When they first saw the script for the truman show, they were already utterly impressed by Su Yu's ingenious ideas and bold imagination, and this time, the script for life of pi once again gave them a tremendous shock.
They secretly wondered, if this life of pi could truly be successfully filmed, perhaps many viewers would be perplexed by its complex plot and profound implications, finding it difficult to fully grasp its deeper meaning.
And those who did understand it would only feel their scalps tingle and their spines chill, shocked by the cruel reality hidden behind it.
Of course, it was also perfectly acceptable to simply view it as a beautiful fairytale.
But to perfectly present this movie, it would require a large amount of high-level, high-quality special effects support, using the most aesthetically pleasing visuals to tell a cruel survival story. Such creativity was simply wonderful.
"This is the movie I want to make! Please, you must give it to me!"
After reading the script, Hao Ren's eyes shone, as if he had seen a dazzling temple of cinematic art. He excitedly looked at Su Yu and spoke.
He firmly believed that this movie was entirely aimed at winning awards; its profound core and hidden meanings perfectly suited the tastes of various overseas film festivals.
Although the truman show also had a chance to win awards, Hao Ren intuitively felt that life of pi would undoubtedly win more awards.
Of course, the prerequisite for all of this was that he could perfectly film every scene in the script and fully showcase the story's charm to the audience.
Moreover, Hao Ren also understood that for this movie to be officially released in China, the ending would need to be appropriately modified, and the fairytale story told by Truman would need to be solidified to better align with Chinese audiences' viewing habits and values.
However, for an experienced person like him, this was naturally not a difficult task.
As for the overseas version, he believed the 'heavier' the content, the better, as it would better satisfy overseas audiences' pursuit of novelty and excitement.
"Calling you back naturally means I intend to entrust this movie to you for direction." Su Yu nodded, agreeing to Hao Ren's request.
Subsequently, he looked at Allen and the other person and continued, "For the overseas distribution of this movie, I also wish to cooperate with your companies. In addition, Tianxing Entertainment will open up a 30% investment share to the companies behind you two. I wonder if you two are willing to accept?"
The proposal Su Yu threw out was like a huge cake radiating an enticing glow, making it impossible for Allen and Parker to refuse.
Refuse? How could that be!
At least in Allen's eyes, their Disney could completely take on this entire 30% investment share.
He secretly muttered to himself, why share this cake with the seemingly 'struggling' MGM?
Did their MGM really have that much money to participate in the investment?
"Disney has absolutely no problem here! Even investing the entire 30% is fine. We are more than happy to strengthen our cooperation with Tianxing Entertainment and Mr. Su Yu! However, based on my estimation of this movie's production cost, it will likely be over 120 million US dollars. I just don't know if MGM can bear the risk of such a large investment."
Allen's lips curved into a confident smile as he readily agreed.
But towards the end of his statement, his gaze lightly swept towards Parker, his words full of doubt about MGM.
Allen's statement was not unfounded; based on his many years of experience in the film industry, 120 million US dollars was a conservative estimate, and the actual production cost could very likely soar to 150 million.
Disney, with its rich experience in producing blockbuster special effects films, naturally knew how much money those magnificent and stunning special effects would burn to make life of pi well.
Moreover, if the cost really reached 120 million US dollars, according to the conventional box office break-even logic, the global box office would need to be at least around 360 million, which translates to over 2 billion chinese yuan.
Even if it did make money in the end, how much profit margin would there be?
Disney, being a large corporation with ample liquid funds, could afford to play this investment game to maintain a good cooperative relationship with Tianxing Entertainment and Su Yu.
But what about MGM? He really couldn't imagine what MGM would use to play.
At a normal production speed, this movie's production cycle would take at least a year.
If MGM invested its funds, could they withstand such a long return period?
Allen was well aware that MGM's financial situation was not optimistic; this was not him deliberately looking down on Parker, the facts were right there.
Unless the distribution share from the truman show could be immediately disbursed, otherwise, what would MGM use to invest?
Their own flagship 'agent' series didn't even have money to film, so what was there to talk about investing in a new movie?
"Mr. Su Yu, our MGM truly cannot afford to invest right now, but we can exchange it for an equivalent investment share in next year's 'agent: Spectre'! The agent series has always been our MGM's flagship, and its box office is quite stable. I sincerely hope you can agree to this request!"
Parker's face flushed upon hearing Allen's words, but he also knew that Allen was speaking the truth; his company indeed had no money.
They had already planned to use the distribution share received from the truman show to launch the agent project.
In fact, after receiving Su Yu's invitation, MGM's senior management held an emergency meeting overnight, racking their brains to formulate several contingency plans.
If Su Yu was only discussing the distribution of the next movie, they would firmly seize the cooperation opportunity even if it meant lowering the revenue-sharing ratio; if Su Yu offered a movie investment share, then they would use their own flagship IP's share for exchange.
Doing so would not only guarantee no loss but also demonstrate sincerity to Su Yu and Tianxing Entertainment.
Allen's eyes instantly widened with disbelief upon hearing Parker's proposal.
He never expected that MGM would make such a big decision, even offering their own flagship's investment share.
One must know that current MGM relied entirely on its agent series, released every two to three years, to maintain its industry ranking.
"Then, this time, MGM and Disney will each contribute 15% of the investment share. Once the detailed budget is calculated, we will sign the contract."
Su Yu also didn't expect MGM to offer such an exchange condition.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, a meaningful smile playing on his lips. After a brief consideration, he directly nodded in agreement.
Su Yu had his own calculations: when life of pi was released on Earth in 2012, its global box office reached 600 million US dollars; and '007 Spectre's' box office was even higher at 880 million US dollars.
Although this was Blue Star and not Earth, the box office situation would not differ too much.
Investing in a classic IP movie from a Hollywood company had many benefits for Tianxing Entertainment, as it could expand its business territory and enhance its international influence, so he really had no reason to refuse.
"Then I'm truly grateful! I hope we can cooperate happily this time!"
Parker let out a long breath, his tense nerves finally relaxing. He excitedly stood up, quickly walked to Su Yu, and tightly shook Su Yu's hand, his eyes filled with gratitude and anticipation.