Hollywood Domination Chapter 91: BigDream Films
Setting up a company?
Jenny froze for a moment, "Are you talking about the kind of tax avoidance company Jin helped me set up?"
In order to legally avoid taxes, it is very common to set up a company. For example, if Jenny's income is collected in the name of the company, and her rental expenses are also used by the company, it may be able to make a loss. But in fact, the US corporate tax is also very heavy, and there are a lot of things in the legal fringes here. Exposure will affect the public image, and star income is the monitoring focus of the IRS, so before her income was obtained in her own name of. The two follow-up contracts including Caribbean are also determined in the name of individuals, which is also good for Jenny, at least the relationship between income and expenditure is relatively simple, and she can understand her account. The one or two years of cooperation between her and Jin has not been long enough for her to trust her completely regardless of her own finances. ——There are many stars in Hollywood who are too credulous. Although they have made a lot of money and have no bad habits, they still fall into financial crisis because of investment failures and accountants' deliberate deficits.
"Of course, this company has a certain purpose of tax avoidance. If you invest in "Prada" in the name of the company, a large part of the final income can be tax-free." Cesare said, "The most important thing is that your investment The amount has already reached one-third of the shooting cost. You are quite an investor. You have the right to ask for your production company LOGO to be added to the title. I guess you are interested in the production industry. Let us assume that Your—"
His tone became a little strange, as if he was forcibly suppressing the urge to roll his eyes, "—'gut feeling'—that's right, "Prada" can achieve certain box office results, so this is very important for your filmmaking career Say, it will be a good opportunity."
This is indeed a point of Jenny's negligence. She did think about the possibility of setting up a production company in the future, but people tend to forget things when they are busy. In addition, the "Prada" project is still in progress, so until Chesa Lei reminded her that she suddenly realized that this is indeed a good idea. Since it is an investment in film production, the tax exemption will be much higher if it is in the name of a company, which may be more cost-effective in general. Since all investments are made in the name of a company, then Why not take advantage of the trend and set up your own production company? At least in the beginning, she probably only needs a part-time accountant to take care of her finances-King is certainly a ready candidate. If she wants to grow bigger in the future, this part of the profit can be deposited in the company as the initial capital of the company.
"Good idea." She didn't spare her compliments: she also had disagreements on work, and even said that Cesare and her disagreement was far greater than Judy's disagreement with her that time. Her performance It was by no means utterly benevolent, but Cesare and Judy reacted very differently. After Cesare recognized the prospect of "Prada", he never mentioned their quarrel that day again. Although he may have hoped that "Prada" would fail and let her try something powerful, at least he performed impeccably, everywhere. I still think about her, it's no different from before. "So what am I supposed to do? You know, I don't know anything about this."
"Find a lawyer first, and I'll give you a call." Cesare printed out a document and handed it to her, "Then prepare some registration funds. Let me run for you, in fact, this is very simple..."
In California, there are so many small film companies, and Jenny is by no means the first movie star to open her own company. The rules of the game are very simple, and it took Jenny a short time to figure out the process. "Then after I get the 10 million loan from the bank, I can inject capital into the company, and then the company will pay Fox?"
"Yes, at the same time, you also need someone to verify with Fox whether the cost of the crew is true, whether your 10 million has been spent indiscriminately, and whether you can get some back in the end." Cesare said in terms of guidance details I have always been very patient, "After all, you signed a box office sharing contract, and the amount of sharing has been fixed. If you can get back 10 million, it is your victory."
"So after "Prada" is released, you have to be careful about Fox underreporting the box office?" Jenny asked.
"This is unlikely, because of the existence of a third-party statistical agency. If the details that Fox gives you do not conform to the ExhibitorRelations report, you have the right to request a recalculation." Cesare paused, "Usually speaking , Fox is unlikely to do this, but to be on the safe side, you still need a lawyer to review the distribution contracts signed by Fox and major theaters for you. Accountants, lawyers, an administrative assistant, and registration fees, this is you The labor costs currently required, of course, you also need the cost of hiring someone to design the LOGO, as well as a loud and catchy name.”
"How about Homesweethome?" Jenny immediately had an idea and asked excitedly.
Cesare coughed, lowered his face to organize the documents, "I repeat, what you need is a loud and catchy name."
