The literary era since 1979

In the corridor leading to the theater, there were bursts of footsteps.

Fangyan picked out a few novels that he thought would suit the tastes of European and American readers, such as Malice and Artificial Intelligence…

However, Jason Epstein obviously did not show the same interest as he did in "The Ring", which was bland and uneventful.

"Fang, maybe you don't understand the trends in the European and American markets. The share of mystery novels has been shrinking."

"American readers would rather watch suspenseful crime dramas than read detective novels. They are tired of the 'hard-boiled' and 'tough-guy' genres, and they don't care about the criminal motives and social background behind the case. They only care about how clever the murder method is."

"..."

Listening to Jason Epstein’s market analysis, Fangyan was not surprised.

Not to mention Europe and the United States, the same is true in Japan. Social detective novels are becoming less and less popular. Instead, the "new orthodox school" that designs murder methods with exquisite perfection and sets up mysteries in a magnificent manner is more to the taste of mystery fans.

"The Case Files of Young Kindaichi" and "Detective Conan" were born in such a background.

"So, what about the other book, Artificial Intelligence?"

Bai Ruoxue saw that Teacher Fang didn't say a word, so she asked the question on his behalf.

"Well, a science fiction version of Pinocchio, this kind of fairy tale will at least have a much wider audience than "Malice"."

Jason Epstein changed the subject, "But compared to The Ring, it seems a little simpler and less imaginative."

"If you had read the novel, you would never have such an idea!"

Bai Ruoxue blurted out that the issue of "Science Fiction World" that published "Artificial Intelligence" sold more than 80 copies nationwide.

"The cultural differences and sci-fi aesthetics of different countries may mean that what sells well in China may not be popular in Europe and the United States."

Jason Epstein smiled and said, "Of course, what you said makes sense, so I am willing to read "Artificial Intelligence" and give you my fair and professional advice after reading it. As for whether it can be published..."

"Then we'll talk about it later."

Fangyan was not annoyed and walked into the theater calmly.

As far as the eye can see, there are rows of elderly audiences sitting in the front row. They are old but in high spirits. They are all wearing American military uniforms from World War II, with various medals on their chests. Some even wear epaulettes. It is obvious that they are veterans of World War II who were specially invited by the organizers to watch the movie.

Like "Changjin Lake" and "Operation Red Sea", how can this kind of American mainstream military movie be without veterans?
At that time, if we use the slogan "Old soldiers never die, they just become worthless", wouldn't the movie have an extra selling point?
When it comes to competing for an Oscar, isn't political correctness just one more thing?

…………

They had just climbed the stairs and taken a few steps when Fang Yan and his group were stopped by Steven Spielberg.

With his introduction, I got to know the main creative team one by one. The cast was completely different from the previous life's "Saving Private Ryan".

Captain John Miller, who plays the leader of the eight-man squad, is not "Forrest Gump" Tom Hanks, but Nicholas Zhao Si, no, Cage.

The current "energetic young man" is not the "king of bad movies" who takes any bad movie, but the nephew of Francis Coppola, who made "The Godfather" series, and a well-known "connected person" in Hollywood with good acting skills and strength.

And Ryan's actor is not Matt Damon, "the most unsalvable person in Hollywood", but the "young and handsome" Tom Cruise.

"This is my father, Arnold. He plays a general in the movie. It's a great honor to be a general!"

Steven Spielberg supports his father.

Fangyan shook hands with Arnold Spielberg, and during the conversation he learned that the veterans sitting in the front row were members of the Shaw Foundation invited by Arnold Spielberg.

"This movie is my gift to him and his friends!"

Steven Spielberg said that without his father's recommendation, he might not have made up his mind to make "Saving Private Ryan".

Fangyan was very surprised and thanked Arnold Spielberg, his loyal fan, repeatedly.

"You're welcome. You wrote it well. It was so well written."

Arnold Spielberg said: "Among the veterans of our Shaw Foundation, there are many stories as exciting as "Saving Private Ryan", including those about the 101st Airborne Division. If you are willing, you can come to our foundation as a guest and listen to everyone's stories."

Fang Yan smiled and said, "I'll definitely give you a chance if you have one!"

