China Entertainment: Director’s happiness is so simple

Lu Ping'an smiled.

What I just asked him was a lie and a test.

He still has two offers in his hand. Lu Pingan has actually thought a lot about how to use them.

One direction is certain, and that is to use it in Hollywood.

Why?

The reason is simple, because Lu Pingan is Chinese, or to be more strict: he is a foreign director.

How difficult is it for foreign directors to make a career in Hollywood?

In the words of Hong Kong director Yu Rentai: 50% politicians + 20% psychologists + 20% talent + 10% luck.

Yu Rentai is one of the first Xiangjiang directors to have made good achievements in Hollywood. His masterpiece is "The Devil's Bride", which won the North American box office championship for two consecutive weeks. He later also directed Lian Jie's "Fearless".

Hollywood is a very large system, as a whole. They have a history of ninety years and are not as small as one person.

You must integrate. If you ask the overall system to accommodate you, of course it won't work.

By analogy, if ordinary foreign directors want to enter the country and make their mark, it will be difficult for them to get rid of the aura of "foreigners".

The biggest difference here, apart from cultural and legal differences, is that Hollywood is not a director-centered system.

Directors are part-time workers in Hollywood, not studio emperors.

Producers and stars are the ones.

If you want to succeed as a director in Hollywood, you must have a powerful person who can stand up for you at critical moments.

John Woo kicked open the door to Hollywood. His double guns, slow motion, and Ponyboy's coat are a stepping stone. Hollywood likes him. This is also the foundation for John Woo to gain a foothold in Hollywood. However, his personal style and talent alone are not enough. He also needs Zhang Jiazhen who will take care of all the mechanical matters for him to make it happen. Not just any Hong Kong director can break into Hollywood.

If Lu Pingan wants to succeed as a director in Hollywood in the future, he must have a great person to protect him from the wind and rain.

Hu Qingquan can count, but he can't do it now. He may be able to do it in the future, but that is the future, not the past few years.

In addition, Lu Ping'an wanted more than just this.

What he wants is a position above "director".

That is, really entering Hollywood.

This is easy to say but difficult to do.

There are so many deceptions in Hollywood. There are countless examples before our eyes. The people on Wall Street can't handle it, let alone a safe road.

But if you have a Hollywood studio boss as your subordinate, things will be much simpler.

So Lu Pingping said the same thing, and Goldfinger also responded.

[Whether to bind: yes/no]

The "offer" shows that in order to take Wattsberg under his wing, a best-selling work in three years is the reward. Lu Ping'an agrees and can bind. After binding, the offer will expire if sufficient compensation is not paid within three years.

In other words, a blockbuster work in three years can indeed make Wattsberg treat you as a treasure, and it is indeed what he wants.

Lu Pingan silently clicked "No" with his mind.

He felt that what Wattsberg said was correct.

A big-selling work in three years is very illusory, but it is also tempting enough. If he wants it, others will most likely want it too.

So who to make an offer to should be considered carefully.

He already knew about Summit Entertainment. The founders such as Wattsberg were very ambitious, but in fact the company's shortcomings were also obvious.

I have money, but not enough money to make any blockbusters, and I don’t have many distribution channels.

Wattsberg himself was ambitious and courageous, but always fell short.

In fact, Wattsberg should find a senior manager to manage the company by himself. It is just like domestic financial management companies, not very comprehensive and somewhat arbitrary.

In comparison, "Lionsgate Pictures" in the same city of Santa Monica is much stronger.

They were established late, in 1997, but their company structure is more complete, they have multiple distribution companies, and their future plans for the company are clearer. Their future commercial achievements will make them the leader among independent film distribution companies in Hollywood.

Later, Summit was acquired by Lionsgate Pictures. Although Summit had several hit projects, such as "The Twilight Saga", the rest were relatively low-profile.

In addition, if we really want to use the offer, Lu Ping An is more inclined to try to bind shareholders of major production companies, such as the eight largest Hollywood companies.

However, Lu Ping'an also knows that the higher the position, the higher the "reward" will be, and it may be unimaginably high. Looking back, Dingfeng Entertainment may still be reliable.

But how will you know if you don’t try?

Lu Ping'an has already thought about it. From now on, he will have more contact with people. If there is someone more powerful and suitable than Wattsberg, then he will bind them.