"Okay." Jenny resentfully said, "If you think my taste is bad, you can just say so."
Cesare skipped directly to the next topic, "There is also the premiere of "The Notebook" and the film review meeting for film critics. New Line hopes to set the premiere ceremony and the film screening together. The scale should be as large as possible. They are very confident in this film and hope to use the word-of-mouth of film critics to drive the box office in the first week and attract a certain type of audience. Therefore, the closer the date is to the release, the better. Within a few days, I found out that the video has been uploaded..."
Around the publicity strategy of "The Notebook", Cesare, Jenny, and Judy on the other side of the computer held a video conference, and even Josh's PR was invited to participate. After a whole meeting, half a day flew away quietly. Jenny stood up and stretched, "Shall we have lunch together, Cesare, I have to go to class in the afternoon."
"No, I still have a few calls to make." Cesare said, "I asked Kitty to deliver these scripts to your car."
They haven't talked about Jenny's conjecture about Nisha leaking the secret, but the facts are here, Nisha has left Cesare now, and went to Jennifer Bell to work as her personal assistant. Not noticing the assistant's tendency to betray, it should be a small mistake for "Invincible Cesare", but Jenny didn't intend to hold on to this. She intends to have a chance to make a few jokes, even if it is to end the matter, but so far she has not had the opportunity to talk to Cesare. Of course, there are often official conversations, and it is natural, but Jenny gradually noticed that Cesare had cut off personal contact with her.
It's not that they had an affair, or any ambiguous sexual attraction, but Jenny did have some more personal conversations with him, and during those few moments, she felt she was in contact with an open, Frank Cesare, maybe just a relaxed smile, maybe a long speech and monologue, these are the corners of his true face. After that quarrel, although the official business was as usual, Cesare never showed a knowing smile, or made fun of her 'poverty' and 'slowness'. He shuts her out, and it begins to dawn on Jeanne that perhaps Cesare's personal feelings were also hurt during that day's quarrel.
This made her a little confused and uneasy, and at the same time felt quite difficult. She didn't even know how to understand this problem, let alone find a solution. — She didn't even know if she should be actively trying to solve it.
However, it cannot be denied that when the attempt to invite Cesare to share lunch failed again, Jenny did feel a little bit disappointed. Although Cesare's shortcomings were enough for her and Lilian to complain about for half an afternoon, but The opposite of the desire to control is also a sense of security. Now that he no longer tries to control everything in her career, Jenny has gained freedom and lost sex. In this field that was completely unfamiliar to her in her previous life, she is inevitably a little ignorant Overwhelmed.
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"CJ Films." Jenny sat cross-legged on the luxurious big bed in the master room, thinking about the name of the production company. C is Chen, and J is Jenny. It just so happens that her English name in her previous life was also Jennifer.
Tapping on the keyboard, I found one with the same name. Jenny shook her head and gave up the name, which she was not satisfied with at first, "Hoyang Movie? No, Hoyang feels quite Asian, no Catchy... what about the Ocean movie?"
Of course, such a popular name has been registered long ago. Jenny checked it out and reluctantly gave up this name——Haoyang is her son’s name. She hasn’t seen this name for three years. The little ghost has a head, the images in the memory will inevitably gradually become blurred with time, only the words will always be so clear. Jenny knew that it was best not to use such a special word as the company name. If every mention of this word is a reminder, and you are destined to be unable to go back in a short time, in addition to increasing psychological pressure, What's the point of doing this?
Just like now, the word Haoyang inevitably opened up a period of ups and downs, full of frustration, laughter and tears of memory, Jenny slowly entered the world of thinking, with a fierce expression on her face Changing from place to place, sometimes showing a sweet smile, and sometimes drooping the corners of her lips sadly,...
"Life is a big dream..." Finally, she leaned back, fell heavily on the thick mattress, and chanted Chinese that she hadn't spoken for a long time. "How cool is the world?"
This classical poem inspired her, and Jenny bounced off the mattress again, typing on the keyboard, "BigDream... well, it's good, that's it."
Chen Zhen never allowed herself to indulge in emotions for too long, and always faced the reality positively, which may be her greatest strength. After deciding on the name of the company, calling and communicating with relevant people, and setting a date with Cesare for signing the "Prada" capital injection contract and performance contract, Jenny didn't waste any time, jumped up and went to do today's fitness homework. For her, exercise is a habit that can never be given up. Just like dieting and sun protection, it is a daily pressure that must be borne.
