116. toy story
Toy Story.
3D animation produced by Pixar and published by Disney.
This animation has more meaning than just a successful movie.
This is because it is the world’s first full-length 3D feature-length animation, and it is the work that enabled Pixar, which was on the brink of bankruptcy, to become a world-class film production company.
“That’s an interesting title. Did ‘Tin Toy’ become your motif?”
“Oh, that’s right. Do you know Tin Toy?”
“sure. It was nominated for an Academy Award and even won an award in the field of short animation, so of course I know it.”
John Lasseter looked at Hoyoung again.
Even though Tin Toy won an Academy Award, in fact, it was a short animation that was not even known to exist unless you were a movie or animation fanatic.
He thought that Hoyoung was also well versed in movies.
“good. I’m really looking forward to it. I think ‘You Are A Toy.’ will probably be a huge hit worldwide.”
“haha. We haven’t finished working on the scenario yet, but thank you for your anticipation.”
“It is not a groundless statement. It’s embarrassing to say, but I’ve talked about you a few times when I talk to Jobs often.”
“Are you Steve?”
Hoyoung nodded slightly and opened her mouth.
“Please don’t tell him I said this. Perhaps because of his personality, he might throw a tantrum for not doing so.”
“ha ha ha. I know Steve’s personality best.”
“When Steve Jobs talked about you, he always said to look forward to it because he was going to make a big mark in the history of film someday. I’m looking forward to hearing that story too.”
“You look like someone who would never say such a thing in front of you, but you know how to say it behind your back.”
Hoyoung and Rasta briefly talked about Steve Jobs.
Perhaps thanks to the sense of kinship that both of them knew, a much smoother conversation was possible than before.
Hoyoung casually brought up the topic of the movie.
“By the way, are there any difficulties in producing ‘You Are A Toy.’?”
Rasta blinked at Hoyoung for a moment before opening his mouth.
“There are two very minor problems.”
“What’s the problem?”
“One is a problem that all manufacturers have. It’s the production cost.”
Hoyoung laughed inwardly.
Because that problem was not a problem for Hoyoung.
No, I rather hoped that the production cost would be insufficient.
“Isn’t Disney not investing enough production money?”
“There, we decided to invest $20 million.”
“Twenty million dollars is enough money to produce a decent blockbuster, so how much do you budget for production?”
“We need at least $30 million.”
“Minimal. So how much will you need if you have enough room?”
“haha. I don’t even want that much. But with a budget of about $40 million, I can express everything I want to express.”
Hoyoung quietly recalled the memory.
‘The original production cost of Toy Story is known to be $30 million. Is that the result of proceeding with the minimum amount?’
Then he spoke again.
“Then what are you going to do with the shortfall of at least 10 million dollars?”
“As you know, right now Pixar can’t afford to pay for that kind of production. I need to talk to Steve first and collect investors for the shortfall.”
Hoyoung nodded her head.
“You need another 20 million dollars to make the movie right?”
“That’s right.”
“Then I will make that investment. We invest $20 million.”
Laster’s eyes widened like rabbits.
And he tried to say something, but Hoyoung didn’t care and continued.
“Has Disney, by any chance, invested and set conditions on external investment?”
“That’s right. First of all, there are no restrictions on investors, but we decided to make all investments through them once.”
“okay. Then, in the end, if I want to invest in the film, I will have to meet them.”
“you’re right.”
“Perhaps they want to keep the total cost of production as low as possible, is that true?”
“Exactly. They don’t want to lose their share of movie profits.”
Even Ho-young could understand what Disney’s intentions were.
If the total production cost was $40 million, they would only have 50% of the rights, but if the total production cost was $30 million, they would have 66% rights.
“Would you like to meet the person responsible for this investment at Disney?”
“of course. We will be staying nearby until the screenplay for our movie is finished. Coincidentally, this afternoon is the day we have a scenario-related meeting. Shall we try to contact you now?”
“I would appreciate it if you would do that. please.”
