"Now that we're done talking about the cost of the actors, let's look at the cost of the miscellaneous props. I noticed that out of the 30 million USD props cost, 15 million USD is for the construction of fixed buildings such as the studio. Let's not talk about that for now. The key to our problem lies in the remaining 15 million USD props.
"These props are as small as a wine glass. It's only 30 cents outside, but it costs 30 USD here. A huge crystal chandelier that costs 300,000 USD. Don't you think that these things are a little too expensive, Mr. Jon? "
"And these luxurious decorations. Although most of them are fake, the furs, backpacks, and the like are all authentic. The total cost of these luxurious items is as high as 8 million USD. Isn't that a little too high?" Boss Jia pointed at the items on the list and asked.
"This … This can't be helped. If the movie is to be authentic, it must have these items. Because this is from 1912, all the decorations have to match the style and characteristics of 1912!"
"But now, it's been more than 80 years since 1912. No one is producing these old items anymore. All the props need to be specially customized and then made by hand. These are not things that can be produced by an assembly line. They can only be produced by manual labor!"
"In the United States, manual labor and assembly line are two different prices. The same item only costs one USD on the assembly line, but manual labor may cost 100 USD. The price is so high, there's no other way!" Jon thought that Boss Jia was a Hua Xia person and didn't know the national conditions of the United States, so he explained patiently.
"Mr. Jon, you don't have to explain. I don't have any doubts about the prices on this list. In fact, I'm very sure that these items are worth this price in the United States!" Boss Jia said with a smile. Jon didn't understand.
Since Boss Jia understood the logic, why was he still talking nonsense?
"But Mr. Jon just said that these items are expensive because they all need to be made by hand. The materials themselves aren't outstanding, right?" Boss Jia asked with a smile.
"Yes!" Jon nodded.
"Then let's find a place where workers are cheap to buy these items. Isn't that enough?" Boss Jia squinted and said.
"Mr. Jia, what do you mean?" Chown was stunned.
"What I mean is, why do we have to buy these props from America? We can buy them from Hua Xia! "Boss Jia snapped his fingers, and the secretary behind him delivered a thick report.
Boss Jia continued, "Actually, I've already asked around about these items. Our Hua Xia can make all of them at a very low price!"
"Hua Xia?" Chown froze for a moment, then instinctively revealed a suspicious expression. "Mr. Jia, it's not that I'm biased against Hua Xia, but Hua Xia's technology seems to be a little behind. Can they really make these things?"
"Hahaha!" Boss Jia couldn't help but laugh when he heard that. "Mr. Jon, if we were going to make a modern movie, I might also be worried about the level of technological production. But our movie is a movie about 1912, which is 80 years from now. Even if Hua Xia's technology is 50 years behind the world's, it's still enough to make the antiques from 1912! "
"That's true …" Chown nodded.
"And I've seen that many of these items require some old traditional equipment to be produced. These equipment have been eliminated in America, but Hua Xia still has a lot of them. That's very convenient!"
"Believe me, I've done a very detailed investigation. There are indeed about 10% of the antiques on this list that Hua Xia can't make, but they can still be made in America. But for the remaining 90%, Hua Xia can guarantee that they can be made without any problems! "
"I see …" Chown hesitated. "But the United States and Hua Xia have different styles. Also, these antiques have a lot of details. Hua Xia is different from the United States. They might not be able to perfectly restore these items!"
"That's even less of a concern! As long as you can provide us with the pictures and drawings, it'll be fine. There won't be much of a difference if we follow your instructions. " Boss Jia waved his hand. "Mr. Chown, may I ask if you still remember what happened in 1912?"
"I was born in 1932 …" Chown was confused. "How could I have seen things from 1912?"
"That's right. How many people in America can remember what happened in 1912? They can remember so many decorations and objects from 1912. They don't have any concrete memory. How would they know if the details of these things were perfect? As long as the overall atmosphere is there, they won't question it! "Boss Jia said calmly.
Things from 1912 were similar to ancient costume movies. Indeed, no one would care about the details. Moreover, Boss Jia had tried his best to make it perfect, but there was no such thing as perfection in this world.
"But …" Chown was still hesitant.
"Five million USD!" Boss Jia suddenly said. "This 15 million USD item, if it was made in Hua Xia, it would only cost five million USD at most. Moreover, if there are any problems, I'll be responsible for all of them! "
"Then there's no problem!" Chown shut his mouth. This way, they would save another ten million USD in expenses. Compared to ten million USD, some details were nothing.
Moreover, to be honest, the things made in Hua Xia might not necessarily be worse than those made in the United States!
"This way, we'll save twenty million USD!" Boss Jia smiled, then pointed at the special effects and said, "Also, in terms of special effects, I think we can save at least half of it, which is twenty million USD!"
"Twenty million USD? That's impossible. Cameron will never compromise. It's the cost of the special effects! "Chown was furious when he heard that and said at once.
"We won't reduce the level of the special effects. Don't worry, we won't reduce the level of the special effects! The special effects that should be there must be, even better than the original plan! "Boss Jia said with a smile.
"Then that's even more impossible! Mr. Jia, don't tell me you're thinking of letting Hua Xia do the same! " Chown panicked. "Mr. Jia, forgive me for being blunt. Hua Xia might be able to do other things, but in terms of special effects, only the United States can do it. Hua Xia doesn't even have a special effects studio. You won't be able to do the special effects that Titanic needs. This will ruin the movie!"
"We've already invested more than a hundred million USD, we can't save twenty million USD on special effects!"
"Calm down! Mr. Chown, calm down! " Boss Jia patted Chown's shoulder and smiled. "Mr. Chown, what I meant was to reduce the number of special effects shots, not the quality of the special effects. Similarly, all the special effects will still be done by the Americans. Like you said, Hua Xia can't do special effects of this level at the moment! "
"Isn't that the same logic? What's the difference between reducing the number of special effects shots and destroying the special effects? "Chown's face turned red.
"Listen to me, the so-called special effects are to be able to shoot scenes that can't be shot in real life, right?" Boss Jia asked with a smile.
"Yes, that's right …"
"Then that's right. Some scenes can't be shot in real life, so we have to do special effects. But there are some special effects shots that can be shot in real life. It's just that because of the cost, we have to use special effects shots! "
"But let me ask you, no matter how perfect the special effects shots are, can they be as perfect as the scenes shot in real life?"
"Mr. Jia, what are you trying to say?" Chown was confused by Boss Jia's words.
"What I mean is very simple!" Boss Jia laughed. "Actually, I think Director Cameron's initial idea was pretty good. Why don't we just build a Titanic and sink it to the bottom of the sea? The scene would be so perfect and realistic!"
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