independent filmmaker

Xie Lansheng returned the fax to the opposite Hong Kong reporter, said thank you, then collected his thoughts and moved to the elevator step by step.

At this time, Xin Ye, who was stopped by an acquaintance before, also returned to the hotel.He has also received news about Xie Lansheng's ban. In fact, Xin Ye knew the Hong Kong reporters just now.

"Xie Lansheng!" Xin Ye stood in the distance with his hands in his pockets, and called out to Xie Lansheng.

"Ok?"

Xinye glanced at him, then at the ground, and let him pass, while Xie Lansheng obediently, thinking that this man is domineering enough.

Xin Ye didn't mention the ban from the Film Bureau at all, but only asked, "Want to eat a Gelato?"

"what?"

The corners of Xinye's lips twitched: "Italian ice cream is quite famous all over the world, go try it? I stopped by when I came over, and there are several stores that close at midnight."

"Well..." Xie Lansheng said, "Okay." He thought, although he was still worried about the future, he could eat ice cream, and he would not know that it would be the year of the monkey next time he came to Italy.

Upon hearing the promise, Xinye turned and walked towards the door, while Xie Lansheng followed behind Xinye step by step.

Because the door was about to close, Xin Ye put his hands in his coat pockets, and walked through the alley next to the hotel to the adjacent road with big steps.

The street lamp reflected his tall figure, he walked step by step, his legs were very long, and the Europeans around him were half a head shorter and thinner than him, and their temperament was also a few steps behind.

Xie Lansheng watched from behind, and quite suddenly, he realized that this is a handsome man, a sexy man, and an attractive man, but he didn't realize it in the past, he just thought that the other party was his actor own comrades.

He recalled this morning at the door of the organizing committee's room, holding the opponent's arm and sniffing the scent of sandalwood.The faint fragrance and slight warmth really reassured him a lot.

Xinye walked to the ice cream shop, stood still on the steps, stretched out his bony fingers, opened the door, and glanced at the people behind him.Xie Lansheng hurried in.

Xin Ye recommended the most famous pistachio flavor of Gelato in Italy. After thinking about it, he also recommended the chocolate flavor, saying: "The chocolate in Turin is good, it is called the chocolate capital, and there is a chocolate festival every year. Do you know Ferrero? Just here."

"I don't know." Xie Lansheng tightly held the two servings of ice cream made by the store, thinking it was so fucking magical, it was different from the ice cream he ate.

The two sat on both sides of the round table. Xie Lansheng took a mouthful of Gelato with a spoon and put it into his mouth.In the past, the best he had eaten was Harbin's "Madier".

Is this the pistachio flavor?

Xinye propped his chin with his hands: "Pistachios can relieve depression and soothe the nerves, it's very good."

"……Um."

He tried chocolate again, which is said to be relaxing too.Soft, silky, sweet and bitter, mellow and profound, a bit like his way.

In fact, although Xie Lansheng was worried about the future, he was not overly anxious.After walking through the ups and downs, he didn't feel too sad or happy, but could study the current situation more objectively.

He was officially banned for eight years.

But he couldn't leave the movie.

In other words, the financial requirements for the next film will only be greater.The equipment may have to be purchased, and the processing can only be done in Europe and the United States. Even the film has to ask the students who are working on MTV to help him toss it, or buy it from Hong Kong.But after returning to China, there is a high probability that no one will be willing to invest again.

He has to sell "Rooting" these days, there is no other way.

Wait until the account is credited before taking a new one, and then get banned, and then shoot a new one, and then get banned... until one day, everything is destroyed.

Seeing that Xie Lansheng frowned slightly, Xinye asked, "What are you thinking?"

Xie Lansheng was interrupted, stunned for a moment, then said one by one, and finally said: "I have to sell the copyright." He used twists and turns of rhetoric and subtle ellipsis, and said everything calmly, because these frictions The taste of discord really can only be drunk by oneself.

Xinye stared at Xie Lansheng's eyes for a long time before finally saying, "Okay, I see. Just to make sure."

Hearing Xinye's reply from Xie Lansheng was quite inexplicable: Why just "OK, I know"? ? ?

