Chapter 79 Insurance

"How's the atmosphere in the new company?" asked Ronan.

Robert thought for a moment and replied, "Overall, it's not bad. There isn't much exclusivity. Of course, it would be fake to say I'm welcomed with open arms after I arrived, but it hasn't affected normal work. The management, like Garcia and Thomas, actually welcomed the acquisition. They also want to release real blockbuster movies instead of buying small films overseas every year and waiting to cash in on a few million dollars. The previous three owners were too conservative."

Ronan didn't mind if there were people in the company with opinions. After all, people weren't machines. "The distribution work will pick up soon," he remarked.

The two talked a lot about distribution company matters. The Embassy Entertainment wasn't very large in scale, and the personnel relationships were relatively simpler, but there were still factions and competition within.

"What worries me the most isn't the management," Robert said, unusually serious. "Many employees in this company have gradually developed a habit of working at a slow pace. I'm concerned they won't keep up with our fast pace."

Ronan also had this consideration. "Under the premise of ensuring smooth distribution channels, it's survival of the fittest."

"Yeah," Robert agreed.

"It's almost time for the Saint Denis Film Festival," Ronan said, mentioning his plan. "I plan to go to the festival to see if there's a suitable indie film to buy. It'll get the distribution company busy."

After completing the acquisition, cohesion and centripetal force wouldn't be solved in a short time. The best way was to use the success of a film to bring the new company on track.

Robert nodded, "That's a good idea. It will test the employees and also provide experience for large-scale film distribution. But don't spend too much if you decide to buy."

Ronan had some confidence in the distribution channels built over the years by Embassy Entertainment. "Let's just go and take a look first. If there's a suitable film, then we'll see."

The Saint Denis Film Festival was a paradise for indie films. Not only did it feature Hollywood-produced films, but also many films made by filmmakers unrelated to Hollywood. These indie films usually couldn't find distribution channels under normal circumstances and would likely remain in storage forever. The roadside screenings at the Saint Denis Film Festival were the best opportunity for them. Moreover, in recent years, the Saint Denis Film Festival had also produced several indie films that had exploded at the box office.

After just acquiring a distribution company, Ronan planned to wait until "The Hitman Comes" was sorted out before going there to try his luck. Maybe he would encounter an ideal film.

Robert also inquired about this film, "How's 'The Hitman Comes' doing?"

Ronan shook his head lightly, "Still haven't found a suitable director."

This film was meant for raising funds... no, for financing. But they also wanted to make it as good as possible, at least to recoup some funds. They couldn't just casually hire a bad director.

Robert joked, "If nothing works out, you could be the director yourself."

Ronan shrugged, "You can imagine, 'The Hitman Comes' would become the worst film in Hollywood history."

Even after leaving Embassy Entertainment, he was still thinking about this film. The script was still being refined and modified, which differed somewhat from what was presented to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority.

The Arab protagonist was a given, of course. The supporting roles on the side of justice could be white, black, Latino, and so on. Ethnic minorities still had some purchasing power, and adding characters of other ethnicities would also be beneficial for future promotion and distribution.

To maximize revenue, they couldn't rely solely on Arab audiences.

Later, Ronan and George Clint went to various major unions to handle some matters. With the success of "The Human Purge", and the relatively high investment in these two projects, they needed to employ a large number of workers and deal with the unions was inevitable.

Otherwise, if the unions caused trouble, it would be a headache.

Sand Sea Entertainment was no longer the obscure video tape production company it used to be.

The Producers Guild, the two major actors' guilds, the technicians and coordinators' guild, and the director's guild, newly joined by James Huang, all received a visit from Ronan to complete the registration and filing of "The Hitman Comes" and "The Hitman Comes" projects with them.

These two films had also become genuine union projects, and the corresponding personnel in the crew would be protected by the unions. In the future, when the films generated revenue, hefty management fees would also have to be paid to the unions.

It was okay to talk about the rest, but when it came to collecting money from the capitalists, Ronan felt very uncomfortable.

