The Best Director - Chapter 133:

Chapter 133: Chapter 133: What to Do with Money if Not Investing?

Billie – Jean – is – no t – my- lover whether standing or sitting on the sofa, had joyous smiles on their faces. As the catchy accompaniment played, the LCD TV screen showed the music video, and Joseph, holding the microphone, sang excitedly, “But-the-kid-is-not-my-son      “He twirled around Michael Pitt while singing and suddenly let out an “AO,” mimicking Michael Jackson’s signature sound.

In the spacious living room, everyone,

Everyone burst into laughter immediately, and Wang Yang on the sofa couldn’t help but laugh and wave his arm, whistling along with Zachary beside him.

After all, some unpleasant things had happened over the past few days, so Jessica proposed holding a happy party at home. Wang Yang naturally agreed, and taking advantage of the weekend, he invited everyone to join the fun. This included friends from “High School Musical 3” like Rachel, Zachary, Tom Willing, and Zoe Deschanel, who just happened to be in Los Angeles preparing for promotional activities; also friends from “Sweetheart” like Joseph, James Franco, and Annie Darren; and young people like Kate Hudson, brought by Zoe; not to mention some couples, making it quite lively.

Not everyone was inside singing in the living room. Some were sunbathing and catching a breeze in the backyard, eating in the dining room kitchen, playing cards and games… Everyone freely enjoyed themselves around the large house. Of course, private areas like the study and bedrooms were already locked.

She – says – i – am – the – one

and attempted a graceless “moonwalk” backward, then leapt up on his toes while singing, “But-the-kid-is-not-my-son steps, causing everyone to laugh again. Michael Pitt chuckled, “Joey, you won’t make it as a ballet dancer with moves like that!” Joseph jumped up again, steadying himself on his toes, and declared, “Just a slip-up, let’s continue!

She – says – i – am – the – one

Joseph, lost in the music, clenched his fists

oh!” He stumbled a few

Amidst applause and laughter, Joseph finished singing “Billie-Jean.” He scanned the crowd and asked, “Who’s next?” His gaze suddenly landed on Wang Yang and he called out, “Wang Yang!” The crowd immediately started laughing and clapping, looking at Wang Yang on the sofa. Michael smiled, “Come on, Yang!” Tom Willing added with a laugh, “Yang, don’t be shy, it’s your turn to sing.” Zachary gave Wang Yang a nudge, chuckling, “Man, please!”

Ahem!” Wang Yang stood up with a smile, didn’t take the microphone that was in front of him, and looked around puzzled, “Where’s my guitar? Where’s my guitar? I like to play while I sing. I’ll go find it!” Saying that, he walked quickly out of the living room toward the backyard.

The afternoon sun was bright and warm. Next to the swimming pool in the backyard were several sun loungers and a set of parasol tables and chairs. Jessica, Scarlett, Rachel, Annie, and a few other girls, wearing short-sleeved T- shirts and shorts, were either lying on the loungers or sitting by the table, laughing and chatting from time to time, drinking, and enjoying the leisurely summer.

As Wang Yang was about to join the girls to catch up on their gossip, he suddenly heard a sneaky “Yang, Yang!” from behind. Turning around, he saw Joshua with a quirky expression on his face, appearing out of nowhere. Wang Yang asked puzzledly, “What’s up?” Joshua glanced at the girls in the distance and then at him, rubbing his hands together with a smile, “Hey, you know I don’t have a girlfriend right now.” Wang Yang shrugged, guessing his intentions, and laughed, “So, you want to pursue one?”

“YES!” Joshua snapped his fingers, slung an arm over his shoulder, and looked towards the girls, speaking in an excited whisper, “Scarlett Johansson! Don’t you think she’s beautiful? And she’s fun! Dude, what do you think she’s like? If I made a move on her, do you think I’d stand a chance?”

How should I know?” Wang Yang glanced at Scarlett lying on the sun lounger, clueless about what she was really like—just an actress with extraordinary talent? He smiled and said, “Buddy, just go for it! It’s up to her whether it works out or not.”

Joshua nodded thoughtfully and then, stroking his chin, analyzed, “Women, I’ve figured them out! They all like strong men. For instance, you’re really handsome, or you’re wealthy, talented, high-status… funny and humorous, sweet talkers, but still manly! Anyway, to get a girl, you at least need to have one of these qualities…”

He suddenly sized Wang Yang up and down with surprise, “Oh my God, why do you seem to have all of them! I can’t imagine if you were single, wow, the girls in this country would go crazy for you!” Wang Yang glared at him, “What are you talking about?” Joshua, genuinely baffled, spread his hands, “What did I say? Dude, I’m Mexican-American. You know a lot of white people are just that shallow.”

