Chapter 209: Three Opening Sequences

As Simon and his team discussed the distribution details of several films, Jennifer set up the projector and, along with Amy's assistant Vanessa, drew the curtains in the meeting room before heading to the video player.

At Simon's signal, the assistant pressed play.

On the projection screen at the front of the meeting room, the image lit up, showing a fiery pool from hell with a sharp cry, a fiery orange phoenix emerged, briefly circling in the air before spreading its wings and freezing in the center of the frame. The flames dripping from the phoenix's wings formed the words 'Daenerys-Pictures' below it, with a line underneath stating: 'A-Daenerys-Entertainment-Company'.

After the brief five-second opening sequence finished, Robert Rem looked at Simon and asked, "Phoenix?"

Simon nodded, explaining, "The immortal bird from Greek mythology that rejuvenates itself by setting itself on fire every five hundred years to be reborn from its ashes. I really like this legend, and the image of the phoenix we just saw will also serve as the logo for Daenerys Entertainment. I hope Daenerys Entertainment can exist for a long time, capable of being reborn from the ashes even in the face of adversity."

Major Hollywood film companies have impressive studio opening sequences, such as MGM's lion and Columbia's Statue of Liberty. Starting with "Run Lola Run", Daenerys Pictures had only used a simple text opening, and the openings for New World Pictures and Highgate Pictures were similarly rudimentary.

Now that the company was on the right track, Simon had recently hired a design firm to officially create opening sequences and logos for Daenerys Pictures, New World Pictures, and Highgate Pictures.

Robert Rem had actually thought of Phoenix, the capital of Arizona, located to the southeast of California. After hearing Simon's explanation, though still not quite understanding the connection between 'Daenerys' and 'Phoenix', he was very much in agreement with the philosophy Simon articulated.

After a brief discussion, Jennifer loaded another videotape into the player, and the opening sequence for New World Pictures appeared on the screen: after a burst of intense lightning and thunder, the clouds dispersed, the sky returned to a brilliant blue, and the CG 3D-styled words 'New-World-Pictures' appeared, with 'A-Daenerys-Entertainment-Company' noted below it as well.

Among the proposals from several competing design firms, Simon found this concept somewhat similar to the later Lionsgate opening. The positioning of New World Pictures was exactly the same as Lionsgate's, so Simon chose this design.

Compared to the grandeur and flamboyance of Daenerys Pictures and New World Pictures' openings, Highgate Pictures' was filled with an artistic atmosphere.

To a gentle musical accompaniment, rows of slowly flowing film strips against a pure black background gradually formed the words 'Highgate-Pictures'. The meticulously rendered image appeared very realistic, with the film strips forming the words of Highgate Pictures seemingly flickering with movie scenes, and below the company name, it was again noted 'A-Daenerys-Entertainment-Company'.

Later on, it became common for the opening sequences of major film companies to include a note about their parent corporation, but this trend of integrating media conglomerates, starting with Sony's acquisition of Columbia the following year, had not yet begun.

Simon's early adoption of adding the parent company's note to the studio opening sequences was mainly aimed at quickly imprinting the Daenerys Entertainment brand in the public's mind.

After viewing the three opening sequences, they continued the discussion and then decided to release information about the three openings and the upcoming film slate under the three brands in the media soon. This was also a good publicity opportunity for Daenerys Entertainment.

After wrapping up the discussion, it was already past six o'clock, but Simon didn't let Amy and Rem leave, suggesting, "Let's have dinner together, I have another matter to discuss with you."

Robert Rem hadn't thought that Simon called him over from across the valley just to watch the three studio openings, so he gladly agreed.

Amy naturally had no objections.

The three left the company headquarters and quickly arrived at a nearby restaurant where Simon had Jennifer make a reservation in advance.

"Here's the thing, I've noticed that both of you haven't been paying much attention to Highgate Pictures," Simon started directly after they ordered their meals. "The original acquisition team from New World Entertainment was assigned to Highgate Pictures, but unfortunately, last month's Venice Film Festival, led by Danny Morris to Italy, turned up empty-handed. The projects he has submitted to me lately have also lacked any notable highlights."

