Crime project

After the initial agreement with EuropaCorp on the new project, Lyman stayed at the hotel in Paris for the following days.

Every day, besides writing the shooting schedule, he pondered which actors would be suitable for this type of film.

Sometimes, when he got tired of writing reports, he would occasionally visit EuropaCorp, chat with Luc Besson, or explore their newly built studio.

After spending around four days, with René's help, Lyman meticulously revised the entire script and submitted it together with the detailed shooting schedule to EuropaCorp's marketing department for review and approval.

For projects of this investment scale, the review and market research would not be swift. Even with Luc Besson's support, given the size of the company, it would take time to satisfy all management levels, leaving him with some free time.

Thus, Lyman and René returned to Cannes, waiting for news while refining their studio.

Mann Studios had been established for two years, and its financial affairs were still handled by a local accounting firm, assisting them with tax payments and financial matters.

Now that he wanted to formalize the studio a bit more, apart from acquiring filming equipment, they also needed to establish corresponding management systems...

Two more days passed, and Lyman's agent, John, also arrived in Cannes to discuss the new project.

"A hundred million dollars investment," John exclaimed when he heard the amount of investment for the new project, sitting on Lyman's sofa at home.

It was undoubtedly the largest project he had worked on since starting his career, and he immediately felt the pressure.

But then, he thought to himself, wasn't this also his opportunity? If he could successfully complete this project, not to mention the monetary return he'd receive, it would have an unparalleled promoting effect on his career at CAA.

This was a big-budget project involving a hundred million dollars, and Hollywood only produced about four or five projects of similar scale each year, and those were all from top-tier production companies.

He must seize this opportunity, John thought to himself.

"EuropaCorp is currently reviewing this project, and there should be a result in this period. You should keep an eye on it."

"Are we still going to collaborate with them?"

"Of course, they are our first choice. If it doesn't work out, then we can release the news and contact other distribution companies."

"Alright, I understand."

"If possible, try to urge them to make a decision as soon as possible. I don't want to wait too long." Lyman sat across from John and gave his instructions.

"Understood. By the way," John asked tentatively, "do you still intend to invest in this project?"

Upon hearing this question, Lyman shrugged and said confidently, "My studio's financial performance is very good now, and it's a must to seek investment. I just don't know how much EuropaCorp is willing to give up."

Thinking about it, Lyman became curious and asked, "John, do you think I should have the leverage to propose better terms now? How much do you think we should ask for?"

"Of course, you have the leverage," John nodded without hesitation.

In Hollywood, for any director, after three consecutive profitable films with significant returns, especially having received an Academy Award, they undoubtedly had the qualifications to negotiate terms.

"I think you can propose a basic salary of ten million dollars plus a 10% share of the box office revenue. As for the investment amount, it's hard to say; it will depend on EuropaCorp's determination or, let's say, courage. If they aren't willing to give up more, then no matter how much we say, it won't matter."

Lyman understood this principle well, and he wouldn't force anything. "Let's try to negotiate along these lines. My bottom line is to have a 10% share of all the profits, including factoring in the director's salary."

"Okay, I understand."

After discussing with his agent, John, Lyman immersed himself in work again. He hired two financial personnel to handle the studio's daily operations, and Thomas joined the studio from Lyon to manage the filming equipment. With this, they barely set up the framework, and there was no need to rush the rest.

On the other side, John was in high spirits. After receiving Lyman's commission, he actively and frequently engaged with many executives of EuropaCorp, pushing hard for the progress of the new film project.

The success of "Fury" and the profits he gained from it, along with the potentially even greater returns from this new project, fueled him with boundless motivation.

In just three days, he had two rounds of face-to-face meetings, and his insistence on progress became increasingly intense.

"This project has a substantial investment, so we must find a good release slot for it. Everyone, I think the summer season would be our best choice." Facing the management team of EuropaCorp, John now exuded more confidence than before. Standing in his position, he calmly voiced a scenario no one wanted to hear, "Time is becoming somewhat tight. If you can't expedite the review process of the project, Director Lyman might very well choose another company as a partner."

