Movie Tycoon 1.0

wilhelmgras · September 21, 2013

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Goliath764" data-cite="Goliath764" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="36553" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Jared Gilmore - He doesn't think he is overpaid at all, it's a very standard rate. Mason Cook(0.60 SP) - He would like 600,000. Edward Norton - He's on second lead for this one.</div></blockquote> Jared Gilmore: Oh, I agree, it's a very standard rate, and he has fully earned the right to ask that amount of money as he is a talented actor. However, I generally want people who are hungry for their chance to work their way up, like Dev Patel. Mason Cook: How about 480.000 and the lead in the sequel? However, do note that there will only be a sequel if this movie gives me more than 2.500.000 profit. Edward Norton: Then it's a deal.

Goliath764 · September 22, 2013

<div style="text-align:center;">Racing Hearts

Review by: Mr.G</div>

Racing Hearts hit the family market with a re-tell of an ancient Greek story, the race between Atalanta and Milanion. Okay, that might not be the complete story, as this film is not only about the race but the life of Atalanta from her birth to the race(and a little after that too).

Atalanta's story isn't really that happy to begin with. Apparently, sexism exists in ancient Greek too and Atalanta is abandoned by his father as she was dropped into the wilderness by the servants. Lucky for her, the deities refuse to let her die that way(if only they could do so to every abandoned baby out there). She eventually found by a bunch of hunters after surviving with the help of a she-bear. Trained by the hunters, Atalanta grows up to be great athlete, one that can best many men in any sort of athletic competition.

She returns to her family but things don't go well for a very long time. She's forced into marrying somebody...and just anybody, really, and she has to do something to prevent it and her condition is that one must win her in a race to be her husband; failing the race though and one has to die. Personally, I think the idea of putting the loser to death seems more "PG" than "G". Of course, there's graphic scene at all but the idea alone might not be good for young(er) children.

Milanion is introduced at this point, a fearless man, challenge Atalanta to a race despite that many have died after losing to her. Both of them find each other lovely, love at first sight at its finest, and Milanion is given some help from a goddess, ultimately win the race and they live happily ever after. Overall, interesting story with some changes to the source material. It's a simple and strong story, something that works best in G rating.

However, I do have some picking to do. Schoeneus(Atalanta) has the potential to be a stronger antagonist. I understand that in the source material, he just accepts Atalanta back to the family easily but I really don't find it to be that easy in most cases. There should be a better and proper reason for Schoeneus to take her back to the family. After all, he could have just act like he doesn't know her and not take her back if he wants to. There should be some motivation, like maybe he have heard of the athleticism of Atalanta and feels that winning a ton of competition might be a good way to earn a lot or money or bolster the fame of the family and another reason to put her to the path of marriage. Another reason Schoeneus needs to be a strong antagonist is that he's the only character that is opposing the protagonist and only by having a good antagonist, one can truly show how good the protagonist is. Also, Schoeneus is ultimately the only opposition in this film so he has to show more effort in making Atalanta's life hard. You can have one massive blockade or a ton of small blockades in a story, this one leans on one massive blockade.

Milanion could use more time actually. At the current state of the story, the romance begins a little bit too late into the story and there's not really that much of buildup. To sell the romance, there should be more connection and development between the two characters. Or at least let the audience know both of them fairly well. Of course, we know enough of Atalanta but Milanion could use more screentime in establishing himself so the audience care enough to cheer for him in the race as he should be the one we cheer in the race. We definitely don't want to see him die, eh?

While I am glad that Milanion is a brave and confident man, the story dictates that he has to win with some help of Aphrodite. The motivation of Aphrodite, to me, is one of the biggest problem of this film to me. While I would be fine if Milanion asks for help himself, Aphrodite coming to Milanion on her own and the reason is that Atalanta has greatly disappointed the goddess of love is "out of nowhere". I don't even know why the goddess of love is disappointed in Atalanta anyway. To me, the deities' motivation is the weak point of this film. All of them pretty much goes nowhere: Aphrodite wants Atalanta to teach the heartless jerk(his dad) a lesson, there's no lesson to the end, Aphrodite is disappinted with Atalanta, yet she helps her find love in Milanion. I assume the studio wants to avoid the more mature theme like virginity and revenge sort of thing but maybe the studio can rewrite and implement some of their own ideas rather than trying to follow the original strictly and forming holes on this part of the plot.

While there's not many big problems in the overall story and the story is fine as it is, some minor issues stop this from being better. Still, this movie is good, very good actually, and I am pretty sure the parents are glad that there's finally a movie for the whole family in theater. I give this one a 3.25 stars, it's pretty close to 3.5 stars at the current state and I can see this being 4 stars and above if executed flawlessly.

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Misc. Information

- While the production value is good, the artist team seems to be underperformed a little bit throughout the production phase and the overall art is slightly under average for an animation with a $500,000 budget.

- People nowadays are used to CG animation in the big screen and some are reluctant toward traditional animation. Well, the good news is, there's not many family films at this moment and so pretty much every movie-going families put Racing Hearts into consideration. The marketing does an average job but it's the right film at the right time so the gain is huge.

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Revenue: 19,182,000

Budget: 2,917,000

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Gross Profit: 16,265,000

15% bonus: 2,439,750

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Net Profit: 13,825,520

Amalgamated Artists' budget = $3,000,000 + $13,825,520 = $16,825,250

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Impact

- A out-of-nowhere hit of a family film in Halloween season is pretty impressive, and that means the entire cast has their SP increased by 0.25.

- Ashleigh Ball and Sam Vincent get an additional 0.10 SP boost for being the main leads of this movie.

