Chinese Entertainment: Academic Director

Chapter 319 Don't Resist
Why did Disney hold such a grand press conference, with even CEO Robert Iger personally supporting it?

The purpose is to announce to the outside world that although Disney's live-action movies have been somewhat inferior to its animated movies in the past, this time Disney is ready to make a big splash in the field of live-action movies.

This is also what makes Robert Iger different from his predecessor, Michael Eisner.

Robert Iger's development strategy for Disney was a two-pronged approach.

In the realm of animated films, after acquiring Pixar, Disney now enjoys near-monopoly in Hollywood, with no company truly posing a threat to its animated films.

Live-action films are a weakness for Disney, that's an undeniable fact.

Robert Iger's plan is to leverage Disney's existing resources to explore ride-sharing and animation adaptations, forging a unique path for Disney.

This is also why he gave Cao Yang the greatest support and authority in "New Pirates of the Caribbean"—he wanted to do everything he could to create a "model".

Robert Iger is a very forward-thinking and decisive decision-maker.

This is also why, in the following years, after realizing that animation adaptations and game project adaptations were not viable options, he immediately changed his strategy, just like he decisively acquired Marvel after acquiring Pixar Animation.

With its Marvel comic book movies, also known as the Marvel superhero series, Disney has become a dominant force in Hollywood, even among the remaining six major studios.

After the press conference, at the subsequent cocktail party, Robert Iger approached Cao Yang and, without any formalities, got straight to the point.

"Cao, I noticed that your films 'District 9' and 'Inception' both have Chinese funding involved. In China, these are called co-productions, right?"

Cao Yang was somewhat puzzled. Currently, Hollywood welcomes external funding, but that applies only to funding that it can "control."

In other words, whether these external investments will be profitable depends on Hollywood's whims.

Even if a movie becomes a global hit, for example, with an investment of $1 million and a box office of $6 million worldwide, any investor would definitely think they've made a fortune and just wait to get their share.

But as it turns out, Hollywood studios might tell him that the movie actually lost money, and they'll even kindly show him the bills.

Of course, the bill will definitely show a loss; Hollywood is an expert in this area.

The other investments that a Hollywood film attracts serve as risk-sharing funds if the film flops; and as a larger component of the film's "profits" if it becomes a box office hit.

However, there is one type of money that Hollywood dares not easily "scam"—uncontrollable funds.

Hollywood has always kept its distance from uncontrollable funds—there are so many fools in the world that it's hard to swindle them all, so why should it accept uncontrollable funds and then have to share the profits with them?

In the eyes of most Hollywood film companies, China Film Group's funds are the most uncontrollable funds.

The reason is actually quite simple: China Film Group Corporation holds the right to allocate film quotas, giving them the power of life and death over imported Hollywood blockbusters entering the Chinese market.

Unless you completely abandon the Chinese market, if you're going to squander China Film Group's funds for a little short-term gain, do you still want the Chinese market? Do you still want your company's films to be released in the Chinese market?

Therefore, apart from companies like Columbia Pictures, which has invested in many films in China and has cooperated with China for many years, other Hollywood companies are generally not willing to accept investment from China Film Group.

Cao Yang knew very well that Robert Iger certainly knew that the funding for "District 9" and "Inception" came from China Film Group and Qingdao Film Studio.

Qingying Film Studio is a rather peculiar entity.

I believe Robert Iger can also investigate and find out that Qingying Film Studio is essentially endorsed by Cao Yang, and that Qingying Film Studio's investment share is very small.

Hollywood film companies that typically collaborate with Cao Yang wouldn't easily jeopardize Qingying Film Studio and offend him.

Cao Yang was unaware of Robert Iger's plans, so he simply said, "Yes, Robert, both District 9 and Inception had small investments from China Film Group and Qingdao Film Studio. In China, this kind of cooperation is called a co-production."

Of course, co-productions are subject to conditions and classifications.

Robert Iger nodded, raised his glass to Cao Yang, and said, "Cao, I have a suggestion. Why don't we make 'New Pirates of the Caribbean' into a co-production?"

"You want to make 'Pirates of the Caribbean' a co-production?"

Cao Yang asked, somewhat puzzled.

"why not?"

Robert Iger took a sip of his drink and said with a smile.

Cao Yang fell into deep thought.

It's like the sun has risen in the west! Disney wants to make "New Pirates of the Caribbean" a co-production, which means they want to bring in investment from China Film Group.

Even though Disney primarily focuses on animated films, a large company like Disney would never abandon the Chinese market, so it's highly unlikely that they would harm China Film Group.

Furthermore, Disney has precedents to learn from.

