American Entertainment: Starting with playing the role of Little Beaver

Chapter 31 I...I?

On December 5, Columbus told Isabella that the script could be purchased.

On December 10, the copyright transaction was officially completed.

The reason a contract takes five days to sign is not because there is a problem with the details or terms, but because the two parties are arguing.

The main price has been set at 25, and there's no room for Fenjin to negotiate.

Instead, the buyer, Isabella's mother Vivian, did not want to buy directly.

Vivian registered a private limited company under the name Isabella.

Then, in its name, it made a deal with Endeavour.

After doing this, the original copyright of "Little Miss Sunshine" still belongs to Isabella, but regardless of how the project is developed in the future, whether the script is sold or it is produced by herself, it will legally be considered an investment income.

Under British law, investment income earned by minors is not required to be deposited into a trust account.

To put it more simply, it's about going in circles to avoid regulation.

Since this would give Isabella more financial flexibility, she readily accepted the arrangement. Then, while thanking her mother for her thoughtfulness, she also gave the company a catchy name—

nutria.

Coypu.

Classics are hard to come by, and Isabella wouldn't willingly cut them off.

Laugh~
With the script acquired, a new problem arose.

That is the signature.

In Hollywood, screenplay credits are very detailed. For example, 'Novel by' refers to the 'author of the novel,' and when this label appears, it means that the movie you are watching is adapted from a novel.

In addition to these, script credits also include 'Story by', 'Screenplay by', and 'Written by'.

'Story by' refers to the person who comes up with the core story.

It refers to the person who writes the story outline.

'Screenplay by' refers to the person who wrote the screenplay.

It's someone who can turn a 3,000-word outline into a 100-page script; in a novel, that's writing the main text.

However, if the person who writes the outline and the person who writes the main text are the same person, then 'Written by' comes into play.

In Hollywood, it specifically refers to the combination of 'creativity' and 'writing'.

Based on the current division of labor in "The Voice of the World", Isabella is 'Story by', Catherine is 'Screenplay by', and Columbus, who teaches writing... although he didn't write a single word, he controlled the whole process, so he is considered 'Written by'.

But Columbus didn't want to be credited.

They voluntarily gave up the 'Written by' attribution.

Because he had a conflict with the original author of "Little Miss Sunshine".

Everyone knows this, so it's understandable and no one is forcing it. However, at the same time, the original author, Michael Arndt, the screenwriter of "Little Miss Sunshine," also asked Isabella to remove her name from "Written by."

"What?"

"Why?"

Isabella was completely baffled by this request.

She didn't understand why Michael Arndt would do that.

"Because before we officially reached a deal, he already knew that the person who bought the notebook was actually Chris."

Patrick, who had personally come to London to sign the contract, glanced at Columbus and whispered, "He can't accept this deal. He feels insulted because you changed the story from America to England..."

Columbus smiled.

Isabella shook her head.

She understood the reasoning behind it.

Michael Arndt and Chris Columbus have never clashed directly, but just like Isabella recently made her stance clear, when your mentor has their own faction, unless there's a huge conflict between you, the kind that leads to a complete break, it's very difficult to change the factionalism you carry.

So when Michael Arndt learned that his project might become the work of his enemy, and that his enemy had completely distorted his story... well, writers may not all have pride, but they certainly do.

You've completely dismantled my story!
I only kept the pit!

Then what's the point of me having my name listed?
I'm gonna hang up on you!
M-Fxxk!

So……

"So what's going on now?"

Isabella could understand Michael Arndt's thoughts, but at the same time she was also somewhat confused—

"Is this notebook only listed with my sister's and my names?"

Isabella felt that this arrangement was somewhat inappropriate.

Although everyone thinks she's very smart, and Hermione Granger is portrayed as intelligent, how could she write a script at the age of eleven?
Isn't this a bit too far-fetched?

But Columbus didn't think there was any problem.

“Isa, in Hollywood, buying a script and removing your name from the credits is a very normal thing.”

Columbus said, "As long as everyone signs a buyout agreement, the original author's name can be removed."

"Especially when the original author voluntarily requests removal from the author's name, as long as it is stated in our contract, then no matter what happens in the future, we are the party in the right, and public opinion will definitely be on our side."

Columbus knew what Isabella was worried about.