"If you write it, I'll make it," said Steven Spielberg.

Fang Yan said, "Is it a deal?"

"It's a deal!" Steven Spielberg said, "But I don't want to make movies anymore. I want to make a war TV series."

Suddenly, a teasing laugh came from behind, "Wow! Steven, you are not kidding, are you?"

Fangyan looked back and saw that next to the white-haired and long-bearded Lucas stood the fat and pot-bellied Francis Coppola, and the short, thick-browed and big-eyed Martin Scorsese. These men were the leader of the Italian gang in Hollywood and the epitome of gangster films.

The Wolf of Wall Street, Taxi Driver, Goodfellas, Shutter Island…

These four people standing together are known as the "New Hollywood Four" and are also the group of directors who will have the most say in Hollywood in the future.

So I smiled and greeted them politely, "Nice to meet you."

"So are we!"

What Lucas was holding in his hands was not "Saving Private Ryan", but "Guns, Viruses, and Steel".

Martin Scorsese said: "Your book is so popular that it is mentioned at every party I attend!"

"It is definitely worth a look." Francis Coppola said seriously, "Many of the questions raised here are very profound, such as 'How did humans become so different from other animals in such a short period of time', 'Why did human society develop so differently in different continents over the past 10,000 years', 'Why do some societies collapse on their own, while others can continue to thrive for hundreds or even thousands of years'..."

Steven Spielberg nodded repeatedly, "Kubrick talked to me on the phone all night just for this book."

"That's really Stanley's character."

Lucas and others smiled at each other, then looked for Kubrick in the crowd, but found nothing.

Steven Spielberg shook his head and said, "He's not here."

Fangyan is not without regrets. Kubrick is not only a famous director who made "The Shining" and "2001: A Space Odyssey", but also according to America's own "conspiracy theory", the Apollo moon landing program asked him to be the chief director and forged the moon landing video materials.

Martin Scorsese was puzzled, "Stanley didn't come?!"

"Something went wrong," Steven Spielberg told the truth.

Kubrick originally saw a short story called "A Super Toy to Play With All Summer Long" and planned to adapt it into a movie script. He even specially invited himself to be the producer. However, the script was revised again and again, and the repeated revisions were not to Kubrick's liking.

The only option was to fire the screenwriter, and now they are searching all over Hollywood for a new screenwriter to take over.

"What does Stanley want to change?" Lucas was curious.

"He wanted to change the story to the adventures of a mechanical teddy bear."

Steven Spielberg said: "I want to make a big science fiction movie, like 2001: A Space Odyssey."

Bai Ruoxue exclaimed softly and turned to look at Fang Yan, "Teacher Fang, I think your book "Artificial Intelligence" seems to be quite suitable..."

Francis Coppola didn't understand Chinese, "What are you talking about?"

The dialect did not say "General Manager, your opinion is brilliant", but instead gave a concise account of the plot of "Artificial Intelligence".

“A story about a sentient robot longing to become human?”

Lucas' eyes suddenly lit up. "Steven, I think Stanley might like this story. What do you think?"

“If the two stories are combined, it becomes the adventures of the artificial intelligence boy and the robot teddy bear.”

Steven Spielberg didn't argue.

Fang Dialect said: "It fits the story of Pinocchio that you are familiar with in the West."

Lucas said: "Yes, if you change the 'Buddha' you mentioned to 'Blue Fairy', it will be a wonderful science fiction fairy tale."

Steven Spielberg made up his mind, "Fang, has your book "Artificial Intelligence" been published?"

"For now, there is only a Chinese version. As for the English version..."

Fang Yan shrugged, glancing playfully at Jason Epstein.

He was seen fidgeting with anxiety written all over his face, especially when he heard that Steven Spielberg hoped Fangyan could write the English version of "Artificial Intelligence" as soon as possible and prepare to recommend it to his old friend, Kubrick, immediately. He really regretted it.

How stupid I am, really!

I only knew that "Saving Private Ryan" could be adapted into a movie, but I never expected that "Artificial Intelligence" could also be adapted!