Goliath764 · September 22, 2013

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="wilhelmgras" data-cite="wilhelmgras" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="36553" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Jared Gilmore: Oh, I agree, it's a very standard rate, and he has fully earned the right to ask that amount of money as he is a talented actor. However, I generally want people who are hungry for their chance to work their way up, like Dev Patel. Mason Cook: How about 480.000 and the lead in the sequel? However, do note that there will only be a sequel if this movie gives me more than 2.500.000 profit. Edward Norton: Then it's a deal.</div></blockquote> Mason Cook - 20K less for a possible lead in future is a good gamble, deal.

wilhelmgras · September 22, 2013

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Goliath764" data-cite="Goliath764" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="36553" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Mason Cook - 20K less for a possible lead in future is a good gamble, deal.</div></blockquote>actually, it's 120k less. anyway, i think i can get the script done tonight.

cappyboy · September 22, 2013

Looks like I got off to a good start. I think I'm ready to try a property acquisition. But question first. Would a lone non-threatening ghost still be considered part of the Horror genre?

Goliath764 · September 23, 2013

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="cappyboy" data-cite="cappyboy" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="36553" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>Looks like I got off to a good start. I think I'm ready to try a property acquisition. But question first. Would a lone non-threatening ghost still be considered part of the Horror genre?</div></blockquote> Depend on the story really, if the ghost is not there to terrify people(or even though it is there to terrify people, it's not the main focus of a story or scary) then it can be non-horror. I would categorize a story about a non-threatening ghost helping a lonely boy through his childhood and schoolyard bully to be fantasy, maybe even comedy as well. Casper is an example of a non-horror film with ghost as the protagonist. If the ghost is only a plot device but not really a huge part of a story, then it doesn't has to be horror. It's just a sub-element in this case, not a main one.

cappyboy · September 23, 2013

Okay then, I'd like to put in for the film rights to Laurie (Strange Things Happen In This World) by Dickie Lee.

jesseewiak · September 25, 2013

Studio Name: Polish Bishop Studios

Founder Name(i.e. your IGN): Jesse Ewiak

Studio Bonus: marketing genius

Title: Dark Horse

Rating (i.e. G, PG, PG-13, R, NC-17): PG-13

Genre: Political Thriller

Brief summary of the movie: In the closing days of a vicious primary campaign for an open Congressional seat, secrets and scandals come out that could cause fractures within a family amid a possible political earthquake.

Amount you plan to spend on production: 300,000

Amount you plan to spend on marketing: 200,000

You then must list the actors/actresses/directors you want to contact for this film. You should include things like:

Director - Alejandro González Iñárritu

Matthew Starling (Lead) - Current Asst. District Attorney and the surprising front runner for a vacant seat in Congress as primary day approaches.

Offering To - Misha Collins

Thomas Pynch (Main Support) - Starling's campaign manager. A genius, self-destructive, with his own secrets and machinations that have led to him becoming involved in Starling's campaign.

Offering To - Jeffery Wright

Allison Creighton-Starling (Main Support) - Starling's wife, a scion of old money who has guide her husband in the halls of power, with the help of her father and other powerful figures.

Offering To - Liv Tyler

State Senator William Conrad II (Main Support) - The presumed front-runner, but stuffy and off-putting and as a result, has lost support as the race has come to it's conclusion.

Offering To - Chris Cooper

Clyde Devearaux (Main Support) - Conrad's 'fixer', a man who makes Pynch look like an angel. Willing to do absolutely anything to get the win.

Offering To - Jason Alexander

Ashley Starling (Minor Support) - Starling's daughter, who has a secret that may cause great damage to Starling's political career.

Offering To - Sami Gayle

Edwin Branch (Minor Support) - The main lawyer for the Starling family and the man who does the dirty work for Allison's father.

Offering To - J.K. Simmons

Maria Vasquez (Minor Support) - TV Reporter for the local news channel who has been shadowing both campaigns in the final weeks.

Offering To - Aimee Garcia

Senator James Crotty (Cameo) - The long-time Senator for the state.

Offering To - Martin Sheen

Russelrules44 · September 25, 2013

I'm finally working on the movie, i'm off to a great start to it....but i've hit a crossroads in it.

wilhelmgras · September 26, 2013

Title- Checkmate

Lead Actor - Mason Cook (main), Dev Patel (second), Edward Norton (second), Rade Serbedzija (support)

Director - John Oliver

Genre- Drama

Rating- G

Plot:

The movie starts with an overview-shot of the playing hall of a chess tournament in which a few games are underway (with a lot of spectators; kids whose games have already ended). In the background somewhere the movie audience can see a banner saying ´World Youth Chess Championship´. Then there are a couple of shots from the sides of the tables. First one for the under 10 years championship, then under 12, under 14, under 16, and finally under 20. (no under 18) At the front of this last table you see two boys playing. One, playing with black, looks about 19 years old. The other one, playing with white, is the 12 year old prodigy Robert (Robbie) Whitehead [played by Mason Cook]. We see them playing for a minute or so in which quite a few moves are played (so the speed of play is faster than in real life), and at the end of that minute, the kid playing black puts his king horizontally, shakes the head of Whitehead, and walks away disappointed.

Robbie on the other hand has a huge smile, excitedly stands up from behind the board, and walks as fast as he can without losing decorum towards his dad [Edward Norton] (who he hugs enthusiastically). He tells his father that he’s won, which makes his dad really happy: “Wow Robbie, that’s amazing. I was asking around, and they say that never before has a twelve year old won the under 20 championships. “

“Yeah I know dad. This one was putting up quite a fight though. For a while I thought I wouldn’t make it.”

“But you did, now go and tell Sahaj. He’ll be thrilled to hear this as well.”

Robbie does as he’s told, and quickly finds his coach Sahaj Rout [Dev Patel]. Sahaj also congratiulates him, but this moment is quickly over as the prize-giving ceremony begins. The master of the prize-giving ceremony obviously has some extra praising words for Robbie, and just after Robbie has received his cup (which is almost bigger than he is), while he’s still on the podium, the guy leading the ceremony has a big announcement. As Robbie is now world youth chess champion, he has been granted a spot in the qualification tournament for the next world championship cycle.

