I'm A Baller - Chapter 387
Chapter 387: Camping
Wang Yan’s personality was typical — “It doesn’t matter if I take the initiative to suffer a loss, but you can’t take advantage of me.”
An Xiaofang wanted to participate in the project, but she had to show her sincerity to cooperate.
After hearing many things about amateurs in the film and television industry, Wang Yan was very vigilant about this.
Thus, An Xiaofang’s first proposal was politely rejected by the young master.
Dacheng Media had invested 20 million yuan, taking up 50% of the shares. They were in charge of production and distribution of the movie, and also responsible for all the publicity work. After the settlement, they would deduct it.
At first glance, it seemed fair, but Wang Yan felt that something was not right, so he kept quiet.
As an amateur, he had to listen, see, and think more. He could not be anxious.
Wang Yan did not expect her to be open and honest right from the start. Still, he not only showed the best attitude and the greatest sincerity, but also did his best to help her with the project.
Who are you?
How old are you?
You’ve just entered an unfamiliar field, and you have to fight for everything on your own.
Money was not the most important thing. What was important was respect.
Only with respect could one become a big shot, and not a coal-rich kid who was being ridiculed.
..
After communicating for almost an hour, they still had not come up with any results. An Xiaofang still had matters to attend to at her company, so she took the initiative to take her leave and agreed to talk about it in two days.
After An Xiaofang left, Li Yixu suddenly became active.
“Brother, the first time other people test the water, they always enter the pool with a swimming ring. It’s a little scary for you to go directly into the sea…”
You’re the one who went into the sea for filming!
Wang Yan complained in his heart, but on the surface, he remained calm and changed the topic.
“Brother Xu, are you familiar with President An?”
Li Yixu did not hide anything and confessed, “Li Li is my uncle.”
Knowing that Wang Yan had no concept of the entertainment industry, he explained in detail.
“My cousin has two film and television companies. Among them, he and Li Chenguang are about to go public on the new third board. They have produced and released Moan Era 1234, Old Boy’s Dragon Dipped In Sauce, and The Best of Us. Next year, the main project will be Chewing Marks.
Hobbit IV and my cousin have a very good relationship. They are Chenguang’s shareholders. Let’s hang out together.
“At 12:00 am, my cousin and An Xiaofang worked very well together.
“As for now, my cousin is busy with the IPO and Chewing Tracks. He doesn’t have the energy to start a new project. That’s why I introduced you to Miss An, who is of a higher level.”
Wang Yan understood. It was a company that was bound to the Hobbits and specialized in making bad movies.
However, he still had a deep respect for Li Yixu.
These second-generation rich people always had all kinds of connections hidden behind them. They could easily find connections with anything.
The upper-class society was like a net. There was always a connection between the nodes.
If one did not step into it, they would not be able to imagine what kind of famous people one would associate with on a daily basis.
In comparison, his network was really small.
But it didn’t matter. If he couldn’t rely on a rich family, he will form one himself!
No matter how strong Li Yixu’s background was, wouldn’t he still have to beg his brother to take him to play?
Wang Siming was stronger. Wangting Yule was besieging the Panda Bears. Did he have a headache?
..
“Is Guo Yuting a good-looking person?”
“Ah?”
Wang Yan’s sudden leap of thought stunned Li Yixu.
He finally reacted and nodded, not knowing whether to laugh or cry.
“She is good-looking, but that girl’s character is a little… uh, hard to describe…”
“Huh?”
Wang Yan raised his head in surprise.
Li Yixu had always been a very calm older brother. It was rare to see him stuttering like that. It seemed like there was a story behind it.
“Of course there’s nothing between us. We don’t have much contact. We’ve had two meals and met once at the celebration party.”
Li Yixu shook his head. After thinking for a while, he finally decided to remind Wang Yan.
“Brother, if you have any ideas, I can help you get to know her. However, she’s really cold to men, but she’s not that cold to girls. It’s not just a matter of character… do you understand what I mean?”
F*ck!
What?
Wang Yan understood and was shocked.
The advertising goddess of his childhood, she was actually…
So exciting!
Li Yixu looked at the inexplicably excited Young Master Wang and an idea struck him.
“Brother, if you are really that interested, I will ask my cousin to help you find out, okay? He is very familiar with that group of actors, especially with the big secret.”
Wow!
What did you reveal?
