Seventy million dollars, that's the production cost of Enemy at the Gates. The film also features rising stars Rachel Weisz and Jude Law, seemingly brimming with star power. However, after the clash of Godzilla and The Matrix, Michael Ovitz deeply realized one thing: the North American film market is far more xenophobic than he had imagined!
A World War II film about Soviets versus one about the attack on Pearl Harbor—Which would American audiences choose?
Although Disney still needs an evaluation before confirming whether Pearl Harbor will be released on that weekend, Michael Ovitz was certain that Disney would make the same decision he would.
Leaving the meeting room, Michael Ovitz walked out of Disney's building alongside Michael Bay.
It was evident that Michael Bay had some reservations about changing Pearl Harbor's release date. It wasn't hard to guess what was on the mind of this long-faced director.
Michael Bay was a director he had just signed, incredibly important to the artist management company. While they had a top-tier director like Martin Scorsese, known for his reputation, Scorsese's films lacked strong commercial appeal, offering limited assistance to the company's integrated packaging services.
Unlike Martin Scorsese, Michael Bay was not only hailed as a little "explosion maniac" but also shared a commercial style similar to Duke Rosenberg's, heavily skewed towards the commercial spectrum. Even Ovitz couldn't deny that packaging commercial films yielded far greater profits than other genres.
In any case, Ovitz held Michael Bay in high regard.
"Don't worry; you'll face him head-on one day."
As they stepped out of Disney's building and waited for the car, Ovitz said to Michael Bay, "Don't forget, he also has a film coming out next summer. If Pearl Harbor can outperform The Lord of the Rings in both box office and reviews, it'll be enough to prove your worth."
Michael Bay nodded solemnly, filled with confidence.
While Michael Bay envisioned shaking off his "second-place" label next summer, far away in New Zealand, Duke had once again returned to filming.
Back in Wellington, after reviewing the footage shot by Anna Prince, Duke split tasks with her again. Anna went to film the scenes of Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas summoning the army of the dead, while Duke arrived in the small town of Nelson. Near the completed set at a mining site, he began shooting scenes related to Minas Tirith.
Much like Helm's Deep, the White City was constructed with various models, including a miniature one specifically used for wide-angle shots.
The scorching summer had passed. Under the clear skies of New Zealand's autumn, fully armored Gondorian soldiers stood in neat rows atop temporary city walls, staring straight ahead as if the Orc army was truly just beneath the walls.
Of course, there was no Orc army. Opposite them stood about twenty crew members holding a rather jarring assortment of props: bloodied "heads" of Gondorian soldiers.
Sitting under a large sunshade, Duke received confirmation from all departments that they were ready. He gestured to the clapperboard operator.
The clapperboard was placed in front of the camera lens: "Scene 413, Shot 29. Action!"
The crew members had been prepared. Following a unified command and after several rehearsals, they threw the silicone-made, bloodied heads in sequence. The heads drew irregular arcs over the soldiers on the front walls, landing among the formations behind. Startled Gondorian soldiers raised their shields to block, but as they realized the heads belonged to their comrades, expressions of fear gradually appeared on their faces.
"Cut!" Duke moved away from the monitor. "This one's good."
The Gondorian soldiers needed to regroup before other scenes could be filmed. Duke patiently waited—this was a common occurrence during filming. Lengthy preparations often led to just a few brief shots. Nonetheless, the film's overall progress was much faster than planned.
This was primarily due to the extensive and thorough pre-production planning, coupled with Duke's constant involvement in preparations. Without this groundwork, shooting such a complex, grand trilogy would have been impossible.
Sitting under the sunshade, Duke watched the assistant directors instruct extras to realign. Most of these Gondorian "soldiers" were not actors or even extras. Apart from a few characters appearing in close-ups, the rest were borrowed from New Zealand's military!
This was another significant factor contributing to the film's smooth production. From the military to tax policies to management of exterior locations, various entities provided tremendous support to the crew.
Light footsteps came from behind. Casually dressed Ivanka Trump climbed the stairs and walked up to the platform where Duke was seated.
