I am a literary giant in Europe

Chapter 379 Cooperation
The smile on Liu Jin's face froze.

He looked at Spielberg for a long time before saying, "What do you think I want? What do you think I want in return for helping Sofia?"

The two "what you want to get" seem the same at first glance, but they are not quite the same.

Spielberg paused, then remained silent.

He hadn't expected Liu Jin to answer his question like that.

"Amos..."

"Ryan, this has nothing to do with you."

Liu Jin interrupted Meg Ryan's attempt to smooth things over.

He glared at Spielberg and said, "Mr. Steven, I like your movies."

Whether it's E.T., Jaws, Jurassic Park, or Saving Private Ryan, I love them all.

I've imagined countless times what kind of person would make a movie like E.T.

He must be a person full of childlike wonder, innocence, and gentleness...

But I am very disappointed today.

The waiter brought over the pre-dinner drink, which Liu Jin downed in one gulp.

Instead of asking me what I want, you should ask yourself what you can give me, or what Sophia can give me.

money?
You definitely have more money than me, but I have quite a bit of money too.

As for reputation, I'm not lacking either. I'm the first Chinese winner in the 86-year history of the Pulitzer Prize for Literature. I have no yearning for Hollywood, nor any interest in it. Making those two films was more like being forced into it.

I never even considered immigrating to America.

I'm doing very well in China. If I wanted, I could go back and get a government job, the kind every Chinese person dreams of. I could also stay in France; everyone here respects me. I have a house, a car, and an estate—I live a carefree life. By the way, I'll be competing for one of France's five major literary prizes this year. Do you think I'm lacking anything?

Spielberg's expression was rather unpleasant.

He hadn't expected Liu Jin to respond with such a tough attitude.

"As for Sophia, I admit she's a beauty, but that's all she is."

You should know that I'm never short of beautiful women.

I'm willing to invest because I know I can definitely make money.

"I'm willing to invest because I think Sofia is talented and has a very powerful father who can help me make 'Life Is Beautiful' well. Besides that, what else do you think I'm after? Is it her 36D bust that attracts me?"

Meg Ryan chuckled.

She really wanted to say: Sofia is at most a 36C.

"Didn't you ever think about finding a way out for Chinese filmmakers?"

"Are you kidding me? Who am I? What makes me think I am? I'm just a writer, a half-baked cartoonist, and a third-rate songwriter. Why should I help Chinese filmmakers find a way out? That's the China Film Group and the Film Bureau's business. What does it have to do with me? I just want to make money, a lot of money, and then live a free and easy life. That's all."

What you're talking about is a huge issue!
There are countless people in China who are far more capable than me; it's none of my business to worry about such things.

Spielberg, however, did not give up.

"Or do you want to speak up for America's Chinese community?"

“You’re joking again. Why should I speak up for them? Besides, I’m Chinese, why should I speak up for the Americans?”

"Or perhaps you want to resist public opinion about your mundane life?"

"There must be some ulterior motives... What's a comfortable life? Thousands of years ago, we were their masters. They just rebelled against the Heavenly Gang and committed heinous crimes, yet they live very comfortably. I don't like them, so I'm stating the facts. I don't deny that I don't like a comfortable life, but I don't understand, what does it have to do with you?"
Or rather, do you feel that you're in cahoots with them?

"of course not!"

Spielberg immediately objected.

He took a sip of his drink, and a smile appeared on his serious face.

"Amos, there's no need to get so worked up. I'm just asking you a question on behalf of Sophia's father."

You should know that I have no ill intentions towards China.

But in the future, you might side with some homeless person and betray China.

Liu Jin muttered to himself.

He also knew that his investment of five million to make a movie for Sofia would make many people unhappy.

For example, Global Times.

For example, Colombia.

In particular, Sofia's change of "Lost in Translation" to "Lost in the Magic City" has caused displeasure among many people.

Or rather, nervous.

Capitalists are worried that Chinese people will invade Hollywood just like they did in the past.

Xiao Rizi was also worried that Liu Jin's five million dollar investment was a test by the Chinese government.

So, it's a bit complicated.

Sofia had previously told her that she was already preparing for the film crew to go to Shanghai for shooting.

But we encountered a lot of resistance!

However, she didn't care.

The Coppola family's connections in Hollywood were enough for her to resolve many problems.

Spielberg's sudden meeting with Liu Jin today was also to find out what Liu Jin's purpose was in making this investment.

Liu Jin answered very frankly.

Spielberg could tell he wasn't lying.

"If I ask you to withdraw your investment, you won't agree, right?"

Liu Jin laughed and said, "Mr. Steven, your request is useless. Let Sophia talk to me! If Sophia says she doesn't need my investment, I'll take the money back very readily. It's just that I don't understand your way of thinking."

Is money for everyday living still money? But isn't my money also money?

The market size for "Xiao Ri Zi" (a type of product) is huge and can help you make a lot of money.

But let's not forget that while China's film market is indeed sluggish right now, it is still a huge market with 12 billion people.

All the Hollywood film studios were drooling over it.

But while you're shouting that China won't open its market, you're also taking all sorts of precautions and setting up all sorts of obstacles...

Warner Bros. understands the importance of the Chinese market very well, and they've been working hard on it. Now, if Sofia could film her movie in Shanghai, it would be a fantastic opportunity. But you, on the other hand, are doing everything you can to stop it.