Xinye smiled lightly and didn't intend to continue talking.

In fact, even if Lansheng didn't advertise, he could still contact the public relations and invite film critics to watch the screening, and he could also help Xie Lansheng sell the copyright of the movie, but Xie Lansheng promoted it himself, so he would accompany Chi and Mad.

Now... if need be, he'll do it.

He was negligent in sending it last time, and he didn't think that the film film cannot pass through the X-ray machine, but he will not make the same mistake again.

On the opposite side, Xie Lansheng ate up both flavors, scraped around the small bowl with a spoon, and rubbed it on his tongue one by one.

I don't know whether it's because of the pistachios or the chocolate. After eating two boxes of Italian "Gelato", Xie Lansheng's worries are much less.

Let's take a step first and look at it first, it's useless to be intimidated.

…………

Maybe that ice cream can really relieve Yu Anshen, Xie Lansheng actually slept fairly well that night.

The next day, Xie Lansheng waited in front of the small phone in his room all day, not even daring to go out for dinner, always worried about missing out on buyers.Ms. Morita told him that after the screening, an offer should be made within 24 hours.

Yet the phone was dead silent.

Although Xinye intends to help him search for international buyers, but he has not written his horoscope yet, and he is not used to speaking too early.

Until six o'clock in the evening, when Xie Lansheng was about to despair, the phone finally beeped!

Xie Lansheng crawled down from his bed on hands and feet, knelt on the carpet like a puppy, and picked up the phone with his hands!

"Director Xie, hello," said an American man on the opposite side, "I'm Brian Harbin, executive director of Universal Pictures. Do you still have the copyright for "Rooting" in the United States?"

Lan Sheng knelt in front of the bedside table and said, "American copyright? Yes, there is!!!"

"Then, can we meet at the coffee shop downstairs at eight o'clock tonight? It's called 'PassionCafe', we can talk face to face."

"Yes, yes! Of course!" Xie Lansheng said hastily.

"See you tonight."

"Well! See you tonight!"

Putting down the phone, Xie Lansheng's "survival from a desperate situation" was almost materialized.He jumped up and grabbed Xinye's arm: "Xinye! Universal Pictures USA!!! Universal Pictures wants to buy the copyright!!!"

Xinye smiled lightly: "Let's talk to him together." It really wasn't him who found it.

"Ok!"

'Is there a psychological price? '

"Sell for money!"

"What nonsense." Xinye thought about it, "20 dollars."

"Will this be too much..."

"Not much." Xin Ye said, "Be more confident."

"Okay..."

So, at eight o'clock in the evening, Xie Lansheng and Xinye went to "PassionCafe" to discuss copyright sales with Brian Harbin.

Universal Pictures is not a sales company, but a distribution company that can distribute movies directly.

Generally speaking, it is the major sales companies that act as "bole" at film festivals.The sales company takes the copyright, resells it to the distribution company, and negotiates distribution rights for a specific region, including countries, prices, media, and so on.The sales company usually signs an agreement with the producer to negotiate the asking price and the reserve price—the latter refers to the lowest price. Then, every time the sales company sells the copyright to a new region, it needs to give the producer a commission.The sales promotion materials are also prepared by the sales themselves, after all, they are more professional.Generally speaking, if a film can be sold in 20 regions, it will definitely have a good result, but also because the target market is all major countries in the world, it is difficult for independent film producers to negotiate in person and hand over to a company. Selling companies is the most common practice.However, the sales company has a high vision and will not waste resources easily. The sales staff will go to major film festivals to watch the film, and then write a market adaptability report for the film to see if they want to "start".At present, the two major sales centers in the world are Los Angeles and London. The former has an independent film trade association, and the latter also has its own association.

Xinye has made preliminary inquiries. Large sales companies will operate 20 to 25 films a year, and medium-sized companies will operate 10 to 15 films a year. If there are more than this number, Xie Lansheng will be disadvantaged because the company's sales will be too scattered. After all, the sales company will not pay the initial fee to the producer. It will not share the money with Xie Lansheng until it successfully resells the copyright of "Rooting" to a certain region.

