Looking at Jeffrey, who was really angry and still chattering and complaining, Eric could only get up, pour a glass of water for the other party, and wait for Jeffrey to drink it in one breath before persuading: "Okay, Jeffrey, don't you see, this is just a trick that CAA can't wipe face, if the other party bites to death 20% of the share, of course, there is no need to talk about cooperation." But if you calm down and think about it, you know that CAA wants to delay for a while?"

"Delaying time, why delaying time?" Jeffrey obviously hadn't calmed down yet, and poured himself another glass of water before he asked directly.

Eric spread his hands: "Because of the loss of face, some time ago, the magazine compiled a 'Hollywood Powerful People List' ranking, and Michael Ovitz ranked first, and even the helmsmen of film giants such as Barry Diyler and Michael Eisner could only be ranked behind him. If it wasn't long after he won this title, two of his stars would have cooperated with the previous ban target, wouldn't this be a slap in the face for him, the 'most powerful man in Hollywood'. ”

Jeffrey breathed a sigh of relief: "That's fine, I thought the other party really wanted to take a profit share, this is too messy." ”

"It's not a mess," Eric said directly: "Jeffrey, maybe you have to accept the reality that celebrities have to take profit sharing in addition to their salaries, because Cruise tried this model in the last movie and got a lot of sweetness, and other Hollywood stars are unlikely not to follow suit." ”

"If two people add up to 40 percent of the gross profit, does the other party want to earn more than us? We have the remaining 60 percent, and we have to pay all kinds of other expenses. ”

Eric actually thought about this problem, and he felt that this might be an opportunity, and he was destined to join the side of the Hollywood Film Producers League in the future, which determined that he would definitely stand on the opposite side of the actor for his own benefit.

Cruise's is just an attempt to provide actors with a new model of remuneration, and this negotiation may become a reference for many top Hollywood stars to demand a share in the future, so in any case, the proportion should be kept as low as possible.

If this ratio can be controlled between 5% and 10%, then once it becomes a standard, the cumulative cost saved in the future will be astronomical. Eric didn't know if it would work out, but he had to give it a try.

"Jeffrey, don't be in a hurry about this matter, just talk to the other party slowly, don't even think about the 20% share, and the salary of 6 million should also be pressed down, I want to share, but I don't want to reduce the salary, how can there be such a good thing now. ”

Jeffrey was still a little unwilling: "Eric, why don't you bypass Cruise and Hanks' agents and talk to the two of them alone, didn't you have a good chat that day?"

Eric smiled and pulled out yesterday's copy and shook it in front of Jeffrey: "They are all artists under CAA, and I don't have a particularly good relationship with each other, they can agree to act, it's enough to not give Michael Ovitz face, the two can't do too much." Besides, they're not going to oppose the CAA to get more out of their own interests, right?"

Instead of retorting, Jeffrey asked, "Eric, tell me what you think." It's the first time I've encountered this kind of thing, although I can drag out the negotiation, but as the boss, you are the one who makes the final decision, so you'd better give me a bottom line number jù reference, and when I negotiate, I have a sense of proportion. ”

Eric touched his chin and pondered, and said: "Stick to Hollywood's practice of not having actors taking shares, and if you force the other party to want to share, you will reduce the salary." I've heard that the reason why Rick Cruise was able to get a share contract was because he voluntarily lowered his salary. As for the bottom line, with Cruise and Hanks' current fame, the salary should not exceed five million dollars, and the share ratio should be between 5% and 10%, and it must not exceed 10%. ”

"Well, I've got the bottom of it. Jeffrey jotted down Eric's words.

Noticing Jeffrey's still depressed look, Eric patted the other party's shoulder comfortingly and said with a smile, "Okay, Jeffrey, don't worry about this anymore." Although we will indeed lose some of our profits because of the new remuneration model, we can make up for it from other places, and that part of the profits does not need to be shared with the actors, and we can even offer higher prices under the banner of actors. ”

"You mean...... Product placement?"

"Bingo!" Eric snapped his fingers, "It's still a fashion film, and this kind of film is very suitable for ad placement." I read in the newspaper that Lamborghini's sales of sports cars this year will be more than three times that of previous years because of product placement, and hundreds of orders have been received for the new ghost sports car even before it is launched. ”

"That's a great idea," Jeffrey finally smiled, subconsciously looking for the script to see what ads could be placed in it. Eric took out a piece of paper and handed it to Jeffrey: "Don't look for it, I'm ready." ”

Jeffrey picked it up and glanced at the long slip list, his mouth slightly open.

Mobile phone, walkie-talkie, sports car, boxed biscuits, sunglasses, camera, necklace, comic magazine......

"Eric, isn't that too ...... Exaggerating a little?"

Eric felt that he was already very disciplined compared to the explosive shell in his previous life, at least he didn't spend $200 million to create a three-hour special effects commercial, he just cleverly used the plot to implant ads, and did not change the plot for the sake of advertising.

"Jeffrey, these are just things I wrote down when I thought of them. There will be a lot of walkie-talkies and mobile phones in the movie, so mobile phones and walkie-talkie advertisements can be packaged to a communication equipment company, such as Motorola, and I heard that Motorola is about to launch a small mobile phone, which is only the size of a palm. I believe that with the example of Lamborghini in the past, plus the addition of the two superstars of Cruise and Hanks, Motorola will happily pay millions of advertising fees. If the other party's offer is too low, then find their old rival Ericsson. There are also sports cars, continue to contact Lamborghini, presumably the other party will not refuse. ”

Jeffrey pointed to the list and asked, "What's the deal with that box of cookies?"

