Exploiting Hollywood 1980

Mimi Rogers couldn't help it. She couldn't talk about Confucius's teachings.

American society always likes to throw some messy words at Confucius. In fact, the words of this wise man from the East were collected and published by his disciples. Anyone who cares will know if he investigates, many of the things he said were not his.

The reason why American people like to joke about "Confucius said" is because his English translation name "fucius" is pronounced as "confused" (fused). Many specious "famous quotes" have been attributed to Confucius.

However, the words quoted by Ronald sound very ancient. They are similar to the words in the Bible. The language is similar to that of the time. It is simple and rhythmic. Mimi Rogers didn't dare to make a mistake, so she had to change the topic, stop talking about Eastern philosophy, and lead it to the teachings of Scientology to avoid making a fool of herself.

But Tom Cruise was a little interested in Confucius. He found an opportunity to ask Ronald alone:

“Is there any way through Confucius’ teachings that can improve my ability to read and understand other people’s words?”

"this?"

Ronald was speechless for a moment, so he just found a few ancient classics translated by Gu Hongming and flipped through them. Many people in Hollywood believe in philosophy and like to say seemingly profound things, memorize a few of them themselves, and show off when appropriate.

I never thought about being a life coach?

After thinking for a while, Ronald found a passage that seemed to meet Tom Cruise's requirements.

“When a man has a standard of excellence before him, only then will he have a fixed and clear purpose.

With a fixed and clear purpose, only in this way will he have peace of mind and peace of mind.

With peace of mind, only in this way can he have peace and tranquility of his soul.

Having peace and tranquility of soul, only then can he devote himself to deep and serious thought and reflection.

And only through deep, serious thought and reflection can one achieve true understanding. "

"That makes sense..." Tom Cruise snapped, clasping his hands together in admiration, "When I signed the contract with Paula, I wrote a list of all the most famous directors in Hollywood that I wanted to work with. .

I really set a standard of excellence, and then I have a direction no matter what I do in filming.

It seems that I also need to set a goal for dyslexia. "

"Um..." Ronald thought to himself, is this okay?

"Sorry, Tom, I really know too little about dyslexia to give you more guidance. In addition to Scientology, why not also talk to some other experts?"

"Hmm..." Tom Cruise nodded immediately.

But Mimi Rogers quickly came over and started chatting with Tom again. This woman is very smart and tries to occupy as much of Cruise's time as possible so that other people's impact on him will be minimized.

"Ronald... let's go to the inner room to have a chat?"

Jerry Bruckheimer came over. He and Don Simpson came to see Ronald not just to celebrate.

"Okay, I'll come as soon as I go, you can have fun here." Ronald told Diane, and went to a small room on the second floor of the room to have a secret conversation with Bruckheimer and Simpson.

"This is the Top Gun tape, the latest one."

As soon as Don Simpson pressed the remote control, a 21-inch color TV in the room was turned on, and then he played an unlabeled video tape into the VCR below.

A commercial for a knock-off version of "Top Gun" appeared on television.

A fighter pilot named "Mustang" kept a Pepsi Diet Coke in the cockpit fixed to the cup holder.

To get a Coke, he did the same inverted maneuver that Tom Cruise's Lone Ranger scares away MiG pilots in the opening scene of "Top Gun." In this way, the Coke is smoothly poured into the cup under the influence of gravity.

"Hahaha, this is an advertisement shot by Kathryn Bigelow for Pepsi. She is very skilled in camera movements."

Ronald recognized it as the Daydream Company, which used the stunt model of the ground cockpit made by Cameron during the filming of Top Gun and hired Kathryn Bigelow to shoot the Pepsi commercial.

"Did they really put the advertisement at the front of the video tape?" Ronald looked at the Casio electronic watch. He didn't even play the Paramount title, it was just a minute-long advertisement.

"Yes, Paramount agreed. I will talk to you about this later. Let's watch the tape first." Don Simpson motioned for Ronald to continue watching.

"Pepsi, the choice of the new generation!"

After the commercial ended, a text appeared on the TV, warning that it should not be played in for-profit situations without permission. The background was specially made into pink, green, and blue, constantly flashing and changing.