After finishing 10 kilometers in one breath on the treadmill and relaxing in a long jacuzzi—her only luxury every day—she went back to bed and opened the "Prada" window while applying skin care products. Adaptation of the script: Although there are still some homework waiting, Jenny can still distinguish the priority and the homework can be assigned to Mary, but the script adaptation of "Prada" can only be sorted out by herself.
As the main client of the fashion industry, she must have seen "Prada". Bought many of the same style. But to say how much she appreciates the plot of "Prada", that's not necessarily the case. She feels that she is the same as most female audiences, as long as the atmosphere is high enough, the costumes are beautiful enough, and the story can barely be told. She even had to say that she regretted Andy's decision to resign at the time. It's not that she didn't understand Annie's thoughts, but for Chen Zhen, the most important reason for her to watch movies was to see beautiful girls wearing beautiful clothes , doing very high-level things in various beautiful scenes, it is a pity that Andy finally saw through fashion or Miranda, and then left the entire fashion industry. Since then, she has never been able to wear it for free So many nice and expensive clothes, isn't it?
It can be said that the reason why "Prada" is so popular all over the world is that it captures the two characteristics of human nature: peeking at selfish desires and loving something for nothing. Through "Prada", female audiences can get a glimpse of the behind-the-scenes of the high-end fashion industry, glimpse a corner of Anna Wintour's private life (after all, no one will think that Miranda is a purely fictional character), and see this strong woman. There's something to lose, and seeing how Andy gets so many luxuries for 'free' (that's the word is so important) after making up his mind, makes the makeover stand out. To put it bluntly, the audience likes "Prada" because they like these three elements. First: Oh, it turns out that the magazine I read every month really works like this, and I have learned a lot; second: Don't look at Miranda as a winner in life. In fact, my private life is also very bleak. Although I can't compare my career with you, my life is happier than yours. Well, the sense of satisfaction has come; third: Well, look, Annie sparrow has turned into a phoenix, a big transformation , the big beauty is unkempt and ordinary, doesn't this mean that I also have potential in dressing up? Immediately, I had hope for my beauty again, and felt that it was not time to give up.
Looking for knowledge, satisfaction, hope, these are all very positive emotional expressions. This is not a film for watching plots, just like all action films will ignore the laws of physics. 007 must also come with Bond Girls In the last paragraph, selling a strong body is the same as the handsome lifestyle of "drunk beauty's knees, awake and in control of the world". As long as it can poke the audience's coolness, it is normal no matter what aspect of their desire is satisfied Commercial activity. Jenny doesn't have too many demands on "Prada", and doesn't expect it to become a classic masterpiece that combines art and commerce, but she does want to make "Prada" more flattering. At least there is some improvement in the visibility of the plot, and some room for her to be explored. If she does a good job, she can at least please some film critics while continuing to prove her acting skills.
Because the director of the original film, David Frank, was one of the main creators of "*City", Jenny once doubted his ability to handle the plot, but after reading the original work and meeting Lauren, Jenny knew that he was actually Already considered an expert in the industry, he, together with another script writer, Ellie, and producer Wendy, transformed a long and trivial story that exudes resentment and a little inferiority into a clear order. , The narrative method or the details, and the rhythm of the camera are all remarkable, and David's ability is indeed beyond doubt. The reason why the plot of "Prada" is not attractive is entirely because of its inherent inadequacy. There has been a huge contradiction since the creation of this book-this book's attitude towards the core issue of "work and private life" cannot be obtained. recognized by normal society.
When Chen Zhen was an audience member, every time she rewatched this film, she would skip the ordinary life of Andy. I don’t understand it very much. In short, she couldn’t get into the play, but she didn’t think too much about it at the time. It wasn’t until she analyzed it with professional eyes that she understood where her sense of disobedience came from: Andy and her friends in this story They are actually not against fashion, but against professionalism and selfless work attitude. This whole story seriously confuses the difference between fashion, dream and professionalism, and it can even be said to have a certain degree of anti-intellectualism.
