The diva and I cross each other

Chapter 471 Pie in the sky

When it comes to the movie universe, many people's first reaction is the Marvel Cinematic Universe from Luo Ming's previous life.

To be fair, Marvel is indeed awesome. What is the biggest fear when making a movie? Without a doubt, it is the fear of losing money. In the film industry, it is a taboo to have a good critical acclaim but not a good box office.

Before the fourth phase of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there were very few movies that lost money. If we focus on Avengers 1 to 4, then there was no such thing as a loss for the Marvel movies in this period; it was just a matter of how much profit they made.

This may seem like a common thing to say, but it is actually very difficult to do.

Not to mention that the output of Marvel movies is actually not low, with two or three movies released every year. It is no exaggeration to say that it is a miracle.

In Luo Ming's view, the so-called movie universe is actually a special imaginary world, which is no different from the world created by novelists.

Abroad, there is the Middle-earth in "The Lord of the Rings", the magical world in "Harry Potter", and the special land in "Game of Thrones".

There are even more worlds constructed in domestic online novels, and you will find a lot of them if you just flip through them.

But compared to online novels, domestic mythology is obviously more suitable to be used as the main carrier of the film universe.

To put it bluntly, the movie universe is a long-term money-making plan.

To build a good movie universe and make a lot of money, the first thing is to coordinate business and art as a whole, set up a program for the movie universe that takes into account both business and art, and don't let a certain director or actor cross the line.

Second, we must pay attention to the individuality of each film, and the most taboo is uniformity.

The spread of Chinese mythology is undoubtedly beyond doubt. Not to mention the Chinese people, as long as people have been influenced by Chinese culture, there should be no one who doesn't know Journey to the West and Sun Wukong.

Using mythological stories directly can save the trouble of world construction.

Of course, compared to the imagination of literary creation and the myths passed down by word of mouth, film art has more detailed requirements for the construction of the world view. Many things cannot be used directly and require some adaptation, but this is also more cost-effective and labor-saving than recreating a universe.

At the same time, many of China's myths and legends can be connected by the two nodes of "Investiture of the Gods" and "Journey to the West". These two nodes are roughly equivalent to the Infinity Stones in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

According to Luo Ming's idea, "The Return of the Great Sage" is the beginning of the mythological universe. Later, well-known mythological characters such as Nezha, Yang Jian, and Jiang Ziya can be introduced through animated films, and they can be integrated into the movie universe step by step.

Finally, all the characters are connected together through the great event of Conferred Gods.

Of course, Sun Wukong will definitely not participate in the Conferred God Ceremony.

After the milestone of Fengshen, other stories were used to introduce existing anime characters to the Journey to the West, gradually broadening the scope of mythological films.

This means that Zhuoguang Entertainment has a long-term meal ticket.

"Knock knock~" The knock on the door interrupted Luo Ming's thoughts.

"Come in."

The person who came was Su Qing. After she entered Luo Ming's office, she said straight to the point: "Mr. Luo, I have something to discuss with you."

"What's going on?" Luo Ming asked.

"Boss Luo, I have a friend."

"Wait a minute! This friend you're talking about isn't you yourself, is he?"

"No! He's a real friend. He was my senior in my previous company. He taught me for a while and even drew the poster for our film 'The Return of the Great Sage'!"

When Luo Ming heard what Su Qing said, he knew who it was, Wang Zhaohui!
"Is that so? Go on."

Su Qing nodded and said, "Boss Luo, my senior is called Wang Zhaohui and he is also an animator. He is currently preparing his own animated film. I feel his animated film is quite suitable for the mythological universe that our company is going to develop in the future."

"Oh? What's the theme of his movie?" Luo Ming asked curiously.

"Erlang God Yang Jian."

"Erlang Shen? He is indeed suitable for the role. How about his script?" Luo Ming asked with interest.

"Boss Luo, his script mainly revolves around Erlang Shen splitting the mountain to save his mother. The main dramatic conflict is the clash between Erlang Shen, a half-human, half-god, and the traditional gods of heaven, which can be extended to the clash of new and old orders and ideas."

"This is a good topic. Do you want the company to invest in this movie?" Luo Ming asked.

“Well, Mr. Luo, Erlang Shen Yang Jian is a very important figure in mythology and legends. He has a lot of roles in The Investiture of the Gods. Our company will definitely make an animation about him.

This senior of mine is somewhat famous in the animation industry and is outstanding in all aspects. I have also read his script, which is more in line with our company's subsequent film universe plan.

It just so happens that he is also looking for investment, Mr. Luo, I can go over and talk to him and bring him over to our side."

Luo Ming pondered for a moment and nodded, "Then go and talk to him! If we can come to an agreement, our company will invest in his film and directly incorporate it into our mythology universe."

"Thank you Mr. Luo."

