2001 Media Godfather

Chapter 111 So that's what was going on

National Treasure is a typical Hollywood action-adventure film.

Using America's relatively short history as a connecting thread, it showcases a pure spirit of individual heroism.

To put it bluntly, it's exactly the kind of thing that Americans like.

Cage was clearly very interested in the script. And wasn't it only right that he help Su Manqing get the script approved?
"Don't worry, Chu. Although this isn't Sophia's type, please trust me. I'll definitely find a suitable director and a sensible investor."

Chu An had no doubt about Cage's abilities.

Although this guy is very averse to people attributing his achievements to the influence of the Coppola family, it is undeniable that in Hollywood, even if you don't give him, an Oscar-winning actor, you still have to give Coppola face.

He still couldn't escape the influence of his family, even though Cage never admitted it.

Nolan, who was standing to the side, was also very curious about what kind of script Chuan had given Cage.

It's important to understand that not everyone would dare to agree to a condition like binding a female celebrity to a relationship.

After all, Chu An is not Harvey Weinstein.

He took the script from Cage and began to read it carefully.

After watching only a small portion, Nolan sighed, "Oh, I love this scene so much!"

He was referring to the part where the protagonist, Ben Gates, decides to steal the Declaration of Independence.

However, he showed little interest in the subsequent process of stealing the Declaration of Independence and strongly advised Chu An, "Chu, you must carefully consider this! Use a cooler and more novel way to get what Gates wants."

Nolan truly deserves his reputation as a legendary director; his keen insight into the outcome of a story and his dedication to detail are unmatched by most people.

In fact, the original version of "National Treasure" can be considered a high-quality Hollywood blockbuster.

However, the production quality and subsequent achievements were not particularly outstanding.

The part about stealing the Declaration of Independence is indeed a bit unbalanced.

In other words, the transition leading to this plot is quite natural and full of dramatic tension, but the theft itself is really ordinary, even a bit far-fetched.

The ending, including the protagonist escaping legal punishment and the process of punishing the villain, felt perfunctory.

They actually returned the Declaration of Independence and donated the treasure, and everything was fine.

Chu An was well aware of the script's flaws. However, firstly, the original script was sufficient; secondly, he was too busy to revise the plot.

When Nolan pointed these out, Chu An smiled and said, "Mr. Nolan, I will consider it carefully or make some changes."

Upon hearing this, Nolan, wanting to return the favor, asked, "Do you need any help?"

He smiled modestly, "Actually, my brother Jonathan Nolan is very good at writing, and I wanted him to give it a try."

Nolan has an older brother and a younger brother. His older brother, Matthew Nolan, runs a real estate business, while his younger brother, Jonathan Nolan, is more interested in screenwriting.

However, before the Batman series, Jonathan Nolan had not yet gained fame, and he had not received any screenwriting jobs.

"Uh," Chu An hesitated for only a moment before decisively refusing, "No need! I can handle this little problem myself."

National Treasure is not suitable for Nolan. To be precise, it's not suitable for the Nolan brothers.

Chu An knew, of course, that Nolan had a very talented screenwriter brother. In fact, it was precisely because he knew so much about him that he didn't intend to involve them in the project.

how to say?

Just like when Wu Yulin made "Windtalkers".

Even if Director Wu fails with one film, he is still a highly talented director. It's just that the style and genre of "Windtalkers" simply doesn't suit him.

The Nolan brothers were the same.

These two brothers are good at exhaustively listing a simple story, to the extreme.

Just like Batman, a single superhero movie established the dark and profound style of the DC Universe for both of them.

If you look beyond the film's own brilliance and consider the bigger picture, you'll easily see that a space opera like "Interstellar" is an extremely simple and clichéd story.

It's just a story about the end of the world and American superheroes saving it—that's it!
As a result, he filmed every possible science fiction story in the space genre, and even embedded a grandfather paradox-like narrative loop.

To put it bluntly, these two brothers' films leave no room for others to maneuver.

Why use a pure popcorn movie like "National Treasure"?
Besides, if Nolan really changes it into his usual style—an art film with commercial appeal—it would be a disaster.

Chu An was even more unwilling!

The main purpose of this film is to open up the Hollywood market for Su Manqing.

She is one of Europe's top three film queens and the queen of art-house films. Now she just needs to showcase her commercial appeal, making a pure popcorn movie.

