Santa Monica.
In a five-storey office building on 2nd Street, not far from the Daenerys Pictures headquarters, the former headquarters of a real-estate company.
The stock-market crash last year had collapsed the North American property market; the struggling firm moved south to the Ocean Park area to save money, and Simon leased the entire five-storey block to house Daenerys Effects.
Although the building lacked the footprint of Daenerys Pictures' two-storey headquarters and had no private car park, its total floor space was far larger, perfect for Daenerys Effects.
After months of restructuring, Simon merged the acquired Alias Research and Wavefront Technologies, appointing Wavefront's founder Mark Sylvester president of the new company.
During this spell Daenerys Effects had been hiring aggressively; in barely three months the payroll had topped 110 employees, already double that of Daenerys Pictures.
Yet compared with the steady, large profits Daenerys Pictures reaped from 'When Harry Met Sally' and 'Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?', the effects house was still pure money burner; Simon planned to fold it into the reorganised Daenerys Entertainment as he digested New World Entertainment.
It was now 26 July, mid-afternoon.
Inside a small conference Room at Daenerys Effects, Simon, Terry Semel and several top executives including Mark Sylvester sat round a table watching footage on a projector.
In only three months the acquisitions, hires and pricey graphics workstations had cost Simon more than ten million dollars; he could hardly let a hundred-plus people sit idle.
Cinematic effects evolve only through projects, so Simon had been feeding the company ideas for 'Batman' and the planned 'Ghost', tasking the team to research solutions and, as practice, produce CG shots the way one would make 3-D animated shorts.
On the screen a swarm of bats swept through city streets like a terrifying black cloud. Even silent, the scene still made one's scalp tingle. Mark Sylvester ran the ten-second clip several times, then a staffer raised the blinds.
Simon twirled a pencil. Once the Room brightened he said, "The comp is solid, but the bats need more realism, let's refine them".
"That's a render issue", Sylvester replied. "Simon, if possible we'd like to write a new renderer from scratch. Give us the money and people and we can finish in about a year".
CG effects work basically means modelling, rendering and compositing.
Alias had developed 3-D modelling software, basically the ancestor of Maya, while Wavefront's strength lay in post-compositing. Between them sat the rendering gap.
Rendering is the process of computing lighting, shadows and textures to make raw digital models look like real objects.
Pixar's just-finished RenderMan was already famous, usable for both 3-D animation and live-action CG. But Jobs still wouldn't license it, and Simon no longer wanted to rely on Pixar.
"You can do it", Simon nodded, "but 'Batman' won't wait a year. From today you've got eight months, then the film goes into post".
Sylvester thought for a moment. "Eight months is fine; we'll perfect the tech 'Batman' needs first".
They talked a little more before Sylvester and the other executives left.
Once the door closed, Warner Bros. Pictures CEO Terry Semel, silent until now, said, "Apart from the fact we're releasing in the late '89 slot, I'm feeling better and better about 'Batman'".
Simon knew Semel had asked to see the film's prep progress for reasons beyond 'Batman', but played along. "Good films take time".
Semel cut to the chase. "Simon, I hear Pascal's looking for a new project".
"She is" Simon admitted. "Our company's small; when everyone finishes their current job we'll have nothing for next year's prime slots".
Semel was blunt. "So let's partner".
"Hmm?"
"You were interested in Warner's rights to the 'Bourne Identity' earlier this year. We're ready to move on it, Warner and Daenerys Pictures together".
Simon smiled without exposing the subtext.
Had he not shown interest, Warner would probably have turned the 'Bourne Identity' into a miniseries for the networks this fall, the current standard tactic caused by the ongoing writers' strike.
Paramount's long-gestating 'Mission: Impossible' feature had also collapsed because of the strike, but Paramount had already released 'Crocodile Dundee II' and 'Coming to America' this summer, both likely $100-million hits, so they were in no need of partners.
Word was Paramount would revive the TV version of 'Mission: Impossible' this autumn.
Semel caught Simon's smile and felt the sting.
While Paramount, Fox, Daenerys and Orion had enjoyed one hit after another this summer, Warner Bros. Pictures' box-office record had been thoroughly mediocre.