Wang Yang laughed and nodded, “True. But I don’t agree with what you said before. I think it should be said like this: you want a girl, you need to have the qualities she likes; every girl’s standards are different.” Joshua sneered in disdain, “And their common ground is just what I said.”

He pondered and mumbled to himself, “Now I’ve got looks, a bit of money, potential talent, potential status, a great sense of humor, I know how to sweet­talk, and I’m a real man… cough!” He could hardly believe it himself; thinking it over, his eyes suddenly lit up and he said, “Yes, I have ambition! Girls like that too!”

Good luck,” Wang Yang patted his shoulder and walked over to the girls with a smile, greeting them, “Hi, beauties,” the girls lounging on the sun chairs— Jessica, Scarlett, Rachel—and those sitting at the table—Annie, Eileen, Zoe- all looked at him and greeted him warmly, “Hey, Yang!” He sat down next to Jessica on an empty sun chair and said, “The sunlight is nice. What are you talking about?”

The girls all laughed at once, exchanging looks and sipping their drinks. Jessica gave him a look and said, “Just some girl talk, don’t ask!” Wang Yang couldn’t help but laugh as well, nodding his head before jokingly adding, “OK, I’m just here to gossip, I’m a paparazzo. But I’m also a director, and girls, you all look like you’ve got acting talent. So, who wants to make a movie with me? Tell me!

“No, no…” They all shook their heads, laughing. Rachel straightened up and said with a smile, “Yang, a man can’t be that nosy.” Eileen, Zoe, and a few others nodded in agreement, and Jessica playfully smacked his head, laughing crisply, “Don’t ruin your macho image!”

Oh, thanks!” Wang Yang grinned, about to stand up and leave them to their girl talk, but then he noticed Joshua approaching, winking at him non-stop.

Joshua quickly came over, greeting with a smile, “Hey, everyone!” Amidst the welcoming chorus, he took a seat at the sun table, picked up a can of drink and opened it, then asked with a laugh, “What are you talking about?” Wang Yang immediately responded with a chuckle, “Just some girl topics, unrelated to men.” The girls all hummed in agreement, and Joshua raised an eyebrow, “Of course! So…”

An ambitious, up-and-coming man! After a brief contemplation, he brought up the topic he’d thought of earlier, looking in Scarlett’s direction and said with a smile, “Do you have any good investment ideas? I’m planning to make some investments. You know I’ve played a few minor roles and have some spare cash. What’s the point of having money if not to invest? I’m very mature and not the type to squander my money frivolously.”

Jessica hummed noncommittally with a smirk; Rachel smiled and encouraged, “Joshua, I support you. But remember to be cautious when investing, and don’t rush.” Joshua looked at her gratefully and said, “Rachel, why can’t you be my sister?” Rachel just shrugged while Jessica shot him a glance, and Scarlett, Annie, and others chuckled.

“I’m thinking of getting into real estate, like brokering, mortgages…” Joshua casually listed a few business types with a modest air, “Actually, it’s just family business, nothing special. So…” Seeing that Scarlett seemed uninterested, he turned to Wang Yang, who was drinking, and dragged him into the conversation, “Yang, what about you? I heard that Flame Films is acquiring special effects companies, but not looking for films… Do you have any family business investments?”

The girls all looked over at once; Wang Yang shook his head and laughed, “No, my interests are not in catering; my dad doesn’t have any interest in opening a chain of restaurants either, so we just did some renovations.” Recalling his recent investments, he continued, “Actually, I do have two acquisition plans that are not movie-related right now. The first is I’m planning to start a video game development company.”

Ever since he hired Paul Emery as his agent, the first task given to him was to find a suitable game development company for acquisition. Paul Emery’s strength was not in packaging publicity, endorsements, and other entertainment-related affairs; his forte was in multi-faceted investment acquisitions, fund management, and so on. When Paul first heard of this plan, he was surprised and asked him several times, “Are you sure?” It wasn’t investing in other industries, but video games?

Wang Yang simply replied, “No mistake, I intend to buy a game development company.” His investment was not aimed at making a tremendous amount of money but at producing enjoyable games. As a film director, he lacked the ability to make games, but he could financially support those who could. $15 million wasn’t a lot; it was just an initial new venture.

