Unlike producers who can handle their work completely on their own, directors, screenwriters, actors, and others need to interact with film companies. They have to negotiate contracts, share box office profits, engage in power struggles, and deal with various other matters such as work arrangements, miscellaneous tasks, and media relations. All these things require the assistance of a manager.
Perhaps it's not a necessary choice, but it is the most efficient one. After all, an individual's energy is limited, and their abilities are also limited. There are certain things that cannot be easily resolved by a single person's efforts. The presence of a manager or management company is necessary because they are professionals in these matters. They know how to interact with departments of major film companies, and they have abundant resources to fulfill their clients' needs.
However, Lyman didn't need all that. He just wanted someone who could handle the trivialities of his work or negotiate on his behalf.
Therefore, after reaching an oral agreement with Kevin Huvane yesterday, Lyman entrusted a lawyer, and the two of them arrived at a business building in Century City, where the headquarters of CAA was located.
They entered the elevator and went up to the eighth floor. After exiting the elevator, they explained their purpose to the front desk staff and were led into a spacious and luxuriously decorated meeting room. Before long, relevant CAA personnel also entered the room.
Lyman sat on the left side of a long conference table and flipped to the last page of the contract. Once everything was confirmed without error, under the guidance of his lawyer, Joey, Lyman slid the pen and left his signature in the blank space where it was needed.
After signing the contract in duplicate, Lyman exchanged contract documents with Kevin Huvane and Bryan Lourd, who represented CAA. At that moment, a waiting photographer seized the opportunity and pressed the shutter button on his camera, capturing this scene.
"We are honored to reach an agreement with Director Lyman and sign this economic contract," said Bryan, one of CAA's top executives, a bald man with a smile on his face, appearing very pleased. "CAA warmly welcomes young talents like you to join our big family!"
Lyman shook hands with him in a friendly manner and smiled, saying, "I am also honored to join the embrace of CAA."
It was just a formal exchange of words. It wasn't just because of shaving one's head to appear amicable. The reason for reaching an agreement was because everyone analyzed the pros and cons and found it feasible. Otherwise, would this matter have succeeded?
After the photographer took the photo, he automatically left the meeting room, and Joey, the lawyer by Lyman's side, was respectfully asked to leave by Kevin. It seemed that the next step would involve specific arrangements by the staff members. Lyman has also done some investigation on these matters.
CAA, also known as Creative Artists Agency, was established in 1975. Its legendary founder, Michael Ovitz, personally led the agency for a full 20 years. With extraordinary personal charisma and business acumen, he transformed CAA from a small and unknown startup into an industry leader.
This ambitious worker initially worked for the William Morris Agency. However, he couldn't bear the company's conservative system, where hardworking and ambitious young people like him had no chance of advancement. The senior agents each had their own factions, and being a subordinate meant working tirelessly and making sacrifices without personal gains. These difficult circumstances led him to develop a rebellious attitude.
The restless Ovitz started privately venting his frustrations to three other talented agents in the company until he met another "rebel", Ron Meyer, who persuaded them to go out on their own.
At first, they hesitated, but they decided to try getting a loan from the bank. However, they didn't anticipate that the person in charge at the bank was a good friend of the company's CFO. Consequently, even before their unlucky plan started, it was discovered, and the company's top management, in a fit of anger, fired them. With no other options, these individuals were no pushovers. They claimed to be a legitimate agency even without a business license.
Through hard work and some luck, they gradually grew and became stronger. Since their founder made a name for himself by "betraying" and undermining others, they designed a set of special rules for managing their employees and artists. These systems had been in use to this day.
Some of these rules included:
First, equality for everyone. Each agent can be called a partner of CAA rather than an employee. There are no signs on the office doors, and salary lists are arranged alphabetically by surname. Second, they don't assign exclusive agents. Each client is served by four to five agents in rotation to prevent agents from taking their clients' resources elsewhere. Third, income is tiered. As long as one has the ability, there is no limit to annual income. How much one can earn depends solely on their abilities. Fourth, there is the famous packaging service, where they utilize their resources to package various resources needed for a production.