Andy finally left Miranda. The final fuse was because Miranda, in order to keep her editor-in-chief position, gave up the position originally reserved for Nigel to her competitor. By the way, she took this opportunity to test Andy's loyalty, and Andy thinks that she disagrees with Miranda's approach, so she leaves this way of life. When Chen Zhen was just a young lady from a wealthy family, she felt that her logic was ridiculous - if she couldn't accept this level of struggle, Andy wouldn't be able to achieve anything in her career in this life. Not to mention "Flyover", it's between two sales representatives of a real estate company, who can sing the whole drama in order to grab customers. Miranda's situation at the time was that she couldn't protect herself if she didn't act, and even Nigel's position could not be kept. , without her support, Nigel could not sit in that position, so in this case, of course keeping yourself is the best solution, just as she said, 'If you were me, you would make the same choice'.
Of course, it may be cruel to say that you can't secure a high position without fighting, but this is reality. If Andy doesn't want to face this reality, it means that she is not yet mature enough to be a qualified social person, not As in the film, she's mature enough to know what she wants. She can leave because she doesn't like fashion, but if she leaves because she doesn't like the lifestyle, then she's really the loser.
Including Andy's final return to 'normal' life, her friends laughed at the dieting girls in "Flyover", disgusted with unnecessary luxury and fashion, for Andy "Miranda wants this, Miranda wants that" Feeling dissatisfied, pointing out that Miranda is a devilish boss, but in fact, in any industry, anyone who wants to make a difference, which one is not 24/7? Not to mention Jenny, there are hundreds of assistants in CAA's mailroom, almost all of whom are graduates from prestigious schools. Miranda's big manager, are they all masochists? In fact, every adult and mature person in society knows that every penny in this society is not earned in vain. If you want money and success, you have to exchange hard work and sweat. Miranda’s approach may not be correct. In line with the "Labor Security Act", perhaps social morality will criticize her for seriously infringing on employees' private time, but in fact Wall Street, Hollywood, the White House, Silicon Valley, these areas where the highest income people in the country gather, all of them are voluntarily working for themselves Chosen career path Working like hell, 'Today is my boyfriend's birthday party, do I need time to spend with him? ’ Very good, then from today onwards you will not be the key training target.
Of course, there are still many people in this world who live an ordinary life, exchange appropriate working hours for not too much remuneration, and have enough time with their families at the same time, but this does not mean that these people are qualified To deny and judge the lifestyles of the elites, in fact, this is where the whole "Prada" makes Jenny feel uncomfortable. When Andy is adapting to the workplace and becoming successful, the filming atmosphere makes people feel She is falling, and when Andy finally gives up her fashion job, the tone of the film is as if she has been redeemed. The illusion given by this film is that Andy can easily and happily move towards success in career and love by working 8 hours a day in standard time.
... Isn't this a satire of reality? At that time, Chen Zhen, a young lady from a wealthy Chinese family, felt that there were too many slots in such an arrangement, but now Jenny has understood the director's intention. After all, the elite group is only a minority. Their lives, such a treatment helps to please the mainstream audience. See, Andy finally came back into your life, and she made the right choice.
This is also based on market considerations, but Chen Zhen thinks this flattery is a bit unreasonable. There are many ways to please this group, instead of ignoring normal logic like this. Most adults still know the cruelty of competition. Of course, in this movie, they may not go to the real plot. Since they can’t understand the logic of the plot, they don’t understand it. They just appreciate other points. Feeling uncomfortable and sorry when Andy quit at the end instead of being happy for her. But for the main creators, this is a relatively dereliction of duty. Your story cannot be logically consistent with reality, and it cannot move most people. It is flattering.
After reading the original work, she understood the difficulty of the adaptor even more—although Lauren left by quitting, she did not leave as a winner when she left. She probably hated Anna Wintu To Wintour, she has always been a nobody, and this feeling of being neglected is perhaps more embarrassing to Lauren than Wintour's resentment. Therefore, in Lauren's novel, her complete denial of that period of assistant life can be seen completely. The crew has softened her attitude a lot. If it were filmed according to the original book, Miranda and Emily would Become a neurotic loser, and Andy is the normal guy who was lucky enough to leap out of the madhouse before being completely infected. If one still wants to affirm the working atmosphere of "Flyover" in terms of values, it is likely that Lauren, who is also one of the screenwriters, cannot accept this change at all.
