Chinese Entertainment: Academic Director

Chapter 397 Three Happinesses Come to the Door
Robert Iger, as the CEO of Disney, is currently enjoying great success.

For him, the recent plot twists have been nothing short of a stunning reversal.

First, his insistence on rebooting "Pirates of the Caribbean" was a huge hit, then another, and another...

As of January 22, the film has been in theaters for 28 days, grossing $370 million in North America and 460 million yuan in China. Including box office revenue from some newly released countries, the global box office has exceeded $930 million.

9.3 billion!

Let alone Disney, this is an absolute blockbuster for any Hollywood film company.

The film's huge success is of extraordinary significance to Robert Iger; it's not just about a blockbuster movie, but also carries a much deeper symbolic meaning.

When Michael Eisner was CEO of Disney, didn't he bluntly say at a board meeting that he could only be an "executor"?

Didn't you say that I lack the courage and "innovation" to be the CEO of Disney?
I'm doing really well as the CEO of Disney now!

The Pirates of the Caribbean movie you spearheaded during your tenure flopped and was shelved.

After Lao Tzu took office, it was restarted and exploded, with global revenue approaching $10 billion!

Haha, my good brother, director Cao Yang, said that there will be at least three sequels to this kind of movie!

If you look at Hollywood or the world, you'll see that every blockbuster sequel has higher and higher box office returns, resulting in exponential growth in profits from all aspects.

This is a hen that lays golden eggs, and it's an extremely rare kind.

Look at those damn Warner Bros., they own the Harry Potter series, completely swallowed New Line which owns the Lord of the Rings series, and even rebooted the Batman series...

Tell me, who in Hollywood isn't incredibly envious?

Putting everything else aside, just based on the Harry Potter series, Warner Bros. executives acted like lunatics, but no matter how much they messed things up, their positions at Warner Bros. remained very secure, and the board of directors seemed to turn a blind eye to it all.

why?
The Harry Potter series makes money; it can wipe out all the bad debts.

Now, Disney will also have a movie like that!
The direct and indirect benefits brought by this movie will silence the bunch of scoundrels on the Disney board.

Haha, not only did they not say a word, but they all smiled at me and, after seeing the box office and expected profits of this movie, they applauded me enthusiastically and sang praises to me!
Let me ask you this: who agrees with me becoming CEO? Who opposes it?

Why are you insects so silent? Haha...

Robert Iger now considers Cao Yang to be like a brother to him.

For the next few years, before Cao Yang finished filming all the new Pirates of the Caribbean sequels, anyone who dared to do anything to Cao Yang would be his mortal enemy!
Especially those idiots in the Film Producers Alliance, I'm going to kick them out of the alliance. Just because of those idiots, they actually suggested that Cao Yang take the blame.

Is this some kind of setup to frame Cao Yang?
No, this isn't framing Cao Yang, it's framing me, Robert Iger, to prevent me from becoming Disney's CEO.

"Even God couldn't save them," I, Robert Iger, CEO of Disney, said.

Another thing that pleased Robert Iger was the breakthrough in his negotiations with the Writers Guild.

Those idiots from the Writers Guild made such a big fuss, thinking they'd be difficult to deal with, but they were given a tiny bit of a treat:
For example, when it came to DVD sales, the screenwriters' share was increased from 4 cents to 5 cents per DVD, and they actually negotiated seriously, even promising not to boycott the Oscars anymore!
What the fuck...

I thought these bastards wanted to cut some money out of the studio, but it turns out they just wanted a little more soup.

As for the screenwriters' guild's demand for revenue sharing on new media platforms such as the internet and mobile phones, let's discuss that slowly. The production studios are also exploring the revenue models generated in this regard.

The revenue-sharing model of new media platforms such as the Internet is different from the traditional on-demand model where money is collected per view. Most Internet video platforms currently adopt a buyout model, so it is difficult to calculate how to distribute revenue to screenwriters.

Since it was difficult to calculate, the production company had previously adopted an easier method—not distributing any to them!

It seems that this is not feasible at present, which is also one of the main demands of the writers' union.

Actually, it's not difficult to calculate. Just convert the buyout fee into the equivalent of how many on-demand views, and it will be clear. Then you can divide it proportionally.

Everyone understands this principle.

But the production company thought that with this new profit model, they would definitely take a smaller share or no share at all, and just drag it out one day at a time. If they couldn't drag it out any longer, like in the current situation, they would just talk about it again.

