1777 capital control
“we need more funds.”
Andre's eyes fell on Renly, while Andy and Matthew also cast their eyes on Renly. In an instant, Renly became the center of attention..
Renly was picking up the red wine glass, enjoying the leisurely leisurely time - just after leaving the explanation task to Matthew, he began to relax again. Now that he was aware of the attention, Renly still slowly picked up the red wine glass. , raised his gaze slowly, "I'm not the one in charge of the checkbook, why are you all looking at me? Shouldn't it be Arthur who comes on stage at this time?？”
Andy is puzzled.
Andre rolled his eyes.
Matthew is silent.
Renly raised the red wine glass and said, "Okay, now is not the time to joke. Of course I know that the capital chain is a crucial issue, but I think what is more important now is the blueprint we are planning now. How big is it? How much is the first batch of start-up capital? If you tell me that you need 10 billion, then I am afraid that I can only summon Sir Alexander Hamilton to come on stage. Please make a special visit to Wall Street. In my personal name, this is impossible. The height of realization.”
“Wall Street, Renly, are you sure? "Matthew said.
Renly stared at the tears in the red wine glass in front of him and slowly fell down, "No, I'm not sure. That's why we need to determine the blueprint for the entire development. If we can avoid Wall Street, I still hope that Sisyphus Films Can we not be involved in such a huge interest dispute?.”
“Renly, do you know what you're saying? "Andre complained directly, "You are planning a streaming media platform, remember? It's you who took Sisyphus Pictures to a whole new level, otherwise, with our current financial situation, we can run very well.”
Faced with the accusation, Renly chuckled softly, "I didn't expect that our Lord Andrei would also be timid and scared sometimes. I thought this was what you wanted..”
timid? Fear？
Andre stared at Renly speechlessly, "Then you mobilize five billion pounds for me now, and I will show you my majestic, bold and adventurous side..”
“Andre, my suggestions are just suggestions. How far Sisyphus Films can develop depends on you, not me." Renly's look of handing over the boss made Andre so angry that his teeth started to itch. ——But after being friends for so many years, he already knows Renly’s temper and character, right?？
Andre said angrily, "Everyone says that I have a young master's temper. In my opinion, you are the real young master, okay?" Andre cast a glance at Matthew, "That's the only thing that can happen. You can stand him." Then he picked up the red wine glass and poured all the red wine down his throat..
Matthew was silent for a moment and said quietly, "You know this way of drinking is very vulgar..”
Andre almost choked on the red wine.
……
Wall Street? Money control? Ten billion？
In fact, this is the part that Renly is most worried about..
As we all know, after Wall Street capital controls large enterprises, they must prioritize interests, not only in shopping malls, but also in the field of artistic creation. From Disney to Warner Brothers to Universal Pictures, all their decisions are inevitably affected by Free from the constraints of Wall Street capital - even chess players have their own rules, and the so-called freedom is relative.
Or take DreamWorks as an example.
When Steven Spielberg teamed up with Jeffrey Katzenberg and David Geffen to create DreamWorks, they hoped to get rid of the capital control of Wall Street and truly create movies according to their own ideas, so , they established the company entirely by using their own abilities, and their creative works are indeed unconstrained..
But the ending was that ten years later, in 2004, DreamWorks Animation split off and became independent; in 2005, DreamWorks Movies was acquired by Paramount. The original "Dream Factory" was ultimately unable to resist the crushing of Wall Street capital. Regrettably, the curtain has come to an end. This cannot be said to be the failure of DreamWorks, but rather a great challenge for DreamWorks..
Now Sisyphus Films has encountered such problems in its initial stage.
If they want to remain independent, especially if they want to cooperate with the Sundance Film Festival and produce a large number of independent art films, then they need to get rid of the control of Wall Street capital; but if they want to establish a streaming platform and build their own original film library , then they will need the support of a large amount of capital, and the consumption in the primitive accumulation stage will be very serious..
Is there a third option?？
Yes. This is the model of Legendary Pictures.
Wall Street capital chose to trust Thomas Tull and handed over the funds to Tull for operation and management, just like a foundation. Tull then cooperated with film companies to invest in filming works, and the film companies were responsible for distribution and release. The former Warner Brothers and the current Universal Pictures is such a partner.