“Then please wait a moment.”
Laster stepped away to call a representative from Disney.
Hoyoung took advantage of that opportunity to check who was coming, and then looked at Toy Story’s box office performance as Gaia.
‘The bell costs $30 million to make, but the U.S. revenue alone is $200 million. In addition, the combined global revenue is about 400 million dollars. It’s a business worth doing.’
If the talk with Disney goes well and the investment succeeds, it was an opportunity to earn approximately $ 180 million in profits.
Actually, 180 million dollars was a lot of money, but it was not such an absolute amount to Hoyoung.
However, Toy Story’s investment this time would have significant meaning.
‘It will be an opportunity to actively advance into the film investment market in the future.’
The film industry was no different from a guaranteed money line for Ho-young, who knew the future.
In fact, Hoyoung had thought about investing in a movie several times before, but was still waiting for the right time.
They waited for the time when astronomical production costs were invested in Hollywood movies and astronomical profits began to be made.
And I thought that now is the time.
“Sorry for making you wait so long. The phone call is a bit long.”
“What did the person in charge say?”
“I’m going to meet you in the afternoon and talk about it. Today, after the scenario meeting, there is no work after that. It will be leisurely at 3:00 PM.”
“All right. Then I’ll do my business for a while and come back at 3:00 PM.”
After a brief greeting, Hoyoung left Pixar.
“Shall we have a light meal and relax a little today?”
“good. Is there anything you would like to eat?”
“This place in Emeryville is famous for its seafood. There is a store I know. It’s called ‘Skates on The Bay’ and the lobster dish is amazing.”
“How the hell do you know about this place? You may not know if you are in Korea, but isn’t this your first time visiting Emeryville?”
At Miru’s words, Hoyoung smiled and said.
“I have been to America a few times in my previous life. As a result, I have been to many restaurants around the corner.”
“Director! If you don’t want to tell me, just say no.”
Hoyeong giggled to herself at Miru’s reaction.
“It’s a trade secret. It hurts if you try to tell me.”
“Aye, I understand. If I don’t want to get hurt, I won’t wonder more.”
“ruler. Get in the passenger seat. I will drive today. You don’t even know where the restaurant is located anyway.”
“But how…”
“When you come back, the manager has to do it, so memorize the route.”
Hoyeong said it playfully and got into the driver’s seat.
Miru thought about what to do for a while, then took a deep sigh and climbed into the passenger seat.
.
.
.
3 p.m.
Hoyoung and Miru waited for the meeting at Pixar between John Lasseter and a Disney representative to end.
In the morning, John Lasseter said it would end at 3:00 PM, but the meeting showed no sign of ending yet.
“Shall we put a message in the conference room saying you’re here?”
A Pixar employee asked Ho-young, who was waiting in the drawing room.
“Let’s wait a little longer. I’m talking about something that important, so it must be late.”
“All right. Thank you for your understanding.”
Hoyeong waited slowly for John Lasseter while drinking the coffee provided by the staff.
There was no need to rush anyway.
“ah! Mr. Yoon. sorry. It was not something that would drag on for so long, but the meeting was taking too long because there was something that we could not reach an agreement on at all.”
No matter how much time had passed, John Lasseter ran into the living room panting and found Ho-young.
“haha. it’s okay. So, did you finish talking?”
“no. I’m sorry, but we still haven’t come to a conclusion.”
“Is something going on?”
“Didn’t I tell you that I have two minor concerns when you chatted with me this morning?”
“It was. One thing he said was the production cost.”
John Lasseter nodded and opened his mouth.
“The other thing was none other than the title.”
“okay?”
“yes. In fact, I think that the title You are a Toy does not properly connote the meaning of our movie. So I’m thinking hard about a suitable title, but it’s not easy.”
“I’m sure you’ll find a good title.”
“haha. It’s embarrassing. It’s something we have to worry about. Come over here anyway. We decided to continue discussing the title tomorrow.”
