Seven Hundred and Forty-Eight - From a Migrant Worker to a Master
Hollywood Draws Los Angeles 1990748 - From Jobber to Owner Is Greenberg Studios worth it? A few years ago, people would have regarded it as a mediocre shell movie studio. After all, there are countless such small shell movie companies in Hollywood.
Basically, every relatively successful person in the industry has one or more similar film studios under their umbrella, just like every successful person has a charitable foundation for tax avoidance.
Most people in the industry do not set up film studios to invest in movies. On the contrary, more than 9% of them do it to sign contracts with film projects they want to join, and to receive work wages and various shares. This type of A shell company, no one expected to make money from it in the first place.
But in recent years, with the joint investment of "The Departed" and then the brilliant "The Matrix" trilogy and other works, Greenberg Film Studio has slowly attracted the attention of many people. idea.
In addition, "Charlie's Angels", which did very well in this summer's summer release, does not mention the offline income of these films, but the box office on the surface is where it is. Anyone who is knowledgeable in the industry can easily calculate how much they earned. money.
If that's the case, it's okay. Film companies much larger than Greenberg Studio are not uncommon in the industry. It can be said that temporary success is completely dominated by luck. The history of Hollywood over the past few decades shows that such small film companies cannot survive for a few years.
After all, luck isn't always on your side.
There is also a very important point, distribution. Similar to small film companies that are lucky, even if they succeed in many films in two or three consecutive years, the only thing waiting for them is to be acquired or go bankrupt due to an investment mistake.
The reason is very simple. As long as it is a film company that can be named, it does not make money from production itself. The six major Hollywood giants, as well as companies such as MGM and United Artists before, always support the company's profits through distribution.
This is the tragedy of Hollywood content producers. From a few decades ago until now, it has always been the distribution company that dominates the superstructure.
There are countless films in it, such as Warner Bros., even if it is a film wholly produced by itself, it will lose money in the end.
For example, there is no need to tamper with the accounts, such as mutual lending, advance funds, preferential commissions, etc. If you take a look around the rules that are on the surface and fully comply with laws and regulations, you will find that, Except for the investment producers who don't make any money, everything related to movies in this industry makes a lot of money.
There is no need to find loopholes in it. As long as a large film company wants to do something, even if it hires a team of lawyers from the best law firms on Wall Street and a team of accountants from PricewaterhouseCoopers, it will still work under the review of a professional team like them. There is nothing wrong with it from a legal perspective.
This has also created a situation where no matter how profitable a small film company is, if it cannot resist a few years, it will inevitably become a subsidiary of the six major film companies. To put it harshly, it will become the content of the six major film capitals. output department.
Here’s the key point: Wayne’s Greenberg Studio is recognized by everyone in the Hollywood film industry as the content production department of Warner Bros. in the past two years.
But what is the actual situation? Not only was Warner Bros. unable to interfere with projects they collaborated on due to their relationship with Wayne, but he also quietly acquired various copyrights, making this increasingly profitable studio about to develop. Became an empty shell of a freak.
Especially in the past two years, you must know that the previous "The Departed" was okay, and the "Matrix" trilogy was half the most profitable copyright with Warner Bros.
On the surface, both parties jointly financed the production of the film, and of course half of the money was made. Of course, half of this family's money is in the Warner Bros. distribution department, after deducting the distribution commission.
But here’s the problem. Based on the relationship between Wayne and Warner Bros., projects released by Greenberg Studio are given the treatment that Warner Bros. can only get for its own films, which means that distribution commissions are the industry’s most important. lowest level.
Then there is the most profitable offline copyright operation, whether it is the licensing and buying and selling of peripheral items, or the right to play one, two or three rounds of TV, and the most profitable video tape sales and rentals, etc., the money earned offline in the later period is , all for two families and one person for half.
It's not a one-and-done deal. According to Hollywood's operating rules, this situation will continue because Greenberg Studio holds the half of the copyright of "The Matrix".
Yes, Hollywood is a business society, and there is no shortage of intrigues and shady means. But no one will challenge the most basic operating rules.
Just like a certain Oriental actor named Zhaolong, even if he only played a small role in "The Matrix", according to the rules of the Screen Actors Guild and the Producers Guild, as long as the film is still profitable, then it will be based on a proportional , this part of the money will be divided and given to the actors every year.
The same goes for Wayne. Let alone he can get the money now, as long as Greenberg Studio is still there and this part of the copyright is still there, even if he is gone in the future, his descendants will still be able to get the money.