Wang Yan widened his eyes and looked at Li Yixu. For once, Young Master Li was lively. He nodded with a smirk and said leisurely.
“Director Huo has a better relationship with the male actors! In the film industry, that’s nothing.
If you keep your bottom line, you’ll have a chance, and you’ll live too. At most, it’ll just be difficult.
If you look on the bright side, you might not always have many opportunities, but you’ll always be able to build a good personal relationship with important people. Who knows, they might come in handy at a critical moment.
Every once in a while, everyone would take that as a way to relax. No one would go out with a big mouth and say anything, or pester them.
If everyone thought so and did so, the atmosphere would indeed be more open than other industries.
Therefore, although that girl was very cold and difficult to lay their hands on, if Young Master Wang wanted to, it was not entirely impossible.
“You’re young, handsome, and have a temperament. Your normal competitiveness is very high. It won’t be difficult to have someone else pull the strings.”
Wang Yan found it very interesting. He chuckled twice, and suddenly the topic took a 180-degree turn.
“Mr. Xu, you’re interested in film and television projects. Why didn’t you try out for the cast of Chewing Trace?”
“Ah?”
Li Yixu was stunned again. He was completely confused by Wang Yan who did not play by the rules.
You suddenly jumped to Guo Yuting. I was about to sell it, but you jumped to the Hobbit again…
That… I really can’t handle it.
I even hid far away myself.
“Sir, your thoughts are really jumping all around.”
Li Yixu shook his head and sighed. He followed the direction that Young Master Wang was interested in and told him the truth.
“There’s a limit to the number of good projects my cousin can get. If I get involved forcefully, it’s equivalent to stealing money from others.”
“Did you think that that lousy Era could be invested in just like that?”
“I didn’t even want to see it when it was released. When it was confirmed that I would invest, I didn’t even reach my quota of 5 million.”
Not to mention me, even Yida Films didn’t get a ticket.
“Think about it, a series of movies with one or two co-productions, what kind of concept is that?”
That was indeed the case.
It was true that watching the movie felt terrible, but it was also true that the project was very popular when it was launched.
At that time, it was the investors who waved the money but couldn’t join in. The treatment they received when they made War Wolf with Big Brother Wu Jing was completely different.
Now, The Witch obviously did not have that kind of popularity, but Wang Yan was not short of money!
“A newcomer’s first film, 40 million to invest. Director An wants to take half of it. She’s not small.”
Young Master Wang sneered, and Li Yixu looked hesitant.
After a moment, as if he had made a decision, Young Master Li took out some real money.
“Brother, you might not care about your strength, but for a normal film project, 20 million is definitely not a small amount of money. RMB is not Zimbabwe dollars.”
The reason why Director An was so forthright was that the production, distribution and marketing were completely profitable.
The more investment shares she received, the easier it would be for her to operate.
“The production, distribution and marketing went through a whole chain. Coupled with her good relationship with the cinema chains, she could play many activities.”
“Oh?”
Wang Yan was a little surprised by Li Yixu’s frankness. He raised his eyebrows.
“I’d like to hear the details.”
“Generally speaking, the producer and the distributor can get 39.42% of the total box office. If the producer and the distributor are not from the same company, they will do up a pre-payment settlement and a proportion settlement for the publicity expenses.
“Let’s say you register a royal court movie and do the production, but you can’t do the distribution. You have to hand it over to An Xiaofang’s Dacheng Media, and then she will discuss the settlement with you within that 39.42%.”
“The prerequisite for her to invest 20 million is that you provide the publicity funds. If you really invest 60 million for the publicity, that would be equivalent to her using 20 million to exchange for 50% of the equity of a big project that she invested 100 million in.”
“Her profit and loss margins are different from yours.”
“If the total box office revenue can reach 300 million, then the jointly divided box office revenue that belongs to you is 120 million. After deducting the 60 million for the publicity expenses, the remaining 60 million will be split equally between your two families. Each of you will get 30 million, thus making a small profit of 10 million.”
“But you made 10 million with 80 million, and she made 10 million with 20 million.”
“Moreover, in the promotion, the total amount of 60 million is enough for her to directly earn back 20 million costs.”
“The reasonable profit on the surface is 6 million, and the part you don’t understand has at least 15 million spaces.”
“So as long as the movie can be released, she won’t lose money. Every cent of the box office earnings is pure profit.”
