Hollywood starts with an agent

Chapter 431 Important People at DreamWorks

In the morning, Aaron sat on the villa's balcony, sipping coffee and flipping through the newspaper.

Capcom's horror game Resident Evil was a huge hit on the PlayStation and also performed well in the North American market.

Within six months of its release, Resident Evil had already sold 60 copies and received extremely high praise.

"The gaming industry!"

Aaron put down his coffee and pondered. Dawn's current businesses involve film, television, music, newspaper publishing, radio and television networks, theme parks, cable television, and many other aspects.
But the gaming industry, indeed, doesn't yet.

"I wonder if Blizzard Games has been formed yet?"

Aaron certainly knew that this game company, which developed StarCraft and World of Warcraft, needed to be acquired as soon as possible!
"Aaron, what are you thinking about?"

Suddenly, Catherine Zeta-Jones, wearing a white shirt, walked over, sat down in Aaron's lap, and kissed him.

“Mmm,” Aaron responded passionately, while rubbing his hand against the woman’s thigh…

Hollywood, Universal City.

In Steven Spielberg's office.

Steven Spielberg, who was filming "Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World", returned to handle some DreamWorks matters.

Richard Lovett, the president of CAA, made a special trip to visit and brought a script about World War II!

"During the Normandy landings, all four brothers in the family enlisted in the army. Three of them were killed in action, so the U.S. War Department recalled their youngest child from the Normandy battlefield..."

Steven Spielberg showed interest after reading the script, asking, "What is this project?"

Richard Lovett chuckled, "It was producer Mark Gordon who recommended the story to Paramount, and Paramount was very interested, so they had someone adapt the script."

“Then, Mark Gordon gave the script to director Michael Bay, but he wasn’t interested in directing it, so I’m showing it to you.”

Richard Lovett certainly knew that Spielberg had always been interested in works on the theme of war;

Moreover, this script, "Saving Private Ryan," also has humanistic significance!

Steven Spielberg nodded. It was the early days of DreamWorks SKG. Jeffrey Katzenberg was preparing the animated feature films "The Prince of Egypt" and "Ants" and had recently acquired a script called "The Mousetrap".
But Spielberg, as one of the three giants of DreamWorks, also has to consider the company's needs; DreamWorks currently needs projects to build its own brand.

“I’m interested in this project, and I want DreamWorks to get involved. I’m prepared to make Saving Private Ryan a flagship film for DreamWorks to build its brand!”

Richard Lovett thought for a moment, "I think it's not a big problem; Paramount is quite willing to work with other film companies to reduce risk."

“Besides, it’s a Spielberg-directed film, so DreamWorks getting involved should be fine.” Richard Lovett certainly understood Spielberg’s meaning. Next, his task was to help DreamWorks acquire the North American distribution rights for “Saving Private Ryan,” with Paramount handling the overseas market.

After all, overseas channels are too difficult for the newly established DreamWorks!

Steven Spielberg nodded. "Then I'll start working on Saving Private Ryan after I finish Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World."

After speaking with Steven Spielberg, Richard Lovett left the office with a sigh.

DreamWorks SKG has built a new headquarters in Glendale, but Steven Spielberg still works in this luxurious office inside Universal City.

DreamWorks SKG pays a hefty rent to Universal Studios every year for Spielberg's office!
Moreover, Steven Spielberg was only handling matters related to Amblin Pictures here. Even though he was involved in the creation of DreamWorks, he still received a share of the profits from films made for DreamWorks.

Aaron was obviously unaware that DreamWorks and Paramount were going to collaborate on the war epic "Saving Private Ryan."
At this moment, Aaron is in his headquarters office in Burbank, keeping an eye on the Blizzard game he's been longing for!
"Oh, it was originally called Silicon & Neural Bonds, founded in 1991 in Irvine, California by three UCLA graduates: Mike Morhaime, Alan Yadhan, and Frank Pierce."

"In 1993, it was renamed Chaos Studios. In 1994, Chaos Studios was acquired by Davidson Associates and renamed Blizzard Entertainment!"

Aaron leaned back in his chair. So that's how it is. Isn't this a chance for a glimmer of hope?
"So, Blizzard Entertainment is still a small startup?"

Etherine Beckett nodded. "Blizzard Entertainment's previous business was porting games from other developers to computer platforms such as Windows and Mac OS."

"After that, we developed original games for the Super Nintendo, but progress was slow!"

Aaron smiled. It doesn't matter if it's slow; what's important is its potential. It was acquired by Davidson Associates for $675 million two years ago.

"Pass down the word: Dawn is going to acquire Blizzard Entertainment as its own game division!"

Davidson Associates was a small, struggling company that had no chance against a behemoth like Dawn.
Moreover, Pixar was a successful precedent before Dawn, so why can't Blizzard Entertainment achieve the same success as Pixar?
“Okay,” Etherine Beckett said and quickly left Aaron’s office.

Let Blizzard be a shining jewel in Dawn Games' division!

Then, Aaron looked at a gold-embossed invitation on the table; it was from DreamWorks.
DreamWorks SKG is hosting a grand ball at the DreamWorks campus in Glendale, Los Angeles.

The rise of DreamWorks Animation and Pixar has put considerable pressure on Disney, which has even lowered its standards to produce a theatrical version of "The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride".

It's worth noting that Disney's tradition is not to produce theatrical versions of animated sequels, but only to release them on video.

The Lion King 2: Simba's Pride is Disney's first theatrical animated sequel!

Of the three founders of DreamWorks SKG, David Geffen was in charge of the music department, which wasn't particularly important; Steven Spielberg, the great director, needs no introduction—no one can ignore his work.
However, the truly important person is Jeffrey Katzenberg, who is the real helmsman of DreamWorks, after all, he was a former executive who managed Disney Studios.

Now, as DreamWorks builds its own distribution network in North America, Jeffrey Katzenberg personally handles the negotiations with some theater chains.
Without Jeffrey Katzenberg, DreamWorks would fall apart in an instant...

(End of this chapter)