He looked around at everyone and continued, "For example, Paramount Pictures, Warner Bros., Universal Pictures... You know, they have all invited Lyman to collaborate with them before. They seem very sincere."

Of course, the executives of EuropaCorp were well aware of this fact. Just like the frenzy of those investors after the decent performance of "Fury", they wouldn't underestimate their peers' tactics of wooing talent.

"Do any of you have any concerns?" John asked with a puzzled expression in the conference room.

After several days of interaction, he had noticed that EuropaCorp seemed quite eager to shoot the film, but he couldn't fathom why the pre-production review was still dragging on.

"Mr. Brandon, we're talking about a hundred million dollars of investment here. It's not a figure that can be decided upon quickly," one executive from EuropaCorp's distribution department explained, "If we also consider the marketing costs, the total investment may well exceed one hundred and fifty million. All of this requires time for us to consider, be it the allocation of funds or other aspects. In short, it's not easy to push for approval so quickly."

"But don't forget, this is Director Lyman's new work," John's words carried weight, "Based on his past achievements, "Fury" alone brought in over $500M in total box office revenue, not to mention the peripheral and offline revenue. When you add it all up, the money you made from that movie alone is more than a hundred million."

"Now, let's take a look at this new project," his words were enticing, "Although the investment is high, it also means higher box office revenue. The script contains commercial elements and human characterizations, which are his strong suits in character development. He has already proven this point. I believe the risk is not as great as some may imagine."

EuropaCorp acknowledged some of John's points but didn't fully agree with him.

"What about making a hundred million from "Fury"? Does offline revenue come instantly? If we were talking about this five years from now, it might sound more convincing."

At best, they had made just over fifty million from it.

John continued to persuade them relentlessly, and listening to him, it seemed like this new project was a surefire hit, and missing out would only lead to regret.

However, the executives at EuropaCorp weren't foolish. Although they were eager to move forward with the project, there was one thing they weren't entirely certain about: how to raise the funds for a project with an estimated production cost of nearly a hundred million dollars?

Fully financing it themselves was definitely not feasible. If they suffered significant losses, they might end up applying for bankruptcy protection, just like some other production companies in the past.

On the other hand, if they didn't fully finance it themselves, whether it was sharing the risk through cooperation or raising funds through public financing, they needed to be cautious in their approach.

They were still hesitant because of this.

John naturally understood that EuropaCorp's delay was due to the high production cost, which inevitably brought high risks.

"I have an idea." Suddenly, he shifted the topic, considering EuropaCorp's perspective, "Since you believe the investment risk is too high, why not seek external cooperation? Both Paramount Pictures and CAA are very interested. How about that? Moreover, Director Lyman himself is willing to invest in his project again. What do you think about that?"

It was feasible, but one executive spoke up, "We do have that idea, and we are in discussions with Paramount Pictures. As for what you mentioned about Director Lyman wanting to invest, we need to consider that as well."

He glanced at Luc Besson sitting at the top seat, seeing his calm expression, which reminded him of the topics they had discussed before: no matter what, Lyman had succeeded again, and the corresponding treatment would undoubtedly need to be improved in future collaborations.

There was no way around it; this was reality. The days of casually offering a meager director's fee were long gone. If they wanted to maintain a continuing working relationship, some concessions were inevitable. Of course, they couldn't give too much either; that would be detrimental to future collaborations.

"Let's hear about your conditions first," he asked, using a common negotiation tactic to gauge the other party's position.

"Thirteen million dollars as the basic salary, plus a 15% share of the box office revenue. There's also fifteen million dollars of investment, and we'll enjoy the corresponding returns as investors," John wasn't holding back, directly raising Lyman's bottom line several notches.

Of course, this was for better negotiation leverage and room for concessions later on. If EuropaCorp could agree, it would be even better.

However, such outrageous conditions naturally didn't sit well with the others.

But today's meeting had come to an end.

Two days later, the two parties resumed their negotiations. After several back-and-forth discussions, Paramount Pictures and EuropaCorp were the first to reach an agreement, promptly passing the project review at the highest speed possible. They informed Lyman to attend a meeting: Paramount's representatives wanted to discuss the three-party collaboration.