Chapter 73： different from the past

Johnson-Blanton carried his briefcase and calmly followed the head of the front desk of Europa Pictures toward the conference room.

He restrained his steady and rhythmic exhalation and inhalation to calm his mind.

Next is a tough battle. Whether he can pass the test and successfully take over Lehman's personal brokerage business depends on the outcome of this negotiation.

Johnson is well aware that he has no friendship with his clients at all, and if he doesn't have the corresponding ability, it is only a matter of time before he is replaced and eliminated.

Therefore, this time, he must do his best, not only for his own commission, but also for his own future.

Don't look at CAA's nice words, saying that everyone is equal, but in fact, how can it be possible to achieve equality within the company? That's something God can't do.

There are resources and no resources, more and less earners, partners and part-time workers, is this also fair?

Johnson also wanted to have the status and status of a senior broker or even a CAA partner.

He kept lobbying, and coupled with his previous work experience, he managed to catch a promising potential customer. He didn't want to be rejected so easily.

Come on, work hard, you can definitely do it.

"Sir, it's here!" The lady at the front desk interrupted Johnson Brandon's thoughts.

He looked at the open meeting room in front of him and said politely, "Thank you."

After speaking, he walked in.

Inside, an oval long table was filled with executives from Europa Pictures.

Johnson-Blanton didn't seem to feel any pressure under the gaze of so many people, even though he was still a little nervous in his heart, his words were still steady, "Please allow me to introduce myself, my name is Johnson-Bull. Langton, from CAA, is currently managing director Ryman."

"What about Mr. Ryman? Won't he come?" an executive said.

"My client still has some trivial matters to deal with, and I can't get away. Today, I will be responsible for the shooting of the corresponding cooperation project." Johnson-Blanton chuckled and skipped this question unrelated to the negotiation conditions.

Of course, Lehman will not appear here. Negotiating conditions and so on must be a war without gunpowder smoke. Negotiating the distribution of interests, how can it be "king to king" from the beginning, and it is not good to leave a buffer space? So as not to hurt the feelings that the two sides have worked together before, isn't it?

Unless it is really negotiated, Lehmann will not appear at all, which is why he thinks it is useful to have an agent, otherwise he will not wait until the formal agreement with CAA before returning to France to deal with this side of things.

There is a shield, which is quite good.

"What about your conditions?" another executive asked.

Since Lehmann is reluctant to appear, the corresponding cooperation issues still have to be discussed. Their company has reviewed the project prospects of the movie "Fury" and feels that the possibility of profitability is very high.

"Our conditions are not complicated." Johnson-Brandon communicated with Lehman in advance and knew what points to achieve this time, or, what he still thought was, whether it could be based on this bottom line On, strive for more benefits, not for others, but for yourself.

The broker's commission is always linked to the value of the client.

"First, Mr. Lehman's director salary is 3 million US dollars, and the screenwriter's salary is 500,000 US dollars. At the same time, he must have the right to choose the film's producers and the final editing rights of the film. Moreover, the personnel of the shooting team must be established. Based on his opinion."

After Johnson-Blanton finished speaking, he calmly looked at the faces of everyone on the other side, and found that the executives of Europa Pictures seemed to be quite certain of this condition, and there was little resistance.

Think about it, too, the filming of the last movie, the above-mentioned studio powers, were also delegated by Europa Pictures to the director, Lehmann, which is why Lehmann has a good impression of Europa Pictures.

Now, except that the director's worth has risen from 200,000 yuan to 3 million yuan at the beginning, there is not much change, and after all, people have achievements in their bodies, it is really understandable to increase their worth, and Europa Pictures has also taken this into account.

They sat quietly, without any fluctuations in their hearts, and even wanted to laugh a little, because once the director's worth was announced, they felt that it was not high, and it did not touch the bottom line of Europa Pictures at all.

Johnson-Blanton continued calmly and said: "Second point, Mr. Lehman requires one-fifth of the investment share of the film, which is 10 million US dollars, he will bring the capital into the group, and enjoy the same proportion of revenue share. ."

