Exploiting Hollywood 1980

"Hello, Nick? You are so hard to find, Mr. President!" Ronald angrily called the president of the Producers Guild, Nick Kuant III, a lawyer who was hired by the producers. of president.

"Ronald, don't be angry. Your anger only needs to be directed at me. I have to face all the member companies of the Producers Alliance, as well as the negotiator designated by the East and West Writers Guild."

"Ah, I'm sorry. When I call you, the answering machine always answers. How is the situation now?" Ronald apologized to the president Nick. After all, after taking charge of the Producers Alliance, this president has negotiated with major unions every time. , all waiting for good results, saving the producer a lot of work.

"It sucks, I gotta be honest with you, this time it sucks." Nick grew up as an athlete, a star high school football player, and a star boxer. The words coming from such a tough guy made Ronald start to worry.

"Where are the differences?" Ronald was agitated for a while. The Hollywood union strike was no joke. Especially large unions such as the two major screenwriters unions, with more than 9,000 union members, can send volunteers to supervise on duty 24 hours a day, on set and on live TV. If anyone dares to write a word, they will picket them.

This is not the director's union strike that I participated in at the end of last year. The number of people was very small, and many people had communication channels with the producers. At the end of last year, they just pretended to get through and renewed their new contracts.

"Well, you know, the first thing is money. The Writers Guild participated in the last Directors Guild strike. Their observers carefully understood the content of the agreement between the Directors Guild and the Producers Guild, so they requested to be in line with the Directors Guild. One hour The above programs are broadcast on TV stations and pay TVs, and the remainder will be used as dividends.”

Ronald rubbed his chin. The Directors Guild was actually not like a traditional blue-collar union and lacked experience. The directors who went on strike in front of the NBC headquarters in New York were tricked into the details of the agreement by the beauties of the Writers Guild. Seeing that the directors received a much larger dividend ratio than the writers, the red-eyed writers decided not to give up until they received a reasonable ratio.

"All negotiations end up with a number, right?" Ronald asked Nick. The meaning behind this is that the Producers Guild paid a lot of money to hire you as president, isn't it just for today? Bring out the energy of your boxers and rugby players. No matter what means you use, you must sign a reasonable dividend ratio after lowering the price. Then everyone will continue to work quietly for three to five years, and then wait for the next collective wage negotiation.

"That's the easy part. The second request is for the two major writers' unions to propose more advisory powers."

"What is the right to consult?" Ronald was confused. The director must discuss it with the screenwriter when filming. From my first film to now, I have discussed every film with the screenwriter.

"That is to say, they have to have a say in who will be the actors. They also have to have a say in who will be the director." Nick Kuant told Ronald the screenwriter's request, and then took the receiver away a little... …He has done this action many times and has become very skilled at it.

"What the Fuxk!" Just as he expected, Ronald's furious voice came from the phone receiver. "How much alcohol did they drink, and they still used SpeedBall, and they actually made such a request? Who is the other party's negotiator? Is their brain wet?"

Nick dug his ears with his fingers, "His name is Brian Walton. He is... let me describe it to you this way. He is a Briton, but he graduated from Brigham Young University in Utah with a degree in political science and a bachelor's degree from Utah. Lawyer license..."

"Oh, God..."

Ronald has seen a lot of all kinds of people over the years, and the Mormons in Utah are one of the people he has the most trouble with. Not only are they stubborn, conservative, and have low IQs (Utah is one of the best states in America to obtain a lawyer's license), but they also like to pick fights as a means of glorifying their God. The best way to deal with such people is to avoid doing business with them and avoid potential landmines. But now the union has found such a person as a negotiator...

"A 'fighter'?" Ronald was stunned for a moment. This kind of person doesn't care about being cruel.

"Exactly, let me tell you this, he has a poster of Al Pacino's 'Scarface' (gangster movie) hanging in his office. If someone else is a negotiator, they will want to get the benefits as soon as possible. If we end the negotiation decently, he will start a fight or two even if he doesn’t have a fight with me.”

"Gee, why did the Writers Guild let him be the negotiator? Such a person is not good for the writers, right?"

"Then it's the fool in your Directors Guild who was stunned by the beauty who leaked the agreement between the Directors Guild and the Producers Guild."

