Just after a cursory glance at the script, Ronan has already determined that this is a film he has seen before, called "Eavesdropping Storm". Because of the slow pace of the film and the gray and heavy theme, I couldn't hold on and gave up after watching less than a third of the first time.

I watched it twice in succession, but I didn't really finish reading it once, probably not the right appetite, and I always read the beginning and didn't want to see the end.

In the end, I dragged it all the way and fast-forwarded and watched the ending.

The film roughly tells the story of an East German secret police eavesdropper who turns from an eavesdropper to a protector in the process of eavesdropping on artists.

If memory serves, this film won the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film.

As for whether the director is Florian Donasma or not, Ronan has no impression at all.

Seeing Ronan close the script, Tony Koch asked directly, "This script is good, right?"

Ronan smiled: "The theme is very profound, and there is a profound cultural connotation behind the plot. ”

Hearing this, Florian Donasma was overjoyed, is this an endorsement of his script?

Tony Koch has known Ronan for many years and is an old friend, and knowing the elements of his choice of films, he immediately said, "Is it valuable?"

The theme is profound and connotative, and it may be delicious in Europe, but in Hollywood, it is basically not very useful.

Ronan looked at Florian Donasma: "Have you ever thought about how much money this film will need to be made?"

Florian Donasma immediately replied: "2 million euros ......" As soon as the words came out, he thought of the previous rejection of those German companies, and quickly changed his words: "2 million dollars is enough." ”

Ronan nodded lightly and put the script aside, the production budget is not high, especially for the current Relativity Entertainment.

If this kind of film had a budget of $10 million, he would not hesitate to refuse.

Because the type and theme of the film are determined, even if it is filmed and produced in Hollywood, even if it is filmed, the market is extremely limited.

It is not difficult for anyone who knows a little about the film market to see this.

And the film will not have much market in North America, and the film is estimated to be more popular in Europe.

East and West Germany, as well as the Berlin Wall, were world-class hot topics at the time, but that was more than a decade ago, and with the forgetfulness of Americans and their indifference to foreign countries, the number of people interested in such films was probably limited.

If you can get something at the Oscars, maybe things will be better.

Ronan speculates based on the actual experience of operating movies in the past few years that if this film can win the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film as it once did, maybe the North American box office will have a hope of hitting $10 million?

It also depends on luck.

Then there's the overseas market.

Audience interest in Europe is likely to be greater, and with a few more European awards, it is estimated that the box office in Europe will be higher than that in North America.

There is also revenue from the offline market......

$2 million is worth a try.

Ronan knows very well that this kind of typical literary film must be cautious in investing tens of millions of dollars, but with $2 million, with the strength of Relativistic Entertainment, it is completely possible to try.

But the quality of the director is also a problem.

"It's a good script. Ronan finished thinking and said to Florian Donasma: "But screenwriting and directing are two different professions, and you don't have past film works as a reference for directorial ability. ”

Florian Donasma hurriedly said: "Mr. Anderson, please believe me, I have a mature and all-round consideration for this film!"

Ronan thought for a moment and said, "Mr. Donasma, I can buy your script first......

Florian Donasma was a little anxious, he wrote this script just to be a director.

What is the future of being a screenwriter? A screenwriter who does not want to be a producer or director is never a qualified screenwriter.

If this script is bought by a Hollywood company and taken back to the United States, will it be the director's turn to compete?

Hollywood directors who are waiting for the opportunity to come out, as well as directors who suit their own script style, I am afraid they can catch a lot of them!

Florian Donasma immediately made a decision and said, "Mr. Anderson, I can personally gather people to shoot a short film of about ten minutes, and you can decide whether I can be the director after you have seen the short film, can you?"

This kind of visual short film work is more reflective of a director's real level than the shooting and production plan, Ronan thought about it for a while, and said, "Yes." Mr. Donasma, you can go to Los Angeles next month, which has better facilities and easier to muster people. ”

Florian Donasma was determined, "Okay! I'm going to go to Los Angeles." ”

Ronan called Connie and asked her to lead Florian Donasma to deal with the follow-up, although $2 million is nothing for Relativity Entertainment, but no one's money is blowing in the wind, and if you want to get investment, you must show your worth.

"How's it going?" said Tony Koch, "Ronan, I've got another worthwhile film project for you." ”

Ronan said directly: "Its value may not be one-tenth of that of Resident Evil." ”

Tony Koch said: "The two are not one type. ”

Ronan nodded: "If this film wants to succeed, it is not enough to shoot well, but also to take the route of award-winning operation." ”

"Resident Evil" can be serialized, friends have all kinds of offline peripherals, this film called "Eavesdropping Storm" is difficult to operate a sequel, and the offline market only has discs and broadcast copyrights.

