Don't Call Me Master, Call Me Director

To the customers of Bandai, they have a love-hate relationship with this behemoth of a company.

The nickname "Conglomerate B" perfectly encapsulates the fans' attitude towards the company.

Shinji himself didn't harbor much ill will towards Bandai. As a shut-in who had been a Tokusatsu fan for two lifetimes.

Although he was annoyed by Bandai's sustainable-fishing strategy when selling toys, he couldn't deny Conglomerate B's strong support for Tokusatsu works.

If not for Bandai's decades-long "Tokusatsu obsession," Japanese Tokusatsu would have likely declined completely due to fading popularity after the 1990s.

Even if Bandai's ultimate goal was to make money, they couldn't deny "Conglomerate B's" passion for Tokusatsu. It's worth noting that no other company was willing to invest in the Tokusatsu industry at the time besides Bandai.

Alternatively, Bandai's approach of prioritizing profit might actually make Master Shinji's plan to promote FSN smoother.

The only thing that bothered Shinji was the distribution capabilities of Bandai Visual itself.

While this subsidiary of Bandai was somewhat well-known in the Japanese film industry, it primarily distributed animated films. It had only sporadic experience distributing Tokusatsu films like Ultraman Movies.

But regardless, Bandai's sincerity was at least far greater than Toho's.

That distribution team leader, Hata Kengo, never contacted Shinji again after the preview screening. On Bandai's end, the young man called that very evening, expressing his company's willingness to take a look at the film.

So, the next morning, Shinji and Matou Kariya met Bandai's representatives at Tsuburaya Productions.

This screening was much humbler than the preview screening. A few people found a conference room at Tsuburaya Productions to serve as a makeshift screening room.

In the room, all the windows were completely covered by black curtains, allowing no light to penetrate.

A small screen was hung on the wide wall at the front of the conference room. Shinji sat behind the projector opposite the screen, personally operating this screening of FSN.

In front of him, Matou Kariya sat with the Bandai employees, watching the film intently and occasionally exchanging quiet words, boasting about his nephew.

For a special effects film like FSN, using such simple equipment for projection couldn't bring out its essence. Shinji wished he could take people to a movie theater to experience the grandeur of the big screen.

Unfortunately, movie theaters had their own screening schedules. Preview screenings like yesterday required advance reservations, and the theater owner flatly refused Shinji's request for an impromptu additional showing.

Furthermore, other movie theaters were too far from Tsuburaya Productions, making travel back and forth very troublesome.

In response, Shinji could only complain about the number of movie theaters in Japan. There were fewer than 400 movie theaters in the entire country, not even as many as in one province in a developed region of China today.

Similar to yesterday's screening, Shinji observed the expressions of the Bandai employees throughout the film's playback.

To Shinji's slight surprise, the leader of the Bandai representatives this time was a dignified-looking professional woman.

It wasn't that Shinji's playboy tendencies kicked in and he was attracted to this woman who resembled a friendly older sister. It was that he recognized her – Udagawa Nao – she was the future president of Bandai.

[But wasn't this sister working in the games department before becoming president? Why did she end up in the film distribution department?]

Despite his internal confusion, Shinji continued to play the movie methodically.

As the screening approached its end, after Bedivere bid farewell to Artoria, Shinji didn't continue with the end credits. Instead, he directly turned off the projector and turned on the lights immediately.

"Miss Udagawa..."

Matou Kariya was about to speak when Udagawa Nao raised her hand to interrupt him, "Can we have a private discussion?"

"Of course, no problem. Uncle, let's go out first."

Shinji knew these people needed to exchange their thoughts, so he readily pulled Matou Kariya and left the screening room.

Judging by their expressions during the screening, these people had a positive attitude towards the film, at least more so than the film critics.

But whether Bandai would ultimately accept FSN depended on their view of the film's market prospects.

After all, Conglomerate B was a thoroughly commercial company, not a charity or an art academy.

Leaving the conference room, Shinji and Kariya stood in the hallway, awaiting the results of their discussion.

Kariya lit a cigarette and said softly, "That woman, Udagawa Nao, brought a complete team from Bandai. This shows that Bandai is very interested in your film."

As a member of the Matou Family, Kariya was very invested in the film.

"I suppose so. Without those idiotic film critics interfering this time, it should be easier," Shinji said casually, looking up at the ceiling.

"Hey, hey."

Hearing Shinji's words, Kariya wore a helpless expression.

Inside the conference room, Udagawa Nao and several Bandai representatives sat in a circle, exchanging their views on the film.

"Miss Udagawa, wasn't I right? This is a fantastic work."

The first to speak was a young man full of excitement. He was the one who had stopped Shinji at the end yesterday.

His participation in yesterday's preview screening was purely accidental. He had originally gone to Tsuburaya to discuss toy designs. After seeing some people from Toho, he followed them to the preview screening.

At first, the young man didn't think he would see an excellent film. It was purely an excuse he made to himself to avoid going back to work too early.

However, the moment he saw FSN, he was deeply captivated by this film, which was completely different from anything he had seen before.

The young man couldn't articulate exactly what made the film so good, but he instinctively felt that this film was a perfect fit for his company.

His opinion was supported by another Bandai representative, "I think so too. This film has taken Tokusatsu to the extreme. It can no longer be described as 'hard to distinguish from reality'."

In this world, the concept of special effects films didn't exist. This representative naturally assumed it was a Tokusatsu film made for teenagers.

Not just him, but the other Bandai representatives present thought the same way.