Nick Kuant explained the history of Brian Walton carefully over the phone. In 1985, during the last collective wage negotiation, he collected a lot of information from the Producers Association and proposed to the two major screenwriters unions that they could go on strike to force the Producers Association to make concessions.

Brian Walton assures that the fight is almost winnable, and that the Producers Guild has a problem with its calculations of the remaining residuals from shows aired by networks. He expects to not only get more dividends from the Producers Guild, but also has a good chance of getting compensation for the past three years - about $200 million in arrears that should have been distributed to the screenwriters but not been distributed.

Who knew that the Writers Guild didn’t believe this fantasy-like figure at all. They thought Brian Walton was a blatant liar. How could he possibly get so much compensation for the Writers Guild? There are only about one-tenth of the screenwriters in the association who can participate in the remaining dividends from film and television broadcasts, which works out to more than 20,000 US dollars per person, and will be available every year in the future. Since when did Hollywood producers become so easy to talk to?

At that time, the union bypassed Brian Walton and reached a deal with the Producers Guild.

Unexpectedly, a beautiful screenwriter who went to the Directors Guild to observe this year actually got the new contract details of the Directors Guild. Not only do they have a much higher dividend ratio than screenwriters, they also have many privileges that screenwriters can only dream of.

For example, what screenwriter wouldn’t want to designate the most suitable director and actors in his mind to film his script? The director can have this power, and it is clearly guaranteed in the contract. The director has the power to choose roles other than the main star.

So Brian Walton spent the first month of the new year holding copies of the Directors Guild contract portion and selling his plan to Writers Guild members in New York and Los Angeles.

The screenwriters' eyes of various colors surrendered when they saw the green dollars and the beautiful women (or handsome men) waving to them. When the final vote came, Brian Walton received more than 90% of the votes. This time he was given full power and was responsible for negotiating with the Producers Guild, and he would not give up until his goal was achieved.

"In short, you have to stand with me. Our Producers Guild is not a mandatory union, Ronald. If Brian is willing to negotiate, I will be happy to reach a workable solution with him.

But now he wants to hit hard and hit us hard. My insider at the Writers Guild said it was likely that he would reject our first offer regardless of conditions and then launch a general strike. So, I want to make sure that everyone is with me, this is not a soft ball for the women's game, this time they mean it. "

"Okay, I promise you that I will support all your decisions. I have seen the actors going on strike back then, and no one really benefited from it." Seeing that things were taking a turn for the worse, Ronald felt empowered to give Nick Kuant, let him handle it.

Nick Kuant put down the phone and checked a box in his notebook. Ronald is surprisingly easy to talk to. This man not only has artistic skills, but also business acumen. It is not unreasonable for him to achieve great success at a young age.

Half of the medium-sized production companies have agreed to form a united front, and the rest depends on the production companies invested by foreigners. They rely on foreign investment. If there is a strike, for them there will be screenwriting output from the home country. For these companies, it is hard to say whether it is a crisis or an opportunity.

Ronald continued to call. The news that the Writers Guild was preparing to launch a formal strike was really bad news for him. Temporary prohibitive measures have been implemented in many previous labor negotiations, but most of them were just gestures for ordinary members to show that the union was helping them negotiate as hard as they could.

This time, Brian Walton wanted to make things worse, so it was only proper for him to prepare a backup plan quickly.

"Hey, Rick (Nisita), how are you finding the British screenwriter? Is there anyone willing to come? I'm willing to pay double the salary."

"It is impossible to double the price. Now it is difficult to find screenwriters from Britain, Australia, and Canada for three times the price. This time is not just a problem in Hollywood. All TV dramas and TV programs with scripts are preparing to go on strike. I found a British screenwriter for you, who is willing to help you as the on-site screenwriter and modify the script according to Harrison Ford's requirements."

"Who is it? How is the level?" Ronald asked impatiently. This person won't make any unattainable conditions, right?

"His name is Warren Scallan. He is the screenwriter of the second part of Beverly Cop. He also filmed the movie 'Beetlejuice' last year, which will be released next month."

"Okay, how much does he want?" Ronald heard that he had handled big Hollywood productions and was an experienced hand. He could make a decision after seeing the situation himself.

"He doesn't want a lot of money, but there are conditions. He wants you to invest in his movie," Niceta said.

"Then invite him over and let's talk." When Ronald heard that there was such a good thing, would you like to buy one and get one free?

…

Warren Scallan was in New York, and the next night he talked to Ronald about being a screenwriter.

