Chapter 147: Taking an Alternate Approach
Chapter 147: Taking an Alternate Approach
Eric had been keeping his head down, flipping through the documents in front of him, but in truth, his mind had wandered slightly. He was thinking about Batman. Although the first Batman had been a massive success, in his memory, Warner had also embarked on a long, troublesome path with the Batman series.
Over the next ten years, Warner continuously produced several Batman sequels, investing over a hundred million dollars on average. Yet North American box office returns were only a little over a hundred million per film. Even considering global box office and merchandise, Warner could barely maintain a break-even situation. For a production investing over a hundred million dollars, just breaking even, even with a small profit, was essentially a loss. A sum of over a hundred million, if deposited in a bank, could earn a huge amount of interest over a few years, and invested elsewhere might even double.
It was only when Amy lightly poked his arm with a pen that Eric realized he had become the focus of everyone’s gaze in the conference room. Many of those glances were clearly filled with displeasure.
Although Running Out of Time was a project that Columbia had acquired from Fox at great cost, this did not mean Eric would be well-liked or welcomed by Columbia’s executives. In reality, very few of the executives in the office liked him. Even Amy Pascal, who had always had a decent relationship with Eric, had complicated feelings toward him.
This was mainly due to Home Alone. After it concluded its North American run at the end of May, the box office accounting had begun. It was widely known in the conference room that Eric would receive approximately 120 million dollars in profits, while Columbia would only take about forty million. Overseas distribution rights had also been taken by Fox for various reasons. Thus, Eric taking most of the profits meant that the year-end bonuses for the executives in attendance would be significantly reduced.
In addition, because of the revenue-sharing agreement for Running Out of Time, regardless of its box office results, Eric was the actual biggest beneficiary. This project required no investment from him, yet he would receive a high percentage of the box office. Naturally, the executives were displeased. While many shareholders would benefit from Running Out of Time boosting Columbia’s stock price, most executives in the room did not own Columbia stock.
Given these complex feelings, it was understandable that the executives would intentionally or unintentionally ignore Eric’s presence in the meeting.
Eric had previously submitted a document outlining his publicity ideas, which had gone unanswered. He had anticipated today’s reception. Although he had prepared statements before coming, given the cold treatment he received in the meeting, Eric did not bother to assert himself and risk creating resentment.
After all, according to the original signed agreement, regardless of the film’s performance, he would be the biggest beneficiary. The only difference was how much he would earn. For Firefly, which had not invested a single cent, there was no risk of loss. Initially, Eric had indeed been somewhat concerned about the film’s box office prospects, since it was a completely hypothetical creation—something that did not exist in Hollywood before.
But after a series of internal screenings and critic previews received favorable reviews, Eric felt reassured.
Internal screenings could generally determine a film’s commercial value. While mistakes could happen occasionally, in most cases, the judgment of seasoned Hollywood professionals, with decades of experience, was reliable. Critic screenings indicated how the film’s reception would be among audiences after release. Before the internet era, word-of-mouth was mainly established through media reviews, and many moviegoers decided whether to see a film based on these critiques.
With both aspects essentially guaranteed, Eric no longer worried that the film would become his Waterloo. As for the unfortunate clash with Batman, that could only be attributed to bad timing—a misfortune beyond his control.
Seeing Eric raise his head with a somewhat blank expression, Amy leaned over and whispered a few words in his ear.
“Sorry, everyone, I was a little distracted just now.” After Amy’s reminder, Eric apologized and then continued, “Actually, my promotional recommendations were submitted previously in document form to Columbia’s distribution department. Perhaps because I am inexperienced in this area, the content of that document has not yet been reflected in the promotional strategy I’ve seen for Running Out of Time.”
A hum of discussion immediately filled the conference room. Most people were unaware that Eric had submitted such a document, and the head of the publicity department looked uneasy. He had been promoted by Brant Cohen, who had already left, but he maintained a good relationship with Cohen. Still, he did not feel much affection for Eric. When Eric’s document had been delivered by the secretary, he had laughed it off without even reading it. He neither wanted Eric involved in Running Out of Time’s publicity nor believed Eric could offer any innovative ideas.