Seeing that the situation could still be salvaged, he immediately tried to remedy the situation and followed Fangyan closely, with a guilty smile and a hint of flattery:
"Fang, I've thought about it carefully again. We at Random House have signed the novel Artificial Intelligence!"

"Really? But didn't you just say that Pinocchio-style science fiction fairy tales are too simple and lack imagination..."

"No, no, no, what I mean is that the story is simple but philosophical, and although the imagination is limited, the creativity is amazing. I think the majority of teenagers and children will like Artificial Intelligence just like they like ET the Alien!"

"That's not right. Didn't you say 'the cultural differences and different sci-fi aesthetics of different countries may mean that what sells well in China may not be popular in Europe and the United States?'" Fang Yan smiled and glanced at Bai Ruoxue, "Ruoxue, that's what Jason said just now, right?"

"That's right, Mr. Fang."

Bai Ruoxue smiled secretly and pursed her lips.

Jason Epstein coughed awkwardly, "I was inconsiderate and didn't understand the essence of Artificial Intelligence."

Fang Yan said, "I think we should wait until the novel is translated. It would be bad if we make a mistake."

When Jason Epstein thought about how optimistic Lucas, Steven Spielberg and other four Hollywood giants were about "Artificial Intelligence", and thought about "The Ring" on hand, he finally couldn't help but raise the stakes and asked him to sign an "exclusive author agreement" with Random House.

Fang Yan said: "Don't force it."

"Not at all forced!"

Jason Epstein answered seriously that as long as the dialect could be tied to the "pirate ship" of Random House, it would be worth any price!
Fangyan narrowed his eyes, and was confident at first but respectful later, which made people laugh when they thought about it.

…………

"Saving Private Ryan", as expected, has received rave reviews since its premiere.

The Hollywood Reporter called it, "The brutal war scenes and realistic visual impact will shock, terrify and shed tears. There is no doubt that this is one of the most realistic World War II movies ever. Spielberg has proved that he can handle war movies!"

The Los Angeles Times grasped the father-son relationship, "This is Spielberg's gift to his father!"

The TV stations under Universal Studios even sent reporters to interview veterans of World War II and promote American mainstream themes.

With the help of the media, the film opened in 2463 theaters across the United States, and the box office exceeded 2300 million US dollars in three days.

It's Steven Spielberg at his peak.

Thanks to the huge success of the movie in the July summer season, sales of the novel also soared. Both paperback and hardcover books were sold out or about to be sold out in bookstores and department stores across the United States. Calls to Random House urging for delivery came one after another.

So much so that whenever a movie was released in a state, Random House would immediately distribute the product to that state.

Of course, Fangyan, the author and screenwriter, was not idle either. He was forced by Steven Spielberg to do a TV interview.

Although it was not a live broadcast, I couldn’t forget to “sell goods”. I took the opportunity of the interview to promote “Guns, Viruses, and Steel”.

As the popularity of dialects grew, publishing companies such as Penguin, HarperCollins, Hachette, and Holtzbrink all wanted to cooperate, and more and more calls were made to the Dialect Foundation. Naturally, the one that called the most and most frequently was Random House.

"Teacher Fang."

Bai Ruoxue put down the translation work of "Artificial Intelligence" and pushed the door open.

Fang Yan stopped spinning his pen, raised his head, and shifted his gaze from the first draft of "Farewell My Concubine" to herself.

Bai Ruoxue said that Jason Epstein had increased the amount again. In addition to raising the royalties for a single word from 2 US dollars to 3 US dollars, the royalties for novel sales exceeding 10000 copies also increased from 20% to 22.5%. Even the royalties of Nobel Prize winners in literature are not much more than this.

"That's true."

Fangyan grinned and said, "Ask Random House to fax the contract over and give it to Luodian to review and see if there are any loopholes in the contract."

Bai Ruoxue nodded, "Also, Mr. Fang, Sister Gong asked me to ask you, when are we going to Los Angeles University Park?"

"We'll leave at 2:30, and when we get to the hotel, we'll settle down first, and then go for a walk around the stadium." Fang Yan felt a little excited when he thought that tomorrow was the opening ceremony of the Olympics. (End of this chapter)