Danny Morris was the former Vice President of the acquisition department at New World Entertainment and now held the same title at Daenerys Entertainment, in charge of Highgate Pictures.

Upon hearing Simon bring up this matter, Amy and Rem exchanged glances, with Robert Rem taking the initiative to explain, "Simon, there was indeed a period in the late '70s to early '80s when art films flourished in Hollywood, and Saul Zaentz was gaining attention during those years. Major film companies also generally established subsidiaries named 'Classics' to target the art film market. But now, due to the continuous rise in Hollywood production costs, the art film sector is hardly profitable anymore. If we exclude your 'Run Lola Run' from last year, the market performance of the best art films in recent years has generally only been around $20 million, which is a ceiling. Many art films are actually losing money, like Saul Zaentz's 'The Love of Prague' earlier this year, with a production cost of $17 million and a North American box office of just over $10 million. So, I think we shouldn't waste too much effort on this."

"You make a good point, Bob," Simon nodded seriously. "However, if Hollywood could produce a 'Run Lola Run,' it can certainly produce a second or even more. Also, have you noticed the recent trend in the cinema industry?"

Amy asked curiously, "Simon, are you referring to the Reagan administration lifting restrictions on film companies operating cinemas?"

"No," Simon shook his head, looking at Robert Rem, "Bob, you must be familiar with AMC, right?"

"AMC is a chain cinema company operated by the Dubinsky family, headquartered in Kansas City, Nebraska. AMC's most notable feature is the introduction of a large number of multiplex cinemas. The company currently has about 150 cinemas in North America but boasts over 1300 screens. However, this also means their auditoriums generally have lower seating capacities." Robert Rem proficiently shared AMC's information, adding, "I've already discussed distribution with AMC's manager on Monday, Simon. You're not planning on acquiring cinemas, are you? AMC has been growing rapidly in recent years, and the Dubinsky family is not likely to sell. United American Cinemas could have been a good target, but it was just acquired by John Malone's TCI earlier this year, so we've missed that opportunity."

Simon clarified, "Daenerys Entertainment won't be venturing into the cinema market in the short term. I was just talking about a trend, Bob. The multiplex cinema is an inevitable trend."

Robert Rem nodded, "Indeed, AMC's model is very successful, and the industry is following and trying it out. But Simon, how does this relate to our current topic?"

"Of course, it does. Although the overall number of viewers in North America might not increase too rapidly, I believe that with the spread of multiplex cinemas, the total number of screens in North America will definitely increase significantly in the coming years. Multiplexes mean diversity. If a cinema has ten screens and dedicates eight to mainstream commercial films, due to having too many screens, operators will inevitably consider introducing some art films to satisfy a minority of audiences on the other two screens. That's the opportunity."

Hearing Simon's explanation, Amy couldn't help but say, "Simon, even if you're right, wouldn't it be better for us to focus our main efforts on those 'eight screens'?"

Lacking examples, Simon found himself unable to explain to Amy and Rem how prosperous the independent film market, led by New Line Cinema and Miramax, was in the '90s.

Thus, Simon quickly decided not to elaborate further and instead leveraged his position as the boss: "Alright, in that case, Highgate Pictures will be spun off and reorganized into a subsidiary directly accountable to me. I think Danny Morris must share the same view as you two, which is why he's been so lackadaisical. Let him take charge of New World Pictures then. With the success of films like 'The Butterfly Effect,' 'Final Destination,' and New Line's 'A Nightmare on Elm Street' series, I think he won't feel neglected anymore."

Robert Rem was surprised that Simon had such a clear understanding of Danny Morris's mindset.

As the former head of New World Entertainment's acquisition department, Danny Morris held significant authority, given that most of New World's films were acquired from outside sources. After the merger, assigning Danny Morris to Highgate Pictures inevitably made him feel demoted.

Art films were synonymous with unprofitability.

Robert Rem and Danny Morris were not just colleagues but also good friends.

Danny Morris had discussed his situation with Robert Rem several times. Despite Daenerys Entertainment's rapid rise, he hadn't considered resigning but rather sought a more impactful position, even if it meant switching to a distribution role.

