Inside the screening room of the Palazzo del Cinema on the Lido, Mark Belford didn't choose to sit in the front row with the main cast and guests. Instead, he sat at the back of the hall with a few staff members.
While the audience was engrossed in the film, Mark spent most of his time quietly observing their reactions.
The screening lasted over three hours, and aside from a few who briefly left to attend to personal needs, no one walked out due to the film's length. This eased Mark's tension slightly.
As the Titanic sank and the heart-wrenching farewells unfolded, many in the audience began wiping away tears, further boosting Mark's confidence in the film.
When the main story concluded and the credits began to roll, the lights in the hall remained off. Someone eagerly started clapping, and Mark confirmed it wasn't one of his staff members trying to avoid an awkward silence but a genuine reaction from the audience. At this point, his heavy heart finally lightened.
Finally, as the film completely ended and the lights came on, the audience rose to their feet, applauding the film in a grand tribute. Mark Belford was completely reassured.
Although the first to stand were his pre-arranged staff members, the fact that the rest of the audience followed suit was a clear indication of the film's excellence.
Mark Belford was a pragmatist. He had no qualms about orchestrating these small maneuvers. The photographers had undoubtedly captured the moment, and when this scene hit the media tomorrow, the negative press surrounding Titanic over the past year would dissipate.
From there, the film would have a much more favorable environment for promotion.
After the applause died down, the cast took the stage for a Q&A session. Mark Belford sat back down, and Tim Fogman, a vice president from the marketing department of Highgate Pictures, who was responsible for the festival, asked, "Mark, it seems like a global box office of $300 million is achievable, right?"
Spending $200 million and only expecting $300 million globally might sound underwhelming at first glance.
However, even Mark himself had thought the same before the premiere. If Titanic could gross $300 million worldwide, it would still be a loss, but at least it wouldn't be a complete disaster.
But now?
Watching Cameron and the others interact with the press on stage, Mark thought for a moment and said, "Let's wait for the survey results and tomorrow's reviews before making any conclusions, Tim. You should skip the after-party and focus on compiling the survey results. The boss is waiting for them."
Despite his cautious words, Mark quietly adjusted his initial expectation from $300 million to $400 million.
If the film could reach $400 million globally, even if it still wouldn't break even at the box office, subsequent revenue streams could cover most of the costs.
Achieving this goal wouldn't be easy.
Today was September 12, and Titanic was set to release on December 12, exactly three months away. To hit $400 million globally, aside from the positive momentum from the premiere, every step of the marketing campaign would need to be carefully planned.
Additionally, the film's runtime of over three hours remained a significant issue in Mark's eyes, as it would severely limit the number of daily screenings.
Tim Fogman nodded in agreement to Mark's request.
As Mark pondered the marketing strategy for Titanic, his mood lightened, and he began to consider other aspects. He continued to the executive beside him, "Also, you've done well with the reverse PR strategy for The Legend of 1900 and Life Is Beautiful, not pursuing any awards. The boss once told us that it's easy to pick things up but hard to put them down. Sometimes, though, you have to let go. Our maneuvering at Cannes this year was already excessive. Continuing down this path would inevitably lead to backlash, which would be detrimental not only to us but to the entire industry in the long run."
Tim Fogman smiled wryly, "I understand, but it's still a shame. Both films are so outstanding."
As they chatted, the Q&A session ended after about ten minutes. Tim Fogman, following Mark's instructions, went to oversee the survey results, while Mark headed to the after-party. He needed to personally discuss the details of tomorrow's media coverage with some key journalists and critics.
The film's premiere had far exceeded expectations, and some of the earlier arrangements needed adjustments. Initially, the goal was to ensure critics didn't tear the film apart. Now, the focus was on adding more praise.
However, they couldn't overdo it.
With three months until the official release, if they hyped it too much now, they risked exhausting the audience's anticipation. Therefore, it was better to build momentum slowly, step by step.
---
*Greenwich, North America.*
Simon received the feedback from Titanic's Venice premiere early the next morning.
Compared to the lukewarm reception at the Tokyo Film Festival in the original timeline, this time, thanks to the efforts of the Daenerys Entertainment team, the media response to the new version's premiere far exceeded expectations.
This was an excellent sign.
As for why there was such a contrast, it largely came down to the team's capabilities and marketing strategy.
Simon wasn't entirely sure about the specifics of the Tokyo premiere in the original timeline, but this time, both the media and critics invited to the premiere had been carefully selected—those with favorable ties to Daenerys Entertainment. Even if the film had been poor, with the right maneuvering, they could have softened their critiques. Since the film was excellent, it was easy to amplify the praise.
Additionally, there were the ordinary audience members invited to the premiere.
These individuals didn't have a public platform to voice their opinions, but unlike the more critical professionals who often scrutinized commercial films, it was these very people who had been the first to stand and applaud the film during the premiere.
Daenerys Entertainment valued the feedback of these potential audience members the most.
Along with the survey results from the audience, Mark Belford had drafted a marketing plan overnight and submitted it to Simon. The plan proposed treating Titanic as a full-fledged blockbuster, with a marketing budget of $50 million. With this investment, the film's global box office could potentially reach $400 million.
$150 million domestically and $250 million internationally.
This would allow the film to recoup around $160 million in global box office revenue, with the remaining $90 million likely to be covered by subsequent revenue streams, potentially even turning a small profit.
Moreover, even though over 70% of the survey respondents indicated they were "okay" with the film's three-hour runtime, Mark once again suggested cutting the film's length to under three hours.
Simon reviewed the report, approved the $50 million marketing budget, but rejected the suggestion to shorten the film.
The reason, even without relying on his memories of the original, was that Titanic's success as one of the greatest love stories of the 20th century largely stemmed from its structural completeness.
