Huayu: Starting from joining the mainstream entertainment industry in 96

Chapter 494, Section 492: Zootopia

In October, the Los Angeles sunlight streamed through the blinds of the conference room in the Disney Animation Studios building, cutting out stripes of light and dark on the floor.

Sitting opposite Wang Sheng were Thomas Schumacher, president of the animation studio, a key executive personally appointed by Michael Eisner, chief creative officer of Disney Animation Studios, as well as several senior producers and development directors.

Robert Geller and Sarah Miller, producers who successfully collaborated with Wang Sheng, are also among them, serving as bridges of communication.

The success of "The Pursuit of Happyness" led Disney to elevate Wang Sheng's reputation from "a visionary collaborator" to "a strategic partner with whom we must forge a deep partnership."

Especially given the Disney Group's relentless efforts to bring Disneyland to Shanghai, deepening cooperation with Wang Sheng, a leader with immense influence and a mature business model in China's cultural and entertainment market, has strategic significance that transcends a single film project.

“Mr. Wang, the success of ‘The Pursuit of Happyness’ is evident to all, proving the enormous potential of our collaborative model.” Thomas Schumacher got straight to the point, his tone warm. “Mr. Eisner and I both believe it’s time to expand our collaboration to a wider scope. We look forward to hearing your thoughts on new projects.”

Wang Sheng nodded slightly, and without much small talk, went straight to the point: "Thomas, thank you for Disney's trust. I have always believed that animated films are one of the best vehicles for transcending cultural and age boundaries and conveying universal emotions and values. I have a preliminary creative idea that I hope to develop together with Disney."

He gestured to his assistant to distribute a simple concept document to the attendees.

The document cover has only a simple English title: "Zootopia".

That is, Zootopia.

After several years of development, under Wang Sheng's arrangement, Sheng Ying's special effects subsidiary (animation production company) not only produced "Rainbow Cat and Blue Rabbit 3000 Questions", but also stockpiled a batch of comics that hijacked future classic animation characters, such as "Panda Po" and "Zootopia".

Many of the concepts for his works appeared very early, so Wang Sheng had to register various copyrights in China in advance.

For example, the script copyright for the movie "Saw," which was copied before, was registered several years ago.

Let's get back to Zootopia.

"This is a story that takes place in a modern animal city." Wang Sheng's voice was steady, with an undeniable persuasiveness. "In this city, all kinds of animals—from huge elephants to tiny hamsters—have evolved and coexist harmoniously, possessing a highly developed civilization and social structure."

The story revolves around Judy Hopps, an optimistic rabbit from a rural rabbit burrow who dreams of becoming the first rabbit police officer in history.

He paused, observed the reactions of the crowd, and saw curiosity and focus.

"Judy encountered countless prejudices and difficulties on her way to realizing her dreams because she was weak and a herbivore."

At the police station, she was assigned as a traffic officer and was not given much attention. To prove herself, she took on a seemingly simple case of a missing animal.

During the investigation, she was forced to work with Nick Wilde, a cunning red fox who made a living by swindling and cheating.

This unlikely duo, in their pursuit of the truth, gradually uncover a massive conspiracy hidden beneath the bustling city of 'Zootopia,' a conspiracy that seeks to tear apart the fragile peace between different species.

Wang Sheng briefly outlined the protagonist's growth arc, as well as Nick the fox's transformation from a cynical person to rediscovering his original intentions.

He particularly emphasized the core of the story: "This is not just an adventure crime-solving story. It explores prejudice, stereotypes, dreams and perseverance, and how to break down labels and embrace diversity."

Judy represents the belief that 'anyone can be whoever they want to be,' while Nick shows how an individual can lose themselves and then find themselves again under the oppression of prejudice.

These themes resonate strongly with young audiences and even adults worldwide, holding significant contemporary relevance and evoking strong emotional connections.

The conference room was silent, with only the sound of shuffling papers.

Thomas Schumacher and several development managers' eyes lit up.

The potential of this concept is enormous—an animal city with a complete worldview, a pair of mismatched protagonists with amazing chemistry, a captivating suspense plot, and profound and universal core themes.

This perfectly aligns with Disney's consistent pursuit of "entertainment and depth."

"Wang, this concept is brilliant!" Schumacher exclaimed excitedly. "The world of 'Animal Utopia' is full of imagination and visual expression, the characters of Judy and Nick are extremely charming, and the theme of the story is very touching. This has the potential to become a landmark animated work!" Other Disney executives nodded in agreement.

