Global Film Emperor

Chapter 508 Visitors
"Wake up, don't sleep yet."

"Huh? What's wrong?"

Pushing open the door to Kesha's office, the room was dimly lit, with only a sliver of light filtering through the curtains. Even so, one could clearly see Kesha's rather unseemly sleeping posture on the sofa, snoring loudly.

The smell of tobacco mixed with the oily odor from the white man's well-developed sweat glands in the small room, making the air unpleasant. Lu Ze walked to the sofa and shook Kesha's body vigorously. The sofa springs were overloaded and made creaking noises. Kesha sat up sleepily, rubbed his face, and stared blankly at Lu Ze.

"We have a guest waiting in the main hall. I'll call Mickey, you can go and chat with him first."

"Okay, I'll wash my face and be there in a minute."

After Kesha agreed, Lu Ze went out first, took out his phone and dialed Mickey's number. The call was finally answered after eight or nine rings.

"Hey, Fanny just got out of school and I'm waiting for her at the gate. I was thinking of calling you back later, but I didn't expect you to call me first. You've arrived, right?"

"Hmm, weren't they supposed to come on the weekend? Why did they arrive on Wednesday?"

"I don't know. He said it was an urgent matter and asked if I could move the date forward. I just replied to him less than ten minutes ago, and he showed up. We can't rule out the possibility that he contacted other companies. Go and sound him out. I'll be back in thirty minutes at most."

"Or should I talk to him about the contract? Why don't you spend the day with Fanny? The contract is right here. If he wants to sign it, it doesn't matter whether you're here or not."

"Never mind, I just promised him I'd go back and talk to him in person soon. It's understandable that he'd think otherwise if I suddenly didn't go."

"Okay, then I'll wait for you."

After hanging up the phone, Lu Ze couldn't help but feel sorry for Mickey. It was a rare opportunity for the father and daughter to spend a long time together, but this unexpected change in schedule wasted this precious time. But there was nothing he could do. The company was currently in a period of resource expansion, and money was a major concern. Mickey was so anxious that she was losing clumps of hair every day.

On the other hand, there is still a significant shortage of directors within the company to absorb the newly signed actors. Universal Brothers cannot rely solely on commercial resources to spend a large amount of money to push all the actors out, otherwise the expenses would be too high, and the greater loss would come from the vulnerability that is exposed. Once the weakness is exposed, everyone will take advantage of you. For the film industry, self-production and self-sales is the most virtuous way of operating.

Therefore, the goal of this business negotiation was not merely to seize the distribution rights of "Paranormal Activity," but more importantly, to bring this man named Griezmann into their camp.

After hanging up the phone and thinking for a short while, Lu Ze put his phone inside his shirt, took the last puff of his half-burnt cigar, stubbed it out in the ashtray by the front door, coughed lightly, quickly exhaled the remaining smoke, and turned to walk towards the conference room.

Jill watched longingly, and only after seeing Lu Ze go upstairs did she quietly come out, pick up the remaining half of the cigar, and return to the mailroom. She spent a long time trying to light it with an ordinary lighter before finally relighting it. Her trembling old legs were propped up on the table as she took a satisfying puff of the cigarette.

……

"Sorry to keep you waiting, have a cup of tea."

The atmosphere in the meeting room was a bit awkward. Griezmann sat opposite Kesha, looking at the thug who looked like he could eat two children in one meal, and didn't dare to say much. It wasn't until Lu Ze brought in the tea tray that he breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly got up, poured himself a cup of tea, and held it in his hand. Only when he had something in his hand did his tension slowly subside.

"I apologize, Mr. Lu Ze. My early arrival has disturbed your rest. However, my grandmother is ill and will have surgery in a few days. In order to get back to her in time, I have no choice but to break the agreement I made with you."

“It’s okay, family is more important, I completely understand. Besides, I’m happy that you could come earlier, because being able to see your work sooner would be a pleasant surprise for me, wouldn’t it?”