"This film has considerable value."

The bespectacled man at the end of the table said, "The Director Matou Shinji's work was outstanding. His camera work, lighting, and colors surpassed those of typical films. Of course, the most impressive aspect was the dazzling special effects, so realistic that even Tsuburaya couldn't compare. From this point alone, it meets the current demands of the tokusatsu market, but..."

The man pushed his glasses up his nose and changed the subject.

"The movie's plot is a bit obscure. While the film clearly tells the past stories of the heroes, it's too complex for children. Not to mention the addition of romance elements... Let's not forget the precedent set by the Diga Movie."

The bespectacled man was referring to Tsuburaya's Diga Ultraman Movie The Final Holy War from a few years prior.

Because the movie was released many years after the Diga series, and considering that the children who watched the show had grown up, Tsuburaya had written the movie script to be more profound than usual, even adding romantic elements.

As a result, when the movie was released, the vast majority of the audience was still children. These young kids, who hadn't experienced romance yet, had no idea what love was or any concept of relationship dynamics.

The Final Holy War certainly couldn't be called a failure, but its final performance and critical reception definitely did not meet expectations.

"I know that, of course."

Udagawa Nao closed her notebook and looked up at the other three. "In short, we're all on the same page."

"One more thing," the bespectacled man added. "The merchandise for this tokusatsu film must be distributed by our Bandai."

"Naturally."

Udagawa Nao nodded with a smile.

She had already thought of many movie tie-in products during the film's production. For example, Saber's weapon, Excalibur, could be made into three versions of DX toys based on different scenes in the movie: True Name Release ver. (normal edition), Gales Domain ver. (clear edition), and Noble Phantasm Release ver. (light-up edition).

A few minutes later, Shinji and Kariya returned to the conference room.

Seeing Udagawa Nao and her colleagues seated in a row on the left side of the long table, he and his uncle sat on the right side of the conference table.

Udagawa Nao didn't look at Matou Kariya, her eyes almost entirely fixed on Shinji.

She hadn't paid much attention to him before, but now she realized just how young the Director was.

He's definitely not an adult!

Udagawa Nao, with her extensive life experience, immediately formed her judgment.

Even if such a young person were exceptionally talented, they would lack social experience and often be filled with idealism.

This kind of young person isn't difficult to handle. If I just appeal to their ideals and future, they should be easy to fool.

With that thought, she looked cautiously at Matou Kariya.

This actor, who had struggled in the entertainment industry for many years, was the real challenge in this negotiation.

However, Udagawa Nao didn't think much of Matou Kariya either. He was a well-known actor, but just an actor. Lacking experience in buying and selling films, Matou Kariya had no concept of how much a movie should be worth.

More importantly, her company, Bandai, was a renowned film distributor in the industry. Facing a rookie director and a second-rate actor, they naturally held an absolute advantage.

Perhaps I can even get their entire team to join our company.

Udagawa Nao's eyes scanned Shinji up and down. His team's technical skills were excellent, and if she could poach them all, it would greatly benefit Bandai's film division.

Shinji's side was very quiet. While Udagawa Nao observed him, he was also thinking about how to maximize his profits from Conglomerate B.

From the seating arrangement of the Bandai team, it was clear that Udagawa Nao was the absolute decision-maker.

Shinji didn't underestimate her just because she was a woman; instead, he paid her more attention. Everyone knew that the phenomenon of favoring men over women in Japanese workplaces was severe. To stand out in such an environment and eventually become the president of Bandai, Udagawa Nao was definitely not an ordinary person.

I wonder if she's married? She's quite the wealthy woman, after all. Should I let Uncle contribute his body? He's not getting any younger; it's time for him to settle down and start a family.

Shinji glanced at his uncle from the corner of his eye, considering the possibilities.

"Hmm? Why is it a bit cold?"

Matou Kariya shivered inexplicably beside him.

After lecturing his less-than-subtle uncle, Shinji re-entered negotiations.

"A method?" Shinji placed his hands on his chest. "Isn't it that your company will be the distributor for FSN?"

"Bandai will naturally distribute Fate."

Udagawa Nao lightly tapped her right hand holding the pen, her slightly emphasized tone indicating to Shinji that she held the initiative in this negotiation.

"But the way we distribute FSN is by owning all copyrights to this film."

"You want to buy out the film?"

Shinji frowned slightly, his expression showing displeasure.

Matou Kariya glanced at Shinji in surprise.

Isn't it normal for an independent film to be bought out by a distribution company?

Kariya, unaware of his nephew's intentions, felt a hint of confusion at Shinji's attitude.

However, with the precedent of the kick from earlier, Kariya could only obediently shut his mouth.

The old man of the house had already called to inform him that Shinji would be in charge of this negotiation. Kariya was only to act as his nephew's subordinate, and was forbidden to overstep his authority even if the talks fell apart.

Compared to Matou Kariya, whose frustration was written all over his face, Udagawa Nao's expression remained unchanged.

She made a gesture, saying, "Director Matou, if you have any ideas, feel free to bring them up. As long as they are reasonable and beneficial to both of us, we can consider them."

Udagawa Nao's words were quite high-sounding, as if she were genuinely considering Shinji's interests.

It was like a superior telling a subordinate, "Feel free to ask for whatever you want." Anyone who believed that was a fool.

But who was Master Shinji?

As someone who could casually converse with those old fossils at the Clock Tower, Shinji wasn't going to be polite.

"I hope that TYPE-MOON Film Company can sign a distribution contract with Bandai..."