They could foresee the project's enormous potential in terms of box office revenue, merchandise, and theme parks.

However, Wang Sheng's next words made the atmosphere in the meeting room a little more tense.

“I’m glad you all approve of this idea.” Wang Sheng changed the subject, his tone still calm but with an undeniable firmness, “But I have an additional condition regarding the cooperation model that must be implemented.”

Everyone's eyes were on him.

"For the production team of Zootopia, I need Disney to promise that at least half of the core animators, modelers, rigging artists, lighting and rendering technicians and other key technical positions will be staffed by technical personnel from Shengying."

A brief silence fell over the meeting room after these words were spoken.

Disney's animation production system is closed and proud, always adhering to "Disney quality" as the highest standard, and rarely allowing external teams, especially teams from China whose animation industry is still in its early stages of development, to be so deeply involved in the core production.

Robert Geller tried to ease the tension: "Wang, we understand your desire to cultivate a local team, but animation production, especially to the level of Disney, requires extremely rigorous professional training and experience..."

Wang Sheng raised his hand to interrupt him, explaining in a calm tone, "The technical staff of Shengying that I mentioned are not ordinary people. They mainly come from 'Shengying Visual Effects Co., Ltd.' This company was established through cooperation between Shengying Media and Beijing Film Academy, the highest film academy in China. It is a visual effects and animation production company that integrates production, education, and research."

He further explained that this part is based on the logical deduction of real history: "Beijing Film Academy, as the highest institution of film education in China, has the best animation teaching resources and students in China.

Our company, Shengying Special Effects, has established a deep partnership with the Animation Department of Beijing Film Academy, employing a "theoretical teaching + project practice" model. This partnership has attracted a large number of outstanding graduates and young teachers from the Animation Department, Fine Arts Department, Photography Department, and other related departments of Beijing Film Academy.

“These technicians,” Wang Sheng continued, “possess solid artistic skills and software operation abilities; what they lack is the opportunity and experience to participate in top-tier international large-scale projects.”

Having them join the Zootopia team and work under the guidance of experienced Disney mentors is itself an extremely valuable learning and development process.

For Disney, this is not a burden, but rather a way to acquire a high-potential and passionate production support team at a lower cost, while also gaining a deeper understanding of the aesthetic preferences of the future Chinese market.

He threw out his final trump card: "More importantly, Thomas, gentlemen, please consider this from a broader strategic perspective."

The plan to bring Disneyland to Shanghai is progressing steadily. In the future, you will need a large number of local talents who are familiar with both Chinese and American cultures and have international project experience to operate and maintain the animation-related facilities in the park and develop derivative content that suits the Chinese market.

This technological collaboration with Shengying presents an excellent opportunity to build talent reserves and deepen localized cooperation for the future.

Wang Sheng's gaze swept over the crowd, finally settling on Thomas Schumacher: "This is an investment focused on the future. It's not just an investment in a film, but also an investment in the Chinese market and our long-term, stable partnership. I believe that a Zootopia that blends Disney's exceptional skills with an Eastern perspective will be even more perfect."

The meeting room fell silent again, but this time it was a silence of contemplation.

Thomas Schumacher exchanged views in hushed tones with several executives around him.

They had to admit that Wang Sheng's logic was powerful.

The creativity itself is extremely valuable, and although the conditions proposed by Wang Sheng challenged Disney's tradition, the strategic considerations behind them—to bind Wang Sheng, to lay out the Chinese animation market, and to build up talent reserves for Disney theme park projects—are indeed very attractive.

Especially given that the group's senior management attaches great importance to the Shanghai Disney project.

A few minutes later, Schumacher looked up, a resolute expression on his face: "Wang, you've convinced me, and you've convinced us. Disney agrees to your terms. We will co-develop the Zootopia project, with Disney Animation Studios contributing core creative talent, directors, production managers, and senior animators as a mentor team."

At the same time, we promise to allocate no less than 50% of the key technical positions within the core production team to the technical staff of 'Shengying Visual Effects,' providing on-the-job training and guidance from our experts to jointly complete this masterpiece.

He stood up and extended his hand to Wang Sheng: "This is not just a collaboration on a film, but the beginning of a deep integration between Disney and Shengying, and even with the future of the Chinese animation market."

Wang Sheng also stood up, firmly grasped Schumacher's hand, and revealed a faint, confident smile: "It's a pleasure working with you, Thomas. I believe that Zootopia will open a brand new chapter."

(End of this chapter)