So, while describing the industry phenomenon, he also frankly said, "Isha, I watched you write this story, so you don't need to overthink it. There won't be any doubts in the industry."

"And, to put it bluntly, Isha, when you've already reduced the original script to just the core of a road movie, even if we don't buy the rights, no one will accuse us of plagiarism once the script is released."

"The reason I asked you to buy the copyright without plagiarism was because I wanted to avoid unnecessary outside controversy, since we did read Michael Arndt's script, that's a fact."

That's right—

From a legal perspective of identifying plagiarism, even if Isabella didn't buy the copyright to "Sunshine," she could still create "The Voice," because in her creative process, Isabella only borrowed the framework of "Sunshine."

Or rather, it's the genre framework of road movies.

This kind of thing is not protected by copyright.

However, the law is the minimum standard of morality.

Just because your behavior is not illegal does not mean that your behavior is moral.

Once it's clear that "The Voice" was indeed adapted from "Sunshine," buying the rights would avoid all the gossip. For example, if the movie were made and Michael Arndt jumped out and said, "Ah! You plagiarized! Because you read my script!" wouldn't that just be asking for trouble?
Columbus had been in the business for decades and had seen all sorts of messy things. When he was able to sincerely say that Hermione Granger could not participate in the beauty pageant, his stance had actually shifted to Isabella's side.

When he witnessed firsthand the daily changes to the script...

If the original author wants to be credited, then so be it.

If there are any doubts from the outside world, let them talk to Warner and Spielberg!
Since Columbus had put his mind at ease, Isabella was relieved.

of course……

"Okay, director, you'll be fully responsible if anything goes wrong~"

Before anything even started, Isabella began dividing the work among herself.

She dumped the heavy, black pot onto Columbus, patting it twice with a pleasant 'bang bang bang' sound—yes, all the blame! She also glanced at Columbus; his unwavering stance made him perfect scapegoat material!
Since Columbus knew that Isabella was usually joking, he didn't think much of the matter of dividing the blame. Not only that, he even put on a show of anger and told her to get lost.

Isabella readily agreed, and then started swishing her yo-yo around.

The sight of the energetic figure brought a smile to Columbus's face and also stirred some emotion in his ambitious partner, Patrick.

"This is such a lovely girl."

"Yes, it is quite cute." Columbus nodded in agreement.

But the next second, he glanced at Patrick and said, "No matter how cute you are, you can't sign you."

"..."

Patrick's face stiffened.

Some helpless.

Columbus was telling the truth.

HP will make at least seven films, and the lead actress in these projects doesn't need an agency to help her find projects.

Or, to put it another way, when the lead actors of such a super-popular IP can write their own scripts...

If Isabella succeeds just once, any agency that wants to sign her will have to pay her.

Yes, there are two types of agency contracts in Hollywood.

One type is the mass contract, where industry professionals sign contracts with brokerage firms, which then help them find projects and take a cut.

Another option is for CAA to distribute dividends to Spielberg's company annually.

Well, Spielberg's early management contract was with CAA, but he hasn't signed with them anymore, so CAA has to pay him.

As for the reason?

"The moment I sit there, I become the biggest resource in the industry."

"I can meet the people you can't meet, and I can negotiate projects you can't negotiate, so why should you take a cut from my earnings?"

"..."

According to the law of conservation of smiles, while some people can face life with a smile, others are bound to be dissatisfied with their current lives. And right now, one of those people who is unhappy with life is Barry Mayer, the chairman and CEO of Warner Bros.

The reason is simple: with the arrival of December 19, 2001, Hollywood's last blockbuster of the year was released.

The movie is called The Lord of the Rings.

The success of "The Lord of the Rings" is self-evident and needs no further explanation.

Furthermore, in the future, this work will always be regarded as a classic produced by Warner Bros. Middle-earth, a world that can rival the Magic Age and the DC Universe. However, this is only the general public's impression.

For Warner Bros., especially Warner Bros. at present, the success of The Lord of the Rings is a disgrace.

Back when Peter Jackson was preparing for "The Lord of the Rings," he approached Warnera for investment, but was rejected.

If it weren't for New Line Cinema, an independently operated subsidiary of Warner Music, finding the project promising and investing in it.

It's still uncertain who will ultimately rule Middle-earth.

