Capítulo 85: Chapter 85 Conditional
Sitting in the café, Daniel Melek, his eyes hidden behind the lenses, kept staring at the glass door. His hands were intertwined, fingers twisting anxiously. It was evident he was feeling quite anxious.
After taking his DV film to numerous film companies and showcasing it at the St. Denis Film Festival, not a single response had been positive. All he had heard were derogatory and even abusive comments. It seemed like nobody saw any value in his film, as if the film he and Edoardo Sanchez had made had no worth whatsoever.
Suddenly, his eyelid twitched as he saw a familiar face.
The two young men who had just entered, wasn't one of them the person who had watched the screening for a long time last night?
At that time, he had suspected the person was a buyer for a film company.
Daniel Melek watched as they approached, his mind racing. Had they seen some value in his film that he wasn't aware of? Or perhaps...
Maybe he could make some money off them.
After all, producing this film, taking it to film companies, and participating in the St. Denis Film Festival had cost him tens of thousands of dollars.
Regardless, if someone wanted to buy, it was a good thing. On the basis of recouping costs as much as possible, he could pursue greater profits.
Like trying for a distribution deal.
Try first, then see.
As the two men approached, Daniel Melek stood up and took a couple of steps forward to greet them. "Are you Mr. Anderson?"
"Hello, Director Melek," replied Ronan as they shook hands. "I'm Ronan Anderson from the Theory Entertainment Group."
He then introduced the person beside him, "This is Tony Koch from Koch Film."
After exchanging pleasantries, they quickly got down to business.
Ronan wasted no time. "Director Melek, on behalf of the Theory Company, we're interested in buying your film. Name your price."
He had thought about it carefully last night. With $40 million brought back from Abu Dhabi, $10 million still owed from his trip to Germany, $4.5 million in tax refunds, and $20 million reserved from the profits of "The Human Clear Plan," minus the $5 million for the acquisition of Embassy Entertainment, the actual production budget for the two films was $30 million. With the distribution and marketing of these two films still in the planning stages, there was still a substantial amount of money in hand.
Nonetheless, Daniel Melek had clenched his hand tightly. This couldn't be an offer for him to just throw out casually.
"Theory Entertainment Group?" he asked, puzzled.
He had never heard of this company.
Ronan explained simply, "It's a comprehensive entertainment company. Subsidiaries Sahara Sea Entertainment and Embassy Entertainment specialize in film production and distribution."
Daniel Melek knew these two companies. Sahara Sea Entertainment had a low-budget horror film that had been a huge box office success last year, while Embassy Entertainment had rejected him when he visited them last year.
The person he was facing now represented Theory Entertainment, probably even higher in status than the person who had received him at Embassy Entertainment.
"Mr. Anderson," Daniel Melek, now in his thirties, had many thoughts. "You want to buy my film 'The Witch of Blair'?"
Ronan nodded. "Yes."
Daniel Melek felt a little relieved but suppressed it forcefully. After all he had been through to get here, he couldn't easily give up now, especially if there were still potential gains to be had.
He tried to negotiate, "Can we sign a distribution contract between us?"
Ronan glanced at Daniel Melek and said, "It's not possible. If you only want distribution, we don't need to talk."
With distribution rights not in his hands, was he supposed to invest a large sum of money to operate someone else's $40,000 indie film? Was he a fool?
If it weren't for the consideration of copyright issues and the subsequent trouble, he could easily find someone to shoot such a film.
Daniel Melek looked a little uncomfortable.
Ronan raised his hand to stop Tony from continuing. "Sorry, my German friend is straightforward," he said. Then, changing the subject, he said, "But what he said makes sense. We'll barely consider your work as a film, and the male character's line in the movie actually rings true."
"What?" Daniel Melek asked.
"I thought I was watching a movie about witches," Ronan said slowly, "but it turned out to be about how the characters got lost."
If someone had said this right after finishing this film, Daniel Melek would have spat in their face.
But after consecutive setbacks, he had long lost that kind of confidence.
Daniel Melek retorted, "I filmed it using innovative DV documentary techniques to give each viewer a very real feeling, allowing the audience to naturally immerse themselves in the world of the witch."
Tony asked, "Really? What I saw were viewers unable to endure the rough images and shaky camera and leaving one by one."
