Chapter 39: Taking Initiative

In the northern part of San Fernando Valley, there is a town called Shack. The crew of "The Human Purge Plan" arrived in the O'Neal district of the town last week to shoot some exterior scenes.

After spending nearly half a month running between distribution companies in the Los Angeles area, contacting the media about interviews with the crew, and investigating the situation of "Brotherhood" and Stephen Ambrose, Ronan finally arrived in the O'Neal district of Shack.

The shooting of the crew went smoothly. With fewer production staff and relatively unknown actors, there were no serious conflicts requiring the intervention of Ronan as the producer.

The most potential conflict was between the two actresses playing the daughters. However, due to the age difference between them, Michelle Williams and Amanda Seyfried got along well from the rehearsals, especially with Seyfried's mother, who was very friendly.

Ronan couldn't count how many times Seyfried's mother had distributed homemade pastries on the set. Although seemingly insignificant, such gestures played a significant role in the interpersonal relationships on the set.

Interpersonal relationships have always been complicated among actors, and conflicts are inevitable. However, any disputes were easily resolved by the director, James Wong.

After nearly a month of shooting, Ronan confirmed that James Wong was a capable director. Although it was his first time holding a film camera, James Wong had accumulated rich experience from his previous roles in miscellaneous tasks, screenwriting, assistant directing, associate directing, directing TV dramas, and various positions as a producer.

For the shooting, half a block of the neighborhood was temporarily rented out by the crew. However, in such a typical suburban town, half a block was just five or six houses.

As the shooting paused, a blonde woman who had followed from Los Angeles immediately approached.

"Good morning, Mr. Anderson," she greeted.

Hearing the greeting, Ronan politely nodded, "Hello, Judith."

This woman was from the bank's credit department and had specifically come from Los Angeles to San Fernando Valley.

Judith's face was full of warm smiles. "Mr. Herman asked me to convey his greetings to you."

Ronan politely responded, "Thank you." Then added, "Thanks for your support to Sand Sea Entertainment."

"You're too kind," Judith said with a smile. "We're partners."

She had finally managed to retrieve Sand Sea Entertainment as a client from her superior's hands. "Considering the shooting situation, is this film on a large scale? Does it need bank funding support?"

In this fiercely competitive era, good clients were rare.

Would any bank easily lend money to ordinary clients?

Ronan replied casually, "If needed, I'll give you a call."

Just then, he saw Mary and Robert approaching. He pointed to them and said, "Sorry, I have work to do."

Judith, unlike her initial arrogance, was very tactful and left immediately.

When Mary and Robert came over, Ronan called them to join the soundproof nanny car.

"You've done a good job," Ronan said to Mary, opening the air conditioner. "Mary, you're an expert in this field."

Mary didn't modestly decline either and smiled, "Do Arabs care about investment accounts?"

Ronan shook his head lightly. "No. I talked to Saleh the day before yesterday, and his elder brother Mansur was very pleased to hear that the crew had officially started shooting."

Robert interjected, "Shall we go to Abu Dhabi again?"

"Not now," Ronan replied, his mind clear. "Let's wait until after 'The Human Purge Plan' is released."

For the project "Death is Coming," without a $10 million investment, it would be impossible to proceed.

Robert tapped his forehead, "Oh, right. Didn't you ask me to pay attention to the Indians? I heard something; when the Indian inspection team came to Los Angeles, they specifically visited DreamWorks."

Ronan frowned slightly, "Does DreamWorks have a connection with the Indians?"

It wasn't surprising; Hollywood producers deceived people all over the world. Some time ago, he heard a piece of news that a production company had tricked millions of dollars from across the Pacific Ocean.

After receiving this news, he was a bit tempted at the time. After all, the coal bosses seemed to be very wealthy.

But after thinking about it, he gave up. A person should have some bottom line.

"DreamWorks wants to attract Indian investments?" Ronan asked again.

It was possible in the future. The Indians only came for an inspection this time.

For some reason, Ronan subconsciously linked this matter with "Brotherhood." The mini-series required massive investment, and even if DreamWorks teamed up with HBO, it wouldn't be easy. It was said that some newly rich Indians were really wealthy.

But even if it were true, it probably wouldn't go smoothly.

"Brotherhood" had many troubles, especially with the original author, Stephen Ambrose.

What was the first impression of this writer? The special advisor for "Saving Private Ryan," the original author of "Brotherhood," the author of biographies such as "Nixon" and "Eisenhower," he seemed very prestigious. However, when Ronan looked into it, he was startled.

Before entering the 1990s, Stephen Ambrose had been involved in numerous plagiarism and copyright scandals, some of which were related to "Brotherhood."

Two years ago, some World War II veterans accused Stephen Ambrose of plagiarizing their memoirs and diaries.

Because "Brotherhood" was currently only in book form and hadn't been adapted into film yet, its scope of dissemination was relatively small, and this matter hadn't escalated.

If the accusations were true, and if the veterans made a fuss, "Brotherhood" might be caught up in a copyright dispute.

Hollywood's adapted films often encountered such situations, usually resolved with money.

Those who made a fuss were just looking for benefits.

After thinking for a while, Ronan said to Robert, "Continue to pay attention to the Indians."

Money from the third brother was still money.

Robert nodded, understanding Ronan's meaning. He would focus on the situation of the Indians.

At this point, Mary asked, "How are things going with the distribution?"

She had to handle the financial work behind, so she didn't follow along.

"It's about as expected," Ronan said simply. "No distribution company has shown intention to sign yet, but apart from a few distribution companies like DreamWorks, others have clearly stated that they will discuss after seeing the finished film."

Robert glanced at Ronan, recalling the situation during the previous film, and reminded, "We're a small company, just stepping into theatrical films. It's normal."

Ronan could understand the implication of these words. He said, "I understand." Then he thought for a moment and said, "Just sending screeners to distribution companies seems a bit passive."

"True," Robert nodded, asking, "Do you have any ideas?"

Ronan rubbed his chin and said, "I have an idea. What do you think? Let's convene a screening event, inviting distribution experts and some fans to participate. This way, we'll take the initiative and it'll be easier to persuade them."

"It's a good idea," Mary agreed.

Robert echoed, "Many production companies do this, and it reportedly works well."

"Okay, let's arrange a screening event," Ronan made the decision. "I've been in touch with many distribution companies recently, so I should be able to invite people from five or six companies."

His voice lowered slightly, "I have some other ideas too."