A widower's entertainment

Chapter 441 [Signboard] (Please Subscribe)
The fact that American film companies approached Lin Youcheng to discuss collaboration and seek film scripts is nothing new in the domestic literary and film circles. After all, this has happened several times before, and Lin Youcheng has even won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay. The fact that companies are willing to pay millions for the copyright to Lin Youcheng's scripts has already shocked the literary and film industries many times over.

Domestic literary and film workers are naturally very aware that screenwriter Lin Youcheng's identity and status in the United States are truly extraordinary.

Of course, some people are still very curious to know whether Lin Youcheng's script copyright fee will be as exorbitant as before, given that foreign film companies have come knocking on his door this time.

Clearly, Lin Youcheng had no reason to refuse MGM's cooperation terms. Of course, this is also why both MGM and Paramount Pictures were eager to cooperate with Lin Youcheng, because the works written by this Eastern screenwriter in Hollywood were truly outstanding.

The artistic merit of the film scripts goes without saying. For example, the film "The Hunt" produced a two-time Oscar winner, and the recently released "Seaside Town" is considered a shoo-in for an Oscar nomination for Best Actor next year. The artistic and literary quality of these films is quite high. There are also commercially viable films such as the fantasy romance "Every Day" and "The Departed." Crucially, "The Departed" is also highly artistic, receiving multiple Oscar nominations. Not to mention "The Truman Show," which won the Oscar for Best Picture. Now, this ultra-low-budget film "Coherence" is truly incredible.

Of course, besides the movie itself, there was also the news that it happened to coincide with a comet hitting Jupiter. Warner Bros. could be considered to have done a comet marketing campaign in 1994. It was this kind of box office success that prompted MGM and Paramount Pictures to rush to talk to Lin Youcheng, the Eastern screenwriter, about cooperation.

In fact, besides MGM and Paramount Pictures, other film companies such as Universal Pictures have also contacted Lin Youcheng.

There's no other reason than that Lin Youcheng's scripts can make them money.

This is why these capital companies are so eager to acquire Lin Youcheng.

Lin Youcheng was well aware of this. In fact, whether as a director, screenwriter, or producer, once you have a certain status, your influence will naturally be different. Lin Youcheng was indeed considering cooperating with MGM.

He was well aware that these film companies also wanted low-budget scripts like "Coherence," because such scripts could potentially yield big returns with a small investment, especially now that there were real-life examples to follow.

Lin Youcheng is also writing other movie scripts. After all, exporting scripts and earning foreign exchange is a relatively easy way for him to accumulate capital. Especially now that MGM wants to discuss a share of the net profit with him in addition to the script copyright fee, this naturally means that Lin Youcheng's capital accumulation will be faster.

Of course, whether a film will be profitable after it is completed is not a certainty, but in any case, Lin Youcheng's script prices have been raised again by the Hollywood market, which is also the choice of capital.

Xie Shuhua knew that Lin Youcheng was writing a script recently, which was obviously meant to be sold to a Hollywood company.

She was already completely shocked by the fact that Lin Youcheng had sold the screenplay rights to Warner Bros. for four million dollars, which was like seeing another incredible science fiction world. Xie Shuhua felt that the value of Lin Youcheng's screenplays was nothing compared to this.

Because Xie Shuhua truly realized that those American companies that came to her door were really crazy.

Since it was summer vacation, Xie Shuhua naturally didn't disturb Lin Youcheng from writing the script.

"Dad, is he writing a script?"

Lin Zhaomei was thinking of coming to find Lin Youcheng when she saw Xie Shuhua holding her little sister Lin Zhaoyuan and playing under the eaves. She couldn't help but ask a question.

Xie Shuhua smiled and nodded, saying, "Yes, I'm writing a script."

"It seems that we won't be able to get the novel manuscript that Zhang Wei wants anytime soon."

Lin Zhaomei also knew that film companies from the United States had come to her door, just to pay money for her father's scripts. She also knew that this was why her father was so remarkable.