However, for a big market like the United States, it is also a good choice to bypass these sales companies and directly connect with the distribution company. This shows that 100% of the copyright fees will go to the producer. In "Rooting", the "producer" is Xie Lansheng.

Brian Harbin was tall and almost as tall as Xin Ye.

He shook hands with the two of them one by one, then sat on the stool again, took out his business card and handed them to them, and pushed two glasses of Latte to the opposite side: "I ordered Latte, can I drink it?"

Xie Lansheng said, "Yes, yes, thank you very much."

After a few pleasantries between the two sides, Brian Harbin stopped doing more polite things, but chose to go straight to the point.It was a good business, and he had the capital to cut to the chase instead of rambling like a small company trying to undercut the price.

Brian Harbin said: "Director Xie, Yves, it's like this: China has developed very rapidly in recent years, and some American movie audiences also hope to understand China. Based on this special background, I am very interested in "Rooting". I watched it at the film festival yesterday. I watched the first scene of "Rooting", and I was very impressed. Although the technique is a bit rough, but, unlike mainstream Chinese movies, it does not have a macro narrative, and it does not talk about history or culture. Instead, it focuses the lens on a Normal families, that's what we want to see."

Xie Lansheng was quite happy and said, "Thank you!" He felt that Brian Harbin's vision was very poisonous, and he could get to the point right away, the difference between him, Feng Mao and the director.

Brian Harbin also said: "In the United States, audiences prefer literary films to Asian commercial films. They must be delicate and have a unique taste of Asia. Therefore, if the conditions are all right, we can go through the process. Copyright purchase There needs to be a meeting over there at headquarters and over there, but it won't take too long."

"Hmm..." Xie Lansheng asked the most critical question, "What is the probability of passing the meeting?"

"To tell you the truth," Brian Harbin said, "I'm the major producer of the company. So far, I haven't been unable to buy the copyright of the movie I'm looking at. I can leave my words here, [-]%, there is no accident."

"!!!" Xie Lansheng was excited: Is he really going to succeed...?

so close!

"Director Xie," Brian Harbin asked another important question, ""Rooting", the United States, cinema, video tape, VOD on demand, pay TV, free TV, aviation system application six media, what price do you offer?"

Xie Lansheng was about to say 20 yuan, but Xinye stopped him with a wave.Xinye leaned forward slightly, giving people a strong sense of oppression, and said, "Give me a price that you think matches "Rooting". How much do you think it is worth?"

Brian Harbin was taken aback for a moment, then smiled: "I even forgot that Yves, you are a graduate of Harvard's Department of Economics."

But Brian didn't go against the routine. He thought for a while and said, "Yves, it's no fun to push back and forth. Let's both be sincere. $20 should be enough, right?"

Xinye approached the back of the seat and smiled lightly: "It seems that there are additional conditions for such a happy time?"

"Excellent." Brian Harbin's smile was very sincere and approachable, "Don't worry, it's not a big request."

"Tell me?"

Brian Harbin didn't seem to think that this request would be rejected at all, saying: "Yesterday, I discussed this film with several directors of the company all night, and finally we came to the common conclusion that the ending needs to be changed."

Xie Lansheng's pretty eyebrows frowned slightly immediately.

Brian Harbin gave a very good offer: "The ending of "Rooting" is too tragic. It is not suitable for the American market. It will lose the interest of the audience and also make us lose profits. We hope that Director Xie can shoot a separate ending for the American version , that is, 'Chen Caifeng' took her two daughters to Shenzhen to start a new life, and met a new relationship, 'Wang Fusheng' regretted it but couldn't bring her back."

"No, this is not in line with the theme of the film!" Xie Lansheng protested fiercely, "Caifeng is not such a person! She is aware of her misery, but she does not have the ability to actively get rid of her family, nor does she have the vision and knowledge. According to Caifeng The only thing she can wake up to is 'being a woman is too hard', which is a conclusion she made after observing her surroundings, and she can't realize that there is a new world in Shenzhen. She is such a woman."