This is something most film studios tacitly agree on.

Some production company employees even wanted to find a scapegoat to delay the process further—the extra time that was used to generate revenue from new media would translate into real money flowing into the production company's pocket.

There was another thing that made Robert Iger happy.

Before the release of "Pirates of the Caribbean," he could only choose to trust Cao Yang. As for how the movie would turn out and whether it would be a box office hit, he didn't really have much confidence.

So, in order to increase the popularity of "Pirates of the Caribbean" and its subsequent revenue, he had Disney invest some money to work on the Oscars.

Of course, he wasn't too sure about the outcome, but given Cao Yang's reputation and influence, getting one or two nominations shouldn't be a problem.

Today is January 22nd, which is not only the 28th day since "Pirates of the Caribbean" was released in North America, but also the day the nominations for the 80th Academy Awards were announced.

To Robert Iger's surprise once again, "Pirates of the Caribbean" garnered seven nominations, including Best Actor, Best Visual Effects, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup, Best Sound Mixing, Best Sound Editing, and Best Original Score.

Robert Iger is well aware that this nomination demonstrates the combined influence of Cao Yang and Depp.

For Oscar nominations, the nominees are initially nominated by members of the respective departments.

For example, the actors department is responsible for nominating leading actors, supporting actors, and actors, while the directors department is responsible for nominating best films and directors.

Then, this department will vote on the internal shortlist of nominees, and when the number of votes exceeds one-fifth, it will directly become the Oscar nominee list.

The Oscars now have over six thousand members, with each department having over a thousand members. Obtaining more than one-fifth of the votes is no easy feat.

To be honest, very few members have actually watched these nominated films.

Therefore, aside from the operational aspects, the film's name, director, and the fame of its lead actors are very decisive factors.

For example, Cao Yang and Johnny Depp made a name for themselves as a duo, and their collaborative films have won awards, including many Oscars.

Members who haven't seen the movie will subconsciously assume that the quality of their new film is guaranteed, even if they haven't seen it yet, just by seeing their names together, and that voting for them is the safest bet.

Furthermore, the release date of "Pirates of the Caribbean" coincided with the start of Oscar voting for nominations, further amplifying its popularity.

This led to yet another surprise that exceeded Robert Iger's expectations.

Four days ago, the domestic media was still reporting extensively on Cao Yang's "Love in a Seaside City" being shortlisted for the main competition of the Berlin Film Festival. Unexpectedly, just four days later, Cao Yang gave the media another surprise.

"...After director Cao Yang's new film 'Love in the Seaside City' was shortlisted for the main competition at the Berlin Film Festival, more good news came.

"The Fault in Our Stars," directed and written by Cao Yang, received four nominations at the 80th Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Original Score.

Cao Yang's "Pirates of the Caribbean" received seven nominations, including Best Actor, Best Visual Effects, Best Costume Design, Best Makeup, Best Sound Effects, Best Sound Editing, and Best Original Score.

"Pieta," produced and written by Cao Yang and directed by Tian Zhuangzhuang, received an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film. This marks the first time in five years that a Chinese film has received an Oscar nomination since Zhang Yimou's "Hero"..."

Li Xiaowan put down the newspaper and asked Yang Mi, who was standing obediently beside her, "You've read the newspaper, haven't you? Any thoughts?" Yang Mi blinked her big eyes twice, then narrowed them slightly, a pure smile befitting her age appearing on her face. She said, "Director Cao is amazing! He gets box office success, awards, and he can even promote people..."

Li Xiaowan waved her hand, stopping Yang Mi from speaking.

She knew this quirky girl too well. She seemed to be similar to those female college students who hadn't yet graduated—pure, cute, and seemingly easy to fool. But that was just a facade; she had many other ulterior motives.

"Alright, I originally wanted Shao Hong to ask Director Cao to take you on his trip to Berlin, but it seems you're not very interested, so forget it, I'm too lazy to do him a favor."

“Don’t, don’t…”

Big Mimi quickly waved her hand, then walked behind Li Xiaowan and massaged her shoulders and back.

"Teacher Li, Sister Wan, I've already said that Director Cao is so amazing, I definitely want to go to Berlin with him. But I know my limitations. I'm just a small actor with very few scenes. Why would Director Cao take me?"

Li Xiaowan laughed and drawled, "Want to go?"

"Uh-huh!"

