Chapter 117
Han Taesung stared at me carefully.
“Are you upset?”
I asked.
Han Taesung smiled strangely.
“Upset?”
He thought for a moment.
“I’m not sure.”
Then he chuckled.
“Part of me wonders whether I raised a tiger cub.”
I smiled back.
“You were the one who advised me that even if the title was only formal, I should still become co-CEO.”
For a moment, Han Taesung’s brow tightened.
Then he suddenly laughed as if amused.
“Hahaha. You’re right.”
He shook his head.
“Maybe I cut my own foot with my own axe. Hahaha.”
As if trying to break the slightly sharp atmosphere, Kim Eunkyung gave a short cough.
Han Taesung’s smile faded.
Then he spoke again.
“All right.”
He leaned back.
“Then let’s talk CEO to CEO.”
I waited.
“I reject your proposal.”
The answer was completely unexpected.
What?
Why?
If Han Taesung had recognized the value of Kingdom of Crime, there was no way he should’ve rejected the proposal this quickly.
I tried to hide my surprise.
“May I ask why?”
“Of course.”
Han Taesung looked calm.
“It sounds nice when you call it a co-production.”
“But in reality, Big Picture would bring in all the capital, while New Wave would simply make the movie.”
He spread his hands.
“Isn’t that basically the same as us subcontracting production to New Wave?”
“And yet New Wave would still take thirty percent of the profits.”
He shook his head.
“From my position, that sounds like a bad deal.”
Han Taesung pointed out that New Wave was still a new production company.
Song Jaehyun’s previous film, Timeless, had succeeded.
But that alone wasn’t enough for New Wave to attract major investment by itself.
In other words...
Wasn’t I ultimately trying to use Big Picture?
I couldn’t say Han Taesung was wrong.
As expected.
Song Jaehyun’s current name value and my judgment alone aren’t enough.
Then...
I began thinking quickly.
At that moment, my eyes fell on the VFX business documents Han Taesung had just signed.
An idea appeared.
“Then how about this?”
Han Taesung looked at me.
“I’ll solve the problem that’s currently worrying you.”
“And in return, you invest in Director Song’s movie.”
“My problem?”
Han Taesung tilted his head.
“What do you mean?”
“Yes.”
I looked directly at him.
“The VFX team’s sales performance.”
“I’ll solve it.”
Han Taesung’s eyes shook.
“Are you saying you have some secret method to increase the VFX team’s sales?”
His expression was full of suspicion.
“I can’t guarantee it one hundred percent.”
I admitted.
“But I do have a method that has a reasonable chance of working.”
“What method?”
Kim Eunkyung couldn’t hold back her curiosity.
I smiled.
“I’ll tell you after CEO Han accepts my proposal.”
Han Taesung burst into laughter.
“Hahaha.”
He shook his head.
“Yes. I definitely raised a tiger.”
Then he nodded.
“Fine.”
“Let’s do it.”
Han Taesung went even further.
If I could improve the VFX team’s sales performance, he would not only invest in Song Jaehyun’s film...
He would also give me five percent of the VFX team’s operating profit as an incentive.
Five percent of operating profit?!
Han Taesung laughed at my expression.
“The entire VFX business might disappear soon anyway.”
“Why would I care about giving you five percent if you manage to save it?”
Then he leaned forward.
“So tell me.”
“How exactly are you going to improve the VFX team’s performance?”
The unexpected incentive made me shrug slightly.
Then I answered.
“We enter Hollywood.”
Han Taesung stared at me.
His expression went beyond surprise.
He looked almost speechless.
The truth was...
I had said it confidently, but even I couldn’t guarantee the result.
However, according to my memories before regression, this was around the time when major Hollywood blockbuster producers began showing real interest in Korean VFX companies.
Several Korean VFX companies would soon start receiving subcontracting work from huge Hollywood studios.
Knowing that trend...
I thought there might be an opportunity if we reached out first.
Han Taesung and Kim Eunkyung stared at me blankly for several seconds.
Then both of them burst out laughing almost at the same time.
“Hahahaha!”
“Entering Hollywood?”
Han Taesung shook his head.
“I’ll admit your confidence and ambition are impressive, but Hollywood?”
Kim Eunkyung laughed too.
“This one was a little too much, Team Leader Min. Hohoho.”
I calmly waited for their laughter to die down.
Seeing that I wasn’t smiling, both of them gradually realized I was serious.
Their expressions changed.
“You’re actually serious.”
“Yes.”
I nodded.
Han Taesung’s face became serious.
I continued.
“Right now, the domestic VFX industry is usually evaluated like this.”
“Technically, the industry has grown.”
“But structurally, it’s still unstable.”
Around 2012, Korea’s VFX industry had already shown major technical improvement through movies like Monster, Dragon War, Representative of the Nation, and Sector 8.
But the market itself was still small.
Most VFX companies survived by handling outsourced work from Korean films and dramas.
The common belief across the industry was simple.
The technology exists, but there’s no money in it.
“Do you know that a Korean VFX company worked as an outside contractor on the upcoming Robot Transformers?”
“Of course I know.”
Han Taesung nodded.