"No." Brian Harbin insisted, "There is no market for Bad Ending. Director Xie, our offer is sincere enough. After a whole night's discussion, our proposal here is that the ending of "Rooting" needs to be filmed, and Universal Pictures With industry funding, you don’t need to worry about additional costs for reshoots. Rooting is a win-win strategy with both the original release and the US release.”

At the end, Brian Harbin gave another heavy hammer, "Director Xie, if you can't modify the ending, then sorry, I will say that "Rooting" will not only lose the interest of Universal Pictures, but also lose the interest of other potential buyers."

"..." A few seconds later, Xie Lansheng asked, "It means that if you don't want to modify the ending, Universal Pictures won't buy it?"

"Unfortunately, yes. If "Rooting" maintains the original version, it means that the two sides cannot reach an agreement on key issues, and the negotiation can only declare a breakdown."

Xie Lansheng: "..."

Xinye next to him didn't give any advice, and wanted to see what Lan Sheng would do.

Xie Lansheng clenched his fingers again.

Do you want to change it?

Do you want American audiences to see a "As You Like It"?

But that's not his character, and it's not his story.

Xie Lansheng knew that he had been waiting for a whole day, and this was the only potential buyer.It stands to reason that after a whole day of screenings, if someone really wants to buy it, they should have done so by now.

Moreover, the only buyer is the "Big Mac" Universal Pictures.

He is now officially banned and needs money more than last time.His own personality makes it impossible for him to deceive his relatives and friends. If he wants to solicit investment again, he must tell the truth. Then who will give him the deposit when the official has clarified the following?Moreover, if he failed to pay back this time and failed to sell any copyrights, then no one would be willing to let him try again next time.

And the so-called "overseas fund" sounds quite unreliable.

He's going to hit a dead end.

20 US dollars.

As soon as he closed his eyes, gritted his teeth, and reshot the ending of the American version, he would have the money to film the second part, even the next part, the next part.

Why not?Only a fool would disagree.It is also for these reasons that Brian Harbin, executive director of Universal Pictures, will be confident.

Xie Lansheng's eyes turned to the yellow peach jar he brought.Because he was worried that he would have to talk for a long time but had no money to sell coffee, Xie Lansheng brought his boiled water to PassionCafe.

This thing has come from a long way, tossed and tossed through mountains and rivers, but now it is quietly curled up in a corner of the coffee table, facing the fragrant Latte, humble, cowardly, anxious, and pitiful.

There was a lot of noise in the cafe, but Xie Lansheng felt that it was really...

Gold lamps and silver lamps were wandering all over the place, but he couldn't catch any of them.

After a while, Xie Lansheng finally made a decision. He raised his head, looked at Brian Harbin and said, "Sorry, Brian, I won't change the ending."

He does not succumb to power, nor does he succumb to capital.

He holds a bowl of water very level.

I can only go back and continue to think about the way to "survive a desperate situation".

Hearing this, Brian Harbin showed obvious surprise on his face, and said, "Director Xie, do you want to think about it again?"

Xie Lansheng shook his head lightly: "I have nothing to think about. However, I sincerely ask Universal Pictures to think again... The reason why this film was shortlisted in Turin is because of this ending. If you really can't accept the original version, Then, as I said just now, the two of us who appreciate each other can only part ways."

Brian Harbin looked at Xie Lansheng. After a long while, he lowered his head and pondered over the table for a long time. The fingers of his right hand tapped the coffee table quickly, which seemed to show the owner's hesitation and entanglement.After more than half a minute, Brian Harbin raised his head again and said, "I'm sorry, Director Xie, we think we need to change the ending. The US market and film festival selection criteria are completely different."

"..." It's over.

Xie Lansheng stood up, shook hands with Brian Harbin again, and said, "I am still very grateful to Universal Pictures for their appreciation of "Rooting". I hope we can have a real chance to cooperate next time."

"Well, we're looking forward to it."

Amidst the aroma of coffee, the negotiation between the two parties officially broke down.

Brian Harbin left, and Xie Lansheng led Xinye out of the gate step by step.