Strong people have no need to worry about conspiracies and tricks.

Only the weak live in constant fear... Your actions today make me realize that America isn't as strong as I thought.

"No, no, no, you misunderstood. I did not stop your investment."

I just…”

Spielberg was a little flustered.

He thought for a moment and said, "You know, Francis and I are very good friends."

Sophia is like my goddaughter; I care deeply for her. I was merely, merely at Francis's request, testing you a little.”

"Hmm, that makes sense." Liu Jin looked at Spielberg, remaining silent for a long time.

If it were 2000, when he had just been reborn, he would have been completely powerless against Spielberg.

but now……

At least he can hold his own when he looks down Spielberg.

"For Mr. Coppola!"

He suddenly laughed and raised his glass.

Spielberg let out a sigh of relief and smiled, "For Francis, for a father."

The two clinked their glasses, which immediately eased the tension at the table.

"I recommended your book, 'Life Is Beautiful,' to Sofia."

"Thank you!"

"I like the theme you hid in the book: to always be hopeful, no matter what."

"This is a virtue of humankind."

"That's right, waiting and hope."

The conversation became much lighter, and Meg Ryan breathed a sigh of relief.

It was the first time she had ever seen Spielberg being overshadowed by a young man in a conversation.

An interesting young man!
“If I hadn’t already made a film based on Schindler’s List, I would definitely have asked you to buy the adaptation rights to this novel.”

But I really don't want to go through that pain again!

"I can understand that."

“Sofia really liked the story, and when she visited me in America last month, she invited me to be the producer.”

"I don't know if I'm fortunate enough to have this honor."

"DreamWorks wants a 30% investment share."

"no problem."

"You...you really plan to invest in this movie yourself?"

He is still testing.

Liu Jin laughed and said, "Of course I can make the decisions about my own novels. In fact, even if it weren't for DreamWorks, I would have invested in them myself."

"That's a lot of money."

Upon hearing this, Liu Jin couldn't help but laugh.

"My royalties this year should be enough."

Meg Ryan couldn't help but ask, "Amos, I heard from a friend that you made over a hundred million last year writing a book, is that true?"

"One hundred and seventy million US dollars, but the revenue from the comics will probably not be settled until this year."

hiss!
Meg Ryan took a breath.

"Writing books can really make money."

Spielberg glanced at her, feeling utterly helpless towards this American sweetheart whose brain was frequently malfunctioning.

"That depends on who it is."

"It's true!"

Meg Ryan shrugged, indicating her agreement with Spielberg's point of view.

"Have you calculated how much this movie will cost?"

Liu Jin thought for a moment and said, "When I was in Los Angeles, I discussed this issue with Leon and Matt."

I've already confirmed Hong Kong actor Leslie Cheung for the male lead. For the female lead, it will be either Jennifer Connelly or Juliette Binoche. In terms of influence, Jennifer Connelly is more famous, but in terms of acting skills, I prefer Juliette Binoche. Their salaries aren't too high, probably between 300 and 500 million.

Leslie is very famous in China, but his film salary won't be too high; it's estimated that around two million yuan would be enough.

This movie aims to highly recreate the atmosphere of Shanghai... but Shanghai has the Chedun Film and Television Base, so it won't cost too much. For example, recreating a refugee camp or concentration camp would cost at most two million US dollars, plus some props, two million would be enough.

There aren't any special effects, and it should be able to be completed for $100 million.

The remaining tasks are costumes and props; a budget of two million dollars is more than enough.

Liu Jin laughed and said, "The filming locations for this movie are all in China, so labor costs are very low, which can save a lot of money. The only major expense is marketing and distribution, which is estimated at 30 million US dollars, but this can be negotiated with the distribution company."

He took out his phone and started typing away on the computer.

“If you exclude publicity and distribution, a production budget of $35 million is more than enough.”

"Thirty million in advertising..."

Spielberg laughed and said, "You want a global release?"

"of course."

"How about we consider DreamWorks?"

"Haha, well, we'll talk about that later."

If Liu Jin didn't have connections with Warner Bros., he might have actually agreed to Spielberg's offer and chosen DreamWorks.

but……

DreamWorks' marketing and distribution capabilities are just so-so.

They also needed to rely on the six major media outlets for publicity and distribution... The reason DreamWorks was later besieged was, frankly, because they wanted to get involved in publicity and distribution.

If we were to give the publicity to DreamWorks, who knows if we would face suppression?

It's 2003 now, and if all goes well, this movie will be released in 2005.

In 2006, DreamWorks was acquired by Viacom and brought under Paramount's umbrella.

In other words, 2005 will be the most difficult year for DreamWorks.

The three giants will also fall apart.

Should we hand over "Life Is Beautiful" to DreamWorks?

What kind of despair must Liu Jin have felt to make such a decision?
Of course, he couldn't say it outright; he could only politely decline Spielberg's offer.

Fortunately, Spielberg didn't seem to care too much.

He just said it casually, and if he refused, he refused!

DreamWorks is now at its peak, and he never imagined that three years later, the studio he built from scratch would be acquired.

"Then, think about it."

Spielberg smiled.

Liu Jin nodded very solemnly.

……

(End of this chapter)