The King of Directors 2000

The breeze blows, and the dry leaves break away from the branches and fall down with the summer sunshine.

There were obviously many cars on the street, but it was very quiet.

A BMW headed to Dongcheng District. Inside the car were Warner Pictures executive Toby Emmerich and Warner's mainland general manager Zhao Fang.

Emmerich is very formal, wearing a white shirt, black trousers, black leather shoes, and his hair all combed back, giving him the appearance of an elite.

Zhao Fang is relatively more natural. She wears a blue short-sleeved shirt, a pair of black casual pants, and a pair of canvas shoes. She doesn't look like a professional elite at all, but more like an artistic young woman.

She is the general manager of Warner in the Mainland. Her usual job is to handle the promotion and release of Warner movies in the Mainland and compile various data.

If there is a good book, they will buy it and send it to Warner Bros. headquarters.

You probably know where your upper limit is. Most of Warner's mainland employees are Buddhist-like, and Zhao Fang is like this.

At this time, the leader from the head office looked slightly nervous.

Zhao Fang smiled secretly in his heart, "Toby, what do you need me to do this time?"

"When we arrive at Li's house, if there is an awkward moment in the communication between Li and I, you need to come out and ease the atmosphere."

"Okay, I understand, it's just a joke."

Emmerich glanced at Zhao Fang. He was slightly dissatisfied, but he didn't point it out.

"Zhao, tell me about Li's current situation."

Zhao Fang nodded and talked about the various treatments Lee Sung-yao received in the mainland after winning the Best Director at Cannes, as well as the achievements that "La La Land" has made in the mainland and Hong Kong Island after the release of "La La Land".

At present, the box office of "La La Land" has been confirmed, which will be around 400 million. It will definitely be the highest-grossing musical in the mainland.

In addition, the box office of this movie surpassed "The Return" released last month.

Many people believe that this means that Lee Sheng-yao has surpassed Lao Mouzi in all aspects and become the number one director in the mainland.

All in all, Lee Sheng Yew now has everything he wants, and his status in the mainland is even more impressive than Spielberg in the beautiful country.

After all, Spielberg has no theater chain or video website, and his industry is not comparable to that of Lee Seung-yew.

Emmerich heard what Zhao Fang said and couldn't help but said: "Li's business talent is amazing. He should have a net worth of tens of billions of dollars now. No one in Hollywood is richer than him."

Zhao Fang nodded, "Definitely not. He still has several subsidiaries that can go public at any time to make money. He will be even richer in the future."

Emmerich was envious in his heart, but then he became a little worried. With so much money, does Lee Seung-yao still have the interest to film in a beautiful country?

"What do you think is Li's biggest motivation for making movies now?"

Zhao Fang thought for a while and said, "I'm interested."

She paused for a moment and said with fascination: "He is famous, rich and has property, so he can rest easy. He is alive now just to do what he is interested in."

"Then what do you think he is interested in now?"

Zhao Fang thought for a while, "Or some movies he has never made before, like "La La Land" which is a musical. Maybe he will make an animated film or a mystery film next time."

Emmerich heard this and nodded in approval.

Soon after, the car arrived outside Li Shengyao's compound in Dongcheng District. Emmerich got out of the car, holding a shoulder bag in his right hand and a small bag in his left hand.

There are some information in the shoulder bag, and in the small bag are Cuban cigars that he brought from the beautiful country, which are small gifts for Lee Sheng Yew.

Zhao Fang was also carrying a bag. It was a gift she brought to Li Shengyao. It was authentic Korean ginseng brought from the Northeast.

After knocking on the door, Emmerich saw Li Shengyao.

East Asians are more resistant to aging. Li Shengyao exercises all year round and looks the same as before.

Emmerich hugged Lee Sheng-yao gently, and then said: "Lee, you still look the same as you did a few years ago. God really loves you. You are like a Hollywood star. You can't see the traces of time at all."

Zhao Fang then said something nice, "Director Li, Toby is right, it's a pity that you are not a star."

"We are friends, no need to flatter."

Li Shengyao then led the two people into the living room. He had already prepared some fruits and made a pot of tea. He poured tea for Emmerich himself, "Toby, try the Chinese coffee."

