Hollywood is a fame and fortune fair for handsome men and beautiful women, and it is also a place where artists can realize their dreams, but in the final analysis, it is a business place.
When the earliest studios came to California from New York to pioneer Hollywood, avoiding Edison's film patent, what the studios valued most at that time were photographers. Any photographer who can take shots that others cannot take can sell them for a lot of money.
Knowledge spread quickly, and by the time all photographers could master photography methods, screenwriting began to become the most important money-making asset. A large number of screenwriters who could not succeed on Broadway flocked to Hollywood and began to make short plays with stories.
When the famous director David Griffiths innovatively used close-ups and editing techniques, he began to connect the short plays with unique creativity to tell an hour-long story. At this time, he could manage everyone's work. The director has become the most relied upon person in Hollywood.
But when Griffith spent a record $400,000 in 1916 to make "Intolerance," which failed at the box office, all the studio bosses understood that this industry was different from all other industries. different.
It's all about figuring out the market's preferences, and then formulating a budget based on the market, inviting stars, directors, photographers, screenwriters, and launching it into the market as a product.
Starting in the 1920s, producers began to become the most powerful person on a crew. From then on, the success of producers was considered by Hollywood to be the most dependable success.
Therefore, Ronald's "Evil Husband" showed his ferocious fangs in the second week as a producer. After the box office bucked the trend and rose, everyone began to look at Ronald in a different light.
The director Zak Trio, who are famous for their dense language, was turned into a comedy film mainly based on plot.
The actors used are second- and third-tier supporting roles, and actresses who have expired. Put these nondescript people together and suddenly it becomes a dark horse at the box office. This ability to discover potential, untapped markets, to find a bunch of cheap actors but to aggregate the Midas touch of quality, makes everyone excited.
From David O. Selznick, the producer of "Gone with the Wind" in the ancient times, to Robert Evans, the producer of "Chinatown", "Urban Cowboy" and other box office hits in the New Hollywood era, every time There are one or two producers with a particularly keen sense of smell who can see through the fog of the market and reach directly into the hearts of the audience.
Their successes all have a characteristic. They rarely repeat successful movie types and can reach the balance point of good reviews and box office sales many times. Any script, with their discerning eyes, may become a hotly discussed blockbuster of the year. .
Ronald's previous resume as a co-producer of films such as "Flashdance" was also revealed. Everyone suddenly discovered that Ronald was not only a director of blockbuster films, but also had done a lot of production work. Suddenly , all think that he may become the next Hollywood "golden boy".
Just like the last golden boy, Robert Redford, no matter whether he is an actor, a director, or a producer, the ceiling is hit as soon as he starts.
Therefore, the volume of calls received by two people suddenly increased rapidly.
The first was Ronald's script assistant, David Simkins. He suddenly received a lot of high-quality movie scripts, and wanted Ronald's discerning eye to take a look at them to see if he could reach a production agreement.
The other was Ronald's main agent at CAA, Niceta. Suddenly, the senior leaders of the seven major studios started calling him personally, asking to meet with Ronald to "discuss the project." No matter what the subject matter is, no matter what actors are used, there is only one requirement: he must serve as a producer in addition to the director.
Of course, the first person to be contacted was Touchstone Pictures, the publisher of "The Evil Husband", a subsidiary of Disney.
Compared to others, they were actually not that excited. Because Eisner understood that Ronald didn't actually interfere too much in the production work. He just looked at the blueprint of the director team and slightly interfered with the selection of supporting actors and actresses.
However, don’t smart producers see the potential for collaboration among the creative staff?
"We are very satisfied that this kind of live-action film with a small and medium production cost can achieve such unexpected box office results. Next, we will invest more in this type of film, Ronald. What projects do you have, whether it is your own Director, or find another director, we will give priority to release."
Eisner promised Ronald on the phone.
"I happen to have a project here. I will submit it to Mr. Katzenberg when the time comes." Ronald asked Eddie to prepare the project information for "Dirty Dancing" and made an appointment to submit it to Touchstone Pictures.
"Very good, I will take care of it personally."
Then there was Ned Tanen from Paramount, who personally asked Ronald to talk in person.
"Ah ha, Ronald, very good, very good. Do you have the box office rankings in the newspaper that day? I prepared this for you, keep it in your collection."
Tanin came over and gave Ronald a gift, which was the newspaper pages of the top three box office rankings that day, framed.
"Haha, thank you. My family will love it."
"How's your new project going?"
"I signed a contract with MGM." Ronald's "Moonlight Sultry" has chosen Weintraub, who trusts him more.
"I'm not talking about that. I heard that you also bought the production rights for a movie? Have you considered distributing it at Paramount?"
