A Deal Is Struck

"Director Matou, you're looking for a partnership with a revenue-sharing model?"

While Shinji was still considering how to phrase his next words, Udagawa Nao picked up where he left off.

"Shin—"

This time, Shinji reacted quickly. Before Kariya could speak, he stomped hard on his foot, forcing him to swallow the rest of his words.

After physically silencing his own uncle, Shinji smiled and gave a small nod.

"Of course. A revenue-sharing model."

"That's impossible." Udagawa Nao shook her head without hesitation. "An outright purchase of the rights is a prerequisite for working with us."

She spoke with such finality that there was clearly no room for compromise.

"Four hundred million yen. That's Bandai's offer."

Udagawa Nao held up four fingers and announced the figure plainly.

It wasn't exactly a generous offer, but it wasn't outrageously low, either. After all, tokusatsu films generally made around one to two billion yen at the box office.

Of course, Udagawa Nao had left herself room to negotiate. If Shinji insisted, she didn't mind raising the price.

But Shinji looked confused. Tilting his head, he asked, "Ms. Udagawa, unless I've misunderstood, are you planning to buy out all the rights to FSN in one go?"

"Of course. That's a prerequisite for all the independent films Bandai distributes. Is there a problem?"

Udagawa Nao leaned forward, adopting an aggressive posture.

Shinji didn't even bat an eyelid. Compared to Kirei Kotomine pressing a mercury Mystic Code to his throat, this was nothing.

"Ahem. There's something you may not be aware of, Ms. Udagawa."

Shinji gave a couple of light coughs and spoke as if he were entirely innocent. "First, I should clarify something. I don't hold all the film rights to FSN. The overseas distribution rights belong to another company."

"Overseas?"

Udagawa Nao repeated, puzzled.

Shinji spread his hands quite naturally. "That's right. Today, we're only discussing distribution rights in Japan. Our company's employees in Europe and America are handling distribution there."

"Is there even a market for tokusatsu films in Europe and America?"

Udagawa Nao seemed taken aback by Shinji's words.

Tokusatsu was a niche of a niche in Europe and America. It wasn't even eligible for a theatrical release and could only make it to the video market.

"How could there not be? Ms. Udagawa, this isn't a tokusatsu film. It's a special-effects film!"

Shinji shook his head repeatedly, explaining in an exaggerated tone.

To be honest, the definitions and boundaries of tokusatsu and special effects were rather blurry, especially once computer-generated imagery became more advanced. The difference between tokusatsu works and special-effects films seemed to come down to little more than the suits.

Shinji went out of his way to stress the distinction between the two concepts mainly to broaden the category and appeal to a larger audience, making it easier to bluff his way through.

Everyone knew that things with a glamorous image sold better—and for a higher price—than things you saw everywhere.

"FSN uses the most advanced filmmaking techniques. Much of the technical support comes from my partners in Europe and America. They've invested a great deal of money in this film, which is why the rights belong to their company."

What Shinji said was half true and half false. The Mage families of the Clock Tower had indeed invested a lot of money, but aside from setting up a shell film company, most of it had gone toward acquiring relics.

"Ms. Udagawa." Master Shinji continued his sales pitch. "Special-effects films are an entirely new category of cinema, aimed primarily at young people aged thirteen to twenty-five. And those people happen to make up the bulk of moviegoers."

"This is a category of film that's never existed before. You have no evidence to back up what you're saying." Udagawa Nao spoke coldly. She wasn't inclined to believe him.

Shinji smiled, looking utterly harmless. "Then once we've signed, Bandai can arrange special preview screenings. The audience will give us the most accurate response."

"We can discuss that once we've officially signed. If we're only talking about the rights in Japan, then we're even less likely to agree to a revenue-sharing deal. Since you're a good storyteller, Director Matou, I'm willing to raise our offer to five hundred million yen."

Udagawa Nao brought the conversation back to the matter at hand.

"That's impossible." Shinji frowned deeply. "My partners won't agree to it."

Udagawa Nao watched Shinji with some amusement, shaking her head inwardly. This young director was far too naive.

"Director Matou."

Ms. Udagawa decided to put an end to Shinji's naive fantasies.

"No distribution company in Japan would accept the revenue-sharing deal you're proposing. We'll only agree to an outright purchase, including all rights in Japan."

Udagawa Nao didn't give Shinji time to respond, quickly adding, "Bandai will be putting this in theaters. We'll have to promote it before release and make prints for every cinema. Those are all expenses for Bandai!"

"Director Matou, what can you offer to guarantee that our company will recoup its investment? Do you have a successful track record?"

Udagawa Nao stared at Shinji, enunciating each word. "If Type-Moon Film Company covers all the promotional expenses, then we can agree to a revenue-sharing deal."

Are you stupid, or am I crazy?

Shinji fought the urge to roll his eyes.

Have his production company cover the promotional expenses?

By the time the profits were settled, Type-Moon might not get a single yen.

The promotional costs for any film released on a large scale were enormous and complicated. It was far too easy for a distributor to manipulate the figures.

Still, Udagawa Nao had a point. Shinji's biggest weakness was his lack of a track record, and if she kept insisting on it, there wasn't much he could do. It was the truth.

As expected, this woman didn't become a company president for nothing. In that case, I'll have to try a different approach.

Fortunately, the other side of the negotiation was Bandai. That gave Shinji another card to play.

"Ms. Udagawa, although I can't sell you all the film rights, I can make you the global merchandise distributor for FSN."

"Globally?"

"That's right. Globally."

A sly smile tugged at Shinji's lips.