Once Paul Emery confirmed it, he began the search; it was actually quite simple —the $15 million check immediately drew the attention of several small game developers. Then quickly, he brought a list filled with company names to Wang Yang, and one name caught his attention: Black Isle Studios.

Originally part of the game production and distribution company Interplay, Black Isle Studios was established in 1998 and was a very famous RPG (role­playing game) developer, with their game “Planescape: Torment” winning the Best RPG of the year in 1999. Other hugely successful titles included their debut “Fallout” in 1997, “Fallout 2” in 1998; last year’s “Icewind Dale” and the 1998 title “Baldur’s Gate,” developed jointly with BioWare.

It was not a small-scale game publisher but a “craftsmanship-level” RPG giant. Adding to that, it was not an independent company, so the $15 million price tag was not enough to acquire it. However, now there was a great opportunity!

Despite the success of their games, Black Isle Studios always had a bit of turbulence. As early as ’98, when the studio was officially established, Timothy Cain, the creator of “Fallout,” left Black Isle with the “Fallout Trio” and founded Troika Games; shortly after “Fallout 2” was released, a large number of talented production staff members left due to Black Isle’s leader Feargus Urquhart being too hot-tempered, putting “too much pressure” on them.

At the beginning of this year, Black Isle announced their new project “Torn, and everyone at the company was energized about it, but recently Interplay suddenly decided to cancel the project. Now, on one side, Black Isle is clouded with worries, and on the other, internal conflicts are severe with the long- discontented employees being extremely dissatisfied, especially “Torn’”s lead designer Chris Taylor, and all the production team members, who all wanted to leave Black Isle.

That was the moment, an indirect opportunity to acquire a portion of Black Isle! Thus, he agreed to Paul Emery’s suggestion, reached out to Chris Taylor and others, expressing his intention which was to fund and form a new development company with them to develop the “District 9″ game. Chris Taylor and the others were quite interested in the plan; they were already tired of Black Isle and had long wanted to set up their own shop, and basically accepted his invitation.

That’s how it is,” Wang Yang took a sip of iced Coke to soothe his throat, looked at the girls and Joshua, and said with a smile, “If everything goes smoothly, soon you’ll see a new game development company skyrocketing into existence with a ‘bang bang bang,’ truly exciting.”

Oh!” Annie, who never played computer games, nodded somewhat confusedly but her face was full of smiles, happy for him; whereas Rachel, Scarlett, Eileen, and the others weren’t much better off, they hardly understood games, let alone the industry behind them; only Jessica, who had already heard his explanations, had a proud smile that said “I understand what he’s talking about.”

Seeing that Scarlett and the other girls were all drawn to Wang Yang’s attention, Joshua helplessly ruffled his hair muttering to himself, “I should have let him go earlier, now he’s completely taken over the scene!” At this moment, Scarlett, quite curious, asked with a smile, “What about the second one then? You mentioned two plans earlier.”

That’s right,” Wang Yang nodded with a smile, this plan was because he still had money in his bank account, which of course wasn’t true; the real reason was his great interest in the matter as he said with a smile, “The second plan is a website, you may know, Blogger.”

The girls all suddenly went “Oh” in realization, they certainly knew what website it was, and they knew it because of him; so hearing about his acquisition plan, they didn’t find it strange at all. Everyone knew Wang Yang as one of the earliest bloggers, when Blogger only had tens of thousands of registered users, he was already a part of it, and it was said that his usage even led to a spike in the number of sign-ups.

In Hollywood and the entertainment industry, celebrities still commonly used personal websites to interact with their fans, with few adopting blogs; Wang Yang however, was one of the celebrities who loved blogging the most. He ranked at the top of Blogger’s hit lists and had drawn many of his friends into joining.

Blogger?” Joshua frowned, feeling perplexed, and asked, “Buddy, from what I know, it doesn’t seem to make money, right? Seems to be on the verge of going under.”

For those who followed his blog, the girls had heard a bit about this and were momentarily struck by the same confusion.

In the ’90s, Evan Williams and Meg Hourihan founded Pyra Labs together in San Francisco, and in August 1999, opened Blogger services for public testing. Now, almost two years later, while Blogger was becoming more successful, Pyra Labs was teetering on the edge of closing down.

