Hollywood Director 1992.

Chapter 86 Overseas Release
When "Paranormal Activity" was a hit in North America, its overseas distribution was also carried out smoothly.

Since Guess the Movie Pictures was established not long ago, it does not have the ability to distribute films overseas.

The overseas distribution of "Paranormal Activity" is mainly handled by TriStar-Columbia Pictures.

Behind TriStar-Columbia Pictures is the Sony consortium.

After "Paranormal Activity" broke the 100 million yuan box office in North America, the seven major Hollywood studios and overseas film producers have rushed to Guess Pictures, hoping to obtain the overseas copyright of "Paranormal Activity".

During the negotiations, TriStar-Columbia Pictures made the most sincere offer.

US$1500 million in basic copyright fees, 20% overseas box office share, and 18% video distribution share.

Columbia Pictures' request is to obtain the rights to the sequel to "Paranormal Activity" and hopes that Link will continue to direct the sequel.

This condition is better than the price offered by overseas film producers, more secure, and the payback time is faster.

After some thought, Link agreed to work with Columbia Pictures.

It was just some changes to the terms of the deal.

The $1500 million copyright fee and 20% overseas box office share remain unchanged.

The videotape distribution rights for "Paranormal Activity" were sold to Columbia Pictures for $600 million. Guess what, the studio would not share in the profits no matter how much it was sold for.

The sequel rights to this hit movie were sold to Columbia Pictures for $850 million. Link can write the scripts for the two sequels and even serve as producer, but will not continue to direct.

The advantage of doing this is that you can quickly recoup your investment.

For a large company like Columbia Pictures, distributing videotapes can bring in tens of thousands or even hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, which can last for decades and is a long-term income.

But for Link, it is more cost-effective to buy out the shares in one go and get the money earlier than collecting a small share every year.

After receiving the newly revised terms, Columbia Pictures responded to him two days later, saying that they could accept them, but with one condition: they hoped to sign a three-film contract with him.

Columbia Pictures will have priority investment in the three films he will direct in the future, with an investment ratio of no less than 30%.

After thinking about it, Link changed the three parts into 1+2 parts, and tried to cooperate on one part first to see if the cooperation between the two parties would go smoothly.

If it goes well, they can collaborate on more films. If it doesn't go well, both parties have the right to make new choices.

Besides, his first two films were hits, but the subsequent ones may not be.

If the next movie performs too poorly at the box office, Columbia Pictures can change its mind and stop investing in his movies.

This agreement can be considered an informal agreement and does not need to be written into a contract.

Columbia Pictures accepted his suggestion.

The main reason why Columbia Pictures is so easy to talk to is related to the situation of Columbia itself.

In 1988, Japanese electronics giant Sony was preparing to enter Hollywood.

After several months of negotiations, in January 1989, Sony Corporation acquired CBS Records, a subsidiary of CBS Columbia Corporation.

By October, Sony successfully acquired Columbia Pictures for $10 billion and assumed Columbia's $34 billion in accompanying debt.

Columbia Pictures, one of the seven major Hollywood studios, became a Japanese company, which caused great turmoil in Hollywood. It was considered a "Japanese cultural invasion" and a "new Pearl Harbor incident."

When Sony first acquired Columbia Pictures, it arranged for many Japanese to manage the company. However, they were not able to adapt to the local environment and almost bankrupted the company.

In 1990, Sony Group was forced to announce the withdrawal of all Japanese employees working at Columbia Pictures.

At the same time, it acquired Gubel-Peters Entertainment for $2 million and hired two partners of the company, famous film producers Peter Gubel and Jon Peters, as co-chairmen of Columbia Pictures.

Columbia Pictures gradually got back on track.

Although Columbia Pictures is an old company that was established nearly 70 years ago, it is also a brand new film company after being acquired by Sony Group.

In order to survive the competition among several major film studios, the Sony Group increased its investment in films and continued to cooperate with independent film companies.