The three people sat down separately and exchanged pleasantries for a while.

Emmerich then asked tentatively: "Lee, have you decided on the subject of your next movie?"

Without any hesitation, Li Shengyao shook his head and said: "I haven't thought of any interesting stories yet. Of course I'm not in a hurry. I plan to take a break for two or three years and spend this time at home with my children."

Emmerich was overjoyed when he heard this.

It's fine if Lee Sheng Yew doesn't have any plans for a new film. He understands Lee Sheng Yew's style. If he already has a plan, it's absolutely impossible to change it. If he wants to persuade him then, he'll have to wait until next year.

At that time, the president of Warner had already decided the winner, and he even came up with a hammer.

"Li, you are so good. If you don't make movies, it will be the audience's loss."

Li Shengyao smiled and said, "Toby, I owe a lot to my family, and I really haven't found a subject that interests me."

Emmerich picked up the teacup and took a sip of the tea. He felt it was sweet and astringent. He didn't understand why Chinese people liked to drink this.

Of course, mature people will allow different existences.

"Li, do you remember the phone calls I made to you before? Many filmmakers, including Spielberg, have belittled you. They ridiculed that you can only win awards in the three major European awards, and think that you dare not compete in Hollywood. ?

Faced with this perception, wouldn't you want to go to Hollywood and prove yourself?

You are so good, you are completely capable, you can make Spielberg's face shameless, you can make this hypocritical old man a laughing stock. "

When Li Shengyao heard Emmerich's words, he was even more sure that Emmerich came here to persuade him to go to Hollywood to make movies.

He paused for a moment, then pretended to be free and easy and said: "I have long looked past those things in the past. Toby, as long as you let go of your obsession, you will find that those negative comments, emotions, and spirits are all gone. It’s not worth expending any more energy on your part.”

Emmerich nodded, "Lee, you are now beyond ordinary low-level taste. I think your state of mind is higher, and your new movie will definitely be more exciting.

With your outstanding ability, your stage should be the whole world. You should go to the beautiful country to prove your energy to the world. "

Zhao Fang heard Emmerich's words and finally understood Emmerich's purpose.

She continued: "Director Li, in recent years you have been making award-winning films, and you have not made purely commercial films. Although the box office is good, it is not comparable to some blockbuster films.

Many people feel that you are currently unable to capture the audience's thoughts and arouse large-scale audience resonance.

I think you can try Hollywood and make a lot of money, which will silence all the doubters. "

When Li Shengyao heard this, he pretended to be thinking. Emmerich was even more excited when he saw that Li Shengyao seemed to be moved, "Li, I came here this time just to invite you to Hollywood.

Warner has massive resources and we can fully cooperate with you.

I believe in your ability, not only can you get high box office, but your movie can also win an Oscar.

Li, you have already won awards from three major European film festivals, and you have created a record that is unique to you.

But don’t you want to write your legend at the Oscars? "

Zhao Fang then said: "Director Li, I think the Oscar is within your grasp. You should give it a try."

Li Shengyao did not immediately nod in agreement. He waved his hand and said, "I have made movies in the beautiful country before. I don't like that environment very much. There are too many things outside the studio."

"Lee, I can guarantee that if you are willing to cooperate with Warner, nothing off-site will bother you this time."

Li Shengyao heard Emmerich's words, picked up the tea cup and took a sip of tea, "Toby, if I cooperate with Warner, what will be my treatment?"

"Twenty million U.S. dollars in salary and the final editing rights of the film. If you want to invest and earn dividends, I can give you 20% of the quota."

Lee Sheung Yew doesn't want Warner's dividends. Hollywood does the accounting, and even though it has a box office of hundreds of millions, it says it has not made any money.

He Yaoyaotou said, "I don't need to invest in dividends."

After he finished speaking, he paused slightly and then continued: "But most of the copyrights for the movies I made in the past belong to me. What about this time?"

Emmerich did not expect that Li Shengyao would still insist on the copyright. He would not dare to agree to such conditions, and it would need to be considered by the board of directors of Warner Pictures.

"Lee, regarding this, I need to contact other senior executives of Warner Pictures to discuss this.