"This project? It's a small investment, and Paramount rarely releases it."
"No problem, as long as it is recommended by you, we can give priority to evaluation. Small productions can also invest additional money, right? We can also find stars to participate." Tan Ning did not want to lose this movie.
"Tsk, you didn't tell me earlier. I've already discussed it with Touchstone, which is owned by Disney. So, if they're not interested, I can give you the script again?" Ronald said this deliberately, with the intention of showing off his face. .
"Ah, that's it, that's it, you are cooperating with them when there are evil husbands in the house." Ned Tanin drank coffee to cover up. How could they release this project from talented producer Miao Zi after it was submitted to Touchstone? You might as well think of other ways.
"Do you have any other scripts here? Don't forget about Paramount. Speaking of which, your first film as a co-producer was Paramount's 'Flashdance.'"
"I don't have any new scripts for the time being, but my script assistant David said that there are many excellent scripts submitted to Daydream. If I have new ideas, I will definitely contact you first."
It's almost done, and there's no need to get too tense with the head of Paramount.
Ronald feels that maintaining good relationships with several distributors and maintaining a healthy competitive situation will be very beneficial to his future production business.
This trick was learned from him and Spielberg.
"You...you can...I did make a mistake. Your production and negotiation skills are even more surprising than your directorship." Ned Tanin drank coffee again.
"I actually didn't do much work. Jerry Zucker was the leader of this film project." Ronald told the truth.
"Humility is a virtue, and that's what I like about you." Ned Tanning couldn't believe it.
"I enjoyed working with you the most, Ronald. From your earliest days on 'Fast-paced Richmond High,' you have been a good director who respects producers and respects distributors. What we really want from a director is It's simple, get the movie done on time, with quality, and within budget.
It seems that you have had a producer's heart since then. We are actually very tolerant of directors. You see Zemeckis, the director of Back to the Future, he changed the name of the villain to mine because he was dissatisfied with my evaluation. In fact, I was not angry at all.
To be able to leave a footprint in this landmark movie, I am not really an old timer, right?
Don't worry, as long as it is a project you bring, I will personally check it and give it priority. "
Ned Tanin actually didn't do anything to help Ronald in need. In this situation, he could only lower his profile, say good things, and hope that he could get one or two good projects.
Actions speak louder than all sweet words.
Universal's new president, cross-eyed Tom Pollack, had a different strategy. He made the first move.
"Ronald, the lead actress on 'Secret of Success' had a problem. We caught Christie McNicholl abusing drugs. She was mentally unstable and had a history of seeing a psychiatrist.
So we have to change roles. The director Herbert Ross and I both thought that Helen Slater performed best in the audition. Please help me put in a few good words and let Helen come to the rescue. "
These words made Ronald sigh with emotion, Tom Pollack was very smart. The director and producers may not have known about Christie McNichol's problem before casting her. This is a relatively common problem in Hollywood.
And he used this to get rid of her and asked Ronald's person, Helen Slater, to replace her as the heroine. She also said that Ronald would help persuade her. This was a gift delivered to her door and she wanted to thank him for trying it out.
Without saying a word, Ronald also wanted to acknowledge his affection. It would be appropriate to cooperate with Universal for any future projects.
The trick is old, but useful.
Helen rushed to Ronald's house and said, "Ronnie, Ronnie, Ronnie, Ronnie..." When they met, she hugged his face and kissed him.
"I'm so happy. You helped me steal the heroine secretly, right? Well...well..."
"Can you play this role well?" Ronald looked into the beauty's eyes and asked seriously.
"I...I'm not sure. I've always wanted to play this role, and I've read the script. But since last time, I've always felt that there was a big problem with my acting skills. Of course, I practiced with Helen Hunt recently, There has also been a big improvement.
I can't say I can do the best, but I will try my best. "
"I feel relieved when you say that." Ronald knew that Helen's acting skills could not improve day by day. As long as he was self-aware and knew the direction of his efforts, he would not ruin the entire movie, so there would be no big problem. Anyway, for this character, youth and beauty are the most important thing.
"Then there's only one thing left..."
"What's the matter?" Helen stared at Ronald with wide eyes.
"You had a kissing scene with Michael J. Fox..."
"Hehehe, I understand. There is a height difference between me and him. I will use various methods to make up for it. I will definitely borrow my seat when the time comes. Don't worry."
"Really? How can I borrow a seat?"
"That's it." Helen kissed the corner of Ronald's mouth with a big kiss. Photographed from an oblique rear angle, it looked exactly the same as a real kiss.
"Well...well...this is not a loan." Helen was hugged by Ronald, and their lips slowly moved together.
"Hmm...it's still really comfortable to kiss."
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