"This is innovation!" Daniel Melek tried hard to get favorable conditions for himself. "This is a new type of horror movie, like a real documentary that Hollywood has never seen before."
Ronan smiled. "Director Melek, do you know that innovation in Hollywood has a nickname called 'risk'? If I buy the rights to your film at a high price, what innovation brings me isn't market and profit but huge risk!"
He changed his tone, "I can't buy a movie that will lose money."
"But this movie..." Daniel Melek tried to argue, but was cut off by Ronan. "Even if this movie enters theaters, how much box office do you think it will make? It's highly likely that it will be taken offline in a week, maybe even three days. Do you think the sales and rental of subsequent video tapes will be high? Fifty thousand dollars? It will take me years to recoup fifty thousand dollars."
Ronan extended five fingers. "Fifty thousand dollars."
Daniel Melek was a little desperate. "Fifty thousand dollars isn't even enough to cover my costs!"
"Director Melek, you can't be serious about asking for fifty thousand dollars for your film?" Tony interjected.
His voice wasn't loud, but his tone was heavy, "That's not a movie, it's just a self-made DV recording, pale, boring, and poorly made!"
Daniel Melek's face looked a bit ugly.
Ronan raised his hand to stop Tony from continuing. "Sorry, my German friend is straightforward," he said. Then, changing the subject, he said, "But what he said makes sense. We'll barely consider your work as a film, and the male character's line in the movie actually rings true."
"What?" Daniel Melek asked.
"I thought I was watching a movie about witches," Ronan said slowly, "but it turned out to be about how the characters got lost."
If someone had said this right after finishing this film, Daniel Melek would have spat in their face.
But after consecutive setbacks, he had long lost that kind of confidence.
Daniel Melek retorted, "I filmed it using innovative DV documentary techniques to give each viewer a very real feeling, allowing the audience to naturally immerse themselves in the world of the witch."
Tony asked, "Really? What I saw were viewers unable to endure the rough images and shaky camera and leaving one by one."
"This is innovation!" Daniel Malkin continued to strive for conditions favorable to himself. "This is a horror film that resembles a real documentary, a new type of film that Hollywood has never seen before."
But Ronan laughed. "Director Malkin, do you know that innovation in Hollywood is synonymous with risk? If I buy the rights to your film at a high price, innovation won't bring me market and profit, but huge risks!"
He stopped smiling. "I can't buy a movie that would generate losses."
"But this movie..." Daniel Malkin wanted to argue again, but was interrupted by Ronan. "Even if this film enters theaters, how much box office can it earn? It's highly likely to be taken offline in a week, or even three days. Do you think sales and rentals of subsequent DVDs will be high? $500,000? It will take me years to recoup $500,000."
Ronan held up five fingers. "Fifty thousand dollars."
Daniel Malkin was getting anxious. "Fifty thousand dollars won't even cover my costs!"
"Director Malkin, your film could have been made for at most twenty to thirty thousand dollars," Ronan deliberately said, "The profit has already doubled. In the film industry, this is a windfall."
Daniel Malkin argued, "The expenses I incurred in finding a distribution company, as well as the expenses for participating in the Saint Denis Film Festival, aren't they part of the film's costs?"
Hearing this, Ronan quickly inferred that there probably were no competitors.
With that in mind, he felt reassured.
Ronan gently nudged Tony's foot.
"Shouldn't you bear these expenses yourself?" Tony immediately said, "If you don't want to sell, you can take it back and let it rot in the warehouse."
Ronan continued, "Relative Entertainment has just been established and needs to enrich its film library. So I'm willing to invest in your work and will try my best to get this film into theaters. Director Malkin, a director with theatrical releases, is a very valuable asset, which will play a crucial role in your future directing career."
He added, "The treatment given to directors with publicly released works in film companies varies greatly."
Daniel Malkin furrowed his brows, obviously weighing his options. After a while, he said, "I can lower it to $100,000, but with conditions."
"Still too high," Tony interjected at the right moment.
Ignoring Tony's words, Daniel Malkin said to Ronan, "But Mr. Anderson, your company must push this film into theatrical release."
Ronan smiled. "One hundred thousand dollars is still too high, with too much risk. However, a theatrical release is certain. If I buy this film, of course, I will try to get it into theaters."
Daniel Malkin emphasized again, "I can lower it to $80,000, but with conditions!"
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