After clearing the room, it didn't take long for four subordinates of CAA to enter the meeting room. They appeared to be his team of managers. While Lyman was secretly assessing them, Kevin took the initiative to start the introductions.
"This is John Brandon, responsible for media communication and your daily life service."
"This is Brown Harryman, responsible for literary creations and selecting suitable scripts for you."
"This is Garland Davis, responsible for special opportunities."
"And this is Katherine Johnson, also responsible for literary and documentary matters."
"If there's anything they can't handle, you can also call me, and I can provide relevant assistance."
Among the four-person group, two were middle-aged, one was a middle-aged woman, and the last one, John Brandon, who appeared slightly younger, would be the main person in charge of his daily work. As for the last sentence added by Kevin, Lyman didn't take it seriously at all. As one of CAA's top executives, he theoretically had control over most of the agency's agents, but who would bother him regularly?
Lyman politely shook hands with the four individuals. Regardless, they would be the small team arranged by CAA to manage him. Perhaps everyone still didn't understand each other or weren't familiar yet. It would take some time and evaluation of their professional abilities to determine whether they could work and get along harmoniously.
In any case, at CAA, clients could change agents at any time. This was explicitly stated in the economic contract signed by both parties. When the need arose for exercising this right, Lyman wouldn't hesitate for a moment.
Bryan Lourd and Kevin Huvane were both important partners at CAA and had plenty of work to do on a daily basis. Their presence at the signing ceremony was also a way to demonstrate their importance and respect for Lyman, a rising new director. Now that work and personnel allocation were clearly arranged and their attitude was well expressed, they left the meeting room after a few formalities.
The other three agents also had their own work to attend to. John Brandon, who was responsible for media relations and daily business handling, stayed behind, while the other three left one after another.
"Mr. Lyman," John, despite being the youngest among them, had an impeccable work attitude. In a short time, he entered a state of considering the client's needs. "Is there anything you need me to do recently?"
"Of course." Since the contract was signed and he was willing to pay the ten percent commission (deducted from Lyman's personal remuneration or fees received), Lyman certainly wouldn't hold back. "I have a new project recently, and I need you to negotiate on my behalf."
John Brandon immediately took out a pen and notebook. "Do you have any specific requirements?"
Lyman pondered for a moment. "Try to negotiate a higher salary for me, oh, and one more thing. I want to invest in the new project on behalf of the studio and receive a proportional share of the box office returns."
Yes, no one was immune to the allure of the profits generated by "3 Idiots". CAA was willing to court him precisely because of this. As for Lyman himself, he could only receive several million dollars from that huge income. No one can suppress the thoughts that arise. Moreover, he had great confidence in his own film. The consideration and intention of bringing in capital and sharing the returns of his work naturally emerged in his mind.
"Specifically, in terms of funding, any numerical values?"
Well, in terms of specific amounts... Lyman carefully thought it through.
The studio's account currently has approximately $20M, accumulated from "Buried" and "3 Idiots". Money, of course, couldn't be spent entirely on this project. Even if he was very confident, it was better to be safe than sorry. What if it failed? He would be in trouble again.
So he was willing to allocate $8M as startup capital for now, leaving $12M.
However, it was unlikely that EuropaCorp would agree to such a large sum. After all, the total investment budget for the new project is only $50M, and Lyman alone was taking nearly a quarter of it. How would others participate?
Based on his estimation, Lyman spoke up, "Try to negotiate as much as possible. Set the bottom line at $5M. I want to invest at least $5M in the project and receive a proportional share of the returns."
"Alright, I will follow up on this matter," John Brandon closed his notebook. "If there's any news, I will inform you immediately and discuss it with you."
He took a few steps closer. "If there's nothing else, I'll take my leave. I have some handover work to attend to."
"Goodbye." Lyman shook his hand, politely seeing him off.
...
When the next day arrived, Lyman, accompanied by René and a group of people, boarded a plane with CAA agent John Brandon, heading to Paris, France.
EuropaCorp had approved the project, and preliminary negotiations with Lyman's side regarding the film "Fury" were about to commence.