Model to Holywood

"What kind of work do you do, Mr. Chen?"

"I majored in Computer Science, and I'm currently working in web development at PayPal."

At a McDonald's on Jefferson Street in the Bay Area, Luca and his group were sitting in a booth, chatting while eating.

"So, Mr. Chen is an IT expert?"

"Haha, not really!"

Chen Shijun scratched his cheek with his finger, giving a modest smile, looking a bit nervous.

Luca raised an eyebrow. After some questioning, he was pretty sure that this unassuming guy in front of him was none other than one of the co-founders of YouTube, Chen Shijun.

He was 25 years old, a regular IT technician with a modest income, who spoke slowly. Apart from the earrings he wore, there was nothing remarkable about him. No one would guess he was part of the team that made $13 billion in 20 months.

In Silicon Valley, there were lots of people like him.

"Do you build websites, Mr. Chen?"

"Yes, I've worked on many website designs."

Chen Shijun rattled off a long list of websites that Luca wasn't familiar with.

Luca nodded slightly. It was said that Chen Shijun got the idea for YouTube after being inspired by an event during the 2004 Super Bowl, but right now, it seemed he hadn't thought of it yet.

"Then you must be quite familiar with websites."

"More or less."

Chen Shijun adjusted his glasses, still unsure why the person in front of him was asking these questions. It felt like an interview, which made him a little nervous.

"Haha, Mr. Chen, please don't mind me. I'm a model, and I don't know much about internet technology. Since I've run into a professional like you, I wanted to ask a few things. Mr. Li, would you like to listen as well?"

Luca then looked at Director Li.

"Huh?"

Li An just wanted to leave, but since his son wasn't ready to go, he had no choice but to sit and chat with the younger people.

Luca smiled slightly, "Mr. Li, after you finish filming a movie, you probably have some interesting behind-the-scenes footage. But when it's released, the audience doesn't get to see it. Have you ever thought about posting it online?"

"Behind-the-scenes footage? Online?"

Li An shook his head. As a serious director, why would he care about behind-the-scenes footage?

"Yes, on a video-sharing website."

"A video-sharing site?"

Chen Shijun blinked repeatedly. There were pay-per-view video sites where you could watch documentaries, but a site specifically for sharing short videos? There wasn't one yet.

Luca spread his hands, "I'm a model, and I know a lot of supermodels. I film a lot of work videos—runway walks, practice sessions, workouts. I think these videos are interesting, not worse than some short films.

"I want to post them like a blog, so people can learn more about the modeling industry. But right now, there are only movie-specific sites. There's no platform for short video sharing. Do you have any suggestions, Mr. Chen?"

"Work videos? A video blog?"

Chen Shijun rested his head on his hand, thinking seriously. It felt like he was on the verge of something.

Li An shook his head, "Professionally made movies are put online for free and no one watches them. Why would anyone watch videos made by amateurs?"

"Of course!"

Luca smiled slightly, picked up the camera on the table, and showed a video to Li An's son.

"Mr. Li, this is the internet age. As long as you have a camera, everyone can be a director, and everyone can be an actor. Even someone as young as your son could direct."

"I can be a director?"

The kid started recording everyone with the camera.

"Yes, if there were a website for sharing videos, and you posted that video online, I bet at least a million people would watch it."

"Really?"

The kid was curious.

Li An shook his head, unwilling to believe it.

"It's true."

Luca pointed at himself, then at Li An.

"We're both famous—one a small-time actor, the other a big-time director. If a video of us eating fried chicken at McDonald's were posted online, it would stir up a lot of speculation.

"Which McDonald's are they at? Is the chicken good there? Why are these two eating together? Are they discussing a new movie? Has the lead actor been decided? Is there some hidden agenda?

The media would surely report on it, turning it into news, and more people would be drawn to watch."

"Cool!"

Suddenly, Chen Shijun clapped his hands, "The celebrity effect, plus media coverage, would definitely bring in a lot of traffic. Getting a million views would be easy. This idea is really cool!"