"Tina's busy?" Duke glanced back at her.
Ivanka had just stepped away to take a call from Tina Fey. "She passed along a few messages. Disney has changed Pearl Harbor's release date, moving it two weekends earlier..."
Hearing this, Ivanka's eyes revealed genuine admiration. Having grown up in a business family and influenced by her father, she deeply respected successful people.
She wasn't a movie enthusiast but understood that Disney had already completed its initial transition into a media conglomerate. For such a giant to proactively adjust plans for a director highlighted how powerful and successful he was!
During her two stints with the crew, Ivanka realized that Duke's achievements weren't due to luck. Not in the slightest.
Even if one focuses solely on his success in films, his business acumen shattered any misconception of mediocrity.
Initially, Ivanka thought of him as just a highly accomplished director. However, after frequently taking over as his assistant when Tina Fey returned to North America, she began handling some of his investment-related affairs. She discovered that Duke's achievements in business were astounding.
She hadn't calculated everything precisely, but based on the documents she handled in December last year, his IT stock investments alone had earned him at least $200 million in profits after being flipped.
Money, to someone of her background, often felt like just a game of numbers. However, this numerical game represented success and failure.
Since deciding to enter the business world, Ivanka had never entertained the thought of failure.
A director who could repeatedly succeed in film and achieve impressive results in business was exceedingly rare globally. Narrowing this criterion to individuals around thirty years old, he was likely the only one.
Admiring someone like this was almost inevitable.
To her, this young director appeared diligent, steadfast, confident, elegant, cheerful, talented, tall, handsome, brave...
Unconsciously, Ivanka found herself attributing every praise-worthy quality to Duke. For a young woman like her, a mature, successful man was often the most worship-worthy figure.
Unaware of his temporary assistant's thoughts, Duke remained focused on his work.
"I recall Doug mentioning that May is a crowded release window."
More precisely, the entirety of May and the summer season were jam-packed. Finding a weekend with weak competition was nearly impossible. "Which film is Pearl Harbor clashing with?"
Ivanka snapped back to her senses and answered earnestly. "Originally, Paramount's Enemy at the Gates was scheduled for that weekend. However, after Disney announced its change, Paramount also adjusted its schedule, moving the film to March."
"They're smart," Duke remarked, exhaling lightly. His concern shifted to matters related to himself. "For Memorial Day weekend next year, which major blockbusters are slated to release?"
"After the release date of The Lord of the Rings' first installment was leaked, not just Pearl Harbor, but several other big-budget films also adjusted their schedules. Memorial Day weekend now has no first-tier or even second-tier competitors."
Ivanka looked at Duke again. His success and strength had reached the point where competitors voluntarily avoided him. "If nothing unexpected happens, the weekend before us has DreamWorks' animated Shrek, and the weekend after has Paramount's Tomb Raider."
Both films were competitive, but Duke didn't mind much. This was the fiercely contested summer season; it was unrealistic for any film to release without competition.
Entering the summer season meant more audiences, but also extremely fierce market competition.
Could there even be commercial activities without competition in today's society?
"There's more..."
Taking advantage of the shooting break, Ivanka continued. "Tom Cruise has officially sent an invitation for you to attend the premiere of Mission: Impossible 2 in May."
After a brief thought, Duke replied, "Tell him I'll attend."
After all, it was a film he had invested in. Showing up was a necessary gesture.
It seemed like today was particularly eventful. Ivanka showed no sign of stopping as she added, "Nancy also sent a message. The Australian Open committee has invited you to participate in several charity events."
"Hmm..."
After a moment's thought, Duke recalled an Australian tennis official inviting him in person last year, which he had vaguely brushed off.
Under normal circumstances, Duke wouldn't mind attending, but he had just given the crew a break and couldn't leave again.
"Tell Nancy to send someone to represent me. For donations or charity auctions, she can coordinate with Tina."
For such occasions, a representative would suffice. Duke gave Ivanka a few more instructions before returning to filming.
The battle of Minas Tirith had just begun.
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