The K-Pop Dream - 129 Fox

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…..

Although commuting time was near, none were eager to leave their office. None the less since Arin called they might as well make a day of it.

As they watch the film together, what started as a cheerful atmosphere slowly dissipated to become one of tense consideration. After half-an-hour of screening, the higher ups had already started whispering together.

20th Century Fox Korea, in the president’s office, I sit opposite a man, Mr Nam Ha as he leisurely sips a few times on a cup of coffee his assistant had just handed to him; “Dylan to be honest, I really like that film of yours. How much was your initial investment?”

“$20 million”

He sits upright as he thinks, “That’s a big amount. If it was $10 million, I would have offered double. $20 million makes this a little tricky. Would you take $25 million? To buy all the rights”

“Mr Nam, you must have made preliminary estimates on the Box office… Do you mind telling me what the result were?”

Seeing me not immediately agree, Mr Nam shows visible disappointment but he still answered, ” Of course we feel that… if done properly then the Man from Nowhere’s South Korean box office should be around 4-5 million admissions, so around $35 million locally. Depending on the international box office, it could range to possibly an additional $20-25 million.

In accordance with established practice, you as the producer would get twenty percent of the box office profits in addition to the buyout, a $30 million buyout is extremely reasonable. So …. Are you willing?”

The company had estimated the movie’s Asian box office to be $50-75 million and there was high potential to shoot a sequel or trilogy, so he decided to go for it directly.

Feeling that there was no room for bargaining, I answer anyway, “I’m sorry Mr Nam, I don’t intend to sell the rights. But we can talk about a sharing agreement”

“If we’re going to share, your initial investment of $20 + $10 million in promotion on ourside as well as risk, 50-50 outright box office”

“Mr Nam. I am contributing double towards the table”

“We are taking on the risk, as a company, that is the minimum to make this deal worthwhile for a company ..”

Mr. Nam was about to argue, but I stop him “Well, Mr Nam. I have a proposal.”

At these words, Mr Nam’s mind begins spinning. Essentially before $50 million, the break even point for the company would be reduced from $20 million, to 18 million while at the same time, between $18 million and $50 million, it was ideal and even at the highest estimations of 75$, they would still get up to 3x their investment back.

Mr Nam while eager to take the offer, taps his fingers on the desk before finally saying: “That is something I will need to discuss in a meeting, can I give you an answer tomorrow?”

Nodding, we shake hands as I get up and left.

In the parking lot, I feel my blood boiling. The past Man From Nowhere’s box office had about 6.7 million buys with a local box office edging along the lines of $49.7 million locally alone. While it is a risk, with the investment going forward it should eclipse that amount.

In the film industry betting was common cause, because under normal circumstances, this was a win-win, as both sides could fight for their best interests while avoiding risks at the same time.

Seeing, Nam Ha’s reaction to my proposal, I felt that Fox would most likely agree.

….

In one of 20th Century Fox’s conference rooms, several executives were in the middle of a discussion.

“Alright, you know everything, so let it out. Any opinions?” Nam Hee detailed the terms which Dylan had proposed to the board while he waits for them all to express their views.

After hearing the statement, the executives found it extremely enticing.

For the May period, if I hadn’t appeared, Sony were originally planning to release the superhero film Iron Man 2, this global box star – would dominate unless they had an answer.

Thankfully this was also a window of opportunity, driving more people to the theatre in the first place. It was also a Football World Cup year, and South Korea had qualified. The National sentiment was at an all time high, a korea superhero-esque flick had huge potential, especially since the entire film had been self-financed by a Korean actor.

Finally, Arin, took the lead, “President, this is a good opportunity, according to our estimates, the highest potential box office of the film is around $40 million locally. Following the signing of the agreement, and with a little tweaking we could easily control the box office so that it wouldn’t go over the 50 mark once international box office is included. With that even if it does, our return is nearly guaranteed. I would highly recommend taking the offer.

Once quality checking and the advisory board give their thoughts, if we scan speed up the release. Searching through my memory, the Cannes Film Festival would be around the same time, and if it performed well enough it could create extra hype.”

As soon as Hye finished, the others in the room, found no flaws in her logic and a decision was quickly reached.

…..

Soon thereafter an agreement was reached between the parties, with neither intending to conceal any news, instead hoping that the terms would spread, and so it did.

Fans of Dylan, almost instantly began fund raises to prepare free tickets to hand out. They were extremely motivated to have their ‘oppa’ be on the winning end of the deal.

This only blew up further after Eyeris released and achieved national network ratings greater than even I could have expected.

It’s debut episode had 50.1% and by the end of its run it reached 60%. It broke every single record of modern television in Korea.

Kim Tae also decided to publicly support her ‘husband’ providing an interview in which she discussed the film and ‘our love story’.

Korean entertainment was filled with anticipation, Would the boy’s gamble work or would he fail?