The two found a private restaurant and ordered some snacks and cocktails to chat. Because volunteers from the Writers Guild have begun to stay in Ronald's office. Anyone who comes here to talk about scripts will be interrupted by them and send an "Open Letter from the Writers Guild to the Screenwriters", informing the union of the imminent preparations for a general strike. scheme, softly prohibiting them from working.

Avoiding the nasty Writers Guild, the two had a good chat about the script. Ronald was also very satisfied with Warren's professional ability and understanding of screenwriters. He is British and has not joined the two writers' unions in America. The unions have no right to stop him from working.

"Let's talk about remuneration. This is a good time to negotiate. In fact, I'm ready to agree to whatever you want." Ronald took the initiative to talk about remuneration.

"Actually, I only want twice the income, but I also said that I have a script and I hope you can facilitate the filming of the project."

Ronald smiled and asked him to take out the script.

"I wrote sequels to Michael Douglas's 'The Emerald' and 'Treasure of the Nile', and I hope he will star in the third one." Warren Scallan took out a synopsis and put it on On the table.

"What?" Ronald raised his eyebrows in surprise. Did he hear it wrong? He opened the synopsis of the script, and it turned out to be the third script in the Emerald series, called "The Crimson Eagle."

"Yes, I only want twice the income, if you can facilitate this project. I heard that Michael Douglas has a good relationship with you." Warren Scalen came prepared.

"Huh?" Ronald felt confused. Why does this man feel so good about himself? The scripts of screenwriters have always been selected by others in the studio. When will it be their turn to designate themselves to facilitate the filming of the film and use this as a condition?

"This... you specified that it is the sequel to their series of treasure hunt movies. I guess you also want to appoint Kathryn Turner as the heroine?" Ronald took a sip of wine and then asked the other party.

"Yes." Warren threw a peanut into his mouth, with a smile on his face that seemed to say, "yes, you understand me."

"In fact, after the end of the second part, Catherine publicly stated that she would not do the third part again. The two of them couldn't get along on the set. In the end, it was almost Catherine who dictated what could be filmed and what could not be filmed according to the script. Don't you think Is the plot of the second 'Treasure of the Nile' very loose?

If you like this story, I can also find a producer to cooperate, and we can start a new project and find other stars to star. "

Ronald held back his anger. After all, he was one of the few people who had experience in Hollywood blockbusters and was not a member of the Screenwriters Guild. In this extraordinary period, he was a very scarce resource.

"Actually, when I came to New York this time, in addition to you, I also met with several project producers from Warner and Disney. This condition is open to all projects. I will work for anyone who can get the movie approved." Warren ·Scarron collected the outline of the script. It turned out that it was the director who was picky about the script, and now it was his turn to choose the director.

"But you can't force a star to star in a movie project he doesn't like. Katherine Turner has clearly expressed her rejection of this series. She is a star, and it will be difficult for me to convince her." Ronald also wanted to explain that if If the quality of the script is good, he wouldn't mind asking Qida to invest together and replace it with a star actress.

"I'm sorry, this is a fair condition. I think my script is the most suitable for them. This script of mine can bring them back to the top." Warren Scullen still looked like you are begging me now. expression.

"I'm sorry, maybe you didn't hear clearly. I can't do this kind of thing. The synopsis of the script tells me that it is a good script. We can talk about the selection again. There is no movie project that operates like this." Ronald felt Warren knew nothing about production.

"I'm sorry too, there's still a meeting at Warner, so I'm leaving first. If you ever change your mind, remember to call me." Warren Scallen left his business card, patted his butt and walked away coolly.

"Shxt!" Ronald swept away the plate with nuts in anger, and the nuts fell all over the floor.

A round-faced waitress saw it and came over to see the situation. She looked at Ronald's bitter face, smiled sweetly at him, and then knelt down to pack it up for him.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't careful..." Ronald felt that the mess caused by his anger required this girl to clean it up. He felt guilty and knelt down to clean it up.

"No, no, you are the guest and I am the waiter. I'll just come." The round-faced waiter quickly stopped Ronald, cleared the plates and table in a few strokes, and then said sweetly to Ronald. With a sweet smile, "I'll ask them to give you another one."

"Sandra, right? Thank you..." Ronald took out five or six twenty-dollar bills from his wallet and handed them over without counting them. This girl looked like a girl next door, and her sweet smile made Ronald feel a lot better.