Furthermore, it was Barry Mayer who formally rejected Peter Jackson back then.

The phrase "Thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river; never underestimate a young man's potential" was used to give Barry Mayer a resounding slap in the face from Peter Jackson and New Line Cinema.

However, to be honest, the former's success didn't have much impact on Barry Mayer. Everyone makes mistakes, and it's normal to misjudge a project. But New Line's success was a fatal threat in Barry Mayer's eyes because New Line wasn't actually Warner's company, but Ted Turner's.

Ted Turner is an American television mogul who founded TNT and CNN. After achieving great success in the television industry, he was no longer satisfied with success in a single field. So, starting in 90, he wanted to enter the film industry.

At the time, he even made offers to both Universal Pictures' parent company, American Music, and Paramount Pictures, but both refused to sell. That's when he turned his attention to New Line Cinema and acquired it in 93.

If it weren't for the sudden merger of Time Warner and Turner Broadcasting Network in 96...

New Line will not become a subsidiary of Warner.

Even so, Warner couldn't control New Line, not only because 'the vassal of my vassal is not my vassal,' but also because the merger of Time Warner and Turner Broadcasting was conducted through a stock swap, and Ted Turner did not leave the company.

To put it simply, the financial statements of the two companies have been merged, the business scope has expanded, but the people managing the companies are still the same.

This is a common occurrence in mergers of giants. If two giants merge and immediately change personnel, it will definitely have an impact on the existing business. The change of management and the transfer of power will certainly be a process.

then……

This process is certainly not peaceful.

During the merger, Ted Turner hoped that his people could subtly swallow up the company, and Warner had the same idea. However, the old Warner, also known as Time Warner, was internally divided into two factions.

One faction consisted of people from Time Inc., while the other was from Warner Bros. The former specialized in publishing, while the latter was the family of Steve Ross, the former controlling shareholder of Warner Bros. They both wanted to take control independently.

At once……

This relationship is pretty complicated.

But that's not important; the battles among these giants aren't actually that sophisticated. The most common tactic is to focus on improving their core businesses, do everything in their power to win over minority shareholders, and then propose a change of leadership at the next shareholders' meeting.

The concrete manifestation of this confrontation at present is that Barry Mayer, the chairman of Warner Bros., promoted by the old WarnerRoth family, was severely beaten by Robert Shea, the chairman of New Line, promoted by Ted Turner from the broadcasting network.

Furthermore, "The Lord of the Rings" is Ted Turner's second punch at Warner Bros. this year.

As for what the first punch was?
That was "Rush Hour 2," which was released during the summer vacation.

"Okay, I understand."

"Don't worry, this situation will definitely not happen next year."

"Yeah~Yeah~Yeah~I know The Lord of the Rings is a trilogy, and at this rate, New Line Cinema's performance will definitely be good next year and the year after. But, Harry Potter has seven movies!"

"Yes, I've already spoken with David Heyman, and he's definitely going to make seven books! J.K. Rowling will also write seven books, and the last three will definitely be finished before those kids come of age!"

"Yes, you're right. Harry Potter is our safety net project. We can't live off it alone, so we're already in production on The Matrix Reloaded and The Matrix Revolutions. Yes, they're being filmed back-to-back. We also acquired the distribution rights to James Cameron's Terminator, and James will be filming Terminator 3 early next year."

“Okay, I understand. I will definitely not let Ted Turner get his hands on Warner!”

As the phone call ended...

Barry Mayer finally breathed a sigh of relief.

He touched his forehead and saw fine beads of sweat, which made him feel quite helpless.

To the general public, he may seem like a glamorous Hollywood tycoon, but what's the reality? Aren't the real controllers of the world's giants the major shareholders behind the scenes? They're just the helmsmen standing in the spotlight!

As for the claim that shareholders cannot directly interfere with the company's operations according to company law?

To put it simply, Warren Buffett's Coca-Cola stock holdings through Berkshire Hathaway didn't even reach the 10% threshold, but who in the world doesn't know that Coca-Cola's management listens to him?
Theory is theory, and practice is practice.

There are very few people in the world who can yell at shareholders like Steve Jobs. As a member of management, you don't want to heed the orders of your supporters? Okay, they can replace you.

Do not listen?

Get out.

