Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"Don't run away, Ronald, you have to help me." Seeing Ronald cleaning the room at home, Spike said hurriedly.

Helped Ronald complete the shooting of two chewing gum commercials, and now Spike Lee is coming to collect the bill, hoping that Ronald will help him improve his script.

"It's Thanksgiving soon, and the original origin of this holiday is to know how to be grateful, Ronald. I know you signed a screenwriter in an MGM movie, and you have to help me. I have to apply for various African American programs. Funding from affirmative action groups is needed to finish the film. They have to evaluate the script.”

"Spike, I'd love to help you, but I have to go back to Staten Island for Thanksgiving. My cousin Donna was admitted to Stuyvesant Special High School, and she got a 620 out of 700, which shows that she is in all the high schools in New York State. Among the eighth graders of iq, she is ranked in the top 12, I have to congratulate her, and I have to prepare for transfer and moving, I really don’t have time.”

"Hey, an, when Dickinson and I were shooting commercials for you, we didn't shirk. Don't forget when we did our best to please that white executive for you." Spike Lee cursed angrily. Ronald.

"Didn't that give you more than twice the average salary?" Ronald thought to himself, but he was only complaining in his heart.

"Okay, I surrender, take it." Ronald reached for Spike Lee's screenplay. "

"The Qiao Family Courtyard?" Ronald read out the name of the script, as if it was wrong, "The Qiao Family Big Bed?" Why did your script name change again, what does it mean?

"No, it's Joe's barber shop in a compound in the Big Bed neighborhood. Ronald, you don't understand our black slang and acronyms, it's a ghetto in Brooklyn, officially called Bedford-Shi Stevenson. We call him King.

My story is about all kinds of stories that happened in a barber shop named Joe in this neighborhood. It reflects the history of how black people maintain their own traditions in a mixed culture and fight against Italian gangsters, the lunatic group of Jehovah's Witnesses, the underground lottery, and other organizations. "

"Is this subtitle what I understand it to mean? We cut our heads?" Ronald looked at the cover, really excited.

"Did you make this into a gangster vendetta? The barber took up a big knife and made a fight with Italian gangsters. It's a good gimmick. I think you can even go to the producers of low-cost exploitative films, they will like it of."

Ronald feels that Spike Lee has finally come to his senses. Reflecting black culture on the screen is a lofty goal. Mixing this goal into the popular gunfights, vendettas, and religious and gangster plots, I'm afraid it won't be applauded again. Call for a seat.

"Wade, you have a great sense of humor, Ronald." Spike laughed. "Look, we shave our heads, not we cut our heads. It's about a barber's partner who was suddenly shot and killed. In order to keep his barber shop, he dealt with people from all walks of life, and finally failed shamefully."

"Okay", Ronald immediately downgraded the film in his mind, it turned out to be a reasonable film.

After quickly flipping through the script in ten minutes, Ronald had a point in his heart and said to Spike, "I counted the number of scenes. It's not enough for 90 minutes. How long are you planning to shoot?"

"Let's take as long as you can. I still have a lot of plots to write, but the money is not enough. I'm going to apply for funding this time, and I hope to be able to support until the end of the filming."

Ronald took a yellow pencil and sketched out the scenes from the script on paper. Then I counted, almost all of the dialogue scenes are indoors, and there are only a few outdoor and action scenes. Spike still tried his best to design the script in the direction of simplifying the shooting and reducing the cost.

"I don't have anything to suggest about the script, some plots I don't quite understand, maybe the living conditions in that neighborhood are really bad,

So much so that barbershops have to cut throat competition.

I don't really understand the way a lot of black people express it, and I don't fully understand the subtext of the characters in the dialogue.

But from the producer's point of view, your script is a typical low-budget movie, and you should be able to make it on the budget you got last time.

I don't quite understand why you're still raising money. "

"How did you shoot? We've reduced the budget to a minimum, the actors are all free, and the staff are all looking for help from classmates. By the way, you've made low-cost exploitative films in Hollywood, you help me See what you can do to save money."

"Where's your budget statement? Let me see."

Spike took out a piece of paper and handed it to Ronald.

After taking a look, Ronald only saw a rudimentary expenditure statistic, most of which were film and equipment rental money.

Ronald estimated that the barbershop where Spike was filming was also sponsored by a fellow countryman, and that the street shooting did not apply for police approval. It was a guerrilla-style shooting method. It's supposed to be cheap.

"Why did the film cost so much? Spike. You can make a 60-minute feature film with all your early film expenses."

"How is this possible? I've already saved a lot, and only bought 5 cheap expired films, just enough to cut out 10 minutes of full length." Spike shouted injustice, searched for a long time in the notebook, bought the film, Prints, and photographer Dickinson's recordings for Ronald to see.

"It's really strange, why is expired film still so expensive?" Ronald looked at the numbers, "Wait for me to make a call."