"Thank you..." Sandra picked up the tip and was obviously in a good mood. She put the banknotes into her pocket, "This is the biggest tip I've ever gotten here. What do you do?" Hmm... let me guess, you are a banker on Wall Street? No, they are not so generous after the stock market crash. You are a lawyer, right? Lawyers' suits are as tight as yours."

"Actually, I'm a director." Ronald felt that his mood today fell on this sweet girl.

"Director, you can..." Sandra patted him, "Actually, I'm an actor. I also played the lead role in the Off-Broadway play 'No Time'. I can also speak German, and my parents They are all German, and I studied in Nuremberg until I was twelve years old.”

Sandra was laughing and joking, and she also spoke some German. In the opinion of Ronald, who didn't understand German, this girl's line skills were pretty good. She was exactly the kind of upper class society that Ronald wanted Sigourney Weaver to talk about. accent.

"Who did you learn your acting and lines from?" Ronald felt that this girl must have received professional training.

"I took acting classes from Sanford Meissner. The tuition was not cheap, and I had to work as a waiter to earn tuition." Sandra smiled again. Being a waiter is a part-time job that many actresses have done since their debut.

"You know what? You made me feel better today. Here is my business card with my agent's phone number on it. You can ask your agent to call him and tell him that I asked you to call. I'm preparing a new play. You can go for an audition..."

"Business card... you can do it." Sandra didn't care and took it and put it together with the tip. Near Broadway in Manhattan, New York, two of the three men who approached her said that they were directors and were preparing a new play.

"Jack Colton and his partner Joan Wilder took their two teenage children on vacation to Thailand, where they found themselves being blackmailed by a criminal group to steal a priceless statue from the Thai royal family."

Ronald returned home with the script outline that Warren Scullen forgot to take away. It was actually very well written. It borrowed the concept of the 'Maltese Falcon' and started the plot from an eagle statue.

Unfortunately... Ronald threw him into the trash can.

These screenwriters are whimsical. They think that by forcing them to go on strike, they can make the Producers Association give in, give up the most important production power, and let the screenwriters intervene in the selection of directors and actors?

The current ranking of Hollywood's discourse power is a system that has been formed with great difficulty after decades of practice and game. To obtain important power, you must be prepared to take major risks. Otherwise, why can a producer like Joel Silver dominate a film project?

He has poor screenwriting ability, poor directing ability, poor casting, photography, editing, and sound. There is no machine he can fiddle with. Why does such a producer who knows nothing have the greatest discourse power over a film? Because he is the person in charge in the end. If he misjudges the market reaction, he will be responsible for the loss of money.

The Writers Guild is simply whimsical in doing this. They were fooled by the crazy lawyer from Utah.

…

"Hello, are you Mr. Richard Levitt? I'm a waiter in New York. Someone named Ronald Lee gave me a business card with your phone number on it." After Sandra got off work at 11 o'clock, thinking that it was still early in Los Angeles, she tried to take out the business card and make a call.

This director named Ronald Lee has never heard of his name on Broadway. Although it may be a blank check, you can try your luck.

"Hey? Wait a minute," the man named Richard on the phone sounded a little surprised, "How did he give you his business card, and what did he say?"

"I'm an off-Broadway actor, working part-time as a waiter in a restaurant. Today I helped a customer clean up the dishes he spilled, and he gave me this business card, saying there's a new play coming up, and asked me to call this number for an audition." Sandra said quickly, "What new play is it? Can I ask? Is it off-Broadway or off-Broadway?"

"Girl, what's your name? Sandra? What's your full name? Sandra Bullock." Richard clamped the receiver around his neck and reached out to write down the other party's name, "Today is your lucky day, not Broadway, but Hollywood. Tomorrow ask your agent to send the audition photos to this address..."

Sandra Bullock was still dizzy after the call, how come a Hollywood director wanted her to audition?

She quickly called her agent again, "Hello, a director has taken a fancy to me today and asked me to send in my audition photos tomorrow... Yes, a Hollywood movie, the director's name? Ronald Lee"

"Girl, today is your lucky day. Don't you know him? The director of Dirty Dancing."

"Oh, God..." Sandra Bullock was stunned after hearing the call, not knowing what role she could play. She quickly prepared to rest, otherwise the edema would be bad for the audition tomorrow.