Under the gaze of the others, the publicity head could only stammer a weak excuse, “I… I think Mr. Williams’ plan doesn’t… doesn’t contain anything particularly extraordinary, so I didn’t pay much attention… it’s just…”
“Forget it, no need to say more,” Columbia’s current president, sitting at the head of the table, waved his hand to interrupt. With so many people already seeing through the lie, further arguing would only make him a laughingstock. “Eric, since everyone’s here, briefly explain your… uh, plan.”
“All right, here’s how it is,” Eric said. At the president’s gesture, he stood and moved to the whiteboard at the front of the room. Picking up a black marker, he wrote a single phrase: “I call my plan ‘Topic Marketing.’ Of course, this is just a term I came up with on the spot that I feel is appropriate. If the concept does not exist in formal marketing theory, please do not take offense.” The concept of topic marketing in his memory had gradually matured after appearing in online blogs. Before that, similar promotional activities like gossip or scandal manipulation existed, but Eric did not know exactly when the concept had been formalized.
“The promotional efforts for Running Out of Time have already reached their maximum. Therefore, we cannot achieve further breakthroughs through conventional methods. To make a real impact, we must choose a topic seemingly unrelated to the film for publicity. In fact, I believe that some films draw attention by stirring up scandals involving the lead actors. That is exactly the type of topic marketing I’m talking about.”
After speaking, Eric gauged the reaction of the room before continuing, “The previous debate was whether Running Out of Time should be delayed by a week. I believe my plan can achieve a compromise: the film does not need to be delayed, and if executed properly, the second-week box office could yield unexpected results, maximizing compensation for the losses caused by Batman’s impact during the first week.”
Amid the curious stares of the executives, Eric wrote two more terms on the whiteboard: “Product Placement GG” and “TV Series.”
“Everyone knows there is a lot of GG product placement in Running Out of Time,” Eric said, pointing at “Product Placement GG” with a smile. The executives in the room chuckled awkwardly. Eric had earned six million dollars in GG fees through heavy product placements in Running Out of Time. When Columbia learned of this, they had wanted a share. Six million dollars was not trivial—it could finance an entire film. But through specific contractual arrangements, Eric converted this GG fee into personal income, not revenue for Running Out of Time, leaving Columbia with nothing.
After the room’s forced laughter died down, Eric continued: “My plan revolves around GG product placement and the topic of the TV series I am about to produce. I am confident that these GG placements are very subtle. Even the critics who attended the test screenings did not notice anything wrong, nor did they notice the TV series appearing three times in the film. I believe audiences will be even less likely to notice. They will focus on the film’s plot. My concept of topic marketing is to artificially create discussion after the film’s release, guiding audiences’ attention. If we successfully spark curiosity about how many GGs there are and the three fleeting TV scenes, a significant portion of the audience could return or even watch repeatedly in the second week.”
At this point, one executive interjected: “Eric, the topic of your TV series could be worth trying, but I recall you specifically instructed us not to mention any GG placements during promotion. Wasn’t that to avoid alienating audiences?”
Eric explained, “Exactly. That’s why I said this will only be revealed after the film’s release. Once the first weekend of the premiere passes, the reputation of Running Out of Time will be firmly established. Since audiences will already be convinced it’s a quality film, revealing this later won’t create resentment. Instead, it will be seen as an interesting aspect. Just like we are always lenient toward minor flaws in highly talented people, no one criticizes Napoleon’s height, Einstein’s coldness, or Marie Curie’s… ahem. Of course, media guidance is needed. We must ensure the majority of coverage is playful rather than critical. The detailed plan is already in the document I submitted. Professional adjustments may be required, as I am an outsider in this area and may have overlooked things.”
Having finished, Eric returned to his seat. The Columbia president then turned to the publicity executive: “Ryan, is Eric’s document still available?”
Ryan, hiding his hands under the table, rubbed his knees and hesitantly replied, “It’s probably… still there. I’ll ask my assistant to find it.”
“You should go yourself. Once found, make several copies and bring them over as soon as possible.”
“Okay, I’ll go right now.” Ryan stood up and hurriedly left the conference room. The meeting entered a temporary pause, with executives chatting about Eric’s proposals. Eric was no longer ignored; a circle of people gathered around him, eagerly discussing his ideas.