Robert Rem had been planning to discuss this with Simon, but before he could bring it up, Simon had already fulfilled Danny Morris's wishes.

However, Robert Rem wasn't pleased for Danny Morris.

From Simon's recent comments, it was clear that he had high expectations for Highgate Pictures, and appointing Danny Morris was a recognition of his abilities. Now, Danny Morris had undoubtedly lost favor in Simon's eyes. If he failed to achieve results in his new role at New World Pictures, the outcome was predictable.

After dinner, Simon began searching for a new head for Highgate Pictures the next day.

In Hollywood, there were two ready-made ideal candidates: the Weinstein brothers.

The Weinstein brothers, both in their thirties and at the peak of their powers, had been struggling in Hollywood for over a decade, accumulating sufficient experience.

Moreover, Miramax was not in a good position. Two years ago, the brothers made a rash decision to direct a youth film, "Playing for Keeps," imitating John Hughes's style, which flopped at the box office, nearly bankrupting Miramax. The company had yet to recover.

If Simon recruited the brothers now, he stood a good chance of success.

Although Harvey Weinstein became infamous years later due to sexual misconduct scandals, in Hollywood, if Simon had such moral scruples, he wouldn't be able to continue operating Daenerys Entertainment.

However, the Weinstein brothers were not the type to easily submit to others, aptly described as untamable.

In the original timeline, even as a subsidiary of Disney, the Weinsteins frequently clashed with their parent company.

When Disney was negotiating crucial cable television licenses with the Bush administration, the Weinsteins, despite repeated warnings from Michael Eisner, invested in "Fahrenheit 9/11," a documentary attempting to unseat George W. Bush. The film was a financial success but caused Disney to face repercussions from the Bush administration.

After Miramax's rise, the Weinstein brothers continually attempted to break away from the company's focus on art films, but their investments in big productions like "Cold Mountain" and "The Aviator" ended in failure, leading to their departure from Disney.

Having observed the Weinstein scandal unfold, Simon believed that if the Weinsteins had not left Disney, the scandal would never have occurred. Like John Lasseter, who faced sexual harassment allegations during the scandal but received minimal backlash, continuing to shine as one of Disney's "Four Pillars" alongside Bob Iger, Kevin Feige, and Kathleen Kennedy on the cover of Vanity Fair.

Had Harvey Weinstein remained within the Disney system, Disney might have boasted a "Fifth Pillar," alongside Marvel Entertainment, Lucasfilm, and Pixar, with Miramax dominating the Oscars. Disney, as a media titan, would have been even more formidable.

Choosing not to recruit the Weinstein brothers to avoid trouble, Simon decided to suppress them before their rise, preventing potential competition between Miramax and Highgate Pictures.

Moreover, undermining them wasn't difficult.

In the original timeline, Miramax's success with "Sex, Lies, and Videotape" the following year marked the start of its rapid development. Simon was well aware of Miramax's subsequent successful film releases and could easily preempt them.

Lacking hit projects, Miramax, already struggling, wouldn't last long.

While focusing on Highgate Pictures, Simon's main efforts were on casting for "Batman" and other films like "The Sixth Sense" and "The Bodyguard," with most of the main roles already secured but key supporting roles still under consideration.

Despite deliberate delays, on October 12th, a Wednesday, the MPAA finally approved "Scream" for an R rating, indicating the major studios were not yet ready to directly confront Daenerys Entertainment.

With "Scream" passing the review, Daenerys Entertainment began a two-week final marketing push before its release. The success of previous Daenerys films and the general content shortage following the writers' strike led Robert Rem to secure 1,755 screens for "Scream," possibly more than the original film's release.

"Dead Poets Society" also secured 1,693 screens, slightly less than "Scream" due to the popular Christmas slot. However, due to general skepticism towards "Steel Magnolias," a female-driven film, cinemas only offered 922 screens.

While "Scream," "Dead Poets Society," and "Steel Magnolias" proceeded smoothly, MGM's "Rain Man" encountered problems.

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