"This is an anti-theft measure, combined with the automatic anti-theft chip of the video recorder, so that consumers cannot transcribe it themselves and show it to their friends." Bruckheimer explained the technical details.

Ronald nodded to understand that, except for the one he bought, video recorders produced before the Supreme Court's Sony v. Universal case and now American video recorders cannot rip, otherwise they will be like this warning and the background will flicker and cannot be recorded. Watch.

"Dongdong...Dongdong..."

The familiar bell rang at the beginning, and the opening subtitles of Top Gun, telling the origin of Top Gun flight school, appeared on the TV screen. Then came the names of Tom Cruise, Ronald, and the two producers. Finally, in the dim sunrise, the F-14 Tomcat appeared on the deck of the USS Enterprise.

"This picture..." Ronald turned to Don Simpson and asked.

"Yes, this is a standard recently explored by Hollywood. During the telecine transfer, the staff cuts it manually." Don Simpson nodded, confirming Ronald's guess.

"So that's how it is. I wonder how the 2.35:1 anamorphic widescreen can be displayed on a 4:3 TV screen."

Ronald was a little relieved.

In the early days, movies were the same as televisions, with an aspect ratio of 4:3.

In the 1950s, after most of Hollywood's business was taken away by television stations, Hollywood companies found a wide-screen solution to compete with television.

Old films are all in 1.33:1 format, which is perfect for showing on a TV. In order to persuade everyone to go to the cinema to watch it, Hollywood invented different widescreen formats such as 1.85:1, 2.35:1, etc. This wide screen has a large format that cannot be seen on televisions, attracting audiences to go to the cinema to see truly exciting pictures.

But since the 1980s, with the popularization of video tapes and cable TV, many people have begun to watch wide-screen blockbusters on their TV sets at home.

There are generally two ways to deal with the 1:85 matte widescreen on TVs, either by deforming the aspect ratio and forcing it into a 4:3 TV. Or leave a black border on the top and bottom, thus maintaining the original aspect ratio.

But "Top Gun" used a 2:35:1 Panavision camera. The anamorphic widescreen shot had a particularly large aspect ratio, almost equivalent to two 4:3 narrow frames superimposed in parallel.

If you use the deformation method, the character will become ridiculously thin. Not to mention the audience looking strange, a star like Tom Cruise would never allow himself to become that ugly.

If the upper and lower edges are cut, then the upper and lower black edges of the entire TV will occupy almost half of the frame.

This is also intolerable. TVs are inherently small, and most new TVs in people’s homes are around 21 inches. In some central and southern regions, the old-fashioned 14-inch and 16-inch models are still very common.

If you leave a wide black border at the top and bottom, the character will become very small and your expression will not be clear at all.

So, with this "Top Gun" video, Paramount seems to be taking a new approach to handling the widescreen transfer.

When converting the film to a magnetically recorded video tape, the staff seemed to use a 4:3 frame on the screen to cut off a section of the original wide screen so that the actors could appear on the TV without distortion.

The disadvantage of this is that the visual impact of the wide screen that the audience can enjoy, and the blank canvas that can accommodate three people talking, have been cancelled.

In the opening shot of the F-14 Tomcat taking off from an aircraft carrier, only the nose of the fighter jet was cut. The aircraft carriers on the left and right sides of the background, as well as the vast sea and sky, were all cut away.

"At most, some of the visual impact of the wide screen will be lost, but the plot and the actors' performances will be intact."

Don Simpson introduced to Ronald that this was a technical route he carefully selected. Taken together, the audience can restore the plot to the greatest extent.

As for the lack of impact of watching it in the cinema, who made them not go to the cinema?

Ronald continued to watch. He wanted to see how the technicians would deal with the later scene of the Lone Ranger returning to the deck and waiting for an interview with another pilot outside the carrier commander's door.

Here, the Lone Ranger, the two Goose, and another pilot Jaguar, have a conversation outside the door. Three people are talking side by side, and there is still some blank space to express the internal environment of the aircraft carrier.