The 194-minute narrative, from the protagonists' meeting and falling in love to their tragic separation, unfolded naturally without abrupt emotional shifts. Every step felt organic, immersing the audience in the story. The historical tragedy of the Titanic's sinking added depth and升华 to the tale, ultimately contributing to the film's success.
In many ways, Titanic was similar to Gone with the Wind from half a century earlier—both were stories of ordinary people set against grand historical backdrops, becoming timeless classics.
Of course, this didn't mean that such a formula guaranteed success.
On the contrary, after Gone with the Wind, countless directors had attempted similar epic love stories, with most failing spectacularly. Examples included Australia by one Australian director and Paris, je t'aime by another.
Australian directors, in particular, seemed drawn to epics.
They either succeeded spectacularly or failed just as spectacularly.
---
*Back in Greenwich.*
Simon spent the next few days staying close to Lin Su, who had just given birth. It was also the weekend, so he handled some work from the estate.
As for the others, it was the start of the fall semester. Lin Dong and Bai Lan, who were studying in the U.S., left that morning to return to Boston. Lin Lan and her husband Qin Yusong, who had taken a week off, were preparing to leave tomorrow. Lin Xing, the youngest of the Lin siblings, was about to start his senior year and would return to China with his second sister tomorrow. Lin's mother would stay to care for her daughter until next month, when she would return to China for the baby's full-month celebration.
Simon worked in his study, with only Chen Qing coming in to discuss some domestic matters.
"If China's economic development follows your expectations, I think investing in a few highways would be a good idea. Boss, here's some data I've collected. Each project is in the range of 1 billion RMB. Securing these projects would not only be profitable but also earn us some significant goodwill."
In the study, the two were discussing the matter Chen Qing had been probing on behalf of China a few days earlier.
Simon took the documents Chen Qing handed him but set them aside without looking. "Let's pass on this one. There's no need to accommodate every request."
Chen Qing was momentarily taken aback but nodded. Still, she added, "Boss, I really think highway investments are a great opportunity."
"I know," Simon said with a smile, looking up. "That's exactly why I don't want to touch it."
Considering how lucrative China's highway system had become in the original timeline, from a purely investment perspective, it was indeed a great business opportunity. China had been actively seeking foreign investment in highway construction in recent years.
However, even without knowing the exact depths of the complexities involved, Simon was well aware that the waters were deep—very deep.
He had no desire to get involved.
After all, it was easy to inadvertently offend someone, and those who could meddle in highway projects were certainly not ordinary individuals.
As the saying goes, when you reach the scale of the Westeros system, there's no need to take unnecessary risks. Pursuing straightforward, above-board strategies is the way to go.
Seeing Simon's stance, Chen Qing didn't push further and instead shifted to other topics.
After about half an hour of discussion, Chen Qing noticed Simon was still leisurely flipping through the same thick document and curiously leaned over. "Boss, what are you reading?"
Simon showed her the cover, which bore the acronym *ITER*.
Seeing Chen Qing's puzzled expression, Simon explained, "The International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor project."
Chen Qing inhaled sharply. "Boss, are you planning to build a hydrogen bomb?"
Simon glanced at her. "Come here, let me smack you."
Chen Qing immediately stood up, walked around the desk, and jumped into Simon's lap. After playfully receiving a light smack on the rear, she looked at the document with him. "So, what is this really?"
"Simply put, it's an experimental project similar to a large particle collider, but the focus is on controlled nuclear fusion."
Chen Qing's eyes lit up as she remembered something. "Isn't FusionTimes, which Emman is overseeing, also researching controlled nuclear fusion?"
"Exactly," Simon nodded. "Actually, I looked into this project two years ago but abandoned it because we couldn't secure enough control over it."
"And now?"
"Now, the Westeros system has more political and economic leverage, and Emman has laid some groundwork. So, I'm considering restarting the project," Simon explained, then added, "In fact, the main reason is that the Westeros system now has too much cash on hand. I want to accelerate some plans, even if it means wasting some resources."
"What plans?"
Simon absentmindedly stroked Chen Qing's slender waist as he explained, "In simple terms, three goals: breaking through energy limits, breaking through life limits, and breaking through space limits."
Breaking through energy limits meant mastering controlled nuclear fusion.
The tokamak device involved in ITER wasn't the most advanced design for controlled nuclear fusion. However, unlike two years ago, for Simon now, even $10 billion was no longer a significant sum. Building this project wasn't about achieving immediate success but creating a large-scale experimental environment for nuclear fusion research, much like the Large Hadron Collider.
Breaking through life limits primarily focused on extending human lifespan.
Simon also planned to accelerate investments in this area, regardless of cost. While the pursuit of immortality was unrealistic, given that humanity's exploration of life had already reached the molecular biology level, extending human lifespan by several decades was not an unattainable goal.
Breaking through space limits naturally referred to space exploration.
Humans shouldn't be confined to a single planet.
In fact, if humanity could shed the various constraints of this world and focus entirely on technological advancement, given that humans had landed on the moon in the 1960s, by 1997—or at least by the time Simon had been reborn—controlled nuclear fusion and even reaching Mars might have already been achieved.
Unfortunately, for various reasons, after the dissolution of the Soviet Union and the arrival of what was arguably the most peaceful era in recorded human history, the world not only failed to progress but instead stagnated.
Even a few years ago, when Simon had started laying some groundwork, he hadn't been fully committed to certain endeavors.
Now, having achieved all he could in terms of personal wealth and power, and with the Westeros system having completed its accumulation phase and entering a self-sustaining cycle of growth, the surplus capital would only continue to grow—to the point of being unspendable. After careful consideration, Simon had resolved to use the Westeros system's resources to forcibly drag human technology forward.
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