So, if you make a mistake, just admit it. Getting scolded is better than being fired, right?
After reviewing Warner's plans for the next two years, Barry Mayer frowned again.

Although he just told the Ross family, who support him, that Warner Bros. has many excellent films planned for the future, neither "The Matrix" nor "The Terminator" will be released next year. The only thing to look forward to is "Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets".

Judging from the current performance of "The Sorcerer's Stone", the box office performance of "The Secret Chamber" is definitely reassuring.

but……

The only thing that "The Chamber of Secrets" can defeat is next year's "The Lord of the Rings: The Two Kings"!

And what about the others?

Don't care?

You know, New Line Cinema is getting a sequel to Austin Powers next year!
Ugh--

Other film studios only need to unite against external forces, but Warner Bros. is different; they also have to fight against their own people.

It's outrageous!
Frustrated, he scratched his head, picked up the landline receiver, and dialed the company's short number.

Half an hour later, all the executives from Warner Bros.' production department who were in the company came to his private conference room.

He asked a simple question, and looked distressed.

Because they don't have many good movies next year.

"So next year we won't only have HP, right?"

Barry Mayer banged on the table.

"Uh... Boss... it seems that's the case based on the current situation."

Since everyone was a member of the Ross family, they didn't hold back in their conversations.

This admission gave Barry Mayer a real headache.

Just as he was clenching his fist, about to curse, at the end of the conference table, a young man in his late thirties or early forties suddenly raised his hand. "Boss, if we really want to boost box office revenue, perhaps we can open an expedited project."

"Ok?"

Barry Mayer looked up.

The familiar yet unfamiliar face made him narrow his eyes. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Nathan? Do you have any projects on hand?"

"No."

That young man's name is indeed Nathan.

But he shook his head.

"..."

This situation left Barry Mayer speechless; at that moment, he really wanted to smash the folder in his hand.

Why are you even asking for anything if you don't have any projects?
Are you crazy?
But just as he was about to tell the other man to get out, Nathan added, "However, there might be a project in England."

"?"

"That project should be on the set of HP. Recently, people from Endeavour have been frequently contacting Isabella..."

Nathan knew his boss's temper, so he didn't dare to breathe too loudly when reporting, and finished the matter in just a few words.

When Barry Mayer found out that Endeavour, that little brat, had stolen his people right under his nose, he really wanted to hang these guys up and yell at them—Warner Bros. hadn't even gotten a share of the profits from the Iron Triangle's success! And then Endeavour tried to steal their manpower?! M-Fxxk! How could you not tell me about something this big?!

However, when Nathan said that Chris Columbus had killed Endeavour before they could even report the incident, Barry Mayer's mood calmed down. At least their house hadn't been robbed!
And Endeavour was killed by Columbus?

You think you can challenge the top six?

What a waste!

"So you mean that Endeavour had a script with a teenage girl as the main character, and Isabella and Chris liked it after reading the project, so they took over the project?"

"Yes, I heard they're already revising the script; it seems they're making customized changes."

"Oh, I see. Then we can invest in this project."

Barry Mayer waved his hand, signaling his subordinates to go and coordinate, and finalize the project as soon as possible.

Ideally, filming should begin immediately after "The Locked Room" is finished.

That's right!

The Hollywood project can be set up in such a crude way!
Although Warner Bros. didn't see the script, and although young adult films are difficult to produce and the returns are unstable, with Hermione Granger as the lead actress and even Columbus, the second most capable young adult film director in Hollywood, showing interest in the project, this project wouldn't need any company's approval!

In Barry Mayer's eyes, this is even a sure thing, surpassing "Austin Powers III" is simply too easy!
Of course, Barry Mayer wouldn't care if he really lost money.

Because now, his shareholders are demanding that he withstand Ted Turner's attack and prevent him from extending his power into Warner's territory. If I bring in Hermione Granger and Chris Columbus, and we lose this battle, then it's truly fate, and even if the Ross family is unhappy, there's nothing they can do about it.

I tried my best!
I used a top-tier cast to boost the box office!

So what does it matter to me if the movie loses money? You can't say I lost too, right?

Just as Barry Mayer felt that HP was truly his lucky star and that the most successful investment he had ever made was buying HP, the guys present all looked at each other in bewilderment.

This reaction puzzled Barry Mayer, who then inquired—

He was completely stunned.