After the prize-giving ceremony, Robbie is seen walking away with his dad and Sahaj, asking about the road towards qualification for the world championship. Sahaj explains that there is a current world champion. To be allowed to challenge him, Robbie has to win a knock-out qualification tournament. 32 of the strongest players in the world will be invited for this tournament, and Robbie will be one of them. Robbie asks if Sahaj will be playing there as well, after which Sahaj has to grin, and say no. “I would love to play, but the world chess federation doesn’t think I’m good enough. It will be a great opportunity for you though. Even if you don’t win, you will be able to learn a lot.” “But I wanna win. Sahaj, will you help me prepare for this tournament as well?” “Of course”

A completely new scene starts, taking place a few weeks later. Robbie is driven to a nice-looking venue where Robbie has to play chess. They enter and are surrounded by adults who are much taller than him. While they are smiling at him, Robbie is visibly intimidated. Luckily they soon spot Sahaj. He explains to Robbie that all these people have gathered to play a game (simultaneous exhibition) against Robbie. He also says that Robbie should learn to play against adults as that’s very different from playing against children. Robbie, who’s still visibly intimidated, admits that he’s a bit scared. After some encouragements from both Sahaj and his dad, none of which are very effective, his dad suggests that Robbie carries his favourite stuffed animal (which happens to be in the car) around with him when he’s playing the exhibition. Robbie is unsure: “won’t that look silly?” His dad answers: “Never worry about looking silly. If this works for you, then who are some random adults to tell you you’re silly? And trust me, once you’ve shown them on the board who’s the boss, they won’t say a negative word.” So, Robbie agrees and plays the simul carrying a stuffed toy (for a small impression how a simul given by a boy carrying a fluff toy looks like; search on youtube for ‘Illya Nyzhnyk (aka dril) 2004’. the location of the movie scene is more impressive than the one in the youtube video of course).

After the simul Sahaj talks to Robbie. Congratulating him on winning most of his games. However, as he didn’t win everything, Robbie must still improve. His opponents in the big tournament will all be better than the people he played in the simul. After all, there is only one way to be sure you’ll be the best, and that’s by simply being the best. Don’t count on luck, don’t count on ‘that’ll do’, don’t count on the form of the day, just make sure you’re better than the rest.

A small montage is then summarizing the rest of Robbie’s training (reading books, talking to Sahaj, but mainly playing a lot of games, often with the same stuffed toy by his side). After this montage, the qualification tournament starts.

Along with his dad he arrives at the venue for the tournament. Before he can even enter they are approached by a journalist. She asks a slightly intimidated Robbie a few standard questions (how he’s feeling etcetera), and then the big one: “people are criticizing the chess federation for letting you participate. They’re saying you’re too young and not good enough. What’s your response to that?” Robbie is stunned and unable to answer. Luckily his dad grabs the microphone out of the journalist’s hands saying “Robbie has defeated many older players and players who outsiders thought were stronger than him. He’ll surprise a lot of people in this tournament. And now we have to go inside to play some chess.”

[From this point on we’ll be seeing Aleksandr Novitov [Rade Serbedzija] in the background of some shots to acquaint the audience with him a little bit]

Inside they’re met by Sahaj. Robbie asks him if he should even be there. Sahaj asks why Robbie doubts that. Robbie refers to the question of the journalist after which Sahaj says: “you’ve qualified for this fair and square. You were better than the other kids who wanted to qualify. Don’t let some journalist get you down.”

Robbie then goes off for the start of the first round. However, before this round starts an arbiter approaches him. He tells him he can’t have his stuffed toy by his side when playing and takes the toy away. Robbie is visibly uncomfortable, and is seen making himself smaller than he already is while sitting on his chair. Time lapses, and Robbie is seen resigning the game. He runs off to his dad and starts crying. Sahaj then talks to him. He tells Robbie to trust in himself. After all, there was only one way to being the best. No luck, no ‘that’ll do’, and definitely no stuffed toys. Just be the best. Sahaj then reminds Robbie that a knock out chess match takes two games. One with white, and one with black. If he wins the second game, he’ll be playing a tie-break, so all is not lost.

Robbie, with renewed confidence is seen quickly winning the second game, and the tie-break game (exclaiming ‘checkmate!’ with a smile on his face). He is then congratulated by his dad and Sahaj, the latter saying something similar to ‘I told you so’. However, just afterwards in the background, Novitov is interviewed by the same interviewer. In this interview Novitov is asked about his views on Robbie, and Novitov says that Robbie has only won due to luck. He doesn’t think he’s good enough.

The tournament continues. The next three rounds go by in a montage. Robbie is seen frustrating his opponents with his good play, being buoyant, and generally appearing to be on top of the world. (The story is kept clear for the audience by showing Robbie’s name appearing further and further into the schedule for the knock-out tournament. In the end the knock-out schedule shows that Robbie will be playing the final against Novitov)

Before this final starts, Sahaj talks to Robbie. He tells him that because the final is so important, it’ll take four games instead of two. Another interview is going on in the background. Novitov says that the results of Robbie have been surprisingly good though based on a lot of luck, but that Robbie won’t be a match for him in the final.

Then the first game starts. Robbie is still looking quite self-confident, but as the game progresses, he becomes less so. Eventually, the players agree to a draw. His dad tells Robbie that he did fine, even though he had a tough game. Tomorrow, he says, Robbie will play with white, which should make things easier.