So far, the only company that wanted to buy the copyright was driven away by him.

He doesn't regret it, but he really doesn't know whether he is right or wrong.

…………

As soon as he returned to the entrance of the hotel, Xie Lansheng saw a blur in front of his eyes, and found a man who suddenly fell from the sky and hugged him, and happily called: "Lan Sheng!!! "

It was only after Xie Lansheng tore him down that he realized that it was Sun Fengmao.Infected by the other party's emotions, he also smiled and asked, "What's the matter? Do you have any good news to share with your brother?"

"Yes!!!" Sun Fengmao was so excited that he spit out his saliva, "Lan Sheng, brother, I'm going to sell the US copyright!!! 20! US dollars! Fuck!"

"..." Xie Lansheng said, "Congratulations! Which one is it?"

"Fuck it! It's so exciting!" Sun Fengmao waved his hands, "Universal Pictures! Can you imagine?!"

Xie Lansheng felt a little sour when he heard the name. He could only lament the bad luck. He said enviously: "That's great... Brian Harbin from Universal Pictures talked to me in the coffee shop just now. But it's different from "Play". , For "Rooting", they asked to replace the ending, I really couldn't accept it, so the talk collapsed, and it collapsed."

"Huh???" Sun Fengmao looked puzzled when he heard this, "Brian also asked "Playing" to modify the final ending, and asked for a happy ending. I think this is not a big problem, so I agreed." His "Playing" "The same as Xie Lansheng's "Rooting", both describe the collapse of the family. However, Xie Lansheng's focus is on the repressed woman, and his focus is on the repressed child. The ending is similar to Xie Lansheng's thinking. When he went out, he was involved in a car accident, and Universal Pictures asked to change it to the ending where the parents of the child repented and the family reunited.

"..." Xie Lansheng didn't blame Fengmao, but just said with a smile, "Hey, envy, you are too neat, I can't do it, I still can't agree after a long time of deliberation." Xie Lansheng knew that no one of them could convince the other about this kind of problem.

He knew very well that Feng Mao also really loved movies.Fengmao said that when he was in middle school, he went to the Workers' Cultural Palace every week as a ticket seller, because he could go in to watch movies when the tickets were sold out.

"No, Lan Sheng," Sun Fengmao's temperament has always been straightforward, "Are you an idiot...? Both of us have been banned! No individual or unit can support it anymore! If you want to make a movie, you must have Lots of money!"

Xie Lansheng said, "I know."

"This is 20 US dollars! 100 million RMB! No, so much money can't make you change it a little bit? Yankees like to watch that, and it costs money, so let them watch it! Take the money !Although we want to make a movie, we really don’t want to have to deal with money. Anyway, I thought about it from the beginning, selling copyright is the most important thing, and I must have money in my hand.”

Xie Lansheng was silent for a second, and then laughed exaggeratedly again: "Hey, don't talk! I can't get over this hurdle! My parents say I'm stubborn! I also think I may be quite sick, I can see a doctor."

Xie Lansheng didn't want to quarrel, he smiled and pushed Sun Fengmao's shoulder, "Congratulations! Don't forget to treat the guests to drink after receiving the copyright fee!"

"That must be!"

"Okay, then I'll go back to my room and talk."

"Well, let's talk back."

After bidding farewell to Sun Fengmao, Xie Lansheng felt a little melancholy.

And a little doubt about myself.

"Don't worry about that." Seeing Xie Lansheng's head hanging down, Xinye's tone was a little lazy, "I'll regret it, what's the matter."

Xie Lansheng: "...Huh?" You have already got 100 million yuan, and you still regret it?Moreover, his name is Feng Mao, a good name.

Xin Ye continued to be careless: "In order to cater to the market, he changed his biggest feature and turned his product into a mediocre thing. He will regret it one day."

yes……

Xie Lansheng didn't say anything more.

He himself only looked at the problem from a principle, but Xinye... seemed to look at it from a business point of view.

Xie Lansheng didn't worry anymore.

Now he trusts Xinye the most.Since Xinye said that he did the right thing, then he should be right, Xinye and him are in the same group.