When it was transcribed to videotape, the technicians did a second editing process. When everyone spoke, they cut to a frontal shot of the actor's face. Then when another actor answers, cut back.

They cut a wide-screen frontal medium shot of Ronald into three frontal close-ups.

"Hahaha, so that's what you do, French Open-style editing." Ronald smiled and leaned back. In this way, the originally vast artistic conception turned into a TV series with big heads facing the actors, cutting according to the dialogue. Editing style for close-ups of people.

This editing method was first used in a TV series called "French Open". Every time a person speaks, he is given a close-up shot. It is easy for the audience to understand, but some of the carefully arranged scenes are cut off by the 4:3 frame.

"You agree? We think this is the most effective of the three methods." Jerry Bruckheimer happily supported.

"It's good. I think it's relatively the best way." Ronald nodded in agreement with their choice.

"Good," Don Simpson pressed the pause button. The three of them have watched this movie no less than a hundred times, and they almost vomited. Seeing that Ronald agreed to handle it this way, he stopped the screening.

"One more thing. Pepsi-Cola is very satisfied with your Daydream advertising work. They also proposed to jointly promote the sales of video tapes with Paramount, so... we promised you a change in the 1% share."

"How to change?" Ronald crossed his legs, thinking that this was the most important reason why the two producers came to him today.

"That's it, Ronald. Pepsi has a proposal. They will spend another eight million dollars to promote this ad on TV, and then add a video sales notice at the end of the ad. Paramount promised to sell the video Lower the price by six dollars, so..."

"Do you want to lower it?" Ronald was a little unhappy. I get dividends based on the sales of the video tapes. For every dollar the selling price drops, I lose one cent.

"It's like this. Pepsi-Cola has invested a lot of money this time, and Paramount also wants to try a new pricing strategy. We came to you just to see how we can make up for your losses." Bruckheimer said next to him One sentence.

Anyway, "Top Gun" was a hit, and Ronald Lee made a lot of money for himself and his partner Don Simpson. There was no need to deduct his already meager money on tape.

Originally, in the market, the price of video tapes of such popular blockbusters was generally between 80 and 100 US dollars. There are also some directors who are simply unwilling to release the video version for fear of piracy. For example, Spielberg does not want his movies to be sold on video tapes.

Before its release, Paramount had no idea that "Top Gun" would go on to become the number one box office hit in 1986.

Originally, Paramount intended to use "Top Gun" as an experiment, using a relatively low price to see if the audience who watched the video could buy one instead of renting it from a video rental store for three dollars a night. Go home and watch for yourself.

Therefore, Paramount cut the price in half this time, initially pricing it at $38.

Pepsi-Cola heard the news and thought it was a good opportunity, so they asked Ronald's company to shoot an advertisement that generally imitated the movie and reached an agreement. For every videotape sold, Pepsi subsidizes the consumer $6 for the cost of watching that one-minute ad.

In this way, the retail price has been reduced to $32.

Who would have known that Top Gun would sing all the way and actually win the annual box office championship last year?

Pepsi's marketing department, before the video was released, felt that it needed to work harder. The annual box office champion could be sold at a lower price, which was a great gimmick. Don't waste this great opportunity.

After approval from the headquarters, Pepsi added another fee, a subsidy of US$6 per video tape, and the final price was set at US$26.95 by Paramount and Pepsi marketers.

"Your income is divided according to the proportion of the retail price, so this pricing will have an impact on your income. I discussed it with Jerry and raised the share for you to 1.1% as compensation. In addition, Jerry , the movie won the box office championship, and we also got a bonus."

Don Simpson said it sincerely.

They are two producers who work together and have the production rights of "Top Gun". In other words, after the movie is released, they can decide whether to allocate more money to the main creative staff and how much.

The theater chain took a part of Li Lan, and Paramount, as a distributor, also took a part. The remaining money was not that much.

But Ronald's wonderful direction made the remaining money well above the average profit level of a movie.

After discussing it, the two producers decided that they should be kind to others and distribute a little bit of the surplus to everyone. It would also be beneficial to form a good relationship and cooperate in the future.

"It dropped by 6 US dollars, and the original price was 32. I lost nearly 20% of my money." Ronald felt that he was still at a bit of a loss.