The second day however, the game seems to go in the same way, but this time Robbie loses (Novitov gets to say ‘checkmate’ in the end). Robbie seeks support with Sahaj and his dad. Sahaj says that even when you try to be the best, there will be someone better than you. When that’s the case, you can do two things. Either you give up on being the best, or you learn from your mistakes, you learn from the best, and use that to become better yourself. Novitov is then heard in the background saying that, while there are still two games left, he can’t really lose anymore. After all, as he had said before, Robbie just isn’t good enough. After hearing this, Sahaj tells Robbie that if it were his choice, he’d learn from his mistakes, become the best, and beat that Novikov.

The third game starts. Novikov is looking self-confident, but Robbie isn’t looking very depressed. During the game, Novikov’s body posture changes for the worse, telling the story: Robbie wins and equalizes.

Then the final game. Robbie’s dad tells him he’s done great so far. Sahaj tells him that this is the moment to show everybody he’s the best. The game starts, both players look nervous. The game lasts long, but in the end, Robbie wins: checkmate! Novitov gets up, seems to consider saying something, and then leaves.

Final scene, the prize ceremony. Of course, many shots of happy faces, culminating with the line: “and a very warm applause for the winner of the tournament and the next challenger for the world championship: Robert, Robbie, Whitehead!”

Location- USA

Budget: 4,000,000

Talent fee-

Mason Cook: 480,000

Dev Patel: 837,500

Edward Norton: 1,000,000

Rade Serbedzija: 300,000

John Oliver: 777,000 + 7%

Talent Total: 3,394,500 + 7%

Production- 305,500

Marketing- 300,000

Duration - 90 minutes

Russelrules44 · September 26, 2013

Well, I lost the film..............and that's the reason why you should always.......AAAAAALLLLWAAAAAYYYSSS.....have it copied in the notepad.

Goliath764 · September 27, 2013

Laurie (Strange Things Happen In This World)

- He would like 10% of the film's gross.

- He would like at least 2 soundtracks of the movie to be his song(not including from Laurie(Strange Things In This World)

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Dark Horse

I price main supports with second lead's price and minor support iwth the support price.

Alejandro González Iñárritu(1.50 SP)

- He would like 1,200,000 + 10% of the film's profit. He's fine with only taking 500,000 upfront.

Misha Collins(0.85 SP)

- He will take the job for 765,000. He appreciate the chance of being a lead so he's fine just taking 200,000 upfront.

Jeffery Wright(1.25 SP)

- He would like 750,000.

- If you can give him at least a supporting role in any of your next 6 films, then he will do this for 400,000 with a 200,000 upfront.

Liv Tyler(2.10 SP)

- She will do it for 1,260,000.

- She understand that you are a new studio so she would like to help you. If you can give her at least another second lead role in any of your next 6 movies, then she will do this for 950,000 and only get them post-release.

Chris Cooper(1.35 SP)

- He would take 810,000.

- He's fine lowering the offer to 750,000 and only taking 350,000 upfront if you agree to give him another role(at least support) in your next 4 movies.

Jason Alexdander(1.45 SP)

- He would like 880,000. He's actually very interested in the character and is willing to help you out so he's fine taking only 300,000 upfront.

Sami Gayle(0.75 SP)

- She would like 225,000.

- If you can give her another role(at least a support) in your next 6 movies, then she will do this for 150,000.

J.K. Simmons(1.60 SP)

- He would like 480,000.

Aimee Garcia(1.05 SP)

- She would take 315,000.

Martin Sheen(2.60 SP)

- He will be fine with 25,000.

Current lowest deal:

Pre-release: 2,520,000

Post-release: 3,395,000 + 10%

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@Russelrules44

I learned that lesson long time ago so nowadays when I write on notepad, I always spam the save button every few minutes. <img alt="" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/smile.png.142cfa0a1cd2925c0463c1d00f499df2.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" />

cappyboy · September 27, 2013

The percentage is agreeable but the soundtrack request could be a challenge. What I know of his discography is the tragedy songs. Laurie, Patches (which I might have considered doing if Laurie weren't better suited this time of year) Ebony Eyes. Stuff like that. Patches could work at the dance. But beyond that, I'm stumped. I'll do some poking around and see what I can do to accommodate him.

Goliath764 · September 28, 2013

<div style="text-align:center;">Checkmate

Review by: Mr.G</div>

From the studio that produced the recent hit Make Up Your Mind, comes a G-rated movie that tells the tale of Robert Robbie Whitehead(Mason Cook), a chess prodigy that is already a world class player at the young age of 12. After winning the World Youth Chess Championship and with a performance that see him winning the under 20 bracket at the age of 12, he's qualified for the World Chamionship(with no age limit this time) as one of the 32. Assisting in his for glory is his father(played by Edward Norton) and also his chess coach, Sahaj Rout(Dev Patel). The main inner antagonist in this film is probably the boy's lack of confidence, which is displayed a few times throughout this film and he has to hold a fluffy toy in his hand to calm himself down in matches.

Still, with good training provided by his coach, he is ready for the World Championship and has advanced pretty well throughout the tournament as long as his confidence was there with him. It was only until the final that he's really having trouble but of course, seeing that this is a G movie, he fights back relentlessly, getting the score back to 2-2 and eventually putting the "3" to his side with a final checkmate and that's about it. All in all, a decent movie judging by the brief plot.

However, one thing is lacking here, and a major one at that, is the lack of emotion connection and backstory of the various characters here. The film focus too much and perhaps too solely on the progression of the chess tournament that it doesn't get into the life of Robert at all. One of the main difference between watching a movie about a chess prodigy in a movie than an identical chess prodigy in a real life live broadcast of the World Championship is the emotion connection the audience have toward the prodigy himself. Without the emotion and characterization, the movie just doesn't seem too movie-ish at all, especially when it's a drama that really relies on the characters to be great.