Using the simplest and most direct method, Su Manqing made Hollywood investors remember that not only are her art films critically acclaimed, but her commercial films are also box office hits.

Nolan didn't insist on Chu An's refusal. He assumed Chu An didn't know about his brother Jonathan, which was normal.

After spending two days in China finalizing some details of the Batman adaptation with Chu An, I hurriedly flew back to the United States.

Although Cage had given up on the idea of ​​playing Batman, he was determined to finish what he started and went back with Nolan.

They agreed with Chu An that they would contact him again once they found investors or a suitable director.

Chu An has no problem with it.

He also promised Cage that he would carefully consider the areas for revision in "National Treasure." After all, there's still some time before the project is finalized, so no one is in a rush.

He spent several days thinking about it behind closed doors, but still couldn't come up with any ideas. In the end, he decided to put it aside, because inspiration can't be forced out.

At this time, "You Are My Glory" had already ended, but the online buzz remained undiminished.

After all, Weibo and the game "Honor of Kings" have truly entered people's hearts.

In 2003, the number of Chinese internet users exceeded 5000 million, officially making it the second largest internet market after the United States.

By the time "Honor of Kings" ended, the number of registered users on Weibo had exceeded 2600 million.

In other words, one in every two Chinese people who go online becomes a Weibo user.

This ratio is quite alarming.

It's important to know that in another time and space, whether it's Tencent Weibo or Sina Weibo...

They all relied on instant messaging software or portal websites with a large user base to attract traffic, which enabled them to achieve rapid growth in user share.

In this timeline, Weibo is entirely composed of "ordinary people" who debuted and rose to this position through a single TV series.

Simply incredible.

Of course, a rapid surge in users in a short period of time means an endless cycle of burning through cash.

Whether it's server leasing or the advertising and R&D costs invested to maintain growth, the figures are astronomical.

Even though Chu An's current earning power is frightening, it has some support now.

"Let's raise funds!" Lin Wanchen said decisively.

Entering the internet industry was a breeze for him; he was much more decisive than when he was a fiercely protective brother in the entertainment industry.

Chu An nodded. There was nothing he could do; he really couldn't hold on any longer.

The various revenues from "Honor of Kings" continued to arrive, and Xiang Lintao was always quick to distribute dividends.

Before and after the broadcast of Honor, he earned about 6000 million yuan, but in the end, none of it lasted.

Currently, the Weibo team has reached a size of 100 people, and it is still growing rapidly.

Chu An and Lin Wanchen are almost unable to pay salaries.

At this moment, Chu Wanchen sighed, "The loan we borrowed from my father is almost gone. If this continues, next month we won't even be able to pay salaries, let alone servers or marketing." Chu An replied, "The main problem is that we're moving too fast; there's no profit model."

Lin Wanchen said, "Don't think about making a profit yet!! We need to hold on for at least a year."

He had seen too many websites that, as soon as they started to show promise, couldn't wait to find ways to make money, and ended up turning themselves into low-brow advertising display pages.

“During this period, many investment institutions have contacted us, and several internet giants are also trying to reach out.”

"If we let the word out and accept funding, I believe that a lot of money will soon come knocking on our door."

Chu An nodded, "Then you can start preparing, I won't get involved."

Chu An has always believed in leaving professional matters to professionals.

When it comes to areas where he is not good at, President Chu never acts presumptuously and is willing to be a hands-off manager.

Soon, Lin Wanchen had a general idea of ​​the outcome.

That day, she made a special trip to Chu An's courtyard and handed him a summary of their intentions.

"Currently, four investment institutions are very interested and are willing to give us enough autonomy and room to maneuver. You can choose one!"

Chu An took the items and examined them closely, then frowned. "Why are they all from overseas?"

Lin Wanchen shrugged. "There's nothing we can do. Investors in internet projects in China are very cautious right now. I find it strange, though; the reliable ones are all foreign capital."

Chu An remained silent.
He's a complete novice when it comes to the internet; even with his advanced knowledge, he doesn't understand the intricacies of it.

in fact
It's quite simple; two reasons led to this result:
First, external factors.

In the late 20th century, Saudi Arabia sought to connect its oil pipelines to Europe, and the EU vigorously promoted the use of the euro for oil settlements.

This led to the Kosovo War and NATO's military action against Yugoslavia.