"Forgive me for saying this, but giving Bandai global distribution rights wouldn't mean much." Udagawa Nao pursed her lips in displeasure. "Bandai may be the largest toy manufacturer in Asia, but we don't have much of a sales network in Europe and America. Are you making fun of me, Director Matou?"

"What if I could put you in touch with distributors in Europe and America?"

This time, Shinji leaned forward, putting pressure on her.

"Like I said, I have some very powerful partners in Europe and America. They're fully capable of selling your products. In North America, for example, Type-Moon Company expects to work with Jidai Group."

Udagawa Nao's attitude clearly shifted. She looked at Shinji and Kariya beside him in disbelief.

Jidai Group was a powerful media conglomerate in North America, several times larger than Bandai.

"You can work with Jidai Group?"

"Nothing's been finalized, but it's all but certain." Shinji answered earnestly. "The Matou family and the Flora family, Jidai Group's major shareholders, have been close friends for generations."

At this point, Shinji sighed inwardly.

In this world, Jidai Group was quite different from the Jidai Group in Shinji's previous life. It was a media conglomerate founded by Mage families who had once traveled to the New World.

At first, those Mage families had only hoped to use the media to conceal Magecraft and the supernatural. But as time went on, Jidai Group grew and eventually became one of North America's leading corporations.

Interestingly, since Hollywood's influence had waned, Jidai Group had never acquired Warner Bros., and its name had never changed to Jidai Warner.

That didn't mean Jidai Group wasn't interested in the film industry.

The Matou and Flora families were indeed on good terms, too. When Shinji had gone to North America, the family had looked after him a great deal.

So what Shinji said wasn't exactly a lie.

He'd simply left out one very important detail: while Shinji was in North America, he'd gotten involved with the Flora family's daughter. That had been one of the reasons he'd fled back to the Clock Tower in his final year abroad—and it was why he'd avoided bringing up Jidai Group.

As a result, Shinji couldn't possibly ask Jidai Group to be his North American partner. He was simply using their name to bluff.

Besides, very few people knew about what had happened, and Shinji wasn't worried about Bandai looking into it.

Udagawa Nao looked at the young director before her with some exasperation. She couldn't help feeling that a fox's tail was swishing behind him.

Why did I think this kid would be easy to fool at first glance?

Udagawa Nao's mouth twitched.

Throughout the entire negotiation, Matou Kariya—the one she'd thought would be the main obstacle—hadn't said a word. Meanwhile, Matou Shinji, whom she'd expected to be easy to handle, had argued every point.

There was no denying that Shinji's offer was tempting, and it hit Bandai right where it was weakest.

Bandai was eager to expand beyond East Asia and break into the European and American markets, but for one reason or another, it had never managed to do so. One major reason was the lack of reliable, capable partners.

The partners Shinji had proposed in Europe and America would be enormously important to Bandai. It was practically a lifeline. The people beside her looked as if they were about to start drooling.

But however tempting Shinji's offer was, Udagawa Nao couldn't make a decision. His terms were far beyond her authority.

Seeing the negotiations had reached an impasse, Shinji could only kick his uncle again.

"Yikes... What?"

Kariya looked at Shinji with innocent eyes, while Shinji gazed back at him with an innocent expression.

Why me again?!

Kariya cried out in confusion inwardly.

The Deal Is Done

Although he felt wronged, Matou Kariya had at least understood what Shinji's look meant.

"Ms. Udagawa."

Matou Kariya was forced to get to his feet and smooth things over. "Shinji's only putting forward some ideas of his own. We can take our time and talk it through. If you can't make a decision right away, you can always go back and think it over."

"I understand."

Udagawa Nao gave a slight nod.

When it came to something involving the company's overall strategy, she really couldn't make the decision herself.

"I'll report the situation to my superior. As for what happens next..."

"Then I'll await good news."

Shinji rose with a smile and shook her hand.

"But I should warn you that Bandai isn't the only Japanese distributor we're considering."

Udagawa Nao sneered at Shinji's hint. "Hasn't Toho already rejected you?"

"There's still Toei, isn't there?"

Shinji laughed. With his shamelessness, how could he show any weakness here?

Udagawa Nao shook her head helplessly, closed her notebook, and stood to leave with her team.

Shinji courteously saw the Bandai team out, never once acting as though he wanted to keep them there.

When Shinji returned to the conference room, Kariya hurried over.

"Shinji, you've got a big appetite. Have you considered that if the Japanese box office falls short of expectations, even a revenue share might not earn you five hundred million yen?"

By industry standards, a producer's share of the box office was usually between sixty and eighty-five percent. But in Shinji's situation, there was no way he'd get the most favorable deal. He'd be lucky to get seventy percent.

It sounded wonderful, but many additional costs would be deducted from the box-office share. Promotion, film prints, taxes... All of them would eat into the proceeds.

That was why film distributors sat at the top of the industry food chain, no matter the country or region.

Given the current state of Japan's film industry, FSN would need to make at least 1.8 billion yen at the Japanese box office for Shinji to receive more than five hundred million yen in revenue sharing. For most tokusatsu films, that kind of box office was an unattainable dream.

Faced with Kariya's question, Shinji merely shrugged.

"Because I believe Fate is worth far more than that."

"But you need a distributor right now!" Kariya reminded him solemnly. "You're asking for too much for a newcomer."

"If Bandai won't work, we'll find someone else."

Shinji pulled his phone from his pocket and waved it.

"Are you, perhaps, my Master?"

Right then, Shinji's phone rang.

As if he hadn't noticed Kariya's strange expression, Shinji answered the call.

A familiar male voice, polite as ever, came from the other end.

"Director Matou, this is Hata Kengo."