Chapter 247： vision

Legendary Pictures reached a strategic partnership with Warner Pictures in 2005, and it is also Warner's first non-subsidiary deep collaborator.

However, that's all for later.

Now, Thomas Tour has just gotten Wall Street funding and is gearing up for a career with much fanfare.

And precisely, some time ago, the wind revealed by Europa Pictures made him notice Firefly Films.

Under normal circumstances, he would not pay attention to such a newly established small company, but he was repeatedly frustrated when contacting a number of first-tier manufacturers such as Universal, Paramount, Disney, and Warner.

At this time, he realized that with his little capital, people didn't look down on him at all. (Don't ask why Warner doesn't like it, because it's really unnecessary. Why should the profits be distributed to outsiders? Is it because the shareholders behind Warner are not doing enough, or are the people on Wall Street very good? Barry Mayer also went through After a long time of consideration, I finally accepted the legendary one, and it was a bit pitted.)

After he figured it out, Thomas Tull didn't give up. He continued to contact these manufacturers while lowering his gaze to find those mid-stream and downstream film production companies.

For example, Lionsgate, Miramax, New Line Cinema, etc.

But most of the problems are the same. Foreign capital forces like Lions Gate will definitely not talk about cooperation or anything; and Miramax, a film company that focuses on low-cost production and picks its own advantages-Oscar’s profitable film company, They don't need any capital injection, they are running very well by themselves; as for the new line, the same is true for the company's prospects in the past two years, and there is no need to absorb capital to share risks.

The election came and went, and Thomas Tull was worried.

What he likes, others don't like him, and what he doesn't like, will definitely not play.

After all, he had never considered a movie project with a budget of hundreds of thousands or millions.

Seeing that the big guys didn't want to play with him, his eyes locked on another one - that was Firefly Pictures.

After some investigations, his thoughts became more and more firm.

First of all, the distribution channels are very guaranteed - Europa Pictures has overseas channels, and has signed a three-year long-term cooperation plan. Domestically, it is also easier to handle, and it is not difficult to distribute through agents; secondly, the company has a lot of Potential, the first project announced is a sharp weapon to harvest the box office market during this period, the sequel to "Chainsaw". Moreover, Lehmann's past achievements are also very bluffing, and he has never made a splash, and the profit is quite impressive. , the return ratio is rare in the industry.

Then there is the clear equity, or the newly established. If you invest, you don’t need to wrangle too much. I haven't seen a person with real decision-making power, and the division of power within the company is really intertwined.)

With all that said, Thomas Tour thinks this might be an opportunity.

After all, he has not been exposed to too much film production and has no experience. Subconsciously, he likes to find those who have achievements and market guarantees. Let's not talk about how much money he makes, at least he can't let the investment go to waste, right?

Probably feeling that the foreshadowing is almost done, Thomas Tour said with a smile: "I am here today to sincerely seek cooperation with you. A cooperation that can give us a win-win situation."

Lehman glanced at him in surprise, but after thinking about it, it seemed that it should be the case. In the circle, the bosses of two film companies who didn't know each other, besides discussing cooperation, what else would they talk about.

"Really, can you briefly talk about what kind of win-win cooperation it is." Lehmann looked attentive.

"I have idle funds in my hand, and you have a project in hand. Don't you want to develop a first-line big production?"

"..."

Lehmann did not speak, glanced at Thomas Tour, and then looked at the humidor in his hand with interest, as if appreciating the texture and packaging on it.

Of course Thomas Tull knew that this was asking him to speak out, and he was unequivocal, and said, "I can invest in projects in your company, either 500 million or 1 billion."

"Our Legendary Pictures has sufficient capital, and many private equity foundations on Wall Street are our allies. We will have a large amount of liquidity to control. I can guarantee that as long as we cooperate with each other, the world's film market will support us. Open it up, even if you want to make a huge production like Titanic, we can do it.”

"In addition, we can explain in advance, or even write it into the contract, Legendary Pictures will not miss the chance to interfere with your company's project shooting, and we are willing to give you the greatest production autonomy."

"In terms of distribution, you have the final say in who to cooperate with."

"We can not participate in the film rights, as long as the revenue is shared."

"..."

After all, it's all nonsense.

It's not that Lehmann doesn't know the details of Legendary Pictures.

They have nothing but some capital.

