In a suite at the Ritz Paris, Charles lay on the bed, staring at the ceiling, his hands tightly gripping the sheets, taut.
After a while, Eva Green lifted her head and reached for some tissues from a nearby table, wiping the corners of her mouth.
"Darling, satisfied?" Eva Green asked, resting her head on Charles's abs.
"Hmm, fantastic!" Charles said, savoring the moment while caressing the Lady's smooth skin.
He turned his head and saw a French song, "la vie en rose," playing on the television.
"Is this a song by the French chanson queen, Édith Piaf?"
Eva Green nodded, "She's one of France's most popular female singers."
"Now there are French film companies planning to shoot her personal biographical film!"
Charles nodded. Wasn't this the film that won Marion Cotillard the academy award for best actress?
"Is it already in preparation?" Charles asked.
"Yes, France 4 has already agreed to provide some funding, but Édith Piaf holds a very high position in the hearts of the French people, and her biographical film requires quite a bit of funding, with a budget of approximately 20 million euro."
The investment costs for French art-house films are usually not high, rarely exceeding 10 million euro, except for the commercial films of Luc Besson's EuropaCorp.
"20 million euro!" Charles chuckled. Capet Pictures could definitely invest in and produce it.
France 4, Germany's ARD, and Sky Television in the UK are the three most famous pay-per-view channels in Europe.
France 4 has always been one of the funders of many French films, and with the French film subsidy fund, it can solve many financing problems for French filmmakers.
Eva Green looked at Charles's expression as if she had guessed something, and asked, "Is Capet Pictures interested in this personal biographical film?"
Charles nodded, "Interested. Let it be Capet International Pictures' first French film to participate in investment and production!"
"There have been many previous French films about Édith Piaf's life. Does Capet Pictures really want to invest?"
Édith Piaf passed away in the 1960s. Her 47 years of life were full of ups and downs, from humble birth and a miserable childhood to becoming a national treasure singer and a chanson queen. "The Little Sparrow" Édith Piaf had a legendary life.
"the da vinci code has already collaborated with French film companies. This film can be considered a continuation of deepening cooperation with French companies," Capet Pictures needs to quickly occupy the European market, and getting involved in local films is essential.
Charles, who remained in Paris, immediately began preparations for Capet Pictures to invest in this biographical film about Édith Piaf.
French director Olivier Dahan and producer Alain Goldman were already preparing this film, titled "la vie en rose."
Hearing that Capet Pictures was interested, they quickly hit it off with Charles, and with Capet Pictures' financial support, the film's preparations immediately accelerated.
The production budget for "la vie en rose" was 25 million U.S. dollars, which was certainly not a low budget in France, but for Hollywood, it was low-cost.
However, as an art-house film, it clearly would not have much market in North America. Capet Pictures not only sought French film fund subsidies but also applied for the European Union film fund.
"According to Mr. Alain Goldman's estimate, with the French film subsidy plus the television station's investment, Capet Pictures might invest around 20 million U.S. dollars!" Phyllis Jones reported the progress to Charles immediately after seeing off producer Alain Goldman.
Charles nodded, "For the lead actress, let Marion Cotillard play the role. Her acting skills in Love Me If You Dare were very good, and the da vinci code will be released next year, which will further strengthen her commercial appeal!"
Charles's investment in "la vie en rose" was not just for awards; he also wanted profit. It wasn't just to help Marion Cotillard win an oscar best actress winner.
Establishing the brand of Capet International Pictures' French branch would also be beneficial.
"Okay, domestically, our little miss sunshine has already grossed over 55 million U.S. dollars at the North America box office, and is expected to reach around 60 million U.S. dollars when it finishes its run."
"hostel was released in September, and its North America box office is already 35 million U.S. dollars!"
Charles smiled, it seemed this heavy-themed horror film hostel was quite good, "Matrix Pictures should directly develop a sequel. With the experience from the saw series, it should be much easier."
"Remember, strictly control the budget. This hostel only capitalized on the audience's curiosity!"
Phyllis Jones nodded, "Boss, Donna has found a good house in London. The location is excellent, near Knightsbridge, a three-story detached villa with a garden..."
Saying that, she took out some photos of the house and placed them on Charles's desk, showing Victorian architectural style.
Charles looked at the photos and information; the land area was not small, it had three floors, and the price was really expensive!
"10.5 million pounds, convenient transportation, with wealthy residents nearby, suitable for the boss."
Charles smiled, "Good, it suits me!"
Although the current exchange rate for the pound to the U.S. dollar was 1:, 10.5 million pounds was almost 18 million U.S. dollars, but Charles had money now.
"Boss, Donna said she needs to go back to the United States. YouTube is preparing for financing."
"She's going back to see if she can continue to invest to maintain the proportion of shares the boss owns?"
Charles nodded, but generally, startups hope to attract more investors, so it would be difficult for Dawn Venture Capital Fund to maintain a 40% stake.
"Let her go back. YouTube has developed very well this year and should have attracted the attention of major internet companies. Moreover, the copyright disputes between YouTube and Hollywood production companies are increasing, which is also a big problem!" If Charles wasn't facing various lawsuits regarding internet film and television copyrights, he would really want to operate YouTube himself.
The opposition between Hollywood and Silicon Valley on internet copyrights also needs to be faced, and the debate over the internet copyright act is also a Focus.
Wall Street, Hollywood, Silicon Valley, and the military-industrial complex represent the financial, media, technology, and manufacturing powers of the United States.
They influence each other and check each other. Charles is confident that he can delve into the capital forces of Wall Street, Hollywood, and Silicon Valley.
However, for military manufacturing, oil, energy, and mineral resources, Charles is completely in the dark!
"Once the preparations for 'la vie en rose' are on track, we will return to the UK. The overseas market cannot be rushed; we need to take it slowly!" Charles