Back when Harvey Weinstein was still with Miramax, he used underhanded tactics to buy the rights to Zhang Yimou's "Hero," but he didn't intend to pay for it.

Miramax is a subsidiary acquired by Disney, so Disney is in trouble because they are being held hostage by Disneyland in Hong Kong.

In the end, it was only after Disney gave Harvey a warning that he reluctantly paid the contract price.

This was one of the few times Harvey Weinstein suffered a setback.

That's the real Zhang Yimou. If it were China Film Group... well, if it were China Film Group, Harvey Weinstein wouldn't have dared to cheat them.

Thinking about this, Cao Yang suddenly understood Robert Iger's intentions. Was Robert Iger trying to curry favor with China?

Cao Yang remembered that the Shanghai Disneyland in his previous life started construction in 2010, which meant that their negotiations should have started earlier.

Robert Iger's decision to have China Film Group invest was a win-win-win situation: it allowed China Film Group to share the risks, fostered a good relationship with China Film Group, and conveyed to the Chinese government that Disney was friendly to China.

As expected, Robert Iger is no ordinary man; he managed to maximize profits with just one film.

"Robert, I'll ask China Film Group what they think."

Cao Yang said directly.

Robert Iger laughed heartily, looking very cheerful; one might mistake him for someone without much guile.

"Cao, we're friends, don't worry. Making it a co-production will only benefit you more. You'll have the most power, and I won't let anyone interfere with the film's production."

You can confidently follow your own ideas and do what you want; I will be your strongest support.

Not long after the party ended, Cao Yang had just returned to Arcadia Manor when he received a call from Depp.

"Johnny, are you still awake so late?"

Cao Yang asked with a smile, almost certain of the purpose of Johnny Depp's call.

Johnny Depp hesitated for a moment before saying directly, "Director, I just heard about the Disney press conference. Are you planning to collaborate with Disney to remake 'Pirates of the Caribbean'?"

"Yes, Johnny, weren't you on vacation? Why are you still so concerned about Hollywood?"

After the release of "Inception", Depp, under Columbia Pictures' arrangement, became a frequent flyer, not only promoting the film in North America, but also traveling to some countries in Europe, Australia and South America.

I was really exhausted a while ago.

So, without needing any publicity, Depp took his girlfriend Vanessa Paradis on vacation.

"Vacation? No, no, no, vacations are incredibly boring. I think it's much more interesting to make movies with you."

Depp said with a smile into the phone.

His girlfriend Vanessa Paradis, standing next to him, pursed her lips, thinking, "Even a shy guy like Depp has learned to lie."

You didn't say that before. You said this was paradise on earth, and that vacation was the real life.

"Haha, alright then, if you don't want to go on vacation, then immerse yourself in your new job. I've reserved the most important role for you, and I think you'll like it."

Cao Yang spoke into the phone.

Depp smiled.

He then called his agent, Tracy Jacobs, at his agency, UTA, and asked her to come and sign the contract.

At first, Tracy Jacobs was happy to hear that Depp had taken the initiative to work, but she soon realized why he was so enthusiastic.

"What do you want to say this time? How much of your salary and profit share do we need to negotiate?"

Tracy Jacobs asked a question.

Why should we fight for it?

Depp asked, somewhat puzzled, "The director told me that he has the final say on the actors this time. You just need to go to him, and whatever conditions he offers, you sign the contract. Got it?"

Tracy Jacobs immediately wanted to smash her phone.

Damn it, I thought your personality would change after winning two Oscars for Best Actor. I was wrong. You're still that son of a bitch weirdo!

Listen to this, what do you mean by signing a contract based on whatever conditions are given?
What the hell do they need me as their agent for? Just fire me and handle things yourself!

Damn it, I've been with plenty of big brands, but I've never seen anyone like you.

Who the hell has ever seen someone afraid of their agent trying to get better conditions for them?
Who the hell has ever seen an artist specifically instruct their agent not to negotiate terms?

Haha, I've really learned something new.

Oh, I forgot, this isn't the first time I've been forced to learn something new.

"Ok, I see."

Tracy Jacobs had to swallow her anger and be careful with her words. There was no way around it; Depp was a two-time Oscar winner and one of Hollywood's most outstanding artists.

Sigh, two Oscar winners, two golden statuettes with him, what a waste.

Cao Yang did not call President Han immediately, but instead looked through the materials Disney had given him.

The preparation for "New Pirates of the Caribbean" seems to be much easier than expected.

When they were filming "Pirates of the Caribbean," they probably had in mind making a sequel or putting some of the props in an amusement park, so many of the props from the original film have been preserved.

(End of this chapter)