Including co-production of "Terminator 2" with Carlock Films, "Bram Stoker's Dracula" with Zoetrope Films, and "The Last Wagon" with Castle Rock Films, etc. Spending tens of millions of dollars to acquire the overseas distribution rights, video tapes, and sequel rights of the hit movie "Paranormal Activity" is just a small deal for Columbia Pictures, which has a big tree behind it.

During the negotiation, seeing the Columbia Pictures representative agreed easily, Link wondered if the offer was too low. If he had known earlier, he should have offered more, and perhaps he could have earned tens of millions more dollars.

After the negotiations, Columbia Pictures transferred $2950 million to the Guess What Pictures account in three installments within a week in accordance with the contract.

When Link saw the numbers on the account, he once again felt that there was less.

After Columbia Pictures obtained the overseas distribution rights for "Paranormal Activity", it immediately started working on the film's distribution.

In its first week, "Paranormal Activity" was released in 21 countries and regions outside North America, and earned approximately 3629 million US dollars.

The box office results were higher than expected, and the office of the president of Sony Entertainment Group sent a special congratulatory message to Link, praising his film for its huge box office potential, saying it was a film that was loved by people all over the world, and looking forward to in-depth cooperation with him.

Link also expressed his expectations.

The Japanese stock market is currently booming, and all Japanese companies have money. The Sony Group is naturally not short of money, and there are many benefits to cooperating with Columbia Pictures.

Jingle Bell!Jingle Bell!
In the office, Link put down the documents, picked up the phone on the table and answered it. He was surprised to find that it was Jennifer Connelly calling.

This woman is beautiful, but rather arrogant. She has a stern face all day long, as if everyone owes her a few dollars. She is a typical sufferer of fairy syndrome.

"Director Link, are you busy?"

"A little bit. But as long as I can get your call, I have to put aside all the work I have to do."

"why?"

"Because you speak very well and are very interesting. It is a pleasure to communicate with you, more enjoyable than work."

"Really? Sam said I'm not good at socializing and talking to others. Is it really fun to talk to me?"

"Of course. When I'm chatting with you, sometimes I don't need to hear your voice. Just knowing that it's you on the other end of the line and listening to your breathing is also a very pleasant experience."

The breathing sound on the phone became disordered.

"I'm not that good. I have a bad temper and sometimes I lose my temper. My mother often says that I am willful."

"When you lose your temper it must be because others refuse to listen to your opinions and don't respect your choices, right?"

"how do you know?!"

"I can see that you are different from other pretty girls. Not only do you have an excellent appearance, you also have a strong and independent heart. You hate being dominated by others. For personal freedom and independence, you resist by losing your temper and being uncooperative. This also shows that you are a brave woman."

"I'm not that good."

The voice on the phone suddenly became very gentle, "Link, what are you doing now?"

"I'm looking at box office data, both in North America and overseas. There's a lot, but I have to look at it. I need to use the data to understand market trends and whether I need to continue promoting the film or contact the distribution department, etc."

"Link, you are amazing. Not only can you act and write scripts, you can also make movies, but you can also manage a company. It's amazing. No one is better than you."

Jennifer Connelly said in a brisk tone.

"Are you serious? Many people in the industry now say that I am a rubbish director who only knows how to make money but doesn't understand the art of film."

"They are talking nonsense. They are jealous of your talent. Since they can't beat you at the box office, they want to belittle you in other ways. In fact, the artistry of Buried and Paranormal Activity is no worse than those mainstream movies. It's just that those people are unwilling to admit it. Once they admit it, it will seem that their movies are failures, and their lives are failures. This is Hollywood. They are used to showing off themselves by putting others down. They are very vain."

"Jennifer, you are so nice to talk to."

"Haha, not really. It's just that I feel relaxed and happy chatting with you."

"I feel the same way. What do you do now?"

After chatting for more than half an hour, Link hung up the phone, looked at the document he had not finished reading, shook his head and smiled.

(End of this chapter)