Big Mimi nodded quickly, then massaged Li Xiaowan's shoulders as she said, "Sister Wan, do you really have a way to get me to go with you?"

Li Xiaowan just smiled and didn't say anything.

If it's just a trip to Berlin, given the relationship between Li Shaohong, a close friend and business partner of the company, and Tian Zhuangzhuang, as well as the fact that Shaohong is Cao Yang's senior from the same school, and Yang Mi is also from the Beijing Film Academy, it wouldn't be difficult for her to go.

The key is……

Li Xiaowan considered for a moment, then raised her hand and waved her finger, gesturing for Yang Mi to come closer. She whispered in Yang Mi's ear:

"I have something to tell you. According to what I've heard, Yu Feihong, the lead actress in the film and winner of the Venice Film Festival Best Actress award, will not be going to Berlin this time."

Then, Li Xiaowan coughed and said with a smile, "Director Cao is not young anymore, and he doesn't have a girlfriend on the surface yet."

Alright, that's enough of the pointers. If we keep going, it'll get out of hand.

How much she can understand depends on Yang Mi's comprehension.

Big Mimi blinked twice, then squinted again, her face habitually displaying a pure and innocent smile.

"Berlin……"

She murmured something to herself.

Meanwhile, Da Tiantian was also watching the news, but instead of reading a newspaper, she was browsing the internet.

"Wow, Director Cao is amazing! His films have received seven Oscar nominations, and the films he produced have received four Oscar nominations. That makes eleven in total!"

Da Tiantian blinked her big eyes, but this was a natural movement, unlike someone who deliberately imitated it to make herself seem innocent, naive, and without guile.

Next, she logged into "Cao Yang Bar" and started browsing it.

After seeing a post from a few days ago celebrating Cao Yang's global box office officially surpassing 200 billion, she thought for a moment and followed the example of other members in the forum, writing: "Congratulations +1".

She looked at the post that had already garnered tens of thousands of replies and laughed, as if this would make her seem even closer to Director Cao.

"Don't cry, don't cry..."

Cao Yang offered words of comfort, but a strange, indescribable sense of satisfaction lingered in his heart.

He gently sniffed Yu Feihong's forehead, then prepared to wipe away her tears with his hand.

Unexpectedly, Yu Feihong suddenly turned her face to the side and said in a weak and hoarse voice, "You, you don't touch me with your hands, they're filthy."

Cao Yang was taken aback for a moment, then laughed.

"You still dislike yourself?"

Yu Feihong jolted awake and immediately sat up, ceasing her sobs.

However, Yu Feihong did not go to rinse her mouth as Cao Yang had imagined.

Yu Feihong first pulled out two tissues, then grabbed Cao Yang and kissed him on the lips.

After a long while, she supported herself with her hands, looked down at Cao Yang, and said, "Now we're even, and you've tasted your own flavor."

Cao Yang laughed.

Yu Feihong turned over and lay down.

How confident are you about your trip to Berlin?

Cao Yang didn't answer the question, but instead asked, "Are you sure you don't want to come to Berlin with me?"

"No way. My role is too small, and I won't win any awards. I'm too lazy to bother."

Yu Feihong replied lazily.

She's completely laid-back right now, with no ambition whatsoever. If she's confident of winning an award, she might go to Berlin again; if she doesn't have a chance, she won't travel that far just to walk the red carpet.

Then, she lightly kicked Cao Yang with her foot, but didn't take her foot off.

"You still haven't answered me: is there a chance for a Grand Slam this time?"

"It's hard."

Cao Yang said with a smile, "The Germans won't let me win the Grand Slam easily, but I'll still go ahead and try my luck this time, make some connections, and see if there's a chance."

"By the way, Director Zhang has a lot of connections in Berlin, right? Could we ask him for help?"

Yu Feihong turned her head and looked at Cao Yang, asking him a question.

"Haha, you underestimate me, don't you? Let me put it this way, if I wanted to, I could probably pull off a decent film that would win the Golden Bear at Berlin, but it would require a lot of favors."

"For Director Zhang to secure a Golden Bear award, besides the film's quality, perfect timing, location, and connections are all essential."

"Wow, Director Cao is amazing! Since you're so talented, could you pull a huge personal connection to help your film win the Golden Bear?"

Yu Feihong looked at Cao Yang very seriously and asked.

Cao Yang couldn't tell for a moment whether she was serious or joking.

However, one thing is certain: she wanted to cry again.

(End of this chapter)