Wasn't this putting the cart before the horse?

But with the development of this industry for nearly a century, there were already complete industry regulations, which a small company couldn't challenge.

Being registered as union projects also meant that the employees' salaries had to meet certain standards.

As everyone knew, unions had minimum wage regulations.

In addition, the production crew also needed to have comprehensive insurance procedures, meaning that the crew had to fork out some extra money to get insurance from an insurance company.

There wasn't just one insurance that needed to be taken out.

Ronan contacted the Fire Fund Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Allianz Group in Germany. More than sixty percent of the insurance used by Hollywood crews and even mainstream commercial productions were done through this company.

Strictly speaking, taking out insurance wasn't a bad thing. In case of accidents, the insurance company would foot the bill.

During the filming process, anything could happen, such as equipment theft, injuries to cast and crew, or damage to shooting locations.

What if a chandelier fell and burned the carpet? What if someone broke their leg during filming? When these terrible things happened, the one responsible would only be the producer, Ronan.

Moreover, when leasing outdoor locations, props, and equipment, insurance certificates could be used as guarantees.

Following the requirements of the major unions, Ronan took out actor insurance, film and videotape insurance, equipment insurance, workers' compensation insurance, and errors and omissions liability insurance from the Fire Fund Insurance Company.

Among them, due to the presence of the stunt team, the workers' compensation insurance had a coverage of up to $300,000.

"Mr. Anderson, I need copies of the stunt script and stunt scene design for filing," Bob from the Fire Fund Insurance said to Ronan. "Once the insurance contract takes effect, major changes to the stunt scenes cannot be made without the consent of the insurance company."

Ronan felt a little headache. Still, he said, "Rest assured, I don't like dangerous stunts either."

Bob said seriously, "Just to make it clear, if there's a breach of contract, we will withdraw the insurance."

Ronan nodded, understanding the insurance business in Hollywood to some extent.

In his past life, Tom Cruise, known as Hollywood's most daring stuntman, practiced climbing and jumping on the tallest building in the world, the Burj Khalifa, for eight days for the scene in "Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol". The original insurance company refused to insure the dangerous stunt and demanded changes to the script or the use of a stunt double. Tom Cruise refused, fired the insurance company, and the production company was forced to temporarily switch to another insurance company. It was said that no company was willing to insure them, and finally, personal funds guaranteed it.

People like Tom Cruise were rare exceptions, after all. Although Hollywood actors were generally dedicated, very few were as daring as him.

If an insurance company refused certain business, it wasn't unheard of.

For example, Robert Downey Jr., due to his drug addiction during his youth, had been in and out of rehab from 1996 to 2001 multiple times. Because of the high risk, no insurance company was willing to insure him, which led to many films giving up on Robert Downey Jr. It wasn't until Mel Gibson guaranteed for him that the situation improved.

Nicole Kidman, too, had insurance company shadows behind her downfall.

David Fincher's film "Panic Room" was originally supposed to star Nicole Kidman, but due to recurring old injuries and personal reasons, Nicole Kidman withdrew from the cast at the last minute, causing the film to be close to cancellation. The insurance company almost had to pay $54 million for this. Fortunately, Judy Foster was found to replace her later, allowing the film to continue. But after the project exceeded the deadline, the insurance company also had to pay $7 million.

This directly led to Nicole Kidman becoming one of the least favored actresses by insurance companies.

When insurance companies were unwilling to insure a certain celebrity, it would often affect the choice of the crew.

Bob, a seemingly inconspicuous small business manager in the vast Fire Fund Insurance Company, after handling the insurance contract with the crew, brought up his little idea and asked, "Mr. Anderson, forgive me for asking, but which company is your crew using as a third-party guarantee?"

"This is confidential," Ronan casually replied.

Third-party guarantee? That might be something to consider in the future, but it was unnecessary now, wasn't it?

Bob was clever and didn't pursue further. Instead, he took out a business card and handed it to Ronan. "Feel free to call me if you need anything."

Ronan took it, saying, "I will."