Hoyoung followed John Lasseter into the conference room.
In the conference room, a black man with a shaved head was reading a scenario, and saw Ho-young and got up from his seat.
“Nice to meet you. Mr. Yoon. I heard from John Lasseter. This is Tyrone Daniels.”
“yes. Nice to meet you.”
Tyrone Daniels was nearly two meters tall and his hands were literally the size of a pot lid.
“You mean Pixar’s Jujushi?”
“yes. That’s right.”
“I heard you wanted to invest $20 million. But that’s hard for us to accept.”
Disappointment crossed John Lasseter’s face.
This is because Disney has to accept all of Hoyoung’s investment to be able to use the generous production cost of 40 million dollars.
“This feature-length animation, ‘You are a Toy’, is a work in progress in the form of Disney commissioning Pixar to produce. Of course, we are also in charge of distribution.”
“That is a known fact.”
“That’s why we don’t want to diminish the margins we can take. It is because I want to eliminate risks as much as possible as much as I am making a movie in a new way.”
When Tyrone finished talking, Hoyeong asked in a light tone.
“Why do you think that is risk-free?”
“yes?”
“What is the revenue target for this movie now going into production?”
“We are aiming for $100 million.”
Hoyoung smiled and said.
“Then let me ask another question. Will a $30 million movie be profitable? Or will a $40 million movie pay off?”
Tyrone knew what Hoyoung wanted to say.
“It is not without meaning. However, there is something you should be aware of. I’ve worked at Disney alone for over 15 years. Just because the production cost goes up doesn’t mean that it will be successful at the box office.”
“you’re right. Actually, I don’t know much about the movie market. However, I’ve never heard of a problem with the high production cost. Conversely, I have often seen problems with low production costs.”
Hoyeong did not lose a word to Tyrone.
Tyrone actually looked down on John Lasseter when he first heard about Hoyoung.
An Asian in his early 20s.
Although he seems to have a lot of money, he presumed that he would be clumsy in social experiences and dealing with people.
However, he was sitting slightly at an angle at first, but before he knew it, he was in a straight posture.
It means that the conversation with Hoyoung is not easy.
At that time, Hoyeong, who had always had a relaxed expression, opened her mouth.
“I will put in 20 million dollars for the production cost. But let’s adjust the revenue share a little bit and take 60% from Disney. I invest the same amount, but I can only take 40%.”
Tyrone’s eyes widened.
And he started pounding the abacus in his head.
According to the conditions Hoyoung said earlier, it would be possible to secure an additional 10 million dollars in production costs by giving up only 6.6% of profits.
“Hmm… Okay. If that’s the case, let’s discuss it with the company.”
Hoyoung smiled.
In fact, he could have stubbornly endured without meeting these conditions, but Tyrone was a man who knew how to think rationally.
“thank you. I hope to hear positive results.”
“yes. We should be able to contact you sometime tomorrow. Anyway, the conversation ended earlier than expected.”
John Lasseter, who had been quietly listening to their conversation, nodded.
“That’s right. In fact, I canceled all the later schedules because I was afraid that the investment meeting would be prolonged.”
“Me too. I don’t have any schedule either. Then, shall we talk a little more about the title today?”
John Lasseter and Tyrone were poised to begin talking in earnest.
And seeing the two of them, Hoyeong slightly opened her mouth.
“I’ve heard about it, and I know it.”
“yes. I’m sorry, but I’m going to start talking right here, but how about we see you tomorrow?”
Tyrone’s euphemistic banquet.
But Hoyoung pretended not to hear.
“If you are worried about the title, how about a title like this? This is the title I thought of while watching ‘Tin Toy’.”
“What title is it?”
Hoyoung said something unexpected, but was it because it was so out of the blue? Tyrone was rather interested in Hoyeong’s words.
“Isn’t it too hard to think about? This story is a story of toys. Let’s simply go to ‘Toy Story.’”
Hoyeong’s words opened John Lasseter’s and Tyrone’s eyes.