"Exactly."

Luca nodded slightly, "The website would get traffic, I'd gain popularity, and Mr. Li's new movie would get publicity."

"Everyone's a director—that sounds cool. But how would the website make money?"

Li Chun, Li's eldest son, asked curiously.

"Haha, Chun, once a website gains popularity, making money is the easy part. Mr. Kelly's idea is worth millions!"

Chen Shijun clapped his hands in excitement.

"Is there no such site right now?"

"No, last year Adobe Flash was just introduced as a format for playing online videos, but there's no video-sharing site like this yet. Your idea is very innovative, Mr. Kelly."

Chen Shijun praised.

"Thank you!"

Luca raised his beer and smiled.

He didn't really understand this field, nor did he think his idea was anything groundbreaking.

If video websites were such a brilliant idea, companies like Google or Yahoo would have stolen it when YouTube first appeared. They wouldn't have let it grow so big.

A good idea needs the right person and unwavering execution to succeed. The executor is crucial, and he didn't have time to manage this.

He just hoped the simple guy in front of him would be a good partner.

"Mr. Chen, would you be interested in helping me build such a website? I can invest, and I can also provide some content—I know a lot of supermodels and big-name stars."

"Britney Spears!" the kid shouted.

Luca ruffled his hair. If the video-sharing site took off, it wouldn't be impossible to get Britney to shoot a few short videos.

So, he had a big advantage in starting this kind of site.

"Mr. Kelly, why me?"

Chen Shijun was excited but also clear-headed. The idea was groundbreaking, but it wouldn't be easy to execute. There were technical challenges—network storage, bandwidth—and most importantly, funding. It would burn through cash.

And Luca had only met him once. Why entrust him with such a good idea?

"It's simple. We just happened to talk about this. You said no one's doing it, and you think my idea is cool. So why not do it?

I'm not short on money.

I'm glad you agree with my idea, so I want to invite you to join. If you're not interested, I'll find someone else to do it. What do you think, Mr. Chen?"

Luca smiled calmly. His meaning was clear: he was just asking. If you're not in, there are plenty of others. He had money, connections, and ideas. All he needed was someone to execute it.

"Mr. Kelly, I'd like to give it a try!"

After a moment of thought, Chen Shijun spoke slowly.

"Great!"

Luca smiled slightly. He kept his face calm, but inside, there was a bit of excitement.

This guy seemed ordinary, but he had succeeded. That meant there was something in him that could lead to success.

Luca was willing to work with successful people.

"Now, let's talk about the website."

By 7 p.m., they had agreed on the investment terms, and the group left McDonald's.

"Dad, it seemed like Luca came specifically to find Brother Shijun, didn't it?" Li Chun said curiously, watching Luca walk away.

"Yeah, Dad, what do you think?" the little guy chimed in.

"Hmph, what a waste of an afternoon!" Li An grumbled as he got into the car.

Before coming here, he thought Luca was trying to get a role in his movie by using this method. He had looked down on it a bit. If you want a role, fight for it fair and square—using underhanded tactics wasn't right.

He had been thinking about how to politely refuse.

But to his surprise, Luca hadn't mentioned *Brokeback Mountain* even once, which left him feeling quite awkward.

In all his years as a director, he had never felt as awkward as today. If it weren't for his sons' interest in their conversation, he would have left long ago.

"Dad, I've decided. I'm going to study computer science like Brother Shijun."

"Why? You love design, don't you?" Li An glanced at Chen Shijun, who was deep in thought.

"Isn't web design also design?"

"Fine, fine. Do what you want."

Li An shook his head. He didn't understand young people these days.

"Dad, I want to be a director!" the little one said.

"Okay, okay. If you want to be a director, Dad supports you. Later, Dad will teach you. After all, your Dad is a big-time director!"

Li An was thrilled. The Li family has a successor.

"Great! When I make my little movies, I'll post them on their website."

"…"

Li An shook his head, feeling utterly hopeless.