Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"Before the National Congress of the Donkey Party: The Great Commander in 1996; After: He's Finished"

"Hahaha..." Ronald read the newspapers and magazines delivered by the public housekeeper while eating breakfast the next day. The headline of the Political Watch column in Newsweek had pronounced the Arkansas governor's political death sentence.

"Unfortunately, he is quite handsome, smart and motivated." While drinking milk, Donna saw that the New York Times even wrote a classic lawyer joke for the governor.

There are some folk jokes in America that are not very friendly to certain groups of people, such as a joke called "It takes a few so-and-so people to..." joke.

How many Poles does it take to change a light bulb?

Three, one aligned, and the two below carried him around.

In a New York Times political column, a reporter wrote a variant of the joke to the governor of Arkansas, "How many lawyers does it take in a room before someone will tell Mr. Governor that he has the right to remain silent."

Ronald leaned over to take a look. The governor was actually right about balancing the budget. However, after being ridiculed by the media, he probably wouldn't be able to continue working in politics, because no matter where he went, the joke would be irrelevant. Will follow him like a shadow. Just like Mundell, the incumbent leader joked in TV debates back then, no voters took him seriously.

Called a car for Donna and took her to work. In the two-story city apartment, Ronald was leisurely sending work documents to his assistant in the New York office, the actor who played the fat girl in "Hairspray", Ricky Lake, to sign.

Laike is still thinking about returning to the film and television industry. After becoming an actor, doing other jobs makes people feel uninterested. My conditions are not good, I am too fat, and I have not received any invitations to audition for other roles.

But Laike is actually very competent as an assistant. The fat girl works hard to satisfy Ronald as much as possible. In addition, she has lost ten pounds. It is normal to give her a role at that time.

"You call the people on the list and ask them to come and see me. Set up a good time and don't make them come again." Ronald was wearing a Hawaiian floral shirt and a casual vacation attire. He decided to meet at home Those who work for him, now he can also enjoy the privilege of a successful person when Weintraub met him at home to talk about work.

"Okay, I'll make a call." Ricky Lake went to the telephone in the living room outside and made a call. Ronald looked at her back and didn't know what the fat girl was thinking, but the fat girl only had a future in comedy, but he didn't know how to make comedy. Besides, Lai Ke is still too fat, and it will only be possible to lose another ten pounds.

Ang Lee came first,

He now has his own office, and while helping Ronald read the script and receiving a salary, he is still revising his own script. Best of all, he started bringing money home to his wife, and because she wasn't hanging around the house, she didn't have to watch him all day, and the family relationship got better.

The two chatted a lot about script selection, and Ronald was very satisfied. Ang Lee's talk session ended early, and there is still a little time to catch up on the past and talk about some news in the industry.

"Now in your hometown, are there any movies worth watching?" Ronald remembered that he would choose to send movies to the Palm Springs Film Festival at the beginning of next year. He planned to focus on Chinese movies, so he asked Ang Lee what was there in his hometown Good movie, can buy and show in America.

"I haven't been back for a long time because I need a green card. This time I can go back with my wife for the Spring Festival." Ang Lee is very grateful to Ronald, and the green card guaranteed by his company will be obtained soon. With a serious job, my father can also be a little less strict with himself.

"Then you can help the company take a look when you go back. There are quite a few audiences of Chinese descent in America who like CEK Kung Fu movies. Our company has to seize this segment of the market."

"I will, but my family hasn't produced many commercial films in recent years. Mr. Song, who is in charge of culture and entertainment, thinks that director Zhang over there won the Golden Bear in West Berlin, so the government supports literary films, aiming at the European three. Going to the big movie awards."

It turns out that Ang Lee's hometown imposes heavy taxes on film screenings. It is difficult to make a good film in the first place. In the past few years, movies with good box office performances relying on a certain female writer's romance drama appeared. Now Chief Song has given great support to movies with a high probability of winning, with hundreds of thousands of subsidies for each movie, and tax breaks. Many people in the film industry who make commercial films have to go to TV stations to make a living.

As for the two directors who have won awards in Europe, director Hou won the West Berlin International Film Critics Special Award for "My Childhood Memories" in 1985 (he is not as good as Yimou, and this award is a small award that ranks very low). And director Yang, who won the International Film Critics Award at the Locarno Film Festival in Switzerland with his "childhood sweetheart" in 1986 (the film starred in director Hou, and the two had a falling out), received great support.