As soon as this condition was said, it was denied.

Williams, director of marketing at Europa Pictures, immediately retorted: "It's impossible."

"Sir, our request is not too much. Director Lehmann's performance in the last work has fully proved his ability, and he should be entitled to the same proportion of profits."

"But you want too much. With all due respect, if you insist on this condition, we Europa Pictures will never approve it."

Johnson-Blanton said, "So it stands to reason that with Lehman's past achievements and conditions, he should also be paid in line with his worth. What do you mean?"

The meeting room fell silent for a while, and after a while, Williams, the marketing director who had just refuted, said, "$5 million plus 5% of the box office share, what do you mean?"

"Too low." Johnson-Blanton said bluntly, "It's not in our consideration at all."

"That's why we don't have to talk about it!" Williams was about to continue talking, but was interrupted by Luc Besson, who was sitting at the head of the conference table: "Tell me about the following conditions and state all the requirements at once. ."

"The actor should also respect Mr. Ryman's selection; the real budget of the project must meet the amount..."

As Johnson-Blanton said one by one, the expressions of everyone in Europa Pictures became more and more solemn, and the whole atmosphere of the conference room became more solemn.

However, negotiating is all about trying the bottom line that the other party can bear. Although the two sides broke up in the end, whether it is Lehman's agent Johnson or Europa Pictures, they are still The matter of this first interview was pressed in my heart.

As soon as the negotiation ended, Johnson Brandon left the Europa Films building. On the other side, in the conference room, the executives left one after another, but Luc Besson stopped Williams from the marketing department.

"What do you think?"

Williams, whose hair looks rather sparse, is only 42 years old this year, but he has been in the film industry for more than 20 years. The risk assessment of the film is low, the relevant mass base index collected by the market research department is high, and I am also very optimistic about the project’s profit forecast.”

He continued: "War movies have fans all over the world, and Lyman-Last has proven to us that his directing ability, the storyline of the film project is simple, but the theme is profound, and it is also true. It's the type he's very good at, no matter how you look at it, there are very few accidents. Another very important thing is..."

Williams sat upright and said solemnly: "He has succeeded in two consecutive works, and this time is still very likely to be successful again."

A director has a rising period of creation. Obviously, Lehmann belongs to this stage. According to past experience, the possibility of his success is far greater than the possibility of failure, and he chose him. The type that is good at is more secure.

Of course, this is just what he means. Williams is only responsible for expressing his own ideas. The real decision depends on the decision of Luc Besson or the board of directors.

"Then, you are very optimistic about the profit prospects of this movie."

Hearing Luc Besson's words, Williams nodded, "Yes, I can't think of a superbly produced war-themed movie that would be left out in the marketLuc Besson Song nodded slowly in agreement, "What do you think about the conditions he wants? "

"The production cost is 50 million US dollars, and the investment amount is indeed not small, but for us, it is not a thing that can be put on the table. But..." Williams The tone of his voice increased: "They actually want to get a share of the game, and they are still lions, and they directly want to take away one-fifth of the profits. This is something I will never approve of. I don't think Europa Pictures needs it. Share the benefits with them."

"What about the solution to the negotiation?"

"If $5 million plus 5% of box office revenue still can't satisfy his appetite, we can appropriately increase his director's salary, but there must be no room for negotiation in other aspects."

Williams thought very simply, he would rather increase the investment cost than open a hole in the income. Who knows whether they will continue to make further progress in the future, which is obviously also a question. If you look at it with the idea of ​​long-term cooperation, the later you talk about this part, the better.

Luc Besson obviously understood the deep meaning of Williams' words, and he has always been there with the idea of ​​maintaining a long-term cooperation with Lehmann.

However, the situation at this time is not what it used to be.

He shook his head and said, "That's the agent who calls himself CAA. We're not the only choice."

The second half of the sentence is quite lonely.

Yes, Lehman's optional target is no longer Europa Films. Whether it is other local film companies or major film studios in the United States, it is estimated that they are willing to cooperate with Lehman on projects.

what can we do about it?