At that moment, Tony's assistant pointed at the gate and shouted:
"She's out! She's out!"
Both men immediately switched into work mode, grabbed their cameras, and started taking photos.
"Tony, get in the car quickly! Let's follow her!"
"Sure, but didn't you say Nicole Kidman drives a Rolls-Royce? So why did a Lamborghini just come out?"
"It doesn't matter. Celebrities like her have plenty of luxury cars."
"Right."
Charles chased after the Lamborghini, driving further and further away, while West, left behind, was fuming with frustration. He realized this job couldn't be done solo, but by the time he figured it out, it was too late to catch up.
He sighed heavily, thinking about whether to stay or wait for another celebrity to show up. Just then, he saw a Rolls-Royce pulling out of the gate.
West froze for a moment, glancing at the disappearing Lamborghini, and suddenly, a wave of joy hit him.
"Hahaha! I'm lucky! This story's worth at least 2,000 dollars!"
He sharply turned the wheel and floored the gas, chasing after the Rolls-Royce.
After that night when Eric spoke with Spielberg, most of the details had been settled.
Then, the legal teams of MGM and DreamWorks started working together, finalizing the contracts, which had gone through several rounds of checks to ensure that both parties wouldn't fall into any legal traps.
On Thursday morning, Eric received a call from Spielberg. The three heads of DreamWorks were due to arrive at MGM to finalize the last formalities.
At 9:30 AM, a Buick minivan stopped outside the MGM building.
Steven Spielberg, Jeffrey Katzenberg, and David Geffen stepped out.
Each of them had a specific role within DreamWorks: Spielberg was the master of live-action films, Katzenberg, the former Disney executive, specialized in animation and was considered a genius for creating films like The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin, while Geffen was a music expert, responsible for the success of artists like the Eagles, Bob Dylan, Tom Waits, and Guns N' Roses.
In 2003, DreamWorks was officially known as DreamWorks SKG, where the S stood for Spielberg, K for Katzenberg, and G for Geffen.
The trio was greeted by a welcoming team and Wool. They were led to the conference room, and to show respect, both Eric and his father attended the signing ceremony. The meeting began with handshakes.
Much like a diplomatic visit, everything had already been negotiated behind the scenes, so the signing was merely a formality.
In just half an hour, after signing the contracts, the legal obligations were enforced, and MGM and DreamWorks Animation became strategic partners.
They signed a deal to produce five animated feature films, with DreamWorks receiving a 10% stake in each.
If DreamWorks chose not to invest, MGM would fully fund the projects, while DreamWorks would serve as the producer.
This agreement didn't mean DreamWorks was selling its animation division to MGM, but it did make MGM a priority client, and other DreamWorks projects couldn't interfere with this collaboration.
"Jeffrey, as for the Frozen Heart project, the character designs are nearly finished, but the script and scene design need a bit more time. You can begin pre-production, and MGM will provide the final script to make it easier for DreamWorks to work with."
Jeffrey Katzenberg nodded slightly and suggested, "Steven has already told me about this film. It's based on Hans Christian Andersen's The Snow Queen and will be fully in 3D. DreamWorks can handle that."
"But I have one suggestion: I would like DreamWorks to be involved in the scriptwriting process. Nothing personal, but since we're also investing 10%, we all want to make sure the first project is done the best way possible."
Katzenberg spoke delicately, but Eric understood his concern.
With a smile, he replied, "Jeffrey, you can speak plainly. I prefer honest communication; that way, we can understand each other better."
"I understand you're worried that MGM might stick to its old habits and styles, like Disney did?"
"Yes, in MGM's recent animated films, only Pink Panther stands out, and even that was mimicking Tom and Jerry or Droopy."
"But I can confidently say that this is no longer Kirk Kerkorian's time. The younger generation will be telling old stories in a new way, and Frozen Heart will be in step with the times, not stuck in the past."
Why did Eric say this? Because Disney's actions in the animation field in recent years had become a shining example of what not to do.
Ever since DreamWorks and Pixar started rising, especially after the release of the first fully 3D animated feature film, Toy Story, the entire industry underwent a transformation, moving from the 2D era into 3D.
And what did Disney do?
That's right, they swam against the tide, stubbornly refusing to adopt 3D, declaring that animated characters created with computer effects looked "pathetic."
Furthermore, Disney continued to use storytelling techniques developed decades ago, but audiences had changed.
Stories about princes and princesses, family dramas—this didn't interest the new generation of viewers anymore. Throwing in a few new jokes or trendy phrases didn't make the films modern.
As a result, Cinderella 2 flopped, and Treasure Planet also turned out to be a failure. Disney appeared like an old man trying to master youth slang and trends. He might think he was in touch with the times, but young people saw it as something unnatural. If anyone was bound to fail, it was him.
DreamWorks naturally feared that MGM wouldn't adapt to the new reality either and that the release of the film would lead to a failure, dragging them down as well.
The discussions continued until noon, after which everyone went for lunch in the MGM cafeteria. Had the owners not been present, the staff would have likely crowded around Spielberg, asking for autographs and pictures.
"Steven, try this, I'm sure you'll like it," Eric said, pointing to the sweet and sour pork.
Since Eric had arrived here, he had specifically sent someone to Chinatown to hire a 50-year-old chef for $20,000 a year to cook authentic Chinese food.
It wasn't the Americanized version of Chinese cuisine; it was the real deal that he was used to. He simply couldn't love the local variation.
When the chef first arrived, the MGM staff, noticing that the boss liked the dishes, wanted to try them too. But they were accustomed to the American version of Chinese food and weren't used to the authentic style.
However, over time, within a few months, the chef had become so popular that his dishes were ordered two or even three times more often than at the beginning. And he was delighted with his salary.
After lunch, Eric and his father escorted the DreamWorks trio to the exit.
However, as soon as they stepped outside and took a few steps, a group of reporters rushed out from behind corners, bushes, trees, and even near trash bins, surrounding them.
Everyone thought the journalists would ask about the MGM and DreamWorks partnership to promote Frozen Heart.
But instead, the paparazzi immediately shoved microphones in Eric's face, practically putting them in his mouth.
"Mr. Cooper, are you dating Nicole Kidman?"
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