There're a lot to explore in the life of a chess prodigy. I know you can't go too dark for a film of this rating but some aspects like social pressure(tons of social attention are on him), alienation from schoolmates/friends(due to jealousy or just not enough time spent with them since he has to do chess training as well), failing school subjects(lack of time for that part) and perhaps the lack of freedom. Tons of option to explore here that are not explore at all. The movie can always go with a positive vibe at the end to counter these negative aspects so it isn't too dark. All I am saying is that a tougher and more realistic life of the prodigy will be great as they provide more insight and positive value for the audience, especially to the kids.

The relationship between the prodigy and his father or his coach can also be further explored if the film doesn't want to focus on the sole life of Robert. What's the story of his father? Why there's no sign of his mother at all? Widowed? Separated? Out-station? The single parent angle can really create some spark in the overall story or maybe his father is pushing him too hard to be a prodigy. I am also interested in his coach's story too, especially at that part when he said he's not good enough to get to the World Championship, I really wonder what's his background story but they are not delivered.

Hence, I would say Checkmate is a standard sport drama but without the required build-up and merely touched the characters very shallowly so it's really hard to give this more than a 2 stars. So, 2 stars it is.

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Misc. Information

- While the review isn't too good, a good marketing team means that the theater are still packing on the first few weeks. While the mediocre reviews might have lower the attendance level later on, the lack of choice for family film allows this film to secure arguably more than ordinary amount of audience for a movie of its score.

- I actually made two mistakes while negotiation the film like the mis-count of Mason Cook and not negotiate on the cameos. You get Mason Cook at that good price(I would go for slight higher if I realize he's 120k cheaper) and actually I think the cameo will do good in helping to choreographing the chess sequences but since it's my mistake to drop them off, the bonus of good chess match choreography is still there.

- Should have taken advantage of the G-movie sponsor event to cast more talents or go for a higher production/marketing budget.

- Based on the current content, 90 minutes is definitely a good length.

- I have to say you did really well with the scenes design and some extra touching on some scenes like confidence building, the fluffy toys, 12 y.o. on under 20 division and so on but I personally lean toward character developments in a drama so they need to be there. You can drive an action film with action alone and even with a weak plot you can maybe score a 3.0, drama is ultimately driven by well, dramatic stuffs. It could have gotten 2.25 actually but John Oliver really underperformed in this one so it's locked at 2.0.

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Revenue: 7,712,000

Budget: 4,000,000

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Gross Profit: 3,712,000

7% bonus: 259,840

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Net Profit: 3,452,160

Grassroots Studios' budget = $10,503,530 + $3,452,160 + $2,500,000(government sponsor) = $16,455,690

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Impact

- John Oliver's lack of directing experience really shows on this one. When the material isn't too great, it is really easy to expose the weakness of a green director. Some of the fans argue that a better director might save part of the film by shooting some scenes differently but John Oliver is just isn't on that level. The criticism really hit John Oliver hard and so he will be not taking directing role for 3 weeks(except for previous commitment, if any). Also, his SP is decreased by 0.20, making him the director with lowest SP so far.

- Dev Patel is so driven that he actually still look good in this one. For his performance, many gives it one word, "wow" and that is enough to not only save his SP from decreasing but actually boost them by 0.10.

- The others are not that lucky as they all take a 0.15 SP penalty except the support, which takes only a minor penalty of 0.05 SP.

- You received some fan mails:

"Hey there, Mr. Wilhelm Gras. We are grateful that you are giving Dev Patel the chances to display his acting chop. We(one of the Dev Patel's fan group) actually thought his career are going downhill after that horrifying creation known as The Last Airbender."

"Screw the children, do more things like Make Up Your Mind, that's good s*** right there!"

"Hey dude, give me the contact number of that smart-ass child, I am going to beat him so hard on chess he will cry till he died of dehydration, YOLO!"

Goliath764 · September 28, 2013

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="cappyboy" data-cite="cappyboy" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="36553" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>The percentage is agreeable but the soundtrack request could be a challenge. What I know of his discography is the tragedy songs. Laurie, Patches (which I might have considered doing if Laurie weren't better suited this time of year) Ebony Eyes. Stuff like that. Patches could work at the dance. But beyond that, I'm stumped. I'll do some poking around and see what I can do to accommodate him.</div></blockquote> While he is delighted that you are scanning around his discography, he would be fine if you just let him sing two of the movie (virtual) soundtracks, perhaps cover of some other artist's songs that are more suitable. It's optional for you to actually list the songs but if you want to list the two songs he's singing, that would be awesome. I also give you the $2.5M from the government fund for the G-rated Racing Heart. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- General The database should be up-to-date. I am probably revamping the specialty if time allows me in the next few days. The trends might switch in the next few days but a more likely date would be next weekend. I am also putting the event to the front page so it's easier to find.

wilhelmgras · September 28, 2013

Checkmate
Review by: Mr.G

From the studio that produced the recent hit Make Up Your Mind, comes a G-rated movie that tells the tale of Robert Robbie Whitehead(Mason Cook), a chess prodigy that is already a world class player at the young age of 12. After winning the World Youth Chess Championship and with a performance that see him winning the under 20 bracket at the age of 12, he's qualified for the World Chamionship(with no age limit this time) as one of the 32. Assisting in his for glory is his father(played by Edward Norton) and also his chess coach, Sahaj Rout(Dev Patel). The main inner antagonist in this film is probably the boy's lack of confidence, which is displayed a few times throughout this film and he has to hold a fluffy toy in his hand to calm himself down in matches.

Still, with good training provided by his coach, he is ready for the World Championship and has advanced pretty well throughout the tournament as long as his confidence was there with him. It was only until the final that he's really having trouble but of course, seeing that this is a G movie, he fights back relentlessly, getting the score back to 2-2 and eventually putting the "3" to his side with a final checkmate and that's about it. All in all, a decent movie judging by the brief plot.