Since Blogger’s services were completely free, it hadn’t found any profitable business model, and with the bursting of the NASDAQ.tech stock bubble, its struggles only worsened. The company’s finances were all out and no income was coming in; without a dime in venture capital, Pyra Labs had run out of money. In recent months, the company continuously fell behind on paying its employees’ salaries, which had finally come to a head.

A massive exodus of the company staff followed, including co-founder Meg Hourihan. Even a founder resigning?! That was practically a death sentence; closure seemed inevitable, with the only question being whether to announce it today or tomorrow.

But the other co-founder, Evan Williams, had not given up; he still stubbornly ensured Blogger’s operations continued, though he sent out a call for funding in the hopes of getting help to survive the tough times. And at this time, there was one person willing to invest five million into it.

Yes, but I never intended to make money from it,” Wang Yang shrugged, glanced over everyone, and smiled, “The main reason I’m buying it is because I think it’s great. You know, anyone can write, can show, can share. It’s going to be a trend!”

He thought blogging was great because it was akin to a shareable diary, allowing one to share their latest life, mindset, and views with others; one could later revisit their own posts to see their past circumstances, as well as to similarly understand their friends and other people. It was very interesting.

Through multiple viral marketing campaigns and his own experiences, he knew very well people’s desire for sharing and interaction. Blogger was a great way to do just that; whether it was aspects of life, comments on current events, novels, articles, or whatever you wanted to share, it could be that. It was definitely trendy.

In fact, the rapid growth of blog users proved this point—the number of bloggers was close to breaking half a million; and he often saw blogs featured in some future films, which suggested that they would definitely become popular in the future. As for whether blogs would still be a “money-losing

venture at that time? It didn’t matter much. Besides, he did not believe that popular things could lack commercial value. Blogs would eventually find their own way to profit.

Blog is a long-term potential stock. It might not be profitable now, but it should be approached slowly. Before that, I don’t want Blogger to go bankrupt, you know I’ m one of its most popular bloggers!” Wang Yang took a sip of his drink, glanced at Joshua, and laughed again, “And like Joshua said, what’s the point of having money if you don’t invest? I am very mature, not the type to mess around just because I have some money.”

The girls immediately burst into laughter, and Zoe Deschanel let out a “wow sound; Rachel looked at Jessica next to her, half-seriously, half-jokingly saying, “I’m so jealous of this guy!” Eileen also nodded with a smile, “Me too! Zachary, that idiot, only ever does things to make me angry.” Jessica, laughing, rolled her eyes but couldn’t help showing a happy smile and hugged his arm affectionately, sweetly saying, “Ha, you all are just envious!” Wang Yang smiled and kissed her on the forehead.

Seeing a hint of envy on Scarlett’s laughing face, Joshua could not help clenching his teeth and sighed inwardly; he felt like he had seen through the nature of women!

At that moment, a large group of people including Joseph, Michael Pitt, and others suddenly came out laughing from inside the house and surrounded the area. Zachary, carrying a beige wooden guitar, handed it to Wang Yang, who was covering his forehead with a laugh, saying, “Yang, your guitar! It was in your gym room, I found it for you.” Everyone started to chant teasingly, “Please, Yang, Yang, Yang…!”

What’s up?” Jessica asked with a smile, the girls all had playful grins on their faces, “Is Yang going to play guitar?” “Is Yang going to perform?” Everyone nodded eagerly, Joseph said, “Yes, he’s going to sing and play guitar himself!

OK, guys, it’s showtime!” Wang Yang smiled as he took the guitar, straightened up, and said, “Hm, what song should I sing?” He had only a slight understanding of the guitar, having learned it back in high school. After coming to Los Angeles, he hadn’t played much, only revisiting it a few months ago when he went back to study at USC, but it had been a long time since he last played.

Under the watchful eyes and smiling faces of the crowd, he smiled, positioned the guitar properly, and strummed it rapidly, singing, “(8)#%#&—&#%#—”

What is he singing?” Everyone was suddenly exchanging glances, not comprehending his strange tunes and mumbling; Jessica, however, was grinning cheerfully and lay back on the sun lounger. Scarlett asked with a laugh, “Is that Chinese?” Zachary frowned, “No, it should be Russian? Can you speak Russian, Yang?” Watching his enthralled expression, Rachel suddenly burst into laughter, saying, “Yang, are you randomly strumming and singing nonsense?”

Wang Yang nodded seriously and continued singing, “Yeah, you guessed it. Come on!             ”

PS: Just got internet access, can’t sleep without updating, the life of a blogger is truly tragic!!