For this reason, Jenny wants to exclude Lauren from participating in the adaptation, because she not only wants to get rid of this, but also wants to add some dark sides to Andy, those elements she observed from Lauren, vanity, stubbornness, Eager to be affirmed, a little unconfident... In the original version, Andy is a very flat character. She is the object of the audience's substitution, and she is Mary Sue. Jenny's vision, a darker version of Andy, joined Runway because she got an interview at the last minute, and she needed the position to give her a great resume to do her dream job. work. Her setback in "Flyover" was not because she didn't understand fashion, but because she was too inferior. Because of her inferiority complex, she pretended not to care about fashion to protect herself. Including her final departure was not against Miranda's lifestyle, on the contrary, she was very grateful to Miranda for teaching her these, so that she could use these workplace skills in the field of journalism that she was really interested in. The reason for her departure was, It's because she thinks she's qualified enough to pursue the journalism position she wants, and that Miranda should write her a good letter of recommendation, which is what she deserves.
This kind of Andy is closer to her prototype Lauren, rather than the flat, venting tool that Lauren fantasizes, and also has more "actors", but she will never be accepted by Lauren, the truth is In fact, Jenny herself was hesitant to put this idea into practice. She put a lot of money into "Prada". version of the script (judging from "Lianlian Notebook", if she hadn't intervened, the script should not be much different from the original version), and then released, sold, and made money, it's as simple as that.
Of course, this also means that she has to give up the idea of making some breakthroughs in this role. In this movie, she is destined to be a vase. Er and Emily shared that they may even be slightly inferior in acting evaluation due to role constraints.
Suggest a change? Do you want it? Do not want?
Although she had sorted out her ideas for changes, Jenny hadn't made up her mind until the moment she walked into the conference room—this was her last chance, and if she didn't specifically stop her today, Lauren would Get involved, and at that time, Jenny is sure that her idea of modification will never pass the original author Lauren, and she is not sure what Lauren will do for the purity of her fantasy. Who knows if there is any trap in her adaptation contract, allowing her to pass some "guaranteed not to distort the author's original intention" clause to spoil the project? At that time, what will be lost is the real money that Jenny has invested.
To say, or not to say?
Shaking hands with the capable Wendy, the gentle David, and the shy Ellie one by one, everyone took their seats. Jenny took a deep breath, looked at the binder in her hand, and finally put it Putting it at hand, I picked up the original version of the script outline stacked at the bottom of the binder.
The first investment was 10 million pledged from the "Pirates of the Caribbean" performance contract, why don't you take risks?
"It was a pleasure working with you all."
What Jenny didn't expect was that Wendy might have misunderstood what she meant. She took a few glasses of water from the water dispenser, put them in front of several people, and then sat down next to Jenny. While talking, he picked up the binder, flipped through it and said, "Ai Li, this is Jennifer, Jennifer, this is Ai Li——today's creative meeting is to confirm the idea of script adaptation after the project is restarted... ..."
Her voice gradually weakened, and Wendy obviously focused on the adaptation suggestions brought by Jenny. After a while, she felt her gaffe, and suddenly raised her head and continued to say , "...As one of the main funders, Jennifer has some opinions on the original idea..."
It was only when she said something absent-mindedly that Wendy lost her voice again. It can be seen that she has been completely attracted by this adaptation idea...
The author has something to say: Notes: 1 Let me talk about why Jenny can’t make money by doing futures and stocks. I have always seen some friends wondering in the comments, so I will explain it today when I think about it. ——This is impossible, because the interlacing is like a mountain, it’s as simple as that, not to mention that she just married into a rich real estate family, even if Wang Shi traveled back to 2003 today, he would not be able to speculate in stocks and futures. Damn, if it's a long-term business, he might as well continue to do real estate, which he is good at. In the same way, Jenny may indeed know that Apple will rise, but predicting that Apple will rise is not the same as you can make profits in short-term trading. For long-term trading, she might as well invest in movies, with higher returns and faster time.
2 It seems that some descriptions about MJ have misunderstood everyone yesterday. I have changed the chapter, and I am sorry for that. Due to business disputes and enthusiasm for charity, MJ has serious debt problems, but he is not bankrupt. It is not that he is insolvent, but that he cannot circulate cash. He has no bad habits.
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Updated, sorry for the lateness. Because the debuff status is dispelled slowly over time, the thinking is clearer in the evening.