Lu Ze wouldn't ask about his grandmother's condition. Maybe his grandmother was healthy enough to do five somersaults in one go. Who hasn't used their relatives' illness or wedding as an excuse? Especially Europeans who are more indifferent to family ties. Who knows, his grandmother might have already used up her resurrection coin several times.

Lu Ze didn't care who in his family was "sick." What mattered was expressing his strong desire and warm welcome verbally. After all, he genuinely wanted to sign him. At this moment, he absolutely couldn't say that if he was in a hurry, he could go back to visit the sick person first and talk about it later. First, he was worried that if Lu Ze left in two months, "Paranormal Activity" might have already had its second installment. Second, he didn't want to give Griezmann the impression that he was indifferent and could sell the film whenever he wanted. Right now, he needed to make Griezmann feel that his work was recognized and urgently needed.

As for the concern that he might raise the price, that's just a joke. Lu Ze is the one in control of this negotiation. He came to recommend his work, and given the sluggish economy, it's a buyer's market.

Moreover, isn't this also a test of his character? Universal Brothers isn't the kind of company that tries to drive down prices. No matter how much your work is worth, they won't shortchange you by a single penny. If you dare to ask for an exorbitant amount, there are only two possible outcomes.

If your work is decent and you can accept a price increase, then take your money and get out. But if your work is bad and not worth the price... then take your garbage and get out too.

Upon hearing Lu Ze's reply, which was not surprising, a slight smile appeared on the face of this seemingly young novice, and he spoke with much more confidence, his timid and reserved demeanor gradually dissipating.

Young people need recognition the most, and they are often easily misled by empty promises of approval. However, Griezmann was lucky; Lu Ze wasn't the type to insult people.

At first, the conversation didn't jump directly to "Paranormal Activity." Instead, it was like a casual chat. Lu Ze subtly probed into his creative philosophy, creative ideas, and which market segment he expected the work to target, making a preliminary assessment of his abilities.

Based on the clues revealed in some of his words, Lu Ze was basically certain that there were indeed other competitors involved. As for the claim that his grandmother was sick, it was just a lie that had worked every time since he was a child.

Time flew by, and before long, Mickey knocked on the door and came in, carrying a few thin documents. After getting to know each other again, the conversation shifted from Mickey to the horror film "Paranormal Activity".

"You brought the complete version of 'Paranormal Activity' with you, right?"

"Yes, it's on me."

"Would it be convenient to see the full plot?"

"Of course, you should."

The sample footage delivered to Mickey was only a dozen minutes long, which was hardly enough to tell anything about a slow-burning film like Paranormal Activity. Mickey simply picked out a piece with decent visual arrangement and atmosphere from a large number of poorly shot garbage films, and was looking forward to the rest of the story.

As for how good this film is, what its price is, or whether it's worth buying, those are questions that can only be answered after watching the entire film.

Mickey distributed several documents, which were confidentiality agreements. These were mandatory documents that needed to be signed. They were short and easy to understand without a lawyer. In short, they stipulated that no part of the plot or setting of the work could be disclosed or copied, and that violating the terms would result in a fine of a certain amount. Mickey wrote down one million pounds, which was a huge sum for "Paranormal Activity," which had a production cost of only over 40,000 pounds.

This is also a way for Mickey to show his sense of identity and express his importance to the work. It's just a pity... when this kid looks at the compensation standards marked on the paper, he can't help but have some useless thoughts pop into his mind.

"Why don't you just copy mine and give me a million back..."

The brainstorming session was only momentary; his gaze eventually settled on the paper. He had to read even a simple confidentiality agreement several times before finally signing his name on the blank sheet of paper.

Five copies were made, one for each party and one for the company. The contract was effective. Led by Mickey, the five of them headed to the fourth floor, to the private cinema of Universal Brothers.

"..."

(End of this chapter)