The collapse of the Euro dream and the failure of oil pipelines caused a capital panic, leading to a large influx of European capital into the United States and Asia.

The Americans took one look and thought, "This won't do."
"Edi! Edi! It's all Edi!"

This triggered the Asian financial crisis.

With nowhere else to go, hot money from all over the world is concentrating in the United States, driving up the stock market and buying assets with investment potential.

Thus, the dot-com bubble was formed.

Once the bubble bursts, the dollar harvest tide will be over.

These hot money companies dare not invest in American internet companies, while Chinese internet companies have risen to become the world's second largest. So where else can they go if not to China?

Therefore, you will see that in the years following 2002, most of the emerging internet companies in China relied on financing from European and American capital.

So the question is, why don't domestic investors invest?
This is the second problem, because there is no incentive to invest.

It's important to understand that during this period, the fastest-growing sector in China wasn't something like the internet, which was essentially a game of musical chairs.

China was developing so fast during this period that it was a goldmine; any investment there seemed to have a brighter future than the internet.

Moreover, for certain reasons, projects that domestic investors can access are projects that foreign investors cannot touch. They are exclusive!
Then who will still invest in the internet industry?
Chu An didn't know any of this, but he felt uncomfortable looking at these international capitals.

Although he was not an expert, he understood the principle that one is obligated to accept favors from others.

Sometimes, it's not that the major shareholders are biased, but rather that they simply don't support the government.

He asked suspiciously, "Didn't you say before that several other portal websites were also interested in cooperation?"

Chu An felt it was better to benefit domestic counterparts than to cause trouble for himself.

Unexpectedly, Lin Wanchen gave a wry smile and said, "Actually, I think the same as you. The internet, especially our Weibo, is inseparable from media and communication."

"It's a rather special case in nature, and I don't want to be constrained by ideology in the future."

"But the problem is, we have no other choice."

"I contacted several domestic websites and tried to negotiate very sincerely. But the prices they offered didn't seem like a collaboration; they seemed like robbery!"

He shrugged, "If there's no sincerity at all, what's the point of cooperating?"

"Alas!" Chu An sighed deeply.

Once you leave your own domain, nothing works.

"There isn't a single reliable one?"

Lin Wanchen, "No!"

Upon hearing this, Chu An lost even more interest and hastily glanced through the summary of intentions.

The above lists four relatively suitable investment companies.

The differences are:

A renowned investment bank, JPMorgan Chase.

Chu An only knew that this was a Wall Street giant, and that the price offered was the highest.

The offer is $8000 million to acquire 30% to 35% of the shares, but requires certain decision-making and management rights in the company.

The second one is an independent investor from the UK named Paul Heyman.

$20 million for 2000% equity, with the option of a multi-tiered equity structure. In short, it's just about providing the money, not managing the operations.

The third was a Japanese investment firm, which Chu An resembled Masayoshi Son in this timeline. With only 5% of $1800 million and no involvement in company decisions, it offered the best value.

But it's obvious at a glance that the Japanese probably want to cast a wide net and raise as many fish as possible.

As for the fourth one, Chu An didn't even want to look at it.

He handed the compiled list of intentions to Lin Wanchen, saying, "You can decide for yourself!"

Chu An thought there would be results soon, after all, Weibo had nearly 30 million registered users and more than 10 million daily active users.

This result is so impressive, it's no surprise that anyone who sees it is confused.

The tranquility was shattered by Lin Wanchen's phone call in the middle of the night.

"JPMorgan Chase and Power both lowered their offers."

Chu An frowned. "What? Are you trying to pull a fast one?!"

Lin Wanchen said solemnly, "This time it really isn't."

Chu An, "What does that mean?"

Lin Wanchen, "Go check it out on Weibo yourself!"

Chu An has been working on the script details for "National Treasure" for the past few days, almost isolating himself, and has even unplugged the internet cable.

Upon hearing Lin Wanchen's words, he quickly checked Weibo and was immediately filled with murderous intent.

The top trending topics on Weibo were:
[Inspur.com will soon launch a microblogging function, expected to go live by the end of the year.]

[Plagiarism of Weibo posts]

[Weibo Showdown]

"Damn it!" Chu An laughed in exasperation. "So that's what you were waiting for, huh?"

.

(End of this chapter)