Li Yixu explained very clearly, and Wang Yan listened very carefully.
Finally, Young Master Wang calmly asked, “Is there any way to not let her earn the publicity money?”
Li Yixu smiled bitterly and spread his hands. “No. You can’t do the distribution, and you can’t do the publicity well. Those things are too professional. If you want the movie to be popular, you have to fork out the money.”
“Then let her earn it.”
“Ah?”
Wang Yan’s resolute attitude stunned Li Yixu again.
“Brother, I just told you so much, and this is your attitude?”
“So I’m the villain for nothing?”
Li Yixu really couldn’t understand Wang Yan. She asked a few questions back and forth, dragging him back and forth. She was always floating in the air, which made people very confused.
In fact, Young Master Wang’s thinking was very simple and clear.
“She can only earn a fixed percentage of the 60 million publicity funds. It doesn’t matter if it’s 10% or 20%. As for the rest of the tricks, she can be as stingy as she wants. However, don’t even think about distributing a proportion of the total box office.”
“You want to bet on the box office explosion and feed her with the fixed income first?”
Li Yixu suddenly came to a realization. Then, he was stunned for a moment.
“But, the box office must be at least 500 million to cover that part of the cost!”
In 2015, the movie market was full of chicken feathers.
Speed and Gay Love 7, the domestic box office total of 2.4 billion.
The Tale of the Nagger, 2.4 billion.
Women’s Union 2,1.45 billion.
Charlotte Doesn’t Worry, 1.44 billion.
God Falls and Damnation, 740 million, a Chinese-American co-production blockbuster starring Jackie Chan, John, and Cui Shiyuan.
Moaning Era 4: Moaning to the End of the Soul, 480 million.
Diaosi Goes Down the Mountain, 400 million, directed by Chen Kaixuan, starring Baobao, Zhiling, and Fucheng. The film was big and white.
From the above examples, was it difficult to make 500 million at the box office?
It was too white… Ah, pah, pah! It was too difficult.
Li Yixu did not know where Wang Yan’s confidence came from!
In fact, Wang Yan was not sure that the Witch could break the box office earnings above 500 million. If the auction was not good enough or the publicity was not targeted enough, perhaps even 100 million would be a big hurdle.
However, since the publicity money would definitely be earned by the publishing company, then why not let the publicity company earn a fixed number?
At most, they would lose all their investment. Couldn’t they afford to lose?
Once the system was upgraded, the four-month breathing wages would be 80 to 90 million. If they were all thrown away, it would be a huge loss!
Halfway through the shoot, they realized that the quality of the material was not good enough. If the director was not good enough, they could change directors. If the actors were not good enough, they could change actors. Other than the Little Princess, everything could be overturned and redone.
I am a God who plays games. Don’t talk to me about basic law.
The publishing company wants to split the total box office earnings. Sure, they can throw real money at me and make me crazy!
Don’t dare?
Want to make a sure-win deal?
Then obediently take your fixed income and don’t think too much.
Ever since she decided to film The Witch, Wang Yan was prepared to get accustomed to the messy rules and unspoken rules of the entertainment industry.
Making a good movie that I feel comfortable with is number one.
Promoting The Little Princess is number two.
Giving Wangting Yule’s anchors a sample is number three.
The rest was not within the Young Master’s considerations.
Therefore, Wang Yan actually just needed An Xiaofang to show her sincerity. It wasn’t any unspoken rules, but just for her to lower her head.
Just like Chu Hong, what was a Sleeping Beauty?
You have to admit defeat and call me Big Brother!
..
Chu Hong did not admit defeat for the time being, neither did An Xiaofang, but Li Yixu did.
“Brother, logically speaking, I think you’re just messing around and being a little over-inflated.”
“But when I think of your crazy actions on The Big Eater eating and broadcasting, I feel like I have seen this scene before me before… Mukbang!”
“Those few times of eating and broadcasting, under normal circumstances, you would definitely lose a lot of blood, but later on, you will be on the same level as Young Master Wang.”
“The traffic of Panda recently has been very stable, but the traffic of all the other platforms where Wangting Yule is stationed is increasing.
“It only took you three months to expand your influence into the entire live streaming industry.
“I’m not going to talk nonsense with you. I want to gamble with you. Can you take me with you?”
Li Yixu was still calm, but his clenched fists revealed the excitement in his heart.
