Chapter 74: Tourist Town Plan

Ronald, the director of the San Pedro Tourism Bureau, quickly received a message from his subordinate.

A woman claiming to be the assistant of Steve Kevin, a hotshot Hollywood director, informed him that she and Steve Kevin would be visiting San Pedro City the next day to discuss the shooting of his new movie.

In his office, Ronald muttered to himself, "Why would they come to me for a movie? Our tourism bureau doesn't handle road closures. Could it be...?"

Ronald looked up and instructed one of his staff members, "Find me all the information you can about Steve Kevin's upcoming movie."

Ronald already had some speculation about Kevin's purpose, and now he sought to find information to support his thoughts.

Soon, the staff member handed over some newspapers with information about Steve Kevin's recent activities.

Ronald carefully went through them one by one.

After a moment, he nodded in confirmation.

A fantasy pirate film, with an investment of over 100 million dollars, undoubtedly, what Steve Kevin needed were coastal scenes. In this regard, the San Pedro Port near their city of San Pedro was a great location.

The purpose of contacting their tourism bureau was most likely to get financial assistance in constructing some of the movie sets.

Similar cases had happened in Hollywood before. A successful movie that attracted a large audience could bring a huge influx of tourists to their city of San Pedro.

Of course, if the movie failed, the funds invested would go down the drain.

However, given Steve Kevin's current reputation, there wouldn't be many coastal cities willing to gamble. A successful director who had three consecutive box office hits—unless someone had lost their mind—nobody would refuse his proposal.

After all, the success rate of the fourth movie would also be very high.

With this understanding, Ronald's thoughts naturally turned to negotiating with Kevin, discussing the specific investment amount, and Kevin's specific requirements.

...

The next day, after receiving a response from the San Pedro Tourism Bureau, Kevin brought his secretary, Ellie, and arrived at the bureau's office in San Pedro City.

The bureau's staff, upon hearing their purpose, politely guided them to the meeting room.

Kevin sat on the sofa, calmly waiting for the person in charge to arrive.

Ellie sat next to him, her demeanor dignified. She wore a black women's suit on the upper half of her body and a black skirt on the lower half, paired with black stockings. She placed her long legs in front of Kevin, exuding an extra bit of allure.

For a moment, Kevin's mind started to wander.

Naturally, Ellie noticed her boss's gaze, but instead of getting angry, she felt somewhat proud. She slightly spread her legs, enticing Kevin's gaze to look inward...

Damn it, safety shorts!

Kevin cursed inwardly. Can't people just get along?

Disappointed, he averted his gaze and looked straight ahead.

Ellie secretly smiled. She wouldn't let Kevin take advantage of her so easily. Things that come too easily aren't cherished.

...

"Creak!"

The sound of the door being pushed open could be heard as a middle-aged man, dressed in a standard white jumpsuit and weighing over 200 pounds, walked in.

He had a seemingly sincere smile on his face as he greeted, "Would you like something to drink, coffee or milk?"

"No, thank you," Kevin replied with a serious expression. "I'm here for business, not for coffee."

"You must be the person in charge here," Kevin asked without beating around the bush. This was a mutually beneficial matter, so there was nothing to hide.

"Yes, I am Ronald, the head of the Tourism Bureau. Hello, Director Kevin."

"Hello, Director Ronald."

After a brief introduction, Ronald sat across from Kevin and got straight to the point, saying, "I understand the purpose of your visit, but I'm not sure what kind of budget you are seeking or what kind of filming scenes you want to construct."

"I can only seek approval and determine whether to sponsor your production once your plans are finalized."

Ronald calmly stated.

Kevin signaled for Ellie to take out the proposal they had worked on overnight and handed it to Ronald. It included the scope of the Caribbean Pirate Town, the number of buildings, and various architectural details. It also outlined how they planned to film and present the town to the audience, making it clear that this was not an insignificant scene.

Ronald carefully examined the document handed to him. Within Kevin's proposal, the size and scope of the Caribbean Pirate Town were outlined, including the number of buildings and specific architectural details. Additionally, the document explained how the town would be filmed and presented to the audience, leaving no detail unmentioned.

Furthermore, the proposal estimated the cost to be between five to fifteen million dollars.

Raising his head, Ronald looked at Kevin with a hint of doubt and asked, "Five to fifteen million dollars?"

At the end of the discussion, a rough cost estimate was made, ranging from five million to fifteen million US dollars.

Ronald raised his head, puzzled, and asked, "Five million to fifteen million dollars? How can there be such a huge price difference?"

Kevin explained, "The five million refers to building a model-like Caribbean Pirate Town where visitors can only observe the exterior. Most of the buildings won't have practical functionalities."

"On the other hand, with fifteen million dollars, we can create an authentic town that replicates the architecture of the pirate era while also providing modern functionalities."

"The residents within this area can choose to dress up as characters from the Caribbean pirates and serve the visitors."

"This will be the only authentic historical town in the United States, full of unique features that will undoubtedly attract countless tourists..."

Ronald's eyes sparkled with excitement. Investing fifteen million dollars to create a tourist destination was a fantastic opportunity.

Seeing Ronald taking the bait, Kevin continued, "Of course, as a licensing fee, Sunrise Films will receive 15% of the annual profits once the town is officially operational."

15% of the profits was not a small amount. After deducting operational costs, a tourist town typically had a net income ranging from 40% to 60%, and after paying taxes, the final amount received was less than 30%.

However, Kevin was demanding 15% of that 40% to 60% profit right from the start. It was definitely a significant portion.

If Kevin didn't have such a prestigious reputation and had never incurred losses before, he would have been kicked out for daring to propose such a condition.