What are you saying?

"Isabella's salary still hasn't been paid?"

"Hasn't filming for 'The Locked Room' already been underway for a month already???"

“Uh, yes, filming for ‘The Secret Room’ has indeed started a month ago, but we signed a dynamic contract with Isabella.”

The person below replied, "Last year, when we signed the contract with Isabella, we agreed that if 'The Sorcerer's Stone' grossed over £500 million in its opening month, her salary for 'The Chamber of Secrets' would reach £1.2 million."

"The clause itself is fine, but it has a loophole because the opening month's release date is vague..."

In Hollywood, there are actually two ways to calculate the 'first month of release':

The first calculation method starts from the day the movie is officially released. Regardless of which country it is released in, the first day in the country where it is first released is taken as the first day. Count 27 days, or four weeks, after that to count the first month.

This is actually the algorithm that the public is most familiar with.

However, there is actually a second algorithm in the industry, which calculates the results based on the different release dates in different regions.

For example, Harry Potter was released in North America on November 16th, and the first month's box office in North America was 27 days later.

Then, HP was released in Japan on December 1st, and 27 days later was the first month's box office in Japan.

After the first month has passed in all regions, the results are simply added together to get HP's first-month score.

Eh~~~
By now, many people should be able to see the trick.

If we calculate it according to the first method, HP would not even reach 5 million US dollars in its first month of release!

Because in this day and age, no Hollywood company can release a movie simultaneously in more than 100 regions around the world!
That is indeed the case—

According to the first calculation, "The Sorcerer's Stone" grossed $2.5 million in North America and £6800 million (US$9714 million) in the British Isles during its first month of release. It grossed a total of $3.47 million in both regions over its 28-day run.

Then, in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and other places, it was released a week later.

Only the box office revenue from the first three weeks in these areas can be counted in the first month, totaling a mere 7000 million.

Further on, Hollywood's major overseas box office markets, such as Japan and France, only release films in early December.

It hasn't even been two weeks yet.

Even fewer figures can be included in the first month's count.

Then, it hasn't been released in more than fifty countries around the world.

Warner Bros. won't release the film until 2002.

Those data will not be included in the first month.

If we take November 16th as the starting point, "The Sorcerer's Stone" would have grossed 450 million yuan in its first month.

That 50 million difference translates to roughly 40% of Isabella's contract increase.

Only by calculating according to the second method can Isabella receive the full £120 million!
Indeed, Warner intended from the beginning to teach Isabella that 'the greatest meaning of working isn't the salary, but that work allows you to have a regular life, opportunities to meet people, and a stable social circle.'

This is also a common trick used by Hollywood giants when they don't want to pay high salaries.

cough cough-

To be fair, if New Line Cinema's Lord of the Rings had failed, Warner Bros. would have felt no remorse for squandering Isabella's money. But now that New Line Cinema's Lord of the Rings has been a hit and they have other projects, they can't do that anymore, right?
You can't expect someone to make money for you while not paying them.

Then, the problem arose—

When Warner Bros. used the first calculation method, they couldn't possibly pay Isabella her full salary, nor could they even consider it, because the contract didn't clearly specify it. Can anyone explain why Isabella received only £4.5 million despite *The Philosopher's Stone* grossing $120 million worldwide?
The only explanation is that I wanted to trick you back then, but I'm not doing it anymore.

Of course, Warner Bros. could pretend to be stupid and pay in the second way, but the problem is that if it's released in more than 100 countries and regions around the world for a month, that would take forever.

Warner Bros. can't wait until "The Chamber of Secrets" finishes filming before paying Isabella's salary, can they?

No one in the world does this.

If they really do that, what's the difference between that and openly telling Isabella that we wanted to scam her from the start?

So……

A stubborn mind becomes a blockage in both ends!

"Can anyone tell me why you signed this kind of contract with Isabella???"

Barry Mayer is going crazy.

If Isabella were a person, Warner wouldn't need to care about her feelings at all.

Because she has no influence in the industry.

What? Someone said she was brought into the industry by J.K. Rowling?

But J.K. Rowling herself is an outsider in Hollywood!
We're just telling you we wanted to mess with you before, what can you do about it?

But now...

Their new project is clearly tied to Columbus.