He was not a particularly talented person in business. He did not see far enough, was not sensitive to changes in trends, and his style of doing things was mainly stable. He was passable, but had no chance of developing.
But in terms of interpersonal relationships, he was very strong.
So the calmest and most sober way was to invest in talented people and not do his own projects.
He played up his strengths and avoided his weaknesses.
He had followed Wang Siming to invest in banana entertainment, and was ready to invest in Panda Bear in the second round. Now, he had found a better investment target.
Wang Yan.
Wang Yan was a true God.
He had talent, vision, and temperament.
Even if he occasionally revealed a hint of arrogance, it would not annoy anyone. Instead, they would feel that he deserved to be like this.
That guy should be an aloof and proud tyrant with confidence that was close to arrogance.
Which leader was like this?
Li Yixu firmly believed that Wang Yan would definitely be able to do something great in the future.
It might not be the Demoness project, and it might not be now, but it is definitely possible in the future.
Then, why not get close to him in advance?
It was a rare fate for them to meet before they made a name for themselves.
..
Li Yixu’s determination surprised even Young Master Wang.
Gao Ya, Wang Youcai, Yu Qiuli, and the others tried to curry favor with them in advance. It was normal and reasonable.
Because their own conditions were relatively poor, their choices were narrow. The opportunity that Wang Yan could provide was enough for them to up their social class.
However, Li Yixu was different. He was the second generation of the first-line rich, and his personal wealth was at least in the hundreds of millions.
Wang Yan knew a lot of second-generation rich, and most of them were willing to play with each other if they could. If they couldn’t play with each other, then they would ignore each other.
Currying favor?
That doesn’t exist.
I lack your little bit of money?
Even Huang Xu and Lu Yichen, who were two licking dogs, were beaten up by Wang Yan, and not because they saw a career prospect in Young Master Wang.
Li Yixu could be considered an exception among the second generation of the rich, and he really knew how to judge people.
After a few encounters, he accurately realized the value of Wang Yan. He would not let go of Wang Yan and try to stay on his good side till the end.
Perhaps, these are the struggles of the interpersonal elite?
There was no good or bad in focusing on doing things and doing things according to people.
After a few more years of training, he might be able to become the second son Zhengyi if he transformed into an angel investor.
At this time, Young Master Wang, who had been “invested”, was in a good mood. His impression of Li Yixu continued to improve.
However, he still did not immediately agree to the other party’s investment request.
“Brother Xu, in business, a good producer like President An is a necessary condition for the success of the project, so we can talk about anything. If you wish to join us, other than money, what else can you offer?”
Wang Yan was very straightforward and opened his mouth.
Li Yixu was very calm.
“I can help you keep an eye on the producer and the distributor.”
The culture in Shanghai was that when it came to business, they were always at loggerheads and would not budge an inch. They were not affected by personal relationships.
Wang Yan was already very used to this style. He did not stand on ceremony and directly went deeper into it.
“If you collude with them, I will be even more blind.”
“Yes.”
Li Yixu nodded calmly. He was very magnanimous.
“So you can do this — I invest 30% of the production cost, but I only ask for 20% of the equity.”
“At the same time, I’ll lead a team to supervise the whole process of the announcement. I’ll try my best to control the publisher’s bad money behavior and let your announcement funds be spent as much as possible.”
The conditions were generous, and Li Yixu really wanted to get on board.
However, Wang Yan still shook his head.
“Brother Xu, you don’t understand the main point. I don’t care about the cost, I only care about whether the partners have made the film better value.”
Li Yixu was stunned.
Don’t care about the cost?
Are you kidding me?
The first lesson of business management is cost control!
Only by controlling the cost can you control the risk and go far in this difficult market.
It’s right to be confused. Anyone would be confused.
Other people make commercial films for the sake of money, but among all the profits, the thing Wang Yan doesn’t care about the most is money.
“If this is a bad film that can make a lot of money, I’m sorry, I won’t make it.”
“If this is a good film that doesn’t make money in the end, but has a great reputation, can make a princess famous, and can make a path for the royal court, okay, do you need me to invest more?”
“So, if you have the ability to make the movie better, I would raise your hands to welcome it.”
If not, it’s just the so-called cost reduction..
“I don’t need your investment, because you will jsreduce my income at the same time.”
