Returning to the production of the series, although so many events had occurred over the summer, Gilbert still devoted most of his energy to the production of EdgeRunners.
Filming had concluded, but that did not mean the entire series production was finished.
Although EdgeRunners employed many live-action filming techniques, there were still numerous visual effects shots to handle. In fact, even before filming began, a full 3D model of Night City had already been created.
Aesthetic design was a crucial point. The psychedelic cyberpunk style formed a major artistic design element of the series.
Art director Selena held multiple meetings with the visual effects team to finalize the artistic style. Afterward, digital models were gradually constructed and then integrated into production.
Gilbert had clearly stated that building a world from scratch could be complex at first, requiring significant money and effort.
But this was only temporary. For future films or series in similar genres, these digital assets would play a critical role.
Another task for the Orange Studio visual effects engineers was essentially scanning digital assets.
Night City was a fictional West Coast city, but Gilbert hoped that audiences could find traces of the real world within it.
Thus, some landmark buildings in Los Angeles were also digitized to appear in the series or future projects.
For example, the famous Hollywood sign, Griffith Observatory, the beaches of satellite city Santa Monica, and the Hollywood Walk of Fame were all scanned.
Including these familiar landmarks in the series gave viewers a sense of familiarity and suggested that the stories taking place in Night City could happen in the not-too-distant future.
Although this was a new IP, thanks to the team's years of tacit coordination and Gilbert's overall control, the project progressed smoothly.
Even though Warner Bros. had a new CEO and expressed intentions to decouple from Melon Studio, the resources allocated to Edgewalkers were not reduced.
Edgewalkers was a ten-episode limited series, confirmed to air on Warner's HBO and Disney's premium channels.
"After the first broadcast, we can also resell streaming rights and subsequent rerun rights," Gilbert told producer Charles Roven.
"And DVDs," Charles Roven added, "which is also a considerable source of revenue."
The DVD market remained strong. Before the full advent of smartphones and mobile internet, DVD sales had always been solid.
However, DVDs faced a problem: piracy.
Many people in the previous generation claimed that copyright protection abroad was strong and that there was little piracy, but only firsthand experience revealed how misleading this was.
One had to consider that legitimate products were not cheap. A merchandise item produced in China might cost only a few dollars but sell for tens of dollars, forcing many fans to save up just to afford one.
The same applied to DVDs. EdgeRunners DVDs were expected to release next fall in three editions: standard, collector's, and deluxe, each priced differently.
For example, the deluxe edition would sell for $59.9 and include posters, art books, and more. Attractive to fans, but undeniably expensive.
At this point, piracy emerged. Although the quality and workmanship were inferior to official products, the low price made them appealing.
These pirated items satisfied ordinary fans who wanted the content but couldn't afford the official editions.
Gilbert's films had always been heavily pirated. Since The Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, numerous pirated copies produced by Mexican gangs had circulated in the United States.
Mexican drug dealers suddenly realized that producing pirated copies was even more profitable than trafficking drugs. It was pure windfall profits, and many border gangs enthusiastically turned to piracy.
Just last month, the FBI in Los Angeles seized a piracy smuggling case, including various popular film merchandise, DVDs, and other goods worth over ten million dollars.
Agents even discovered several models of Transformers over five meters tall, including Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, and Megatron.
Although Hollywood companies competed fiercely among themselves, they were united in fighting piracy. Still, after so many years, results were minimal, as where there was demand, there would be a market, and people would take risks.
Moreover, producing pirated products not only offered higher profits than drug trafficking but also carried lighter legal consequences—a truly profitable venture.
Because of this, Robert Iger had previously consulted with several Hollywood giants, planning to lobby Washington to legislate severe penalties against piracy.
Pirates would face major criminal consequences, or else the crime's cost remained too low.
Other pirated goods were another matter, but DVD piracy would become increasingly difficult, as streaming would eventually replace DVDs.
However, online video also faced a new challenge: piracy websites. Many such sites already existed, and as soon as a film premiered in theaters, so-called high-definition versions appeared online.
Theatrical companies were currently cracking down on illegal recording, but the results were minimal.
Fortunately, these so-called high-definition resources are often quite blurry and far inferior to the cinematic experience.
Thus, few people search online to watch them, unless, like Transformers, high-definition resources are deliberately released—but that is actually for promotional purposes.
Another type of pirated video comes from stealing content from legitimate streaming sites and uploading it online.
Currently, legitimate internet streaming platforms are flourishing. There are more than a dozen large and small websites, with many having received venture capital investment.
But the largest player in the industry remains undoubtedly Watermelon Video, under the control of the Fruit Group. The new Chief Content Officer of Watermelon Video, Mark, announced plans to produce original content for the platform in the future.
"We believe that the development of streaming platforms in the future will surpass expectations. Watermelon Video will focus on the future and launch our original content production."
"Is there a rough plan? For example, what will the first project be?"
"In fact, we have already acquired the rights to many well-known IPs, all part of the plan. Currently, our internal priority is Michael Dobbs' novel House of Cards.
Actually, the entire plan originates from director Gilbert. He is a fan of the original book and the UK version of House of Cards. We will move the story from the UK to the US, which we believe will give the audience a unique experience."
Upon hearing that the plan came from Gilbert, audiences felt more at ease, for some reason.
After all, Gilbert had already become a golden brand; no matter what type of project he undertook, people believed he would succeed.
However, reporters were more concerned with other questions: "Will director Gilbert personally direct it?"
After all, Gilbert had personally directed EdgeRunners, so directing House of Cards would not be a problem.
Mark replied: "Director Gilbert will serve as Executive Producer, overseeing the entire content production."