However, one thing is lacking here, and a major one at that, is the lack of emotion connection and backstory of the various characters here. The film focus too much and perhaps too solely on the progression of the chess tournament that it doesn't get into the life of Robert at all. One of the main difference between watching a movie about a chess prodigy in a movie than an identical chess prodigy in a real life live broadcast of the World Championship is the emotion connection the audience have toward the prodigy himself. Without the emotion and characterization, the movie just doesn't seem too movie-ish at all, especially when it's a drama that really relies on the characters to be great.

There're a lot to explore in the life of a chess prodigy. I know you can't go too dark for a film of this rating but some aspects like social pressure(tons of social attention are on him), alienation from schoolmates/friends(due to jealousy or just not enough time spent with them since he has to do chess training as well), failing school subjects(lack of time for that part) and perhaps the lack of freedom. Tons of option to explore here that are not explore at all. The movie can always go with a positive vibe at the end to counter these negative aspects so it isn't too dark. All I am saying is that a tougher and more realistic life of the prodigy will be great as they provide more insight and positive value for the audience, especially to the kids.

The relationship between the prodigy and his father or his coach can also be further explored if the film doesn't want to focus on the sole life of Robert. What's the story of his father? Why there's no sign of his mother at all? Widowed? Separated? Out-station? The single parent angle can really create some spark in the overall story or maybe his father is pushing him too hard to be a prodigy. I am also interested in his coach's story too, especially at that part when he said he's not good enough to get to the World Championship, I really wonder what's his background story but they are not delivered.

Hence, I would say Checkmate is a standard sport drama but without the required build-up and merely touched the characters very shallowly so it's really hard to give this more than a 2 stars. So, 2 stars it is.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Misc. Information

- While the review isn't too good, a good marketing team means that the theater are still packing on the first few weeks. While the mediocre reviews might have lower the attendance level later on, the lack of choice for family film allows this film to secure arguably more than ordinary amount of audience for a movie of its score.

- I actually made two mistakes while negotiation the film like the mis-count of Mason Cook and not negotiate on the cameos. You get Mason Cook at that good price(I would go for slight higher if I realize he's 120k cheaper) and actually I think the cameo will do good in helping to choreographing the chess sequences but since it's my mistake to drop them off, the bonus of good chess match choreography is still there.

- Should have taken advantage of the G-movie sponsor event to cast more talents or go for a higher production/marketing budget.

- Based on the current content, 90 minutes is definitely a good length.

- I have to say you did really well with the scenes design and some extra touching on some scenes like confidence building, the fluffy toys, 12 y.o. on under 20 division and so on but I personally lean toward character developments in a drama so they need to be there. You can drive an action film with action alone and even with a weak plot you can maybe score a 3.0, drama is ultimately driven by well, dramatic stuffs. It could have gotten 2.25 actually but John Oliver really underperformed in this one so it's locked at 2.0.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Revenue: 7,712,000
Budget: 4,000,000
----------------------------
Gross Profit: 3,712,000
7% bonus: 259,840
----------------------------
Net Profit: 3,452,160

Grassroots Studios' budget = $10,503,530 + $3,452,160 + $2,500,000(government sponsor) = $16,455,690

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Impact

- John Oliver's lack of directing experience really shows on this one. When the material isn't too great, it is really easy to expose the weakness of a green director. Some of the fans argue that a better director might save part of the film by shooting some scenes differently but John Oliver is just isn't on that level. The criticism really hit John Oliver hard and so he will be not taking directing role for 3 weeks(except for previous commitment, if any). Also, his SP is decreased by 0.20, making him the director with lowest SP so far.

- Dev Patel is so driven that he actually still look good in this one. For his performance, many gives it one word, "wow" and that is enough to not only save his SP from decreasing but actually boost them by 0.10.

- The others are not that lucky as they all take a 0.15 SP penalty except the support, which takes only a minor penalty of 0.05 SP.

- You received some fan mails:

"Hey there, Mr. Wilhelm Gras. We are grateful that you are giving Dev Patel the chances to display his acting chop. We(one of the Dev Patel's fan group) actually thought his career are going downhill after that horrifying creation known as The Last Airbender."

"Screw the children, do more things like Make Up Your Mind, that's good s*** right there!"

"Hey dude, give me the contact number of that smart-ass child, I am going to beat him so hard on chess he will cry till he died of dehydration, YOLO!"

thanks for the review, i enjoyed reading it. i intentionally held back on the backstory. partially because i feared about the rating (i really wanted that 2.5m bonus). partially because i wanted to have some options for a possible sequel (which, due to the profit made on this one, i will be writing in the not so distant future).

some comments on the spreadsheet:

- peter jackson (director) exists twice

- john oliver's hiatus is not mentioned in the additional notes

wilhelmgras · September 28, 2013

Title: On being a gentleman

Rating: PG

Genre: Romance/Drama

Brief summary of the movie: The walk and talk of a true gentleman whose heart has grown cold. Whose only remaining pleasures are almost always physical (not necessarily sexual). The movie will focus on this gentleman's interactions with people, with most of the attention going to his interactions withtwo women: a woman he scorns, and a woman he loves.

Amount you plan to spend on production: 550.000

Amount you plan to spend on marketing: 450.000

Actors:

Main Lead: Armie Hammer (the gentleman, no nudity, no perks)

Second Lead: Ellen Page (a woman loved, no nudity, no perks)

Second Lead: Alison Brie (a woman scorned, no nudity, no perks)

Support: Garrett Hedlund (an anti-gentleman (certainly not a bad guy though), no nudity, no perks)

Director: David Slade (no perks)

cappyboy · September 28, 2013

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Goliath764" data-cite="Goliath764" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="36553" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>While he is delighted that you are scanning around his discography, he would be fine if you just let him sing two of the movie (virtual) soundtracks, perhaps cover of some other artist's songs that are more suitable. It's optional for you to actually list the songs but if you want to list the two songs he's singing, that would be awesome. </div></blockquote> Actually, when I went to Youtube, I was quickly saddened to realize I'd forgotten the glorious I Saw Linda Yesterday was one of his because I'm so used to thinking of him as a singer of tragedies. I can work that and Patches into the dance. And any other soundtrack help he's willing to offer is appreciated <blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Goliath764" data-cite="Goliath764" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="36553" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>I also give you the $2.5M from the government fund for the G-rated Racing Heart.</div></blockquote> Excellent. Getting government money for something one was already inclined to do anyway is a good thing. <img alt=":)" data-src="//content.invisioncic.com/g322608/emoticons/smile.png.142cfa0a1cd2925c0463c1d00f499df2.png" src="<___base_url___>/applications/core/interface/js/spacer.png" />

Russelrules44 · September 28, 2013

Well, With Movie 666 dead in the water. I guess it's time for my newest reveal....

