"We have produced 100,000 copies of the original CD of "Youth Musical". Pen Fun Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 info "Barry Weiss, CEO of Fire Lion Records, spoke for the first time today.

"Not bad. Sid nodded, "And if there is a need for an order?"

"We have reached a priority agreement with the CD factory to process and add points at any time as long as needed, and roll out on a large scale. Barry Weiss replied succinctly that as the business of Fire Lion Records took off, he finally began to integrate into the Fire Lion's style of doing things. Moreover, Shirley (Sandberg) and Sid were also wise to give him room to play.

Under the clear direction of the goal, Barry Weiss's talent as a professional manager has finally been brought into play, and it has also benefited the Fire Lion Records, which is now starting.

"And what about the CD?" asked Sid.

"In addition to CDs, we have also prepared plans for the production of stationery and clothing. In addition, there is a wider range of licenses, such as "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" peripheral image rights authorization, naming rights authorization, and so on. Shirley Sandberg replied that this kind of wider perimeter laying is definitely her forte.

“Good，Good。 Sid nodded, and then looked around at the people around: "Everyone, "Youth Singing and Dancing Youth" is our first large-scale project to lay around the entire industry chain. Therefore, we need to grasp all aspects accurately, and we will never back down on this. And this is also the decisive difference between us at the Fire Lion Group and those who are not enterprising at DreamWorks. ”

Sid's loud voice made everyone in the conference room smile excitedly. After communicating with Steve Jobs, Sid quickly learned how the other party used the "enemy" of the enterprise to rallier the morale of the army.

For example, the famous series of advertisements for Apple Computer Vs Microsoft PC, and Jobs would often pin photos of IBM or Hewlett-Packard CEOs to the wall and shoot them with darts. Doing so always wins the cheers of the employees.

"Everyone, do you know the decisive difference between a small and medium-sized film company and a big media group?

In fact, this point is also "ignored" by many media, after the "historical" small and medium-sized film companies died one after another, many commercial media attributed the reason to "publicity and distribution".

For example, DreamWorks has given up publicity, and always has to divide a large part of the lucrative box office revenue to Paramount and Universal, which do distribution. And you must know that Paramount and Universal are actually among the big six, and they are the tail of the crane at the bottom all year round. DreamWorks, the big brother of a medium-sized enterprise, will always be "bullied" by the two crane tails of the Big Six.

It looks ridiculous.

But in fact, in Sid's view, it was the surrender of the periphery that was one of the important reasons for the eventual dismemberment of DreamWorks. For example, the famous "Shrek", the influence and value of this well-known IP are definitely not under Sony's "Spider-Man" series, which I believe most people will not oppose.

But when it comes to this kind of project, DreamWorks is very different from Sony. After the release of "Shrek 2", Jeffrey Katzenberg, one of the Big Three of DreamWorks, with his strong negotiation power, took advantage of the excellent box office of "Shrek 2" to package and sell the peripheral rights of "Shrek" at a sky-high price of $1.6 billion.

At that time, it can be regarded as creating a business miracle.

However, please don't forget that Sony has been patient for a few years, and what is the revenue of the industrial chain after laying the "Spider-Man" series? $3 billion!

Make quick money, or do you do business in a down-to-earth way?

Sometimes, the difficult road will also give the brave more generous rewards.

"And what's next?" Sid asked, snapping his fingers.

Shirley Sandberg looked through the information: "The last issue at Fire Lion Pictures, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." ”

"Oh yes, I almost forgot about that. Sid patted his head and suddenly realized.

Then his eyes changed, and his cold eyes looked at the hearts of others: "Okay, let's talk about Harry Potter." ”

――――――――――――――――――――

"We have already signed deals with nine studios in the UK for the whole of next year. Henry, the manager of the production department, said first.

"Well, what about the location?" asked Sid.

"For several locations in London, we have secured permission with London Guildhall. This includes locations at London Zoo, King's Cross Station, York Butcher Street, and the interior of the Australian Embassy in the UK, which we have also agreed to license. Henry replied.

"What about the rest of the world?" Sid asked.

"We are still applying for it. Henry replied briefly, "Including the filming locations of Oxford University, we have about twenty locations scattered all over the UK, many of which are centuries-old buildings and castles, and some belong to some hereditary aristocratic families, so it will take some time to apply and negotiate." ”

"It's okay to take a little longer, but we have to get it all done by November because we need to set up before next year's shooting. Sid said to Henry solemnly.