“But that was mostly luck.”
The production company, Paramountains, had been overwhelmed by the enormous amount of VFX work required for Robot Transformers.
Because of that, it had been forced to outsource work to VFX companies around the world.
One Korean company had happened to receive part of that work.
“I agree.”
I nodded.
“This time, luck played a major role.”
“But one thing is clear.”
“Hollywood will continue searching for more VFX companies in the future.”
Han Taesung narrowed his eyes.
“So what?”
“You want us to blindly visit Hollywood studios and try to sell ourselves?”
“No.”
I shook my head.
“We can make them come to us first.”
Han Taesung frowned.
He clearly found that difficult to believe.
Kim Eunkyung looked worried.
“Team Leader Min...”
She spoke carefully.
“I’m only saying this because I’m concerned.”
“One careless statement from you right now could permanently damage the trust CEO Han and I have in you.”
Even after hearing her warning, I remained calm.
“I understand exactly what both of you are worried about.”
Then I continued.
“But this may be something only CEO Han can do.”
I knew Han Taesung’s history.
When he had worked for S Video Business Division in the past, he had personally handled imports and distribution for numerous Hollywood films.
During that time, he had built relationships with many people from major Hollywood studios.
I had also heard that he still kept in contact with some of them.
“Something only I can do?”
Han Taesung immediately understood.
“Are you telling me to use my Hollywood connections?”
“Yes.”
I nodded.
“I remember hearing that you’ve maintained relationships for almost twenty years with people from Warner Sisters and Marbling Comics.”
“And both companies announced major blockbuster productions this year, didn’t they?”
“That’s true, but...”
Han Taesung suddenly looked disappointed.
“I’ve actually thought of something like that myself.”
He leaned back.
“But do you know why I stopped?”
Han Taesung explained that those people simply didn’t do business that way.
If he called them and asked for work as a personal favor...
It might permanently damage those relationships instead.
“Anyway, I’m impressed you thought that far.”
Han Taesung smiled as if comforting me.
“CEO Han...”
“Yes?”
“I think there’s been a misunderstanding.”
His brows rose.
“I already said this earlier.”
“I’m not suggesting that you ask them for a favor.”
“And I said we could make them come to us first.”
Confusion crossed Han Taesung’s face.
“So you’re saying this isn’t what I think it is?”
“That’s right.”
I nodded.
“Your connections are still necessary.”
“But this isn’t a favor request.”
“And it isn’t sales.”
Then I calmly explained my plan.
By the time I finished, Han Taesung’s eyes were shining with surprise.
“Ha...”
He stared at me.
“So what you’re saying is...”
“We offer it as a technology investment?”
Normally, the phrase technology investment referred to a company with capital but no technology investing in a smaller company that had technology but lacked money.
The engineer gained capital.
The investor gained a share of future innovation.
But what I was proposing was slightly different.
Kim Eunkyung, who had been listening quietly, slowly spoke.
“So what you mean is...”
She looked at me.
“We have VFX technology.”
“Hollywood studios need VFX technology.”
“So we offer our VFX work to them as an investment instead of selling it as a service?”
“Yes.”
I nodded.
“Of course, the results might be small.”
“Or we might even take on risk if the movie fails at the box office.”
I continued.
“But even if that happens...”
“Simply having participated in a major Hollywood blockbuster would become a huge career achievement for our VFX team.”
“So I don’t think it would be a losing deal.”
Of course...
I already knew that the films in question would become enormous worldwide successes.
But Han Taesung and Kim Eunkyung didn’t know that.
So I gave them a more cautious explanation.
“Not sales, but investment...”
Kim Eunkyung nodded slowly.
“CEO Han.”
She looked toward him.
“If we present it as an investment, they probably won’t think you’re asking for a personal favor.”
Han Taesung remained silent.
Kim Eunkyung continued.
“And those projects are massive blockbusters.”
“They’ll be desperate to reduce even a small part of their production costs.”
She looked more positive than before.
“If we offer our technical work as an investment, it might be difficult for them to reject it immediately.”
Han Taesung thought for a long time.
Finally, he nodded.
“Fine.”
He looked at me.
“Team Leader Min, let’s try it your way.”
Then he added,
“And regardless of how the VFX plan turns out...”
“Big Picture will join Director Song Jaehyun’s film as a co-producer.”
I stared at him.
“Really?”
“Didn’t I already tell you?”
Han Taesung smiled.
“I found Director Song’s new screenplay interesting.”
Then he chuckled.
“Actually, I felt a hit from the moment I read it.”
He leaned back.
“If I refused to invest in a movie like that, I’d basically be admitting I had no ability as either a producer or an investor.”
The corner of his mouth rose.
“To be honest, I rejected you at first because I wanted to see how you would respond.”
I stared at him.
“So you were testing me?”
“Just a little.”
He laughed.
“But thanks to that, we may have found a solution for the VFX team too.”
Then Han Taesung looked at me with amusement.
“Still...”
“You’re so capable that I’m starting to wonder whether I’ll ever be able to let you go easily.”
He laughed loudly.
“What am I supposed to do with you? Hahahaha.”