But I can say that our conditions are definitely the best among the six in Hollywood. "

Li Shengyao nodded and said: "If we cooperate, I will be responsible for producing the script, which will definitely be a brand new script."

Emmerich then left with Zhao Fang.

Both parties have offered conditions, and it depends on whether Warner will grant the copyright.

……

Two days later, Li Shengyao met Emmerich and Zhao Fang again in the courtyard of his home. This time Emmerich was full of joy and said, "Li, we can give you a certain percentage of the copyright, but it will definitely be a small part."

Li Shengyao heard this and said, "I understand. How much is it specifically?"

"It depends on the situation, six to four, or seven to three. If you have a brand new story and a brand new character, then your ratio will be higher. If not, the ratio will be lower."

Li Shengyao nodded, "Do you have any projects suitable for me now?"

"In my opinion, all projects are very suitable for you. I believe in your ability. You can make any movie vivid and interesting. It is entirely up to you. As long as you are willing, any movie will be more outstanding and become a high-quality Movie."

Hearing this, Li Shengyao shook his head and said, "Toby, let me be practical."

After hearing this, Toby Emmerich thought for a while and said: "Warner's movies are now mainly divided into five categories. One is science fiction movies, which is our main focus now, and "Edge of Tomorrow" is our project.

The second is comedy movies. Warner produces some comedy movies every year. Such movies have low cost, high box office and good profits.

The third is remakes of classic movies. We have a lot of movie copyrights and sometimes we remake some classic movies.

The fourth is the story of the DC Universe. There are many superheroes in the DC Universe. We are considering learning from Marvel and making movies like The Avengers.

The fifth is the scripts created by the directors themselves. Li, I believe in your ability. You will definitely be able to write excellent new stories. "

After hearing this, Li Shengyao thought for a while and then said slowly: "How many superheroes does Warner have?"

Emmerich thought for a while, "I don't have statistics. There are many, including Wonder Woman, Superman, and Batman. These people are all characters in the DC universe."

Hearing this, Li Shengyao nodded and analyzed slowly: "I sometimes watch Marvel Universe movies, and I feel that Marvel's superheroes are more down-to-earth than DC superheroes. DC's superheroes are too pretentious. unnatural."

Marvel's superhero movies often have some laughs to relieve tension.

There are almost no such settings in superhero movies in the DC universe.

Everyone knows this, and they also know that Warner Pictures is learning. They are trying the Marvel method to add laughter to the movie and make the superheroes more grounded.

Emmerich knew about Warner's superhero problems and didn't care. He was very excited, "Lee, do you want to make a superhero movie?"

Warner produces superhero movies and intends to learn from Marvel's methods.

Emmerich knows Lee Sheng-yew's style. If Lee Sheng-yew is allowed to make a superhero movie, there may be another path that is different from the path of Marvel's superheroes.

Hearing this, Li Shengyao said, "I have this idea, but I'm not sure. Toby, give me a few days and I'll seriously consider it."

……

Three days later, Li Shengyao met Emmerich again, and he expressed his thoughts to Emmerich for the first time.

"Man, I've been watching a lot of DC Universe superhero movies these days. I really like the Joker and I want to make a movie about the Joker.

Of course it’s a completely new story and I will rewrite the script.

Are you willing to cooperate with me? "

Emmerich was stunned when he heard this, "Joker Lee, there are many interesting superheroes in the DC universe. You can choose other more interesting characters."

"Man, I think clowns are very interesting, and I chose clowns. The production cost will not be too high. Even if it fails, we don't have to bear too high losses."

Emmerich understood what Li Shengyao meant, "Li, I need to discuss it with other people."

"Of course, I'm waiting for news from you."

……

Three days later, Li Shengyao met Emmerich again. This time, he was full of joy and said, "Li, Warner Pictures has approved your plan.

We can work together, you write the script, you direct the movie, you're paid $20 million, you have the final editing rights, and you own 30% of the film rights.

Of course, we need to read the script before signing the contract. As long as the story is good, we can sign the contract. "

Li Shengyao was happy in his heart, but on the surface he was very calm. He was silent for a moment and then said: "Okay, give me a month and I will write the script."

(End of this chapter)