As long as they can win gold awards at the three major European film festivals and surpass their opponents, they will have far-reaching financial and resource support.

"This is not a good strategy," Ronald felt wrong when he heard this strategy. This kind of niche film with its own characteristics should be the place where the film market is developed so that enough specific groups of people can watch it.

Blindly making movies that conform to European aesthetics will inevitably shrink the basic commercial film market, and will fall into a vicious circle. Commercial films will be less and less shot, and people will despise them if they do. If things go on like this, Ronald is not optimistic about the film development in Ang Lee's hometown.

"So, are there any good movies in the past that are worth buying the distribution rights of America?" Ronald felt that since he could nourish award-winning directors in Europe, the film market there should be okay in the past. Accumulation, there will always be some good movies.

"Do you still remember our club activities at that time? I went to the cultural department to borrow Mr. Hu Jinquan's movie", Ang Lee replied, after so many years in his hometown, only Li Hanxiang and Hu Jinquan's movies are liked by overseas people, maybe Ronald Will you also consider buying?

Li Hanxiang later went bankrupt at the Guolian Company and went back to Xiangjiang to make Fengyue movies to pay off his debts. Only Hu Jinquan still insisted on his ideas.

"Okay, you have copies or videotapes there, and you can borrow them for me too. I want to see their works in the next few days." Ronald heard that one of the two was proficient in shooting clear, and the other was proficient in shooting. People who are proficient in traditional culture will have an interest, and it is good to satisfy their own hobbies.

...

Next up was Dolly Bernstein, Daydream's head of distribution, who had done a great job of acquiring theaters, and Ronald already owned three of Manhattan's Grindhouse.

It's funny to say that although the Paramount Act that did not allow studios to buy theaters was overturned, the business of movie theaters has long since lost its former glory. Ronald made a price, and the original boss couldn't wait sold and left.

Bernstein is very enthusiastic about her work, and she is now mainly responsible for the video distribution business of Daydream.

"We have performed very well in the videotape market this year, and can even be said to be one of the top five videotape manufacturers. Few companies can get good reviews for every videotape like us."

Bernstein admired Ronald's vision in film selection, "Hairspray" is the sales champion in the video tape market. Especially in the black group, and the fat group is very popular. The protagonist in this movie, Fat Girl, likes black culture, which is rare among black audiences.

The white people in Eddie Murphy's movies, at most, respect him because of the roles he plays, and few white people like black culture.

However, the consumption power of black people is limited, and many people do not have video recorders. The video of buying "hairspray" shows that the main customers are fat people. Few movies take care of the mentality of fat people. Generally speaking, they are mainly ridiculed. Many comedy movies or comedy characters in movies are fat people. For example, Ronald’s good friend, John Candy is .

The audience likes to see people who are inferior to them suffer, and they can use compassion, and they can also watch people who are higher than themselves fall down, and there is additional pleasure.

There is also a videotape sales winner produced by Daydream, which is the romance film "Love Is Not For Sale" jointly invested by Ronald and Bannon, which is also well received in the videotape market. Many of the viewers who bought this video are obedient "geek" bookworms.

These nerds who are not good at socializing by nature may not want to go to the cinema with their classmates and friends, and be ridiculed and ignored by those socialites, but it does not prevent them from enjoying a romantic comedy at home in which an otaku turns and the most beautiful cheerleader falls in love. Who doesn't have such a dream? What's more, science geeks are usually children of upper-middle-class families, and buying a VCR is not a problem.

"In addition to these films made by Daydream, there are also videotape rights of films produced by other companies that you bought. The top two are 'Streets of Rage' and 'Billy King Legend', both of which are selling very well. Boss, You should find us more movies like this in the future." Bernstein said half-flatteringly, usually with a little admiration.

"You can't all rely on me, and you don't have to make money. Now that the videotape market is so good, big studios will soon realize that this market and taste are different from theater movies. I'm afraid we won't be able to buy such high-quality movies Lim's movie."