And without heavyweight awards, this kind of film can't have a good commercial market.

This is not harmful, Embassy Pictures is also constantly groping for awards, and the future distribution work, business and art must be grasped with both hands, and both hands must be hard.

chatted with Tony Koch about his mother a few more times, and Ronan remembered one thing, it seems that in later Hong Kong films, there were also eavesdropping themes, and it seems that several films have been made in a row, which can be regarded as a rare film with vitality in Hong Kong films.

"Eavesdropping" is a matter of the future, but the "Lost in Translation" award rush is in full swing, and the Cannes Film Festival's awards are more influenced by personal perceptions than the Oscars with a large number of judges.

Even, the power of the chairman of the jury can forcefully push a certain film to win the award.

Quentin Tarantino has made a strong move when he was present at the Cannes Film Festival and the president of the jury at the Venice Film Festival, and among the beneficiaries is Sofia Coppola, who has had several legs with Quentin.

The chairman of the jury this year is Patrice Shahou, a name that is quite unfamiliar to Ronan, and Embassy Pictures has never dealt with him before, let alone personal relationships.

Soon after the release of "Lost in Translation", the team at Embassy Pictures had a judgment that Patrice Shahou appreciated films with deep social significance and was not interested in romance sketches and the like.

Sofia Coppola's "Lost in Translation" is strictly speaking in the style of a typical love sketch.

Patrice Chaho prefers an American film called "The Elephant".

This film is about a serious school shooting in the United States in the late nineties, a typical tragedy.

Just as Americans like to uncover the scars of other countries, French filmmakers, who are the representatives of European cinema, actually appreciate the films that uncover the scars of the United States.

These two countries have not dealt with each other very much.

As for the opposition in terms of film, not to mention.

The famous Roman Polanski lives in France, and the French have never been wanted by the US Department of Justice.

In front of the reality, Embassy Pictures voluntarily gave up the Palme d'Or, which had a very small chance of winning the prize, and set its sights on the Grand Jury Award, the Best Director Award and the Best Actress Award.

The public relations work in the media has not stopped.

"The part of Lost in Tokyo that sets the atmosphere and observes is longer than the part that tells the story. But you won't mind: Sofia Coppola quietly keeps her tone down, and there won't be a second film like this, unless genetics intervenes. ”

Ronan, accompanied by Tony Koch, took a trip to Berlin to see the latest Koch films, before returning to Cannes for the closing ceremony of the festival and the awards ceremony.

The influence of Embassy Pictures in France is far less than that of the Oscars, and with the influence of the chairman of the jury, "Lost in Translation" did not win many awards.

The Palme d'Or unexpectedly became the bag of "The Elephant".

It is rumored that some of the judges, led by Spielberg, do not have a good sense of "Elephant", but Patrice Shahou, as the chairman of the jury, vigorously promoted the film to win the award.

Gus Fantersen, the director of "Elephant", also won the Best Director award.

Best Actress went to Canadian Mary Josie Croze.

Ronan has never heard of this actress in both lifetimes.

It can only be said that the choice of the Cannes Film Festival is not friendly to Hollywood films.

Fortunately, "Lost in Translation" has also gained something.

Thanks to the efforts of Embassy Pictures, this romantic comedy by Sofia Coppola won the Grand Jury Prize.

This is also a heavyweight award for Cannes films.

There is a Cannes Film Festival jury grand prix lineup, which is also conducive to the operation of the awards behind "Lost in Translation".

Due to its participation in the Cannes Film Festival, "Lost in Translation" will no longer be able to compete in Berlin and Venice, and the next major award will not be until the Toronto Film Festival in September.

On the plane back to Los Angeles, Scarlett Johansson sat with Ronan.

"You're young. Ronan casually said comforting words: "There will be opportunities in the future." ”

Scarlett Johansson said: "I think the French are discriminatory against Americans, especially when it comes to movies. ”

"It's normal that they don't look down on Hollywood movies all the time," Ronan said. ”

Scarlett Johansson asked directly, "Do I have any hope of getting an Oscar nomination?"

Ronan thought for a while and said, "I will ask Embassy Pictures to declare it for you, and I can't guarantee whether you can get the nomination." ”

Scarlett Johansson leaned into Ronan's ear: "I still have some things you haven't tried." ”