To achieve the desired results for this film, Michael Davenport calculated that the promotional expenses would be tight at $8 million. Including distribution costs, the total investment needed would be at least $15 million.
Spending $8 million to buy the rights and $15 million on promotion was indeed a crazy idea.
Film is a high-risk investment industry, and if the first step didn't go well, he was prepared to stop and cut his losses. However, the data from the first step of the plan gave Michael enough confidence to proceed.
Michael then asked, "Robert, those temporary actors you found for 'The Purge' screening last time were good. Can you contact them again?"
"I should be able to. I'll try," Robert replied.
Michael continued, "Find some temporary actors to pose as the relatives and friends of the missing students, record interview videos, and post them on the website. If possible, broadcast them on local TV stations."
Garcia added, "Yes, local TV stations have looser news checks."
Robert laughed, "Don't worry, leave it to me."
"There's one more thing," Michael said to Robert. "Find a manufacturer to print some T-shirts. Hire a service company to have people act as volunteers in major cities across the country, distributing T-shirts and missing person information. It would be best to form a volunteer organization to search for the missing persons, making as much noise as possible."
"No problem," Robert responded. "As long as we have the money, finding people isn't hard."
David Villa interjected, "To proceed with the next step, we need to resolve the funding issue."
Seashore Entertainment didn't have much capital, and even the funds for the first step were borrowed from Relativity Entertainment.
Michael nodded, "I'll take care of the funding. We'll have $8 million available within a week."
During his trip to Germany, he secured $10 million from Koch Films, which he hadn't used yet. This money was kept as a reserve in Relativity Entertainment's account for emergencies.
Michael's first choice wasn't to use this money, as it was one of his safety nets in case the financial chain had issues. Leveraging someone else's resources was still the best approach.
The group discussed offline viral marketing and then moved on to distribution, mainly copies.
"We should contact the printing factory now," Garcia suggested. "Prepare the copies."
Michael asked, "How many copies should we prepare initially?"
Garcia considered for a moment, "I've been in touch with many independent cinemas. We can ensure about 100 screens for the film's opening. As for commercial chain cinemas, we haven't held a screening yet. Even if the screening goes well, they won't initially allocate many resources to such a film. Optimistically, we can get 100 screens in the first week."
Michael nodded slightly, understanding that the film's quality alone wouldn't be convincing enough.
"If the first week's opening is successful, we can expand to over 2,000 theatres in the second week," Michael inquired. "How long would it take to prepare the copies?"
Garcia smiled, "Printing copies isn't very complicated, and there are many printing factories. We can choose a few large ones to prepare in advance. If we're lucky, it would take about five days."
He added, "We can use FedEx for copy delivery, ensuring speed and security."
Robert suggested, "Let's print 300 copies initially. This would reduce risk and financial pressure."
Michael agreed, "Alright, let's start with 300 copies."
Even with 300 copies, it would require nearly $500,000 in funding.
If 2,500 theaters were showing the film, at least 3,000 copies would be needed. If the first week's box office results were poor, they could lose about $5 million just on copies.
Since printing and delivering copies wouldn't be an issue, they could wait until the first week's box office results were out before starting preparations, minimizing risk.
Risk management is a crucial aspect of business operations.
After the meeting, everyone quickly got to work. Garcia was swift, leveraging the Discovery Channel program and the viral missing person notices on the Internet to contact swiftly several local TV stations and send out video files.
Michael left Seashore Entertainment and called Judith at the bank, then went straight to her office to arrange a loan.
"Please have a seat, Mr. Davenport," Judith personally fetched a cup of coffee for Michael and said, "I heard you're preparing two major film projects?"
Sitting opposite Michael, Judith's mind was racing. This was one of her top clients. Although he hadn't come to the bank recently, she kept a close eye on him.
This young Hollywood producer didn't stop after the success of "The Purge." He immediately prepared two projects with a total investment of $40 million and managed to raise the funds without any bank loans. Moreover, he reportedly spent over $20 million to acquire a company.
His career was flourishing, and his wealth was growing, making him an ideal client for the bank.
Judith thought to herself that she had misjudged him in the past. His previous struggles were merely stepping stones to his success.
Judith and the bank had evaluated Michael's new projects. They believed that "Final Destination," which followed the successful model of "The Purge," had a high chance of succeeding.
"Hello, Judith," Michael politely greeted her. "I'm here to apply for a loan."
Judith beamed, "We've always worked well together, and the bank is happy to support your successful career."
Michael smiled, "Thank you."
Although he still had a $3 million loan to repay, the due date was far off, and banks preferred to lend large amounts to successful individuals.
Judith asked tentatively, "How much funding do you need? If it's under $3 million, I can assist you right away."
Michael had already calculated, "I need a $10 million loan."
"What? $10 million?" Judith was shocked. "That much?"
"Is there a problem?" Michael asked directly.
Judith admitted, "$10 million is a lot. If it were under $3 million, we could proceed without collateral. But $10 million requires appropriate collateral."
Banks had their regulations.
Michael knew he couldn't get a $10 million loan with just his word. "Collateral isn't a problem. I have a film project entering production next month, which is expected to be released next spring. I'll use the future earnings from this film as collateral."
Judith smiled, "Is it the horror film 'Final Destination'?"
"No, horror films have limited revenue. Action films are the mainstream now. I'll use the future earnings from 'Kingsman' as collateral," Michael explained.
Judith had looked into these projects and suggested, "Mr. Davenport, I recommend using the future earnings from 'Final Destination' as collateral."
Michael was only testing the waters and wasn't too hopeful about using "Kingsman" to fool the savvy bank. After considering the potential operations using "Final Destination" as collateral, he nodded, "Alright, I agree."
"It might take about five days for the procedures," Judith said. "I'll assist you throughout the process."