"A TV series? Are you out of your mind?" Li An stared at Huang He as if he were an idiot. "Finding a Hollywood special effects studio will cost at least tens of millions of dollars. The domestic TV series market cannot recoup such an investment!"
"Others may not be able to earn it back, but that doesn't mean I can't!" Huang He smiled faintly. For traditional cultural companies, this investment would indeed be unreclaimable, but for Huang He, it was a lifetime of profit.
In this world, almost everyone believed that movies were inherently nobler than TV series, and that movies had a greater influence than TV series.
But in reality, it was precisely the opposite. What truly accumulated immense influence among the masses was not movies, but TV series.
Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Journey to the West, My Fair Princess, The Battle of the Generals.
These were all instances of TV series creating immense influence, while movies never had an impact on society and life as significant as these TV series.
Of course, Marvel was an exception, using movies to create a hugely influential and crazy universe, but Marvel's existence precisely demonstrated the victory of the TV series model.
This was because Marvel was essentially equivalent to creating a movie version of a super TV series that had been broadcast for fifteen consecutive years.
A movie ends after one viewing. Even if the movie was made exceptionally well and won numerous Academy Awards, it was still just 120 minutes long. Moreover, movies were destined to be watched by a minority. Even Titanic was only seen by one-tenth of the people in America.
But TV series were different. Friends had been watched by 60% of Americans, and the future Game of Thrones would be watched by 45% of Americans, and 19% of people worldwide.
The situation for several Chinese series was even more exaggerated. Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Journey to the West, The Battle of the Generals, and My Fair Princess, if not watched by 90% of people, then certainly by 80%.
Therefore, TV series were actually the best means of cultivating an IP, with better results than movies. This was why Huang He was investing heavily in producing such a TV series in China. If handled properly, "Misty Journey" could become China's number one IP in the 21st century.
The vast worldview and power system of "Misty Journey" determined that this IP could spawn countless derivative IPs, creating continuous profits for Jiangnan Group.
If nothing else, Jiangnan Group could sell limited edition blind boxes of "Misty Journey" merchandise for a lifetime. The investment was not regretted.
What Huang He feared was not spending too much money, but rather that the quality of the TV series would not be high enough, thus failing to achieve the desired effect.
While the profits might not be as immediate as those from movies, in the long run, they were far beyond what movies could compare to.
"Alright, you're the boss, you have the money, you call the shots!" Seeing Huang He still smiling, Li An gave up trying to persuade the stubborn fellow. "However, I can give you a suggestion. Don't approach Industrial Light & Magic. Although their technology is indeed the best in America, they are too busy."
"They are working on nearly twenty movies a year. They are too busy with Hollywood films to even consider accepting the special effects for a Chinese TV series. Even if they accepted, they would likely just do a perfunctory job. Americans, at their core, look down on Chinese things, so you won't get the results you expect by approaching them."
"Then who should I approach?" Huang He asked sincerely.
"I'd strongly recommend Weta Workshop!" Li An replied.
"Weta Workshop? I recall that's not a Hollywood studio!" Huang He said thoughtfully.
"That's right, it's a studio located in New Zealand, but they have their own branch in New York. You can contact them directly in New York!" Li An said.
"Why would you recommend this studio?" Huang He asked curiously.
"Because this studio is the most suitable for your Xianxia TV series!" Li An said. "If Industrial Light & Magic represents the world's most advanced computer special effects technology, then Weta Workshop is the world's most cutting-edge studio that can integrate computer special effects technology with makeup special effects and prop special effects!"
"Weta Workshop's greatest strength lies in their special effects makeup and their creation of various fantasy scenes and props! Their most outstanding work is the Lord of the Rings trilogy, which is currently playing. The achievements of this film in special effects are unparalleled!"
"In fact, the Lord of the Rings trilogy and Xianxia TV series share a commonality in special effects. They both focus on environments completely different from the real Earth, as well as various unbelievable monsters and magical arts and immortal techniques!"
"While these things can be built with computer special effects, if you used only computer special effects, even if you threw $1 billion into it, it wouldn't be enough!"
"Conversely, these things can be perfectly achieved by combining makeup special effects and practical special effects. After all, no matter how powerful the special effects, they cannot achieve the same impact as on-location shooting."
"And the cost of these things is several times lower than computer special effects!"
"Coincidentally, the filming of The Lord of the Rings has just concluded, but there aren't many films seeking their production services. They currently only have two films with average special effects. However, this studio still employs over 800 special effects staff, and their financial situation is likely to worsen. They may have to disband some teams. If you approach them now, they will surely treat you like royalty!" Li An chuckled.