Even if none of the Big Six like Spielberg, who owns DreamWorks, no one would be stupid enough to offend him!
Especially Warner!
Especially Barry Mayer!
Because when Steve Ross, the previous patriarch of the Ross family, was still alive, he had an extremely good relationship with Spielberg! When Warner Bros. was struggling, Steve Ross invited Spielberg to make movies, and Spielberg genuinely came!

"The Twilight Zone," "The Seven Treasures," and "The Purple"—they really put in the effort!
So, the fact that these people are able to sit here is because of the Ross family...

Ashley!
Destroy it!
Barry Mayer's questioning silenced the audience.

No one could answer his question.

I took two deep breaths...

Barry Mayer didn't make things difficult for everyone.

Because he knows that today's price reduction is for a better offer tomorrow.

The creative team behind Harry Potter only signed contracts for two films each, but the series has a total of seven films.

If the second film grossed £120 million for a single lead actor, how much would the third film have to make?

According to industry norms for price increases, the minimum is 500 million.

What about the fourth one?

It needs to rise to 1000 million.

There was no further data available within the industry, but everyone knew that if prices continued to rise, the movie couldn't be made.

Even Warner Music couldn't afford the increase.

'Wait a minute!'

At this thought, Barry Mayer suddenly shuddered.

Last year, they had already tried to lower the price of the HP lead actors in order to control the increase in series salaries;
This year, in order to cope with shareholder pressure, they will have Isabella start a separate project.
In that case, if Isabella's new project comes to fruition, can the price still be negotiated down?

Wouldn't this price skyrocket?
But if they don't let Isabella start the project...

If the shareholders found out, they'd probably curse him to death.

Oh wait—

I'm sure I can verbally abuse him to death.

"M-FxxK!!! Who the hell came up with this idea???"

Barry Mayer suddenly realized that his left and right hemispheres were fighting each other!
To be honest, at that moment, many people didn't understand what he meant, so they didn't know how to respond.

But Barry Mayer knew that he could only escape the cesspool by shifting the blame.

So he twisted his neck and pointed the finger at the young man Nathan who had caused the trouble.

“Nathan! Since you are very familiar with the situation in Britain, I will send you to talk to Chris about the new project now!”

"I only have two requests!"

"First, secure Chris and Isabella's new project! Isabella must be the lead actress, and Chris should ideally be the director! The entire project should ideally be handled by Chris alone! Okay?"

"Secondly, while securing the new project, you need to get Isabella signed to a contract for the next five HP movies! Her total salary... should be kept under $3000 million, which is about £2000 million!"

"I believe in your abilities! I'll promote you to vice president after your triumphant return! That's all! Meeting adjourned!"

"???"

Nathan was stunned by the sudden assignment!

The moment Barry Mayer stood up to encourage him, he instinctively raised his right hand, his index finger trembling as he pointed at himself.

"Me... me?"

"Ok!"

Barry Mayer nodded seriously.

Nathan's breath caught in his throat; he only felt—

The sky is falling!
　Notes: ① In reality, Michael Arndt, the screenwriter of *Sunshine*, was not credited. He sold the script outright, and during the initial production, he was fired by the production company. If the new screenwriter the company found hadn't found his writing so bad that he quit, and if subsequent screenwriters hadn't refused to take the project, he wouldn't have been credited for *Sunshine*. Of course, without him, *Sunshine* might have been made differently. ② At the time of 01 mentioned in the text, Warner Bros. had four factions. One was the old Warner Bros., the Warner Bros. before the merger of Time Warner and Time Warner, controlled by the Ross family, who operated the largest funeral home in the US in the 70s. The second faction was Time Warner, which was actually eliminated by Ross in 90, but returned in 94 after Ross's death. The third faction was Ted Turner. The fourth faction was AOL, which had merged with Time Warner at the time. ③ Robert Shea was the founder of New Line Cinema. His continued presence with New Line was solely due to Ted Turner's trust in him; he wasn't aligned with Warner Bros. In fact, before Warner Bros. officially acquired New Line, they didn't handle the marketing and distribution of New Line's films. ④ Steve Roth, the Jewish man who transformed Warner Bros. from a film studio into a conglomerate, had an extremely close relationship with Spielberg. Before the release of *Schindler's List*, Roth passed away, and Spielberg even said that the film was dedicated to the late Steve Roth.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)