"Don't be too quick to thank him. If he joins our company, we must carefully review the script and there must be no problems in this regard."

"Mr. Luo, don't worry, I know what to do." Luo Ming nodded and said nothing more.

That afternoon, Su Qing took people to Wang Zhaohui's house.

Wang Zhaohui's home is not in Shanghai, but in Hangzhou, not too far from Zhuoguang Technology, only a 2-hour drive.

Wang Zhaohui seemed a little surprised when he saw Su Qing.

"What? Brother Wang, you don't welcome me?"

"How could that be! I didn't expect you to come here suddenly. Come in!" Wang Zhaohui moved aside and welcomed Su Qing and the two people who came with her in.

"Is my sister-in-law not here?" Su Qing asked after looking around after entering the room.

Wang Zhaohui smiled bitterly and said, "She and her child went back to her parents' home."

"in argument?"

"That's it!"

"Aren't you and your sister-in-law on good terms? How could this happen?"

"I wanted to mortgage my house to make animation, but your sister-in-law got angry and had a fight with me before going back to her parents' home."

Su Qing was speechless when she heard this. Isn’t this the same story as her previous boss?

In order to keep the company going, he even mortgaged his garage, but in the end, it still failed miserably. The company went bankrupt and the animation was never produced.
"Brother Wang, have you raised enough money for your animated film?" Su Qing asked tentatively.

"I got a 500 million yuan investment, and after I mortgaged my house, I had about 1000 million yuan in hand, so I could start right away.

According to the current market conditions, a rough animated film would cost 5 to 6 per minute. I controlled the cost of some unimportant images to 5 per minute, and spent more on battles and big scenes.

I've calculated that it will cost about 1500 million. With my ability, the final product shouldn't be too bad. I don't need much money right now, so I can raise money while I'm working on it."

After hearing what Wang Zhaohui said, Su Qing was too lazy to beat around the bush. She got straight to the point and said, "Brother Wang, even if you mortgage the house, you still have a gap of 500 million. 500 million is not a small amount. It is very likely that you will run out of money halfway through. Instead of that, why not give it a try and join our company!"

"to join you guys?"

"Yes, Brother Wang, I've read your script. It fits in with our company's next phase of animation film planning."

"Does Zhuoguang Entertainment plan to invest heavily in animated films in the future?" Wang Zhaohui asked tentatively.

“Yes, we are not only investing in animated films, we also plan to use the Conferred Gods as a node to produce multiple films, and finally connect them with the Conferred Gods event.

Brother Wang, the "Legend of Erlang Shen" you are going to make coincides with our company's subsequent plans. I have talked to Mr. Luo about it, and he is also willing to let you join. "

Wang Zhaohui never thought that such a good thing as pie in the sky would happen to him. He used to lament that Su Qing had the support of Zhuoguang Technology and could get 1 million yuan to make an animation. Now he also has such an opportunity.

But Wang Zhaohui was not overwhelmed by the news. He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down, then asked: "There is no free lunch in the world. What do I need to pay?"

"It's very simple. First, you have to modify the script according to our requirements so that it can be integrated into our mythological universe."

"It's fine if it's just integrated into the mythology universe, but the core plot conflict and overall purpose of the script cannot be changed."

"That's no problem. Brother Wang, you chose a very good plot conflict and overall concept."

"Are there any other conditions?" Wang Zhaohui continued to ask.

“Secondly, the filming company will provide the funds, so you don’t need to worry about the funds. But as a film director, you can only get the dividends from those film directors on the market who don’t invest but only direct the shooting and editing of the film. This ratio is generally between 2% and 5% of the box office dividends. I can decide to give you 3%.

Of course, Wang Ge, you can also choose not to receive any box office dividends, and instead take the 500 million yuan in one lump sum."

Wang Zhaohui does not have much obsession with money. He is a pure animator. What Wang Zhaohui wants from beginning to end is to make this animated film. Whether it makes money or not is not that important. At the same time, he has confidence in himself and believes that the box office of his work will not be low.

So Wang Zhaohui said firmly: "I choose the first one."

"Okay, then Brother Wang, here comes the last condition. After you join our company and the film Legend of Erlang Shen is finished, all the ownership of the animation characters and the subsequent IP development will belong to our company.

Of course, since you are the creator of the script, the company will also give you a share of the profits. The specific proportion will be discussed between you and the company's legal department."

"That's no problem either."

"Then I wish us a pleasant cooperation!" Su Qing said as she stretched out her hand.

"Happy cooperation!" Wang Zhaohui also extended his hand to Su Qing and shook hands with her.

After the two agreed to report to Zhuoguang Entertainment next Monday, Su Qing took everyone away.

Wang Zhaohui immediately took out his cell phone and contacted his wife: "Wife, I don't want to mortgage the house anymore."

(End of this chapter)