If it doesn't work, it's okay to go back and bind Wattsberg. Summit Entertainment won't make much progress in the future until it makes "Twilight", and I guess the "remuneration" won't change too much.

Furthermore, if Lu Ping An is really bound to Summit Entertainment, although this is just an independent film company, in fact, for Lu Ping An, the convenience that such a person will provide him will be enough, and the converse may be true. We can also build the company into a large company, and it will be easy to invest in shares at that time. After all, Wattsberg is the major shareholder, has great power, is 100% loyal, and can operate.

But this is still something to talk about later.

Then comes the business.

The two chatted for a long time, and Watts asked: "Lu, do you have any movie plans next?"

"Yes, there will probably be a movie of mine in Venice in a few months..."

Lu Pingan briefly talked about "Time and Space Evil", but Watts still had the same attitude: "When the time comes, you will have priority in selling me."

"certainly!"

Lu Pingping raised his glass and the two clinked their glasses.

Lu Ping'an took the opportunity to say: "Actually, I have a script that is more suitable for the North American market, and I am planning to start filming in the next few days."

"Shooting in Hollywood?"

"right."

Watts' expression changed slightly, and he reminded: "Lu, this is Hollywood, are you sure?"

Lu Ping'an knew that this was the conventional impression involving foreign screenwriters and directors in Hollywood.

Lu Ping'an's talent is indeed there, but no one would believe it if he said that it was suitable for the North American market, even if Wattsberg had seen so many of his works.

But Lu Ping'an still said calmly: "I'm sure, because this is a horror movie."

After hearing this, Watts' expression relaxed a lot, and he nodded in agreement: "Horror movies, this kind of movie is relatively niche in North America, and the market is relatively stable. You Chinese directors also come to Hollywood to make ghost movies and kung fu movies."

"Yes, so I'm going to try it."

"But I still want to ask you, are you sure you want to do it in Hollywood?"

Watts continued to remind, "Lu, you are not famous in North America now. Even if you are very famous, if you have no special strengths, most companies will not dare to invest in you, including us."

"Of course I know, but this film is not a big production and can be made within 1 million. This horror film will be different from all previous horror films in North America. I am fully confident that North American people will like it. "

Lu Ping'an's eyes were full of confidence.

This was said very loudly. If a Chinese who came to the United States for the first time said that he understood the tastes of North American audiences, no one else would believe it at first.

Wattsberg also had this thought in his heart, but he understood Lu Ping'an better than others. To be honest, he wouldn't care if most people said such things.

But Ping An Lu is different.

The style of Lu Pingan's works is indeed not very Asian, and is very suitable for North America.

So he asked: "Have you found a partner? You are Chinese and it will be difficult to move forward without cooperation from North American companies."

Lu Pingan naturally knew this truth, and this was also his purpose, so he showed his cards directly: "So Watts, I need your help."

After hearing this, Wattsberg began to think.

It's definitely okay to help him, but for Lu Ping'an, you can't just provide help.

You must know that the American version of "The Tuner" is the only profitable and best-selling film since "Two Smoking Barrels" in 1998 and "Memento" in 2000!

There was a movie called "Vanilla Sky" in 2001, but it invested 68 million and made 100 million at the box office, and it lost everything.

The adaptation rights of "The Tuner" were purchased before that.

It was almost as if Lu Ping'an saved their lives.

Later, the projects that Lu Pingan got here, except for "Comet" which had not yet started to be released, were all profitable.

Now that Lu Ping'an is talking about a movie with a low investment, and he is so confident, Wattsberg feels that he has to read the script no matter what.

The market for horror films in North America is stable. If the quality is good, you won't lose much money on the investment. Besides, even if you invest 1 million, you can still afford a total loss.

If there is a hit

Wattsberg shook his head and woke up. He felt that it was too early to think about this.

He raised his glass and said: "Let's discuss it in detail tomorrow. If the script is okay, I will vote for it."

"Yes, as a friend, I welcome your investment, but I won't give more."

"So confident?"

"Of course, if I weren't a friend, I wouldn't even say it."

"Well, it looks like I have to prepare Dao Le again."

The two clinked glasses and chatted for a while, and the reception ended.

Back at his residence, Lu Pingan continued to draw storyboards