The executive lounge serves another function, which is hosting meetings. The executive lounge is equipped with a small conference room for 6-10 people, designed for business clients. However, considering the number of attendees, several additional seats have been added for this meeting, each bearing a company logo placard.
Gu Bai glanced around and saw that Black Swan Capital was seated third.
At this moment, the conference room was already full, with Gu Bai and Xiao Qiang being the last to enter.
Gu Bai casually took his designated seat, while Xiao Qiang sat in the audience area behind.
Seeing that everyone was present, Yang Function, seated at the head, stood up and smiled, "Since all major investors are here, I declare the bidding session for the ’Fuyao’ project officially open."
The attendees then gently applauded.
A few seconds later, the applause ceased, and Yang Function began introducing all the investors involved.
"First, let me introduce the invited investors for this project."
Speaking according to the seating order, he began the introductions: "I believe everyone is quite familiar with President Chen, CEO of E Factory Film and Television, Mr. Chen Wu."
After the introduction, Chen Wu nodded slightly to the crowd, smiling a little.
"Lemon Film and Television’s CEO Yang Xiaopei, Ms. Yang."
Gu Bai was somewhat familiar with Lemon Film and Television, as he had previously applied for a job there in his past life, though they did not respond.
Speaking of Lemon Film and Television, it holds considerable influence in Hua Country’s television drama industry, having produced several acclaimed series, with representative works like ’Twenty Years Old and Confident,’ ’Thirty Only,’ ’A Little Parting,’ ’Little Joy,’ ’Little She De,’ and many others well-known in later years, many of which are associated with this company.
"These two might not be very familiar to you, but once I mention them, I believe you all will have heard of them recently.
Black Swan Capital’s CEO Gu Bai, President Gu, and Director of Film Investment Division Xiao Qiang, I assume the billion-dollar capital injection from Black Swan Capital has shocked you all recently?"
After speaking, Yang Function smiled at Gu Bai, "Thank you again for personally attending the ’Fuyao’ project investment meeting, President Gu."
Mr. Gu Bai smiled politely at Yang Function and then nodded with a slight smile to everyone present.
The first to speak was E Factory Film and Television’s CEO, Chen Wu. Putting aside everything else, in terms of social status, Chen Wu held the highest position among the many attendees.
"I’ve been hearing about the significant moves of Black Swan Capital and President Gu these past few days. I didn’t expect President Gu to be so young - truly a young hero. Just a few days ago in a company meeting, President Ma emphasized Black Swan Capital, saying another fierce tiger had entered the industry. But now it appears President Ma’s analogy isn’t quite adequate, for what we see here is a true overseas dragon."
"President Chen is too kind. Everyone here is a senior. Black Swan was established late, so how dare we claim to be any kind of dragon?"
Yang Xiaopei laughed as well, "President Gu, your words are not quite right there. In business, there is no hierarchy of seniority. I think President Chen is spot on."
The three giant companies exchanged compliments, and the representatives of smaller investment firms all smiled in agreement.
Yang Function did not interrupt, and after a few minutes, once the commercial praises ended, she continued to introduce the investors.
The introduction alone took more than ten minutes because the remainder were small fry companies that just followed along, and Gu Bai wasn’t keen on listening carefully.
"Now that everyone is acquainted, shall we formally begin this investment meeting?" ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭⟡𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦⟡𝘯𝘦𝘵
The attendees then applauded.
The lights in the conference room dimmed as the projection screen behind Yang Function displayed the project’s specifics.
"The ’Fuyao’ project has been registered with the relevant departments, with the directors currently confirmed as Yang Wenjun, Xie Ze, and Li Cai, jointly directing. I am serving as both an investor and the leading actress."
This point was met with no objections from the attendees.
The reason why this drama could attract so many investors at just the registration stage was because of Yang Function, the ratings elixir. Being an investor and leading actress raised no issues.
Regarding directors, to put it harshly, there are numerous skilled directors in the industry. For a drama project where the actress is more prominent than the directors, the directors hardly matter; they can be replaced at any time, so confirming them early is not an issue.
"The project’s minimum funding goal is 500 million, with E Factory Film and Television, as one of the channel providers, initially establishing a funding allocation of 100 million."
This was also unchallenged.
This is E Factory; not to mention occupying 100 million, even if they added another 100 million, no one would dare have objections; such a giant, sharing part of the cake, already made most of the investors grateful, let alone daring to fume about E Factory’s executives.
"Among the remaining investment quota, I will personally contribute 40 million into the crew, plus a wage of 30 million, accounting for 70 million investment shares."
This statement meant that 330 million in investment quota remained.
Unlike ordinary film and television projects, where more investment equals better returns, this was essentially a sure-fire project, with nearly fixed investment quotas. If money were insufficient later, the internal investors would simply inject more funds. In effect, it was akin to dividing a pie, with only the size making a difference.
"Now, I invite the representatives of each investment company to speak freely."
After speaking, Yang Function sat down.
The leading figures remained silent, so the small investors dared not speak first. Their role was clearly defined - merely picking up scraps.
Chen Wu was the first to speak.
"Besides the previously invested 100 million distribution capital, E Factory Film and Television has decided to add another 80 million in investment."
His tone left no room for doubt.
As the distributor, E Factory Film and Television had absolute confidence, and 80 million was a minor amount for them. Had the company’s internal meeting not vetoed a high investment decision, E Factory would have added 150 million more, effectively taking half of the entire project.
"Now E Factory Film and Television’s investment has reached 180 million, combined with my personal 70 million investment, leaving a quota of 250 million."
Yang Function quickly approved E Factory’s additional request, slowly addressing everyone present.
Two minutes later, Yang Xiaopei from Lemon Film and Television couldn’t hold back any longer. They were very optimistic about this project, and securing a larger share was vital. With two parties, half the shares were already gone, leaving a well-funded Black Swan Capital waiting eagerly. Hesitation might mean getting nothing later.
"We at Lemon Film and Television intend to invest 100 million and request a producer position to assist with later film distribution."
The producer is the master of the crew, the highest authority within the production team, with the right to hire talented members and dismiss those engaged in misconduct. Having a producer role would provide Ning Meng Film and Television with an additional investment return, for instance, involving artists closely cooperating with their company.
These matters were likely previously discussed with Yang Function, and were merely being presented formally now. Yang Function easily approved Ning Meng Film and Television’s request.
The next step reduced the investment quota to just 150 million.
The small investors all looked at the calm Gu Bai with interest, as he was the last major player present. Only after his investment would they get a chance to share what’s left.