Chevy Chase's June release 'Funny Farm' ended up grossing less than $25 million.
This month, Clint Eastwood's new thriller 'The Dead Pool' opened opposite 'Basic Instinct'; over the past weekend it dropped 33 percent from its first week, a fall that makes a long run unlikely, and its projected North American total may finish at barely $30 million.
By contrast, 'Basic Instinct', despite all the controversy, slipped only 17 percent in its second weekend, adding another $13.91 million dollars.
With $23.92 million from opening week, the film's North American haul reached $37.83 million after just eleven days, a figure 'The Dead Pool' probably won't match before it leaves theatres.
And over the same weekend, Warner Bros.' family comedy Caddyshack II bowed in 1,556 theatres with only $3.96 million for the three-day frame, another failure.
Of Warner's planned twenty-four releases this year, more than half have now opened, and the top performer is the once-unpromising 'Beetlejuice', which has so far taken $71.63 million domestically and should finish around $73 million.
Even worse, the studio's second-best earner of the first half is Chevy Chase's 'Funny Farm', currently at $23.51 million.
A slate this weak can only be called dismal.
Terry Semel is a protégé of Warner chairman Steve Ross, so he isn't worried about his own job, Ross is famously protective, but as head of a public company's film division he still has to answer for the numbers; even Ross has lately urged him to turn Warner Bros. Pictures around.
No one can guarantee perpetual hits in such a risky business.
Even Steven Spielberg, riding high a few days ago, saw last year's Warner title 'Empire Of The Sun' return only tepid grosses relative to its cost.
Then Daenerys Pictures appeared and shattered every assumption.
Since 'Run Lola Run' exploded, every Westeros-linked release—'Run Lola Run', 'The Butterfly Effect', 'Final Destination', 'When Harry Met Sally', 'Pulp Fiction' and now 'Basic Instinct', has joined the hundred-million club in North America; five of six is not luck, it's providence.
If Simon Westeros weren't barely twenty, Hollywood would already call him God; when 'E.T. The Extra-terrestrial' soared they pointed at Spielberg and said 'Look, there's God,' yet he could not keep the miracle alive.
Simon knows the glare has become blinding and has thought about making a few merely average films so Daenerys would look less dazzling, but, like stepping into an obvious pothole, the idea of deliberately failing repels him.
Feeling Terry Semel's eager gaze, Simon spread his hands. "Terry, you can see I'm swamped; I can't juggle much more".
"You don't have to", Semel replied. "Say yes and Warner will hire whoever you want, let you run it your way".
Simon considered. "All right, what's the deal?"
Sensing traction, Semel said, "Same split as 'Basic Instinct': Warner and Daenerys each own fifty percent, you produce, we distribute".
'The Bourne Identity's success rests on its lean, bruising style and vérité approach; shooting it a decade early is possible, yet without Simon watching every step no director here could nail it, it would likely turn into a costly muddle.
In fact, he is already dealing with a similar problem on 'Rain Man'.
After a moment he shook his head. "Terry, I've got too many ideas for Bourne and no time to guard them".
Semel, ever flexible, said, "Something else, then".
Simon smiled slightly. "For another project I don't need Warner".
Semel smiled back. "What do you want?"
"Daenerys will partner on one film, 'Basic Instinct' terms, in exchange for two properties: 'Bourne' and 'Wonder Woman'".
"Done", Semel answered, "but Warner keeps investment and distribution rights".
"Not a chance," Simon said. "I can't tie every slate to one studio. On a hundred-million North American hit, foreign equals domestic; add downstream and a partner can earn a hundred million on half the pie. 'Bourne' and 'Wonder Woman' are my chips".
They bargained; Semel finally refused.
Simon isn't worried, everyone knows the same project in different hands yields two different movies.
After parting with Semel and finishing the afternoon's work, Simon left the office around six, skipped Malibu and headed for Beverly Hills.
Today is Sandra's birthday; he'd accepted her party invitation last week. Janette knows but isn't coming, warning him with a fierce little glare to be home by midnight.