"Thank you for the reminder, Mr. Li An!" Huang He said gratefully. Li An's suggestion was indeed crucial and saved Huang He a lot of detours.
Huang He's initial target was indeed Industrial Light & Magic, the world's top special effects studio, but its drawbacks, as Li An had mentioned, made it unsuitable for a Chinese production, let alone a Xianxia production.
"Alright, your business is done, you can leave now, you little rascal!" Li An smiled and immediately started to usher him out.
"Mr. Huang, don't listen to this old man's nonsense. It's almost five o'clock. What kind of logic is it not to eat before leaving? I've already asked the housekeeper to prepare dinner for twenty people."
"Twenty people? Why are you preparing so much dinner?" Li An was shocked.
"I saw that Mr. Huang He brought quite a few people, and there were twelve tough guys standing around our house!" Mrs. Li smiled.
"I'm sorry, those are my bodyguards. I think I should not stay. It might be inconvenient for them, and they might not be accustomed to Chinese food!!" Huang He got up.
"It's alright, it's convenient!" Mrs. Li smiled. "I'm not preparing Chinese food, but BBQ. I've already asked Bang You to buy BBQ ingredients for 20 people. These are very fresh ingredients, and my refrigerator can't hold so much. If you don't eat them, I'll have to throw them away and waste these precious ingredients."
"Besides, the BBQ is in the courtyard, which is very convenient. We just need to tidy up the courtyard afterward!" Mrs. Li's words made it difficult for Huang He to refuse, so he had to agree. Li An, meanwhile, was fuming.
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"What are you thinking about?" After parting ways with the grumpy old man Li An, Huang He asked Leng Zhiruo, seeing her thoughtful expression.
"I'm thinking that Mrs. Li is truly the best virtuous wife and loving mother in the world. Not only does she make people feel at ease, but she can also compensate for her husband's many personality flaws. She is a role model for me to learn from!" Leng Zhiruo said.
"Learn what? Learn to be a virtuous wife and loving mother?" Huang He asked with a playful grin.
"Yes, brother-in-law. Although you are very intelligent, and Jiangnan is on a strong upward trend, you also have personality flaws and are too arrogant. I'm afraid you might unknowingly offend many people, and these are issues that I need to handle for you. If I can be like Mrs. Li, I think I can help you with many things!" Leng Zhiruo said earnestly, which made Huang He feel a bit ashamed.
"Yes, Zhiruo, you're right. I'll listen to you!" Huang He said obediently.
In fact, Mrs. Li was indeed the greatest supportive wife in Li An's life.
After graduating with a master's degree in the United States, Li An went through a six-year period of decline. During this time, everything Li An did ended in failure.
He wanted to make movies but couldn't find investors.
He wrote screenplays, but no one appreciated them.
He couldn't even hold a job for more than three months, resulting in no income. He was eventually forced to suggest that he might as well go wash dishes at a Chinese restaurant to earn money.
But his wife told him that Li An's hands were meant to make the best movies in the world, and even if he wasn't making movies, he should still pick up a pen and write the best screenplays in the world.
They were not meant for washing dishes, which was the greatest insult to his hands.
Therefore, Li An's wife took on all the family expenses, using all her income to support the family, allowing Li An to quietly accumulate experience at home, create screenplays, and seek more opportunities.
Li An's comeback screenplay, "Pushing Hands," was completed under these circumstances. Later, Li An was very grateful to his wife and was also famously henpecked.
Of course, Li An was later rumored to have had some affairs, and although it's unclear if they were true, men, when it comes to women, are indeed not many good ones.
Huang He included.
"I'll go help Mrs. Li prepare the BBQ ingredients!" Leng Zhiruo, learning on the spot, went to the garden to help Mrs. Li, leaving Huang He awkwardly in the living room until some commotion erupted at the entrance.
"What happened?" Huang He asked his head bodyguard via his walkie-talkie, who was the only Chinese-speaking bodyguard among them.
Yes, this bodyguard was the only Chinese-speaking bodyguard in the entire Blackwater New York branch, specially recruited to work for Huang He. Therefore, as long as one was willing to spend money, excellent treatment could be obtained.
"Someone claiming to be Mr. Li An's lawyer is asking to see Mr. Li An, but he's a black man, and I suspect there might be a security issue!" the bodyguard said.
"A Black lawyer?" Huang He nodded, then heard a fluent English voice coming from the walkie-talkie. Although Huang He couldn't understand what the person was saying, he recognized a specific phrase: "my name is Barack Hussein Obama."