Chapter 152: Be Prepared
Stephen Cooper agreed to his conditions because Li Zhenyu just stepped on his bottom line.
MGM management hopes to get rid of the constraints of creditors and obtain new funds to keep the company operating normally.
We don't want anyone to take away the management rights and make the company fall into the hands of outsiders.
US$100 million can ensure the company's normal operations in the next two years, and the restriction of repaying US$4 billion in four years also greatly protects the operating rights.
In the end, the 8% stake seemed unimportant.
Of course, if Li Zhenyu can really turn the company around from losses to profits within four years, pay off US$4 billion in foreign debt, and regain the glory that belongs to MGM.
What if the management rights are given to him?
When that day comes, countless people will come forward to support him in continuing to run MGM without him having to say anything.
CEOs who make money feel like brothers, anything else is bullshit.
You can't make money, and the extravagance you say is rubbish.
Whether he can successfully take over MGM next depends entirely on Li Zhenyu's methods and abilities.
"Cooper, since we are all our own people, the distribution of my new movie will be left to you."
Let Stephen Cooper continue to serve as president, and Li Zhenyu's trust in him made Cooper himself feel suspicious.
Do you think you are distantly related to him? Otherwise it makes no sense!
After obtaining the management rights, you should not immediately place your own people in place to control important departments of the company and ensure the transfer of power.
Why did it get to him, it was the other way around.
Not only did he continue to serve as CEO, but he also treated him as one of his own.
Hey, it's hard for me to handle you like this!
Cooper was a bit confused, Li Zhenyu could see clearly, but he had no choice but to do so.
He also wanted to install his cronies, take over MGM from top to bottom, and firmly control the company in his hands.
There is a conspiracy of overt and covert intrigues, but...
he has no one!
Li Zhenyu moved too fast. Not to mention his close men, there were only two or three useful people.
If there was no one available, he would not regard Cooper as one of his own.
However, this is not impossible.
Cooper is capable, but he is not very lucky.
It happened that at this time, after taking over the mess of MGM, it happened to hit a bad period of financial crisis and economic downturn.
Several projects and investments that were originally negotiated were suspended due to the storm in the subprime mortgage market.
Projects that were expected to be restarted were also completely suspended due to lack of financial support.
Under this situation, Cooper still did not give up. He planned to gather all his efforts to raise funds and shoot a 007 sequel, so that the public and investors could regain their confidence in MGM.
Unexpectedly, the creditor jumped out at this time and tried to hold him back, with a ruthless attitude of "If I don't make money, I will kill myself."
Cooper was blinded at that time, what's going on?
In fact, I really don't blame the creditors, they are just afraid of me.
I jumped into the pit believing in the MGM brand, thinking that by working together we could fill the pit.
But as soon as I got up, I discovered that there was kerosene buried in the pit, and then a fire (subprime mortgage crisis) fell, burning everyone in the pit and jumping.
Now, they just want to get out of the market as soon as possible, even if they lose money.
As long as it is cash, I will admit the loss of 40 to 50% even though my heart is bleeding.
After all, their own main business is also waiting for money to save their lives.
It is better to escape from the pit with half the loss than to stay in the fire pit and burn to death slowly.
In such a complicated situation, Stephen Cooper can still barely hold on and delay the fate of MGM's bankruptcy and reorganization. His personal ability is really rare.
In the short term, Li Zhenyu is not worried that he will cheat and cause some trouble behind his back.
After all, the interests and purposes of the two people are consistent.
Restart classic IPs, pay off debts, and regain MGM's honor as one of the top eight.
Only in this way will the shares in his hands become valuable from waste paper.
After signing the contract, Li Zhenyu issued the first administrative order: restart 007.
He wrote the script, and Stephen Cooper was tasked with assembling the best possible filming team for it.
As the center of the global film industry, Hollywood has its own shooting process, and the industrial assembly line is not just invented.
Each project starts with preparation, and different shooting teams are formed according to the style and needs of the film.
Generally speaking, art is the largest department of the production team, which is subdivided into design, scenery, props, visuals, etc.
It is further subdivided into junior art team, art director, guidance assistant, on-call director, draftsman, illustrator, graphic designer, storyboard annotator, model maker, coordinator...
They need to constantly observe and revise what appears during the shooting. Flaws and mistakes, whether the scenery is in place, whether there are any missing details in the play, and the shooting effects are always adjusted according to needs.
The set design team is actually the production department. In order to ensure that everything is in order, responsibilities are divided into details.
There are supervisors, assistant supervisors, set designers, set designers, buyers, gardeners, etc. inside.
This department has a relatively large number of people and needs to work closely with various departments to ensure that all equipment and props are completed on time, manage department budgets, and arrange set construction and decoration.
In addition, various tedious inspections must be dealt with to ensure that the filming team complies with all safety protocols.
The setting team is the on-site construction team, and their duties are subdivided into: setting designers, construction coordinators, carpenters, painters, plasterers, set artists, sculptors, etc.
They are responsible for on-site construction. For example, if Li Zhenyu needs a house now, they will build a house that meets his requirements as quickly as possible.
Whether it requires distressing, using foam board to create a rock pattern or brick wall, or painting glass in a 'glazed religious' style, they are the experts.
The prop team has a relatively small number of people, including prop masters, prop makers, weapon masters, etc.
The prop master is responsible for confirming the accuracy, age, style, details, workmanship, etc. of the props.
The props are made according to the information provided by the prop master, and the props are perfectly reproduced.
Weapons masters are responsible for managing all dangerous goods, such as swords, firearms, gunpowder, etc. Due to the nature of their work, they often need to receive strict relevant training and obtain weapons use licenses.
The above is just the structure of the art department under the production team.
Detailed division allows everyone to focus on their own responsibilities and not be distracted by other trivial matters, ensuring the normal operation of their own links to the greatest extent.
They are like high-speed precision parts that together form a highly efficient super racing car.
The director is the race car driver and the navigator is the producer.
The two only need to work together to drive this high-performance racing car along the right track (script) to the finish line.
The large and mature behind-the-scenes team is the basic guarantee for the filming progress and quality.
To restart 007 IP, the filming team is not difficult to find. MGM has a large contact list of experienced and capable personnel.
What makes Stephen Cooper hesitate is that Li Zhenyu himself will serve as producer and director.
"Boss, the risk of doing this is too great."
Cooper did not object directly, but thought from his standpoint.
There's nothing wrong with restarting 007 as soon as you take over.
There will be no objection from top to bottom in the company. 007 is their trump card to turn around.
But his behavior as a producer and director was too risky.
The premise of the production-centered system is that the producer must bear all responsibilities related to the project.
Once a film fails, the first to suffer is the producer.
If, just saying that if 007 fails to start, the results obtained are not ideal.
Li Zhenyu will definitely be held accountable by creditors and shareholders, and the management will put pressure on him, which will inevitably affect his management rights.
For him, this was a bit of a loss.
But under Li Zhenyu's repeated insistence, Stephen Cooper could only obey his orders.
At least for now, forming a united front with the new boss isn't a bad thing.
Shareholders and creditors are pressing harder. With Li Zhenyu as his new backer, Stephen Cooper can finally relax for a few days and take a breather.
However, he had to make plans early.
Once the film fails, you must ensure that your rights are not affected.
And how to take away the project review rights from the new boss and convince him to invest a second time so that he can restart the IP again to reverse the situation.
For a big benefactor like Li Zhenyu, Stephen Cooper has no intention of driving him out of the company.
After driving away the investor father, who will support his investment?
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