"Okay, yes, Boss. Henry nodded in response.

"Okay, what about computer effects and special effects makeup?" Sid asked.

Hearing his question, Justin Lin raised his hand excitedly, "Boss, as for the team of special effects makeup artists, we have signed a contract with Ms. Vie Neal's studio. With her team as the center, a special effects makeup team of about 30 people is being established. ”

"Then in terms of computer special effects, we sent an application to ILM, and they have agreed. Because Star Wars Prequel had just been released last month, Lucasfilm didn't have time to host us. In the middle of the month, they can receive us to discuss the cooperation of the project, and all the computer special effects and prop production, set and other aspects will be discussed together. "Justin Lin has been promoted to assistant director of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone by Sid, and it makes Justin Lin very excited to really get involved in the creation of a big film project.

"Good. Sid nodded, "Well done, Justin (Lin)." Then Side paused and gave a funny expression, "Also, don't raise your hand next time, we're not a school here." ”

Sid's words caused everyone to laugh in a low voice, and Justin Lin's face turned a rare flush: "Yes, yes, Boss." ”

"Well, the next topic is ....... Sid asked, looking back.

"It's actor casting. Henry said that in terms of casting, Fire Lion Pictures has always been in charge of Henry and the casting directors he knows well.

"Oh, yes. We now have a Harry Potter actor, Daniel Radcliffe Jr. In terms of the main actors, Ian (McLean) plays Dumbledore, Alan Rickman plays Snape, and Robbie Coltrani plays Hagrid. Sid counted and said, "I'm almost halfway through the main characters." ”

"The actors who have been identified now have really saved us a lot of effort, especially the protagonist Daniel Radcliffe. Henry first affirmed, and then he changed his words: "But even so, we still have a huge amount of casting work to do, and there are more than 20 people for important roles with certain lines and opportunities to show their faces." ”

"Not to mention Hermione and Ron, but also the Ron family, the Malfoys, all the professors and teachers at Hogwarts. Oh yes. and Harry Potter's uncle's family. Henry's words made Sid rub his temples, and the imaginary situation was really very different from the real situation.

Although "Harry Potter" does not have the complex war scenes and grand scene scheduling of "The Lord of the Rings", it is not inferior to the latter in terms of the number of characters, costumes, props, and set effects.

"And how are the auditions going now?" asked Sid.

"Because of Ms. Rowling's request, since March, we have issued an audition announcement to all school-age children in the UK. Then Henry pulled out another document from front of him, opened it and read: "Almost every child's role now receives hundreds or thousands of applications. ”

"Wow, that's so much?" exclaimed Charles Scher, CEO of Fire Lion TV.

"It seems that the Harry Potter novel promotion plan is going well. Sid smiled slightly.

As the first project of the Fire Lion Group to use the book club + viral publicity, although "Harry Potter" as a children's literature has its usual slow-burning characteristics, the project that has been in operation since a year ago has finally seen the truth.

This craze for recruited actors indirectly shows that the potential of "Harry Potter" as a best-selling novel has been initially stimulated.

"From this month, we will have an initial audition. Next week I'll be heading to the UK with the casting team to start the casting process. "In terms of actors, we are also mainly British actors, and according to Boss and Ms. Rowling, all Commonwealth actors are also acceptable." Therefore, there are many actors from Australia, New Zealand, and even South Africa who have applied for auditions through their agents. ”

"What about the exact number of audition rounds?"

Henry immediately replied: "Adult actors have 5~6 rounds of auditions, while the average young actor has 4~6 rounds, and the most important Hermione and Ron have 8 rounds of auditions." ”

"Is there a problem with timing?" Sid asked, "I spend a lot of my time in the early stage on special effects, sets, props, etc., and I don't have too much energy to be distracted by casting, so Henry, you still have a heavy burden on this side." ”

"No problem, Boss. I promise to meet the deadline. Henry, who had been working hard in Hollywood for more than ten years, was reorganized into Fire Lion Pictures after the original company was reorganized, and as the founding veteran, his talent was polished. Although it is not as dazzling as others, it is becoming more and more solid and reliable, and with such subordinates, Sid is also very relieved in the preparation stage.