Ronald was also a little surprised, the movie he bought to please two female friends, "Street of Rage" starring a rock star Diane, and the modern Joan of Arc movie "Billy... "Golden Legend", unexpectedly gained very good recognition in the video tape market.

So good that even NBC and ABC's late-night theater programs came here to buy the TV broadcasting rights in Ronald's hands to fill the empty program list due to the screenwriter's strike. With an income of several hundred thousand, Ronald carefully studied the reasons for the success of these two cult films.

In fact, they all have the characteristics of the b-movies shot by Roger Coleman and specially designed for drive-in theaters. They are suitable for teenagers and overall exciting, but they are not suitable for the mainstream market.

If you use poetry as an analogy, this kind of movie is just a sentence without a sentence. Some occasions are particularly hot and beautiful, and have moving emotions. But it does not meet the taste of the mainstream market and is only suitable for some people. Viewers who like it will like it very much, and they must buy a box of the video tape for collection.

For example, "The Streets of Rage" is especially suitable for young male audiences who like the godfather, and they don't understand the rules of the adult world at all. This movie with a childish plot just fits their mentality.

And "The Legend of Billy King" is the girl version, a beautiful woman who was wronged by others, relying on the power of friends and public opinion in the society, defeated the authority, washed away her innocence, and gained love. Young girls also like it very much, it's all their dream plots.

The sales of these two films have greatly exceeded Ronald's own estimates. The original intention was to please the two of them, and the copyright of the video tape was prepared as a gift for them.

If you want to transfer it now, it will be very troublesome, and you will have to pay an expensive tax. The cash in Diane and Helen's hands is probably not enough to pay next year's federal tax.

Although it was a gift to the other party, Ronald had to pay an expensive federal gift tax. If it exceeds the lifetime gift amount that a person can get (usually a few million dollars), in order to make up for the legal loophole, the two beauties have to pay inheritance tax (looking at this year's income, the capital value of the two movies has exceeded the amount) .

In addition, if the two beauties want to transfer the ownership of the movie in the future, they will have to pay capital gains tax, and if the old George fails to run for the presidency, he will not continue to postpone the preferential tax law.

Ronald consulted lawyer Lindsay Dole. In this case, it is best to set up a trust, put the property rights of the two movies into it, and make Diane and Helen the beneficiaries respectively, so that they can continuously get The assets in the trust are annuities produced every year. You can enjoy the benefits without all kinds of troubles.

Ronald felt that it was not good to set up a trust for only one movie, because the value of the two cult movies was still rising.

The video tape market is filled with young people, low-level blue-collar workers, and some white-collar film lovers. It is a combination of many different market segments. This is very different from a unified market in the film market that is dominated by young male and female teenagers.

The more you segment the market, the easier it is to pay for what you like. Both films have high potential for sequels, licensed comics, licensed toys, dolls, and video games, among other things.

Therefore, the final solution is not to directly transfer the copyright, but to transfer the income rights of the video tapes every year to the two as income. In the future, when there are more assets like Ronald, we can arrange a unified trust and list both of them as beneficiaries. In the future, Aunt Karen and cousin Donna can also deal with it in this way.

In this way, they can get the peripheral income of their own works every year, without having to raise funds, and handle the production of sequels and derivatives by themselves, as long as they collect checks at home four times a year.

...

The third person who came to see Ronald was Ed Bastian of Price Waterhouse.

"In addition to the 2nd quarter earnings of these tapes, your overseas copy sales of Boxer Fighter also made you a lot of money, as much as a domestic box office success. And the most profitable 'Dirty Dancing' , the income from the video tape is very stable, and it has brought in another 20 million, and there are two soundtrack records. The original version is still very strong, and there are more Dirty Dancing. This may be because many songs are not in the movie. The sales have started to fast Decreased."

"Hey, I don't know how to invest now, should I still buy Coca-Cola?" Ronald had a happy trouble. Hollywood is such a magical place. After a movie is sold well, it can continuously bring huge income to the main creator.

Patrick Schwitz, the actor of "Dirty Dancing", has evolved from buying a small ranch, buying a large ranch, buying some Arabian horses to participate in horse racing, and then doing a breeding business.

Screenwriter Linda Gottlieb, who talks about her successful experiences in the New York Jewish community every day, has no intention of writing scripts at all.