Sisyphus Pictures can definitely follow this model and cooperate with Sony Classics and Sony Columbia.
But the problem exists objectively. First, Tull was able to win the complete trust of Wall Street capital and start working with almost no interference from Wall Street. This is a bond of trust established over a long period of time; second, the bond of trust has not been broken. The fundamental reason is that Tull can make money. Most of the projects invested by Legendary Pictures are commercial films, which is contrary to the original intention of Sisyphus Pictures..
In other words, Wall Street capital is like a sharp sword hanging on the neck. They may launch an attack at any time, even Legendary Pictures is no exception. This is the fundamental reason why DreamWorks rejected the injection of Wall Street capital in the first place - art The balance between business and business has never been a simple matter of "one plus one equals two."”.
This is the current situation of entrepreneurship. They need to face countless difficulties and challenges. Even if they overcome them all, they may still not be able to succeed..
In fact, the best choice for Sisyphus Pictures is to maintain the status quo: invest in small independent works such as "Cruel Drummer" and "Nightcrawler", but without too much ambition, no need to cooperate with Sundance, and no need to Establish a streaming media platform, launch three to five movies every year, and stick to the path of artistic creation..
But is it really the best choice to be conservative and safe?？
For Renly, he still sincerely hopes that the Quixotes in the field of artistic creation can realize their dreams and the Sisypheans in the field of independent production can persevere to the end. Although this is an unrealistic extravagance, Robert- Redford can single-handedly create the Sundance Film Festival, why can't they gather their own strength and make a breakthrough?？
For Andre, the original intention of founding Sisyphus Pictures and entering Hollywood was not to make money, but to exercise himself, broaden his horizons, and enjoy life. If he chose a safe field because he was afraid of challenges, he would have chosen a safe field from the beginning. I won’t enter the film industry anymore..
Remember Andre and Renly's reunion after so many years? It was on the cliff of free climbing. Renly is a person who dares to take risks, and so is Andre..
Recently, while flipping through the script projects, Renly's blood began to boil again. If it can be said that when he proposed those grand blueprints in Park City before, Renly just drew on analogies and naturally diverged his thoughts during brainstorming; then Now he is gradually confirming his thoughts.
He didn't want to be a hero or a great man, but deep down in his soul, he was always a Don Quixote - an unrealistic idealist. The dream gave him infinite brilliance in his second life, so he was willing to Burn your life for your dreams.
After the little joke ended, Renly's eyes fell on Andre, "I'm serious. How are the cooperation negotiations on the streaming media platform now? What is the attitude of Sony Colombia? I need to know, our final How big is the blueprint? And what level do we hope to achieve in the first phase?？”
“Andre, although the idea came from me, I don't have much idea about business management and company structure. This is not my strong point. I need to understand your idea." Renly's words were still relaxed and easy, at least better than This is true for Andre.
Normally, Andre would be the carefree and cynical one, while Renly would be the dedicated and serious one; but now the positions of the two seem to have been reversed. In other words, when they are focused on work, they are both the same..
Andre spread his hands, "No matter what the idea is, if we need to build a streaming media platform, then we need a lot of financial support, and Wall Street capital is the most convenient and direct way." This is the truth, "But, just At present, our first phase plan cannot be too huge, and it is still within the controllable range..”
“This is also the main reason why I came here today, but I didn't expect to see an unexpected surprise." Andre pointed at the list of projects in his hand - because the number of projects Renly needed to read was too huge, he thought he would have to wait a little longer. It took a while, at least until after Oscar, but I didn't expect Renly to be so efficient..
Without pausing, Andre continued to get to the point, "I got on the line with Sony's parent company, had several conference calls, and then had a formal face-to-face meeting. They really don't have much interest in streaming media platforms. I I doubt that they even remember that they have a streaming media platform; but surprisingly, the loyalty of their streaming media platform subscribers is very high, and the number of subscriptions is not high. If I remember correctly, the data should be forty-three. million; however, none of these users unsubscribed easily.”
Renly nodded slightly, not surprised: "Sony Dafa" is famous, and among truly loyal fans, user stickiness is actually comparable to Apple's.
It's just... "430,000?" Andy couldn't help asking a surprised question, "Isn't this... too low? Are you sure it's a streaming media platform? Doesn't it lose money every year?？”
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