This is only the "Matrix" trilogy that owns half of the copyright. "Charlie's Angels", released this summer, has been negotiated with the publisher Warner Bros. from the beginning, and the copyright belongs to Greenberg Studio 100%.
The treatment of these projects can reflect the significance of Wayne's existence. If it is another independent filmmaker, the most basic price for making a film about Six Hairstyles is to pay the copyright of the film.
"Wayne, Greenberg Studios is making too many moves this year."
Looking at Wayne who was deep in thought, Bruce Rosenblum smoked his cigar. After about ten minutes, he said: "First, "John Wick". As far as I know, this movie As long as the film is successful, a sequel can be started, but apart from the salary of the Eastern Kung Fu superstar's son, the investment in this project is still very low."
There is no doubt that big investments can easily lead to blockbusters, and big productions are the most stable money-making projects. This has always been common sense in Hollywood.
But an investment of tens of millions or hundreds of millions of dollars also means extremely huge risks. Even if a medium-sized film company messes up such a project, it will still face the crisis of bankruptcy.
Therefore, film projects such as this one that are not high in investment, have a certain success rate, and can be easily sequelized are the best choices in the eyes of Hollywood film companies.
"I won't mention "King Kong". As long as such a big project succeeds, it is inevitable to make a lot of money. But..." Bruce Rosenblum's voice was a little hesitant, and he took a careful look. After seeing the expression on the man opposite him, he continued:
"The success of "Charlie's Angels" has allowed many people to see the feasibility of this kind of female protagonist film. Greenberg Studio's "Tomb Raider" and "Resident Evil" are also of this type. As long as the film's performance Yes, serialization would never be a problem.
Man, are you saying that in the eyes of some Time Warner shareholders, this is still a shell movie studio? "
Wayne nodded slightly and threw the cigar into the ashtray, regardless of whether it was still burning. Crossing his hands on his chest, his upper body resting on the sofa, he looked at Bruce Rosenblum and thought.
Yes, it was easy to say before, but now with the Greenberg Film Studio, more and more projects are produced, larger and more serialized, which will inevitably attract more people's attention.
This is equivalent to a film company that has grown wildly, but it doesn't have to endure any interference. It can be said that all the benefits have been taken, but the corresponding obstacles have also disappeared because of the existence of Warner Brothers.
Thinking of this, he grinned unnaturally, and suddenly thought that Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks would only dream of such treatment.
"I came here this time just to remind you privately."
Bruce Rosenblum shook his head, looked at the lazy man across the table, and couldn't help but said: "Wayne, every top Hollywood director, his existence itself is an intangible asset. Exactly It is because of this scarce asset that you and Warner Bros. have become a community of interests.
But as Greenberg's studio becomes more visible, it's bound to tip that balance. So, no matter what you want to do, it's best to move faster. "
In fact, from these reminders by Bruce Rosenblum, Wayne has already understood that there are some things that Jeff Robinov, including Time Warner head Kevin Tetsuhara, have always The distribution director was not told clearly.
Maybe he guessed something, or maybe he got some hints from Jeff Robinov, that's all at most.
"Tell me which shareholder of Time Warner is interested in my studio."
Looking up across the table, Wayne asked with interest.
"Avi-Nevo."
Now that he was talking about this matter, Bruce Rosenblum didn't hesitate and directly gave a name. He went on to say: "At the regular board meeting of Time Warner the day before yesterday, he proposed that Time Warner or Warner Brothers should start acquiring your movie studios.
But the proposal was ultimately shelved by Kevin, but with Greenberg Studios, after a large number of films are released next year, the proposal will definitely be brought out again. "
"Well, that's a good suggestion."
Fumbling with one hand on the stubble on his chin, Wayne nodded matter-of-factly and joked: "I think he should have secretly investigated my studio, so I won't mention it. But how could he be so sure, Would I be willing to sell this studio?
As the majority shareholder of Time Warner, he shouldn’t be unclear about how much money I take from Warner Bros. every year, right? "
Ivey Nivo, Wayne had an impression of this guy. He was a typical Jewish investor. He also remembered that this guy seemed to have a close relationship with a certain Warner Bros. executive. The most important thing was that this guy not only held a large number of Time Warner shares in his hands, but was also very rich.
More importantly, he instantly thought of several sets of beach photos. Well, if you have time, you might be able to make an appointment with that lady in advance and find a beach to go on vacation.
"When the Time Warner board of directors really decides to do this, you won't have a choice." Bruce Rosenblum slowly frowned. He didn't believe that the other party was so smart that he couldn't figure out what was going on here. possibility.