<div style="text-align:center;">Isiah</div>

Title:

Rating (i.e. G, PG, PG-13, R, NC-17): G

Genre: Action and 3D Animation (Hey, That rhymes!)

Brief summary of the movie: Isiah is a unknown peasent with unbelievable strength from the lost realms of the World, he must defend the land of Uuu from the villanous Claw Hiller.

Amount you plan to spend on production: $125,000

Amount you plan to spend on marketing: $120,000

Main Lead

Isiah- The Warrior from the lost land of Uuu. He's not all that strong or buff.....but he's intelligant and brave I guess.- Dev Patel (Checkmate........AWESOME!, You can lead for us anytime you want! No nudity nesscary.)

Claw Hiller- The Villanious........well villain! He's pretty much shaped like a vampire whose SOMEHOW immortal to sun.- .......And if you hate me for this I understand, Nathan Jones. (No nudity, No perks.)

The Claw Hiller's ASSISTANT- Ok, so he's an extra character, I had no choice. John Travolta will sue my ass if I don't give him this spot. (No nudity, and NO MORE PERKS!)

Secondary Lead

Samantha- The innocent wife of Isiah, She's a sweet, tending, caring wife who fears (gasp) snakes......but can kick butt.- Viva La Selena! (No nudity, support for yourself career)

Isiah's Consiuence- Well, he helps out Isiah and gives him advice. But that's about it. He's shaped a ghost too.- Eddie Murphy (I don't care if his last 2 movies were bad, He is a legend!, No nudity, Possible top star of RKO productions, The whole works!)

Support

The King of Uuu- Oh for heck's sake! He's the king of Uuu! What more do you WANT?!- Russel Crowe (Ok, So he's not the best singer in the world, that doesn't stop me from choosing this guy. No nudity, no perks.)

The Queen of Uuu- The queen of Uuu. End of story. (Sasha Grey, I feel like she has potential. No nudity, No perks.)

Cameo

Dwayne Johnson as The Rock- (No nudity, and remember what I said, A leading role for a sequal for Tribal Survival)

Oh yeah, Director- Tim Burton (Cause let's face it. He's possibly, THE greatest animator in the history of clay AND 3D animation.

Goliath764 · September 29, 2013

On Being a Gentleman

Armie Hammer(1.25 SP)

- He would like 1,250,000.

- Alternatively, he will be fine with 925,000 if you can give him a support(or better, if you want) role in your next 6 films. Exposure is always good.

Ellen Page(2.00 SP)

- She would like 1,600,000.

- If you can give her a strong female character that is at least a second lead in your next 6 movies, she is willing to cut the deal down to 1,100,000.

- If you can do a film with (at least) 2 strong female characters in either main or second lead in your next 6 movies, and have her play one of them, then she will lower the deal to 900,000.

Alison Brie(1.00 SP)

- She would like 840,000.

Garrett Hedlund(1.15 SP)

- He would like 510,000.

- If you can give him another role(as long as it's not cameo) in your next 5 movies, he can do this for 300,000.

David Slade(1.15 SP)

- He would like 200,000 + 24%. He's pretty confident with the script so he's banging on the revenue cut.

Lowest deal possible:

Pre-release: 2,965,000

Post-release: 24%

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Isiah

<div style="text-align:center;">But John Travolta is NOT DONE with you!!!</div>

He will sue the heck out of you if you don't cast him in this one. Your studio's lawyer and financial team estimated that you will have to pay about half(50%) of what this film's made to settle the lawsuit.

Your studio crews suggest that perhaps the best way to settle this is to add one extra lead character and cast John Travolta in it. Cast him in a voice role(like Ted in...Ted) if you don't think his face on screen is going to help Isiah.

OOC: I have to be harsh on this because the rules dictate so. If I am being easy on deal-breaking behaviors, then everyone is going to break them.

Now to the film, is this film full 3D(e.g. Hotel Transylvania, Shrek, pretty much any recent animation film) OR part 3D, part real action(e.g. Ted, Life of Pi)? Your financial department mentioned that you might not have the budget to do good full 3D films, maybe a 2D animation would be a safer option. There will be no problem if the film is part 3D, part real action, just make sure to put more money on production for the effects.