Wang Yan’s attitude was shaped by two mentalities: the confidence that he could make a good movie and the indifference about making a loss.
It’s hard to understand from the eyes of an outsider — that’s right, who is qualified to understand cheating?
Of course, Li Yixu did not understand. However, Wang Yan had made it clear enough that he knew which direction to work in.
After pondering for a long time, when he raised his head again, Young Master Li seemed to have made a new decision.
“Brother, before we talk about the most important question, I have a question to ask you.”
“Please go ahead, Brother Xu.”
“How did you have the courage to let President An read the entire script?”
Li Yixu stared at Wang Yan with Bright Eyes. The Young Master could not help but laugh and shake his head lightly.
“Because this story is adapted from a Korean manga. The copyright of all movie adaptations in the world, except South Korea, is in the hands of Wangting Yule.”
It was not difficult to obtain The Witch’s adaptation rights.
At this moment, The Witch’s local movie rights were still being negotiated. Wangting Yule took the initiative and even brought a huge bargaining chip to the original author.
Originally, Wang Yan thought that it would be good enough if he could get the Chinese language rights. In the end, he got all the rights to adapt non-local films.
If the copyright was not firmly in his grasp, how could Wang Yan let An Xiaofang see the additional script on their first meeting?
One had to know that Screenwriter Wang had done all the work of directing the action and special effects. The script directly carried the action and special effects!
“Moreover, what President An actually saw was not the complete script.”
Wang Yan smiled and nodded his head slightly.
“I have the complete split-shot script. It’s right here.”
Li Yixu suddenly understood.
No wonder!
It was indeed Young Master Wang’s usual style. He didn’t miss a trick!
In his excitement, Li Yixu finally made up his mind.
“I can invest in Yida and Zhongying for you. In other words, when The Witch is released, we will have a huge advantage in the scheduling of the two theaters.
“Also, I can get 40% of the first-day scheduling for Shanghai Alliance and their theaters. This can be written in the investment agreement.”
Scheduling?
Wang Yan was finally moved.
No matter how novice he was, the importance of scheduling was always clear.
Every time a movie was released, there would always be bloodshed.
The higher the pre-screening rating, the better the box office performance.
The better your box office performance, the more you could squeeze your opponents.
The plate was only that big. Whoever ate most would get most.
Every year, there were a lot of movies whose box office potential was killed by the pre-screening.
Wang Yan originally hoped that An Xiaofang could solve this problem, but he didn’t expect Li Yixu to give a better answer.
But Wang Yan wasn’t in a hurry. He calmly asked her back.
“If so many investors are attracted, the announcement will have to be counted as part of the total investment. The model may change. Can you accept it?”
Li Yixu let out a deep breath and slowly nodded.
“Yes. The total investment is tentatively set at 80 million. You keep at least half, and we’ll split the rest. Then, I’ll handle the coordination of the entire initial stage of the project. The final agreement will be based on your opinion. I’ll try my best to negotiate.”
Li Yixu’s irreplaceable value was finally shown.
Young Master Wang had no reason to reject it.
He took the initiative to reach out his hand. “Brother Xu, it’s a pleasure to work with you.”
“Okay, it’s a pleasure to work with you!”
..
After the show was over, Li Yixu began to get busy, and he reported the progress to Wang Yan every day.
To be honest, the efficiency was much higher than if Wang Yan were doing it personally.
Young Master Wang was relieved and turned his attention back to the loan.
Chu Hong couldn’t sit still anymore. On Sunday, he invited Wang Yan out for a small gathering.
The gathering was very special — camping.
Young Master Wang had never been out camping before. In fact, he was quite interested.
Moreover, it was time to give Chu Hong a chance.
But when he thought of looking at the stars in front of the bonfire with a middle-aged fat man, he resisted and crawled out from every pore.
Go?
Not Going?
Just as he was hesitating, Chu Hong gave the Young Master a way out.
“Chen Xi and the rest will also be going. There are also a few old friends from our Mercedes-Benz Car Club. Young Master Wang, you drive a Mercedes-Benz. Come and have some fun!”
Yes, he had to give face to the Mercedes-Benz!
Wang Yan immediately relented along the steps. “Alright, I’m really interested in camping. Thank you, Chu Xing, for your hospitality!”
Thus, it was decided that they would set off at noon on Sunday and return on Monday morning.
Camping… They had to bring an umbrella, right?