Lin Zhaomei is now reading the scripts Lin Youcheng wrote for Hollywood film companies, and they are truly incredible to her, leaving her completely stunned.

Like the previous film "The Night the Comet Came," this is a story that would never appear in a domestic film. The more she thought about it, the more unbelievable it seemed. Of course, she is now often studying filmmaking and reading professional books related to "Film Language and Grammar." In fact, she herself would like to try making a low-budget story like "The Night the Comet Came."

In fact, Lin Zhaomei had also thought about writing her own script and trying to shoot her own short film. She was thinking of practicing during the summer vacation. However, she also knew that the script was the foundation. Her own script was far inferior to her father's, especially since there was also the cost of film stock. No matter what, it was an expense. Naturally, she wanted to talk to her father about it.

Lin Zhaomei looked at Xie Shuhua and said with a smile, "I was thinking of asking my father to write a script for me."

Xie Shuhua was not surprised to hear Lin Zhaomei's words. She knew that Lin Zhaomei planned to apply for the directing department of Yanjing Film Academy. However, Lin Zhaomei was only in her second year of high school this semester. She smiled and said, "Then you can talk to your father about it."

Lin Zhaomei nodded.

Lin Youcheng was somewhat surprised to hear Lin Zhaomei's idea, not expecting that Lin Zhaomei would actually want to try filming herself at this time.

Lin Youcheng naturally encouraged Lin Zhaomei's idea, but he still said, "Why not try writing your own script? Even if it's not good, we can revise it together." Although Lin Youcheng could certainly write scripts for Lin Zhaomei, and had many classic short film scripts that Lin Zhaomei could film, in Lin Youcheng's opinion, it was still necessary for Lin Zhaomei to try filming short films herself at the beginning.

Take Section Chief Jia, for example. He spent 20,000 yuan to shoot the short film "Xiaoshan Goes Home," which he wrote himself, during his sophomore year. The short film won the Best Feature Film Award in the Short Film Competition Unit of the Hong Kong International Film Festival. It can be said that Section Chief Jia started his journey to the three major film festivals with the short film "Xiaoshan Goes Home."

Lin Youcheng naturally didn't think there was anything wrong with giving Lin Zhaomei 20,000 yuan to shoot a short film. However, he still hoped that Lin Zhaomei could try writing the script and shooting the short film story she wanted to shoot first.

Hearing Lin Youcheng's words, Lin Zhaomei understood her father's meaning, smiled and nodded, saying, "Then I'll try to write a script and make a short film myself."

Upon hearing Lin Zhaomei's words, Lin Youcheng smiled broadly and said, "Then I'll wait to see your script. If it's good, I can invest."

Of course, even if the script isn't good, Lin Youcheng, as the father, can still invest. However, he naturally hopes that Lin Zhaomei can write a suitable script. In fact, he is quite looking forward to seeing what kind of short film story Lin Zhaomei will write.

However, for Lin Youcheng, the most important thing is that Lin Zhaomei's attempt is truly walking her own path. Although he, as her father, can provide scripts for Lin Zhaomei, she should naturally have her own ideas from the very beginning if she wants to shoot a short film.

Of course, if Lin Zhaomei's story is indeed not feasible, her father will naturally provide further guidance.

Lin Youcheng watched as Lin Zhaomei turned and went back to her room, seemingly intending to write a script, and a smile appeared on his face.

As for investment, he certainly wouldn't be short of 20,000 yuan. In fact, even if it were doubled, he, as the father, could support it. Even if the investment failed, he wouldn't feel anything because he would make more money on his side.

Lin Youcheng's gaze then fell upon his latest film script, "The Butterfly Effect," which would contain a significant amount of investment funds for his daughter's future film productions.

Of course, Lin Youcheng knew very well that the investment funds he had accumulated for his daughter were far more than just this one script.