I will cast it as soon as you reply with your decision. You can cast him or take the deal that you will need to give up a huge part of your film's profit to him. Either way, he is going to get a payday. You just need to think of a solution for your studio to thrive in this deal.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Russelrules44 · September 29, 2013

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Goliath764" data-cite="Goliath764" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="36553" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> Isiah <div style="text-align:center;">But John Travolta is NOT DONE with you!!!</div> He will sue the heck out of you if you don't cast him in this one. Your studio's lawyer and financial team estimated that you will have to pay about half(50%) of what this film's made to settle the lawsuit. Your studio crews suggest that perhaps the best way to settle this is to add one extra lead character and cast John Travolta in it. Cast him in a voice role(like Ted in...Ted) if you don't think his face on screen is going to help Isiah. OOC: I have to be harsh on this because the rules dictate so. If I am being easy on deal-breaking behaviors, then everyone is going to break them. Now to the film, is this film full 3D(e.g. Hotel Transylvania, Shrek, pretty much any recent animation film) OR part 3D, part real action(e.g. Ted, Life of Pi)? Your financial department mentioned that you might not have the budget to do good full 3D films, maybe a 2D animation would be a safer option. There will be no problem if the film is part 3D, part real action, just make sure to put more money on production for the effects. I will cast it as soon as you reply with your decision. You can cast him or take the deal that you will need to give up a huge part of your film's profit to him. Either way, he is going to get a payday. You just need to think of a solution for your studio to thrive in this deal. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------</div></blockquote> I was only kidding! I'm not done with him! .......But I damn sure will be if he sues me. He's cast as The Claw Hiller's ASSISANT. (Makes sense now.) But that would also mean i'd have to take away Tito. (Which is a bummer) And i'd say, it's kinda clay animation 3D, Kinda like Frankenweenie.....And Vincent.....and let's not forget the Nightmare Before Christmas (That ruled.) And I'd say, Since John hates my guts, This will probably be the LAST movie me and John do......for a long while.

Psycho Sam · September 29, 2013

Studio Name: Holy Crap! Inc.

Founder Name(i.e. your IGN): Ford Focus

Studio Bonus: Investor, marketing genius, negotiator, adaptor, VFX expert, in-house stunt team

wilhelmgras · September 29, 2013

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Goliath764" data-cite="Goliath764" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="36553" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div>On Being a Gentleman Armie Hammer(1.25 SP) - He would like 1,250,000. - Alternatively, he will be fine with 925,000 if you can give him a support(or better, if you want) role in your next 6 films. Exposure is always good. Ellen Page(2.00 SP) - She would like 1,600,000. - If you can give her a strong female character that is at least a second lead in your next 6 movies, she is willing to cut the deal down to 1,100,000. - If you can do a film with (at least) 2 strong female characters in either main or second lead in your next 6 movies, and have her play one of them, then she will lower the deal to 900,000. Alison Brie(1.00 SP) - She would like 840,000. Garrett Hedlund(1.15 SP) - He would like 510,000. - If you can give him another role(as long as it's not cameo) in your next 5 movies, he can do this for 300,000. David Slade(1.15 SP) - He would like 200,000 + 24%. He's pretty confident with the script so he's banging on the revenue cut. Lowest deal possible: Pre-release: 2,965,000 Post-release: 24%</div></blockquote> Armie Hammer: Deal on the 925k, I'm happy to be working with him again. Ellen Page: Deal on the 900k. Alison Brie: How about 600.000? Garrett Hedlund: Deal on the 300k David Slade: I'm confident in the script as well, so I'm not inclined to give a high percentage. Is there any way he'll take a high fee and a low percentage? If not, how much does David Fincher want for this? Also, your total pre-release was incorrect. You forgot to add the 200k for Slade, the minimum deal was 3,165,000. Furthermore: welcome to the game Psycho_Sam

Goliath764 · September 30, 2013

Isiah

I did some research on stop-motion animation. They are still expensive and on occassion, incorporate some (full-auto) 3D animation in some part of it. With that said, the cost to do a stop-motion animation is like 50% lower than a full 3D, but still pretty costly so do note how much you invest into your production fee.

As John Travolta claims creative control(which is part of the deal), he kicked Tito Ortiz from the cast before Ortiz can physically take him down and ground and pound him. So, you you will need to find another person for Claw Hiller. While Dwayne Johnson is also part of the Trival Survival cast, it's only a cameo role so John Travolta doesn't care.

So...

Find someone for Claw Hiller and we can start.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

@Psycho Sam

Welcome, you can start the casting process...which technically, you already can before I post this but still, have fun.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

On Being a Gentleman

Your studio crew reminds you that the 2,500,000 is received pre-release(I added them post-release because I forgot to say this) so you can just cut out 2,500,000 from your pre-release budget when you run the film. With that said, they think you can maybe expand on things like amount of charcter or hire people with higher star power or just give higher amount to the production and marketing.

Alison Brie(1.00 SP)

- Hmm...715,000?

David Slade(1.15 SP)

- How about 1,438,000 + 9%

David Fincher(3.70 SP)

- What about 3,700,000 + 13%?

wilhelmgras · September 30, 2013

<blockquote data-ipsquote="" class="ipsQuote" data-ipsquote-username="Goliath764" data-cite="Goliath764" data-ipsquote-contentapp="forums" data-ipsquote-contenttype="forums" data-ipsquote-contentid="36553" data-ipsquote-contentclass="forums_Topic"><div> On Being a Gentleman Your studio crew reminds you that the 2,500,000 is received pre-release(I added them post-release because I forgot to say this) so you can just cut out 2,500,000 from your pre-release budget when you run the film. With that said, they think you can maybe expand on things like amount of charcter or hire people with higher star power or just give higher amount to the production and marketing. Alison Brie(1.00 SP) - Hmm...715,000? David Slade(1.15 SP) - How about 1,438,000 + 9% David Fincher(3.70 SP) - What about 3,700,000 + 13%?</div></blockquote> Considering my balance it doesn´t matter much if I get the money pre- or post-poduction. And I am well aware that I can spend more than I am currently doing. However, the story in my head requires four characters, so I will cast four characters. The production and marketing budgets aren't completely fixed yet, so there might be a slight increase there. Finally, the staff should be happy that I handle my finances with caution. I can spend everything on one movie, but then if the movie bombs, it'll be the staff who'll be fired as a cost-saving measure. So, keeping a buffer is a good thing for them as well. Alison Brie: Deal David Slade: Sorry, no David Fincher: 3,500,000 + 7%? Also, if that's not an option, how about Todd Haynes? Finally a spreadsheet note: My second movie wasn't directed by Alister Grierson but by John Oliver.

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