Eric explained: "Haven't you read the script, in the movie, Andian planted several bombs, all the time fake, these bombs are made of boxes, and there will be not only close-ups of the boxes in the movie, but also related lines, so this is also a very important product placement." As for sunglasses and cameras, they will be used in movies, so you can also go and sponsor them, no matter how small the mosquito is, it is meat. ”

"Eric, aren't you worried that inserting too many ads will cause the audience to turn off?"

"No," Eric confidently says, "none of these ads are intentional, so the audience doesn't feel any discomfort." Of course, because of the large number of product placement ads this time, you need to communicate with the sponsor in advance, and you can't directly poke out the sponsorship like the last Lamborghini, the movie has not yet been released. ”

Jeffrey sensed something wrong and wondered, "The product placement is not prominent, and it is not publicized, if I were a sponsor, I would definitely not pay for it." ”

"It's not that people don't want to publicize it," Eric said patiently, "I mean, you can't publicize this before the movie is released, otherwise, even if I don't deliberately implant it, the audience will think that it is deliberate, and this preconceived idea will subconsciously cause the audience to dislike the movie." But as long as the movie is released and the word of mouth is determined, the advertising thing is hyped, which can not only have a publicity effect, but also attract those viewers who are curious about the advertising plot of the movie to enter the cinema again, thereby increasing the box office of the movie. ”

Jeffrey smiled meaningfully, "Eric, I feel like I'm sitting in front of a Venetian merchant." ”

"Is this sarcasm?"

"Yes, but I added a lot of praise and admiration to it. Jeffrey laughed.

"Oh, Lord Jeffrey, you are generous. Eric replied in a theatrical tone and laughed.

After the joke, Eric looked at his watch and said, "I just have a date, so ......"

Jeffrey didn't wait for Eric to say anything, and quickly replied, "I'll leave the matter to me, right?"

"Clever, I didn't think you would rush to answer. Eric laughed again.

Jeffrey didn't understand what Eric was talking about, so he didn't laugh along, pouted and said curiously, "Dating, with a woman?"

"Man, a well-known architect in the industry, Frank Gehry, I've seen his Malibu mansion for Oracle Chairman Larry Ellison, so I'm going to ask him to help me out. ”

"It has something to do with the rocky beach you bought for 5 million unjustly?"

"How can you unjustly spend money," Eric retorted, "and when I build my Malibu 10880, someone will buy it for $50 million." ”

"Whatever you want, to be honest, I am relieved that you have done something your age should do, otherwise I would have subconsciously regarded you as a peer. Eric, why do you always call 10880 Malibu there?"

Eric blinked, "It's a secret. ”

"Tell me, I promise not to sue anyone else. Jeffrey poked his head inquisitively.

"Since it's a secret, of course you can't tell anyone other than yourself, and you can be considered 'others'. Eric, of course, couldn't explain it to Jeffrey and left the office.

Michael Jackson's Dream Manor is 11 square kilometers in size, and with all kinds of construction, it only cost $19.5 million, compared to the $5 million cost of Malibu, a plot of land about one hectare, which is indeed a huge price. However, even so, it was the result of an additional 'PR fee' on the part of Mr. Private Lawyer, because it was a small park and could not be sold as a rule.

"Mr. Williams, although the design of this building you drew is very imaginative, there are too many unreasonable places in it, and it is quite difficult to build, especially if it is built on the edge of a cliff. Frank Gehry evaluates Eric's drawings with his own professional eye.

At this time, the two of them were standing together in the sharp corner of Malibu, accompanied by Frank Gehry's assistant, and Eric was not alone, just Virginia was at home, so he was called by Eric to play the role of a small secretary temporarily.

This is already Eric's private domain, and with a building permit, he can toss around on the land. As long as it is not because it disturbs the people, no one will care.

"Mr. Gehry, are you saying that it is too difficult to build, that is, it can be built?"

Frank Gehry nodded, "But that would cost quite a bit of money, and I don't think it's necessary." If you must build this mansion here, I will move the mansion to the north at least about 10 meters, which will not only greatly reduce the difficulty of construction, but also save more than 30% of the construction cost. Moreover, various pipeline lines are also easier to erect. ”

Eric made a visual inspection, and after panning ten meters, the glass window could see that there would be a very scenic rocky field, which could be regarded as a sea-view mansion facing the sea in spring.

Shaking his head, Eric rejected Frank's offer: "Mr. Gehry, how much will it cost if I insist?"

"I can't give you a specific number for the time being, because I don't have a specific survey number, and if you insist on building according to the style on your own plans, you will need to do a lot of testing on the geology of the cliff bank to determine if it can withstand the weight of the building, and if not, you will need to reinforce it, which will be even more cumbersome. However, I think five million is definitely indispensable. ”

"Only five million dollars?" Eric raised an eyebrow, it cost five million to buy this land.

"Mr. Williams, as far as I know, this is the price of the most expensive mansion in Malibu right now. ”

"I'm sorry, Mr. Gehry, but I don't know much about these things. I would like to take the liberty of asking, if I give 10 million, or even 20 million, what kind of effect can I make?"

In this era, even Microsoft's Bill classmate can't take out one or two million cash as soon as he opens his mouth, after all, the other party's worth is more reflected in the stock price. But the film industry is different, as long as the box office can be a big hit, tens of millions or even hundreds of millions of dollars can be recouped in a relatively short period of time.

Frank Gehry glanced at the young man in front of him in surprise, thought for a moment and said, "In that case, I'll build a work of art for you, Mr. Williams, are you sure?"

"I'm sure, Mr. Gehry, I'm looking for a work of art. Eric replied without hesitation.