Lin Youcheng was well aware that the production cost of "The Butterfly Effect" was much higher than that of "Coherence". However, even with the higher production cost, he did not believe that MGM would reject the film script. In fact, the production cost of "The Butterfly Effect", a soft science fiction film, was not high at all, after all, it was just a soft science fiction story.

In fact, Lin Youcheng was well aware that he could also write other movie scripts and build his reputation as a film actor. Naturally, Lin Youcheng had no intention of ruining his own brand.

Without a doubt, The Butterfly Effect is a classic work!
Although this is also a time travel movie, unlike other time travel movies of the same type, the film takes the opposite approach. Through the butterfly effect, that is, the flapping of a butterfly's wings in South America can cause a rainstorm in North America, this chaotic theory tells the story that going back to the past to change one's fate is not as easy and pleasant as in movies like "Back to the Future". Instead, due to the coincidences, changes often lead to human tragedies where things have changed and people are no longer the same.

The film's most ingenious concept is its premise: the protagonist had a terrible childhood due to his actions that led to serious trouble, leaving him with unpleasant memories. In reality, he only vaguely remembers some horrific scenes, which continue to haunt his daily life. Later, following a psychologist's advice, he starts keeping a diary of his daily life, only to accidentally discover that the diary allows him to travel back in time.

Only then did he clearly remember all the wrong things he had done in his childhood. He fantasized about using his present consciousness to enter his childhood body and make amends for the harm his mistakes had caused people, especially hoping to finally get back together with Cassie, the girl he had a crush on back then. However, his repeated attempts to change time and space only led to more and more irreparable damage in the real world. Everything was like the butterfly effect, where a small change could have far-reaching consequences.

In essence, this concept offers repeated opportunities for repentance, providing multiple possibilities in life—a dream of going back in time to change one's fate. Based on the madness of a perfectionist, the protagonist builds his true memories at the points where his memories are blurred. Once these memories are established, his subsequent memories are all rewritten due to the butterfly effect, thus constantly rewriting his life. No one's life is completely perfect and without flaws. Therefore, by acknowledging existing imperfections, the world becomes a better place, rather than constantly yearning for something even more beautiful and illusory.

In fact, to some extent, the movie "The Butterfly Effect" and Lin Youcheng's previous film "The Time Traveler's Wife" are completely different time travel stories.

Because each time the male protagonist time-traveled, things got worse. He time-traveled eight times in total, and no matter what he tried, the female protagonist never had a happy and fulfilling life. Each time he time-traveled, he changed one thing, but made another worse. So, there was a final time travel: the male protagonist used a videotape to recall the moment he first met the female protagonist, when he scared her away. This way, none of the tragedies would have happened.

However, such an ending is undoubtedly quite regrettable. Two people who pass each other by, seemingly familiar with each other, what does it matter if there is a shock of thousands of troops at the moment of their meeting, what does it matter if they recall the twists and turns of the past, what does it matter if they have the deepest and most unforgettable past, everything is just passing by.

According to Lin Youcheng, the film was originally shot in 2002, and even if it is eight years earlier, it will not have any impact at all, because this film is different from "Interstellar" which requires a large production and special effects. After all, it is just a soft science fiction film.

Lin Youcheng stared at the title of the script. In fact, he knew the title "The Butterfly Effect" all too well, because just like the butterfly he was, flapping its wings would naturally have a great deal of impact.

Lin Youcheng is now also looking forward to seeing what kind of storm the movie "The Butterfly Effect" will bring in 1994.

Clearly, when MGM Studios acquired Lin Youcheng's script for "The Butterfly Effect," they were completely impressed. It's no wonder they were willing to pay a high script copyright fee and share the subsequent net profits with Lin Youcheng.

Because the story of "The Butterfly Effect" was so brilliant, it was truly the amazing script they had been waiting for.

Indeed, Lin Youcheng, this screenwriter from the East, is truly extraordinary. His reputation as a screenwriter is absolutely spot on!
(End of this chapter)