"If you want to invest in the securities market, I suggest you transfer this part of the income to a corporate entity in Los Angeles." Ed Bastian gave Ronald an idea.

"Why?" Ronald was puzzled, isn't it all my business?

"For tax avoidance?" Ed Bastian took out a document, which was a professional plan he had prepared before coming.

It turns out that in America, in addition to paying personal and corporate federal income taxes, state income taxes are also payable. Ronald's residency registration, and his voter eligibility, fell in New York State. His income in California will be taxed separately from his income in New York State.

Also, state income taxes in both states are progressive. In other words, if the annual income limit is exceeded, the state tax rate that Ronald will have to pay will increase from the low 2% to 4%, 7%, and finally 9%.

However, if the income income is included in the two states separately, Ronald can deduct the taxes of other non-resident states. This saves the extra 4% tax on the tax base of several million dollars.

"My income for the first half of today is in New York State?" Ronald asked the other party.

"Except for the tens of thousands of dollars in dividends from your previous directorial work, yes." Ed Bastian looked at the information and confirmed it.

"Well, the second half of the year will belong to the company in California." Ronald wrote down in his notebook that he was about to open a new company in California and register a new identity. Such a technical adjustment saved millions of dollars in taxes.

This Puhua partner is not bad at paying his consulting fees.

"If your income should be classified as a California company, then you'd better find a California broker to open an account for your stock investment, otherwise your California income declaration may be flawed."

"Okay, you recommend a few reliable ones, and I'll let Lawrence do it." Ronald agreed, so let's buy Coca-Cola.

...

After a busy day, the video tape Ang Lee promised has also been delivered, and several of Hu Jinquan's movies are included.

"Does it feel a little boring?" Ronald sat on the sofa and looked at his "Xia Nv" slowly. The rhythm of this movie is not suitable for modern Hollywood, and the story is relatively boring, but the aesthetics and temperament are still outstanding.

Ronald was very happy to watch. This pure and bright style of clothing and way of speaking made him see what the director wanted to express.

But for a Chinese film, it is very old, and the beauty in his arms, Christie Turington, is very boring. Turington didn't watch movies, but only watched Ronald, sitting in his arms, looking at the tough facial lines, she adored him a little bit.

Cindy Crawford wasn't here today, she's having a good relationship with another Hollywood star, maybe she can take him down, and she can't make excuses for this kind of event. They are all people in the Hollywood circle, it would be bad if they were spread by the agent.

"Then don't watch it," Ronald turned off the video recorder and stared at Christie Turington intently. As an outstanding model, the facial lines must be very temperamental, because of Ronald's help, Turington is now the chief model of Inve Saint Laurent.

"Bo..." They looked at each other for a long time, and Christie took the initiative to kiss Ronald's lips. Immediately, their lips pressed together passionately.

A warm feeling came from his chest, and it was Christie who hugged Ronald tightly.

"The FDA just approved the Governor of Arkansas, who spoke at the Donkey Party Convention, as an over-the-counter sleeping pill, and surgeons across the country can prescribe it to treat insomnia."

On the TV came the host of the NBC Late Show, Johnny Carson, making a joke about the hapless guy. Now that the screenwriters are on strike, all the talk show hosts have to bite the bullet and come up with their own jokes. Finally, he has become the laughing stock of the people across the country.

"Ah..." Turington and Ronald were together, as comfortable as if they had eaten the most inedible ice cream for a model. They were placed on the sofa uncontrollably, and their backs touched the remote control.

"Zi..." The TV station changed the channel, "He may be the most boring speaker at the donkey party meeting", and ABC is also desperately hacking him to rescue Dukakis, the candidate for the commander-in-chief.

"Ah... Zi...", CBS also teased, "This speech, for the audience, the most favorite word to hear is 'finally...', they can't wait for the end.

"Ah... Zi...", "This Kansas, no, Tennessee, and not..." The host of the local black channel pretended not to know that the governor was from that small southern state, "By the way, he is from Little Rock, Arkansas. Young man, when he finishes speaking, the audience will grow beards..."

"Crack...", Ronald pulled out the remote control from under Turington's body, and turned off the TV viciously. Without distraction, he began to look carefully at Turington's pretty face again... and then kissed it.