What market, what cooperation, what non-interference shooting, almost all nonsense.

Things that can't be done in the first place are also taken out and blown.

Do you have channels, you have media resources, and do you have production capabilities? nothing.

Then there's the hammer.

As for the grand production, is there no condition for capital investment? After investment, can it be mobilized at will?

This didn't get to the point, and I wanted to fool him.

hehe.

"Mr. Thomas, our company has just been established, and the internal management is still a mess. Even if you have this heart, you can't take action."

Lehman pretended to be worried and said, "Also, I also understand the situation of your company. Do you think it is necessary for us to cooperate?"

A rhetorical question, a direct crit.

On paper, the current Legendary Pictures seems to be flying high. Wall Street and financial tycoons have a lot of chips behind them.

Unfortunately, eggs are useless.

The film industry is not a financial industry. You can’t come up with a specific project, and you can’t be sure that the project can be produced well, or that it has the prospect of making a profit, and even if you don’t have the strength to make a movie, you can push it all the way to the theater.

That's it, if you don't have hematopoietic function at home, if you only ask for cooperation, why should you choose you? Choose Warner, choose Paramount, choose Universal, isn't it fragrant?

This is also the reason why this product has repeatedly hit the wall, the conditions are too poor.

If people only need money, isn't it also a measure to take a mortgage loan from a bank, and they don't need to share so many benefits.

"Of course, we are well-funded, and I believe that if we work together, we can produce more and better film projects at the same time."

"Do you think making movies will definitely make money?"

"This is a big data problem. Generally speaking, if you invest in 20 movies with a cost of about 30 million, there is a high probability that you will make a profit."

Well, it seems that he still has some experience, not completely understanding the film market.

"Moreover, I think the total volume of the film market has been increasing in recent years. In the next five years, this situation may not change. The expansion of the market means that it can accept more films."

Well, it's still very insightful.

From this time, we can foresee that the Hollywood market will continue to increase in the next few years, and be prepared to lose money, invest in a large number of movie projects, use quantity instead of vision, and maintain a total profit above revenue and expenditure. Really very doable.

"Then what do you think is the best way to run a movie?"

"Make a blockbuster. To be more precise, it's a series of movies."

Thomas Tour also understood that Lehmann was testing him.

Of course, this is also normal. If you want to find someone to cooperate with, of course, the other party depends on your strength.

“Filming a movie is risky, whether it’s a small investment or a big investment, as long as the project fails, it’s nothing more than a question of whether the loss is more or less, but as long as a series of movies is successfully run, the market foundation will be laid. , these shooting risks can be avoided with a high probability, thus forming a continuous money-absorbing weapon. I have analyzed Warner's "Harry Potter" series. So far, they have shot two films in total, and the third one is still production, but it has brought them more than 1 billion dollars in profit revenue, and even more, the value of those surrounding copyrights will only increase with time..."

After Lyman listened, he nodded subconsciously.

Two simple questions, Thomas Tour's answer thoroughly demonstrated his keen market sense.

It is estimated that this is also the reason why Legendary Pictures has been able to rise since 2005, from a third-rate small company that followed Warner's back to eat soup to develop a "monster universe", the company's value has soared.

For a film company in the media field, the vision of the person at the helm really matters a lot.

"Why don't you come to us, you can choose whatever job you want."

Lehman couldn't help but wince. Just like George, it would be a pity not to try to win for such an industry talent.

"Uh I'm here to talk about cooperation." Thomas Tull said somewhat euphemistically, but he also rejected Lyman's solicitation in disguise.

"If we cooperate, let's chat when we have time." Lehmann glanced at his watch, got up and said, "It's not too early, my company has something to do, so I'll leave first."

In the same sentence, Firefly Pictures does not have much need for funds, and it is impossible for Legendary Pictures to take advantage.

Of course, Thomas Tour also heard what Lehmann meant, but after all, he was someone who had experienced great things, and it was not once or twice that he was rejected or something.

He was not angry when he heard the words, and politely greeted Laiman to leave.

"Is it a long time to come to Japan? Cooperation is not something that can be negotiated in a short time. If we have time, we can talk again. Our Legendary Pictures has always been sincere. This is definitely true."

"Well, I have no doubt that you have the idea of ​​sincere cooperation. Then, let's talk next time?"

There is no righteousness in buying and selling, and Lehman is also polite.