"Hey, is that Gail?...I'm Ronald, I'm fine in New York, how are you, are you still that busy?...Are you free now?...I just want to ask you some questions,... …Well, why is it so expensive for the price of film? … Roger has a special channel? …Okay, okay, what about the processing fee? …I understand, thank you.”

"That's right, Spike. I asked my former boss, New World Productions' executive secretary, Roger Coleman, and it's true that their film prices are so low that they can make a Rock High School for $300,000. movie of."

Turns out Roger Coleman has his own money-saving tips that no one else can follow.

First of all, Coleman was not buying new film, nor was Spike the expired film that had been out for a year, although it was still shooting, but its performance had deteriorated. He shoots a residual film.

Each film is available in 4-minute and 11-minute sizes. But when filming, it's impossible to use exactly 11 minutes every time. If the lens below, the film length in the box is not enough, the photographer will replace it with a new one.

Every time the film is shot and sent to the laboratory, there will be some unexposed film more or less. The labs would spliced ​​the films, put them in airtight jars, and sold them to hobbyists.

Roger Coleman has a good relationship with Warner and Fox, the two major studios, and can buy the remaining film at a price of 1 to 20% off the original price. Because he shoots a lot every year, many studios are willing to sell him surplus film in bulk.

The second is the cost of printing. Roger Coleman has a large amount of printing and does not have high requirements for quality. The main reason that the printing factory makes money is that the machine does not stop, the potion does not change, and it prints as many films as possible.

However, the requirements of the big studios are very high. Each film must be washed according to the requirements of quality control, and the potion must be changed after washing to a certain extent. Moreover, the daily business volume also fluctuates. In many cases, the potions that can be printed can only be discarded in vain because there is no film. Machines and humans dozed off there too.

Roger Coleman's advantage is that quality is not required, and the color of each film can be inconsistent. Not in a hurry. Therefore, the laboratory often arranges for his film to be inserted. Whenever the potion has leftovers and there is plenty of time, it is inserted into a Benman film to be printed. Anyway, after three or five days, it will always be washed.

This saves costs for the lab and also gives Roger a very good discount.

Adding the two together, Roger Coleman's shooting costs, the largest film and processing expenses, are almost one-fifth of others.

In order to get this kind of discount, the low quality requirements, the good relationship with the big studios, and the huge film volume, all three are indispensable. Only Roger Coleman can do this in Hollywood.

"So, Spike, it's not that I refuse to help you. It's that Coleman has an advantage. Even if I order film from him, he will definitely increase the price to about the same as what you buy in New York."

"I understand you, Ronald. Jews are always so shrewd. But if it weren't for you, I don't know why he has such a low cost. I thought there was something wrong with my directing skills, and I couldn't make such a low film. Than, there are too many retakes."

Spike Lee continued, "I'd like to ask you to be the producer of my graduation project, and I need your help with a lot of cost-saving things on filming."

"Okay, no problem, but again, you'll have to wait until I finish Thanksgiving."

"That `s a deal."

After sending Spike Lee away, Ronald continued to tidy the room. He will let his cousin Donna live in the back bedroom of this apartment, and Aunt Karen will often come to Manhattan to take care of her daughter and watch the leg warmer business. The photo studio outside was transformed into a living room by Ronald, and the bedroom in the middle was his own.

The photography business gradually turned to the casting studio. Ronald no longer accepted the private shooting business of the apartment. His accountant, Lawrence, told him that it was easy to be reported to irs for tax evasion.

In this way, this apartment is mainly residential, and it is almost allocated to the shotgun room on Staten Island.

Fortunately, Stuyvesant High School, which Donna was admitted to, was located in the East Village, so it was very convenient for Donna to attend classes.

Trisha and David's art high school in Manhattan had some success selling leg warmers and needed somewhere to put some goods. In this way, Ronald's apartment was completely transformed, from a photography studio to a warehouse for his home and small business.

Taking the dismantled camera lights and other equipment, Ronald drove to the casting studio. He and the person in charge, Julia Taylor, agreed to put the camera equipment in the studio and use it for audition shots.

After exchanging Happy Thanksgiving, Julia reminded him, "Did you bring your family a Thanksgiving gift?"

"I brought some food for my aunt, but I forgot to buy it for my cousin." Ronald scratched his ears. "What do you think eighth-grade girls like? Julia."

"Oh, I'm also worried about what to buy for my daughter, you can see for yourself."

"Donna is an elementary school bully, why don't you buy her a novel to relieve her boredom?" Ronald came to a Random House and flipped through the best-selling novel.

"Endless love?"

Ronald looked at the introductory sign next to it that read: New York Times Bestsellers, Finalist for the National Book Award.

It seems to be about teenage love. Little girls should like romance novels, right?

"Please wrap it up for me, I want it as a present."