"I'm really looking forward to that day coming soon." Wayne shrugged and waved his hand nonchalantly. Immediately afterwards, he put away all his joking expressions, and his expression gradually became serious. He stared into the eyes of the Warner Bros. executive opposite and said word by word: "Of course he wants to acquire it, but I absolutely can't." Won’t ask for a penny in cash!”
Bruce Rosenblum's eyes widened suddenly and he took a breath instantly. “F**k, you want a share swap!”
"Don't get excited. It's not impossible to cross-hold each other's shares, isn't it?"
Without looking at the cigar still burning in the ashtray, Wayne lowered his head, lit a cigarette, and muttered: "But there is a premise for all of this. Time Warner has to give me a satisfactory share. Don't worry. , Bruce, I believe this won’t happen in a short time, and when it does happen, I don’t know how long it will be.”
His subtext is clear. Since Greenberg Studio has produced a large number of films, its value will increase greatly over time.
But even if it wanted to acquire his studio, Time Warner would never be able to pass this rather complicated resolution in a short period of time. Especially when it comes to issues of shares, he estimated that with the efficiency of those people, internal discussions within the board of directors alone would take several months, or even a year or two.
"Don't forget, Bruce, Kevin Tetsuhara is here."
Wayne smiled and reminded that he believed that since Kevin Tetsuhara did not call, it means that this proposal did not get the support of many shareholders on the board of directors at all.
Even if the Time Warner CEO really has to pass a similar resolution one day, he will be ventilated in advance. The interests between the two of them have always been consistent, and even Kevin Tetsuhara wishes he could Able to obtain large amounts of shares in one fell swoop.
"Wayne, Kevin Tetsuhara is not Michael Eisner. Even if you and he know some of the plans, they cannot be stated openly. You should understand what I mean, right? "
"Of course, I understand, but I can tell you clearly." Wayne took a big puff of cigarette and said calmly: "I never wanted to make Greenberg Studio bigger. Even if it is foreseeable, this The studio will be a weirdo, but in the end, the ending that I can accept is still selling to Time Warner."
Bruce Rosenblum laughed when he said Time Warner instead of Warner Bros. Combining all the information, he figured it out in an instant.
Of course, if the result you imagined really happens, it will not be a bad thing for you. After all, no matter what, you and Wayne have a community of interests.
"And, Bruce." Wayne reached out his hand nonchalantly and waved it from side to side between the two of them. "I don't need Kevin Tetsuhara to be Michael Eisner, and I don't need him to be like Michael Eisner. My ambitions haven't grown that big yet."
Basically everyone in the industry knows some things about Disney. Since becoming the head of Disney in 1984, Michael Eisner has not only developed Disney into a media group with a market value of tens of billions, but has also become the actual controller of Disney invisibly.
Who is Michael Eisner now? That's right, Chairman of Walt Disney. But if we go back more than ten years, he was just a professional manager at Disney. To put it harshly, he was a complete migrant worker.
However, this highly capable professional manager is also a master of power manipulation with dark thoughts. In more than ten years, he first made full use of his power and some shortcomings in the management to constantly eliminate dissidents and eliminate dissidents. The entire management team has been replaced by their own people.
Then he used this management team to unknowingly become Disney's major shareholder, and then as he held more and more shares, he gradually became Disney's chairman.
To put it bluntly, Walt Disney now has nothing to do with the Disney family. The instigator hiding behind the scenes is Michael Eisner.
As of now, the shares held by the Disney family are very few. Especially in the past few years, the entire Disney board of directors has simply become Michael Eisner's voting tool.
From being a professional manager to becoming the majority shareholder and chairman of Walt Disney, this is a typical example of a migrant worker becoming a master, and these are widely circulated news in the industry.
In fact, Time Warner is completely different from Disney, but as long as Wayne wants to achieve similar results, it is not necessarily impossible with the cooperation of Kevin Tetsuhara.
The market capitalization of some of the world's top media groups is over tens of billions of dollars. Warner Brothers and Disney are similar in this regard. And Michael Eisner worked hard to gain power and became Disney's chairman and largest shareholder, with only a little more than 6% of the equity in his hands.
Don’t underestimate this number. These media groups are huge and their shares have long been completely dispersed. In fact, except for the Murdoch family of News Corporation, no media group is controlled by one family.
In the end, Wayne's goal is to gain enough voice to influence the direction of the group. He never thought about turning Warner Bros. into his own backyard like Michael Eisner did, but he had never been interested in managing the company.
Besides, even if everything develops according to his plan, it is still not an easy task to get enough equity in Time Warner.
All Wayne can do is to take advantage of the rapid accumulation of capital in the past two years and wait until the right time arrives to get everything he wants.