Chapter 54: Company Strategy

CAA acted quickly. Avril and her band were invited to the company headquarters to meet with Ethan.

Avril wanted to know how her music video (MV) was going to be filmed, so she insisted on meeting with Ethan to discuss it.

Ethan naturally arrived as scheduled, but by the time he got there, Avril and her band were already sitting in the conference room.

Without knocking, Ethan pushed open the door with Mike, only to see Avril and the others throwing paper airplanes made from A4 sheets of paper around the room. One of the paper airplanes even flew straight toward his face!

"Oh!" Ethan blocked the plane with his hand, closed the door, and entered the room.

"Hello!" Ethan was dressed in a black trench coat with a white shirt underneath and a melon hat on his head. His appearance was somewhat reminiscent of Léon from *Léon: The Professional*, but a more handsome version.

"Hi, I'm Avril." Avril, a bit embarrassed, put down the paper airplane in her hand and introduced herself. She smiled brightly, still wearing her signature smoky eye makeup.

She revealed her iconic fangs and shook hands with Ethan. The other band members quickly returned to their seats and introduced themselves.

"Charlie, bassist."

"Evan, guitarist."

"Matt, drummer."

The three young men weren't shy, and after greeting Ethan, they sat down.

"Let's talk about the MV," Ethan was the first to speak.

Avril tilted her head. "I've seen your music videos, they're great, but to be honest, I don't like them!"

She was direct about her preferences, which matched her rebellious punk rock style.

Ethan was aware of this, so he wasn't offended. Instead, he leaned his chin on his hand and asked, "Why don't you like them?"

"Because I think the colors are too heavy. I prefer brighter colors," Avril explained while gesturing energetically, as if she were about to pick up a guitar and start singing at any moment.

Hearing this, Ethan smiled. "Avril, any music video has to be filmed in accordance with the style of the song. This song of yours certainly can't use the color scheme of Nelly's video."

Avril immediately brightened up. "That's good. I want the shoot to be on a sunny afternoon with my band!"

"Yes, together." The other guys nodded in agreement.

Ethan pondered for a moment. "I've read your lyrics, and the main message you want to convey is a rebellious attitude toward life. Your audience is mainly teenagers, so the MV should reflect that style too."

"As for the specific content, how about elements like wreaking havoc in a mall, graffiti on the streets, skateboarding? What do you think?"

The elements Ethan mentioned were partly derived from her original music videos and partly from her future ones. Avril's style was unique, and her vibrant punk rock, full of youthful energy, was her most eye-catching feature.

Her songs weren't the kind that could just be paired with any famous music video; it was better to draw inspiration from her own future works.

Ethan extracted various elements and iconic scenes from her future videos, and with his vision and aesthetic far ahead of his time, he refined them into a new music video.

In fact, when portraying youthful songs, the music video should be as simple and bright as possible to be quickly accepted by young people. It shouldn't be like the previous ones, which, although higher in quality, lost the sense of youthful rebellion.

Avril and her bandmates went wild with excitement upon hearing these elements. "Yeah! Awesome, I love it! It's exactly that carefree, rebellious vibe!"

"Totally! I can't wait to wreak havoc in a mall!"

"What's the matter, Evan? Want to wear a dress?"

"Hell no, shut up, Charlie. I'll make sure *you* wear a dress!"

The guys got into a lively discussion, while Ethan continued chatting with Avril.

Only Mike remained indifferent, thinking Ethan's idea was too dull—just a bunch of elements thrown together, without any reference to film or eye-catching visuals. Compared to Nelly's video, this one seemed worlds apart.

Although Mike acknowledged that young people might like these elements, he didn't believe Avril had any chance of becoming a breakout star. With so many pretty girls each year, how could a smoky-eyed girl be the one to explode into fame? So, he had little hope for this music video.

In his opinion, Ethan had become arrogant. Ever since topping the Billboard charts, he hadn't taken on another job and had displayed an increasingly inflated sense of self.

While the others were still talking, Mike left the conference room and headed to CAA executive Brady's office.

"What's up, Mike?" Brady was in his office playing golf, with a secretary by his side holding a cup of water.

"Ethan has already confirmed the details for Avril's music video," Mike said as he accepted the golf club Brady handed him.

Brady was a man in his forties, with brown hair tied in a small ponytail, giving him a somewhat quirky appearance.

He took a sip from the secretary's cup and asked, "What do you think of his ideas?"

"Honestly, I think they're too ordinary," Mike replied skeptically. "Why are you giving him priority? There are so many famous music video directors out there, Mr. Brady."

Brady shook his head, sinking the ball into the hole with a perfect swing before explaining, "Because of the company's strategy… Mike, we've already carved out a huge piece of the movie market, but those other talent agencies aren't just sitting idly by. And on top of that, the film companies are resisting us, so we've hit a temporary ceiling. Do you get it?"

"I understand, Mr. Brady." Mike knew he was referring to CAA's current situation. After more than a decade of rapid growth, the film market had become saturated, and as a result, the agency's income had also hit its ceiling.

"So the company has recently adjusted its strategy. We're hoping to replicate our success in the music market. Do you know how many artists release albums every year just in New York?"

Brady paused for a moment, then gave a number. "344! And that's just in New York. Not to mention other cities and countries. And that number is growing every year. A new generation of artists is emerging, and album sales are skyrocketing! Mike, CAA has to seize this opportunity!"

"So music production, music video production, that's where CAA's next strategy lies. Although we have a large number of film crews, their fees are too high, and clients won't agree to them. So from now on, we need a lot of talent in music production roles, creating the most professional production package services. This business needs a few trailblazers!"

Mike finally understood Brady's intention, but he was still a bit surprised. "But Ethan has only directed two music videos. Can he really be a trailblazer?"

Brady shrugged. "He's not the only one. There are others in this plan too. So, Mike, it all depends on his performance. If he can maintain a good standard with every song, then he'll be one of the trailblazers in the future. But if not, his priority will naturally be revoked."

"Understood." Mike nodded, but inwardly he had already sentenced Ethan to failure.

Ethan was picky, headstrong, full of himself, and always insisted on controlling everything himself. To Mike, a music video director like that only needed one mistake to be completely forgotten.

It was time to scout for a few more music video directors. If the future trailblazers were under his management, it would mean a massive boost in status for him as an agent.

Maybe…

Mike looked up at Brady, who was swinging his golf club again, and thought, maybe one day he could sit in that position himself.

....

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