstein brothers?
Stop kidding, okay?
The pair of brothers who have officially taken root in Hollywood since 1979 have won many Oscar winners. They are simply not something that the current Peter Jackson can fight against. Instead, they are backed by Warner, but have always wanted to break away from the other party's control. line, and they don't have the ability to force the authoritarian brothers to sell their copyrights.
The one who really slapped them down was actually Robert Zemeckis, who supported Peter Jackson.
As a director who was deeply influenced by Spielberg, but turned out to be more and more biased in film and television special effects, Robert Zemeckis really liked special effects, and after discovering that Weta Digital is fully developing motion capture technology, he And Peter Jackson, became confidantes, because everyone loved it, and then—there was The Polar Express.
On the strong recommendation of Robert Zemeckis, Spielberg and Lucas visited Weta Digital after the release of "Contact", and they wanted to know how to synthesize six sides in one second Yes, after reading it, the Weinstein brothers, who had been wrangling with Peter Jackson for eighteen months, just left. 1.5 percent dividend.
The Weinstein Brothers are awesome?
I'll find someone even better and beat you to death, won't it be over?
According to the timeline of Roland’s previous life, Peter Jackson would find the Jewish Gang, but now—
Isn’t the BUG in the Jewish gang sitting right in front of him?
After learning about the relationship between Peter Jackson and Robert Zemeckis, Roland finally couldn't hide the smile on his face.
Because, there is no problem now!
Tapped on the script a few times, he said: "Put the script here first, and I will take the time to read it."
"If you're not in a hurry, just stay here for a few more days, you can walk around, or go to the set to see, I'll ask the staff to get you a pass, you just need to sign a confidential document to go in and out normally gone."
Although Roland didn't give a clear answer, his attitude was the best Peter Jackson had seen so far.
As for leaving?
Stop joking, okay!
This is James Cameron's crew! How many directors have dreamed of an opportunity to go in and have a look!
After hastily nodding in agreement, the two parties who got what they needed chatted more happily. When Roland returned to the hotel, he immediately called Robert Zemeckis and asked him about it. specific situation.
"Peter went looking for you? Oh...you can help him if you're interested."
"His Weta Digital has mastered many top technologies, and it is also a company supported by local Wellington."
"I originally wanted to communicate with Steven and George with the effect after the film "Contact" came out, but now...you do it or Steven does it, it's the same."
"Isn't what we do is to lead the trend with technology? Now everyone is starting a company and can do it by themselves, so don't take advantage of others."
After hanging up the phone, Roland really had nothing to say.
When the interpersonal relationship is full, there is really no difficult business in this world!
Jack Macheng don't lie to me!
And when he was thinking about what to do next, Kate, who was flipping through the script, asked without looking up: "You don't mean to cooperate with the Weinstein Brothers?"
"The two brothers are disgusting."
"I often play unspoken rules, and Kenneth doesn't know how many times he told me."
"I was able to come to Hollywood after filming "Sinful Angel", but the copyright of "Sinful Angel" was bought by their brothers, so I didn't bother to care about them, so I went back to China."
Working with the Weinstein Brothers?
Are you kidding me?
Who wants to work with these two bugs?
He looks so handsome and hasn't got many actresses, how can that fat man Harvey do it?
ah bah bah bah...
This is not his real idea at all! no!
Since the two of them vomited the copyright in Roland's previous life, they have to vomit it in this life too.
As for whether the other party is willing?
Roland believes that they dare not be unwilling.
"No, I'm not a person like Harvey." Roland didn't explain much about this issue, and he directly dialed David's number while holding the mobile phone, "Hi, David, how are you doing recently?" Ah? I have another matter here to trouble you..."
“…It’s not difficult, it’s not difficult, just please go to Miramax to buy the film adaptation rights of “The Lord of the Rings” and “The Hobbit” from Harvey Weinstein…”
"Uh, I haven't talked to them. You can ask me a price first. If it's not expensive, you can just make a decision and buy it. If it's expensive, you call me and I'll find someone (Germany) to buy it (Submit) price (people) to go."
"Attention! We don't give dividends! Don't say one point, we don't give zero points!"
Note: ①The summer of 1996 was greatly impacted by the Olympic Games. Taking away the banner of the 100-year Olympic Games from Athens, Atlanta received super attention. Coupled with the main theme of "Independence Day", it led to the summer box office that year. The market was beeping bleakly, or in other words, movies that were instinctively small and big were basically suppressed. ②Peter Jackson did meet Robert Zemeckis at the time written in the article, that is, in 1996. Not only that, he was also a member of the visual effects team of "Contact". Before "The Lord of the Rings" was filmed, Spielberg and Lucas had seen the Hobbit's hometown of Shire. Lucas also gave him a model of the Tyrannosaurus rex in "Jurassic Park", and After watching the preparations, Weinstein, who had been arguing with Jackson for eighteen months, voluntarily sold the copyright (they had disclosed their relationship during the preparation of "The Adventures of Tintin"). Dreamworks missed a lot of series, but they have no money. Chase Bank did give them a loan line of one billion, but in 1998, "Saving Private Ryan", "Clash of Heaven and Earth", "Little Ants" , "Prince of Egypt", "Galaxy Pursuit" ate more than 300 million yuan. If they were investing in "Harry Potter" and "Lord of the Rings", the remaining 700 million yuan would be considered a complete bet, so they gave up Yes, but the two most amazing series are lost! From this point of view, they are also human beings, if they are time travelers, they should hold on to the last two.
(end of this chapter)