I am Hollywood

Chapter 407: Chapter 408: Any Objections?



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After a while, Harvey left on his own, and Elisabeth finally shifted closer to Eric, whispering, "Eric, what do you think about me buying Miramax?"

Eric signaled for a waiter to take away his empty plate and requested a glass of champagne before asking, "What brought this on all of a sudden?"

Elisabeth replied, "I heard Miramax lost a lot of money this year. Last year, after the

successes of Sex, Lies, and Videotape and My Left Foot, the Weinstein brothers bought over ten movies at once. But most of them bombed at the box office, and they didn't score much at the Oscars. I think this is a good opportunity."

"A good opportunity? What kind of opportunity? What's your purpose in buying Miramax? Even if you bought it, what specific plans do you have for it? And what about TG's development strategy? Have you thought all this through?" Eric fired off a series of questions that left Elisabeth stunned. After the success of The Silence of the Lambs, she had been focused on striking while the iron was hot, aiming to continue producing films and expanding TG. But specific plans? Did production companies like theirs need elaborate plans? Outside of making movies, wasn't it just about making movies?

"Okay, let's take it one step at a time," Eric observed Elisabeth's confused demeanor. "Why do you want to buy Miramax?"

"To... Win Oscars. Those two brothers are experts at Oscar campaigning. Besides helping with The Silence of the Lambs, they landed five nominations for Best Foreign Language Film," Elisabeth explained.

"While there are always hot-selling films vying for the Oscars each year, most nominated films are still considered art pieces. If you want to buy Miramax, are you planning to focus on making artistic films that aim for awards from now on?"

Elisabeth shook her head. "Of course not, it's just..."

"Just that you want them for their promotional help when needed, right? Do you really think TG has the strength to buy a company just to produce and distribute art films for the sake of winning Oscars?"

Elisabeth reluctantly moved her waist, her silver knife grazing an enormous shrimp on her plate. She mumbled, "Fine, then I won't buy it."

Eric added, "In reality, the Oscars often serve as just a cherry on top. We can't deny their significance in sales, especially videotape sales. Stars who earn Oscars see their market value rise. But Hollywood produces hundreds of films each year, and only a handful ever compete for Oscars. If aiming for the Oscars is a movie company's business goal, that company will struggle to grow. Take Orion Pictures, which just announced it's ceasing production. A few years ago, they received 18 Oscar nominations in one year, yet now they've headed down the path of bankruptcy."

Elisabeth waved her small hand to dismiss him. "Okay, I just had a whim about it. You don't need to drone on like that, sounding like an old man. My dad doesn't talk this much."

Eric looked at her with an exaggerated "hurt" expression. "If I were talking to someone unrelated, do you think I'd be going on like this?"

Elisabeth's cheeks flushed slightly. "Even if... even if I was wrong, is that alright?"

"The Silence of the Lambs was a breakthrough hit; that's an exception. But then you chose a road movie. I haven't seen that script yet, so I can't comment, but have you thought about what the focus of your future films would be?" Eric asked.

Elisabeth appeared thoughtful. "I haven't considered that at all. I just feel that as long as I can find good scripts and make good movies, that should be enough. Well, of course, my plan is not to produce any movie with a budget exceeding 30 million dollars within the next five years. That way, I can minimize risks. Even if there are unexpected losses, I won't lose too much."

"I won't comment on the big seven, but my plan for Firefly is to focus on high-budget special effects films. New Line will handle horror thrillers, and Flower Films will specialize in action films. Pixar will be responsible for animation, and Black Ant Productions is still figuring things out because it's a recent surprise," Eric briefly explained before looking at Elisabeth. "So, which genre do you think would be suitable for yours?"

Elisabeth counted on her delicate fingers and pondered for a moment. "If I can't specifically make art films, then it seems like the only major category left is comedies."

Finally, she had stepped right into the trap. Eric decisively stated, "Then it's settled. From now on, your company will specialize in comedies. Focusing on one genre has great advantages, just as the Weinstein brothers figured out their own successful Oscar promotional strategy. If you pivot to making comedies, in time, you'll also develop a viable path. Comedies generally carry low production costs, which is perfect for a studio like TG Films."

Elisabeth seemed to grasp a different implication, looking skeptically at Eric. "Why do I feel like you've set all of this up?"

Eric snapped his fingers, giving her an admiring look. "Smart move! So, you don't have any objections?"

Elisabeth weakly asked, "What if... I do have an objection?"

Eric smiled warmly at her. "Look, you're phrasing it as a question, which shows this is just a hypothetical. That means you're probably not opposed at heart. Since that's the case, it's a done deal. Let's sit down and discuss specifics on our collaboration later. I've had a lot of good ideas mulling in my head and haven't had the energy to implement them. I'm just not willing to hand them over to outsiders, so I guess you're lucky."

Elisabeth stared at Eric for several seconds, then pursed her lips in silence as she shoved the remaining shrimp on her plate forcefully into Eric's champagne glass as a half-hearted act of rebellion. Then she slumped down on the table, drumming her fingers out of frustration. "Oh my God, how did I end up with someone as shameless as you? I'm losing my mind."

Eric glanced at the layer of grease rising in the glass and sighed, "What a waste." He stood up regretfully, called over a waiter for another glass, and thoughtfully handed one to the lady sitting next to him. "Here, have a glass of champagne. You should be thanking me. After all, I've handed you a giant 'gold mine' to manage."

"I can't take it anymore," Elisabeth glared at Eric through gritted teeth, accepting the champagne and downing it in one go.

*****

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