"Then 1.2%, an increase of 20% on the original basis," Don Simpson said happily. "In fact, according to calculations by marketing experts, price reductions can stimulate sales. You don't lose money."

"How much can it be increased?" When Ronald heard this, he felt satisfied. If he calculated it this way, he could still get a little more.

It seems that the two producers have made so much money that they don't care about this small amount of money.

"According to calculations by Paramount's marketers using a formula, reducing the price from over $80 to $26.95 can increase sales eightfold."

"Eight times this..." Ronald was about to say more, but then thought again, "How many were the original sales?"

"With a price close to US$100, only video rental stores will buy it. There are thousands of rental stores across the country. Even if each store purchases ten video tapes for turnover, it will not exceed 50,000.

If their calculations are correct, they hope to sell more than 400,000 video tapes this time. "

"Oh, that's good." Ronald calculated by himself, so that he could still get more than 100,000 in dividends. I happen to be very poor recently, and all my money was invested in the movie "Dirty Dancing." It's good to have some money coming in.

"Then it's settled."

Don Simpson stood up and shook hands with Ronald, and the two finalized a new agreement.

"When the time comes, let my lawyer go find your lawyer. His name is Lindsay, right?" Bruckheimer remembered Ronald's personal female lawyer.

"Yes," Ronald nodded, "I still have some questions, how did they predict eight times the sales? Is this based on experience or..."

"I heard that they have a set of scientific algorithms that use Pepsi's national sales data, and then use a set of prediction algorithms developed by Harvard University to calculate the results using computers. Don't worry, you won't make less money."

Bruckheimer knows these details better.

"Well, I wish us success anyway." Bruckheimer opened a bottle of red wine and poured it for everyone. Ronald picked it up and clinked glasses with the two of them.

"Here's your bonus, Ronald." Don Simpson was the more passionate of the two.

He slapped a check into Ronald's hand.

"When I saw the Saab commercial you shot, I knew we had found the right person this time! Sure enough, we all got rich, hahahaha..."

Don Simpson laughed wildly. He had not indulged himself in a long time due to his recent twelve-step sobriety program.

"Today's party is not interesting. I'll ask you to come with us next time. I'll find more beauties."

Don Simpson finished one thing, felt happy, put his arm around Ronald's shoulders and walked out.

Before Ronald could even read the number on the check, he was carried out of the room and to the lobby on the second floor, where he heard Don Simpson shouting below:

"Did you know? You can really make a lot of money by making movies, hahaha..."

Tom Cruise and others below also clapped and whistled, and someone shouted to Don Simpson, "Don, Jerry, I love you."

It seems that they have all received the red envelope check from the producer, and he is the last one.

Ronald stayed for a while longer, declined Mimi Rogers' invitation to go to the Scientology Star Center, and left with Diane.

Taking advantage of the opportunity to open the door and let Diane get into the car, Ronald quickly took out the check from his pocket and took a look at it.

The first number was followed by five zeros. Although it did not exceed one million, Ronald was very satisfied. Now his daily expenses for this year were guaranteed, as long as he did not buy a big toy like a Ferrari.

Ronald turned to the other side and got into the car. He looked at the clothes Diane was wearing and saw that they were the same ones he had seen her wearing before.

"I'll take you shopping for clothes," Ronald said to Diane.

"Okay, okay", Diane was very happy, grabbing Ronald's arm and leaning his head against it.

"Bud, take us to Macy's Department Store." Ronald said to little Bud sitting in front of him.

Little Bud has been running around with him during this period, which is also very hard, and has helped him deal with many daily things. As a driver, he is also a personal assistant.

This time I have a profit, so I have to give him a check and give him a vacation to go back to New York to spend time with his girlfriend.

Ronald still approves of the way Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer made a lot of money and distributed it to the main creative staff.

"Hehe", Diane grabbed her arm, closed her eyes, and laughed.

Ronald also laughed. This girl's family background was similar to his own when she was a child. Many habits are difficult to change. For example, she can still have fun buying new clothes.

Please remember the first domain name of this book: . :