Hollywood Rulebook

Table of Contents

Game Pieces
Before You Start Playing
Card Layout
The Basics of Movie Production
Production Year
End of the Game
Useful Tips
Film Crew
Quick Tally-Up
- Example
Developers

Game Pieces

126 basic cards
36 star cards
16 worthless script cards
30 bidding cards (5 cards x 6 colors)
42 auction tokens (7 tokens x 6 colors)
6 100-million tokens
6 chips for tallying up
3 Hollywood Award figurines
Field for tallying up (composed of two parts)
Rules

Before You Start Playing

Each player chooses one of the 6 film studios and then receives a chip for tallying up and 5 bidding cards of their film studio's colors. Players also take auction tokens of their color. A two-player game will require tokens numbered 1 through 3, a three-player game will use tokens 1 to 4 etc. In other words each player takes a number of tokens exceeding the number of players by one. Auction tokens and bidding cards are placed in front of the player face down.

Place the field in the middle of the table. Players set their tallying up chips to 12 million. This amount represents each player's start up fund. Place the 100-million tokens next to the field — you will need them if the tallying up chip goes beyond the 100-million mark.

Stack the basic cards into a deck and shuffle it. Deal each player 7 basic cards face-down. Players can see their own cards, but they should not show them to other players.

Stack the star cards into a deck and shuffle it. Take a number of cards equal to the number of players off the top of the deck and put them on the table face up. Place the cards onto the fields marked for star cards numbered 1-7 (if less than 6 players take part in the game, some of the slots will stay idle). The first card is placed in Slot 1, the next one goes in Slot 2 etc. The star deck is placed in the slot that follows the last face-up card (for example, in a four-player game the star deck will be placed in Slot 5).

The worthless script deck is to be placed on the table face up so that it would be convenient for the players to take cards from it.

Place the golden Hollywood Award figurines next to the field used to tally-up the earnings. They will find their owners over the course of the game.

Leave a place for discarded cards on the table where players will put cards that are no longer playable.

You are now ready to produce movies!

Card Layout

Golden Hollywood Award figurines
A coin that represents 2 million
The color of a card defines its type: Script, Director, Actor, Actress or Film Crew.
Card Title
Game information on the card
Genre icons

The Basics of Movie Production

The Ingredients of a Blockbuster

A movie in Hollywood must include cards from both the basic and the star deck. Card types are the same in both decks, but star deck cards are more valuable than basic deck cards and will bring the filmmaker more income.

There are five types of cards in the game, which come in five colors for ease of distinction:

Scripts (yellow)
Directors (black)
Actors (blue)
Actresses (red)
Film Crew (green)

Some cards are mandatory — no film can be produced without them. They include:

a Script
a Director
an Actor or an Actress

Thus, the minimum number of cards for a movie is three.

A movie can only use one Script and one Director. The cast of the film is limited to two cards — Actor and Actress, two Actors or two Actresses.

A movie can feature any number of green Film Crew cards, even identical ones.

The player will have 9 cards at their disposal at the end of each production year. Thus:

a movie can include a full set of 9 cards as seen in the above example;
one can make one to three movies per year; if three movies are made, each will consist of three cards.

If a player made a really poor choice of cards, they might find themselves in a situation where they have 9 cards and cannot make a single movie. This could happen if there are no Director cards among the nine, for example.

An Impossible Movie

You cannot assemble a movie this way: two Scripts, one Director, one Actor, and two Actresses.

It has an extra script, and its cast exceeds the allowed maximum by one.

Worthless Scripts

If a player has a shortage of Scripts among their nine cards, that is easy enough to remedy. You can always use an old script that has been gathering dust on the studio's shelves for years. A player can discard as many cards as needed from their hand and take as many Worthless Scripts from the special deck.

A Worthless Script has no genre. Anyone who makes a movie using a Worthless Script can define the genre of the movie as they see fit.

Genres

Hollywood makes blockbusters that fall into one of the following four genre categories: Romance (heart), Comedy (mask), Action (starburst), Thriller (gun).

Genre icons can be found on the Script, Director, Actor and Actress cards, as well as on the four Film Crew cards from the star deck.

If a Script is not worthless, it always belongs to a single genre. The genre of the Script defines the genre of the entire movie: thus, if a player uses a comedy script, they will end up making a comedy.

A genre icon on a card means that a given person specializes in a given genre (for example, a Director who makes great thrillers or an Actress who stars in romance movies).

If a card has two genre icons, the corresponding character is a pro in both genres. There are also Versatile Actor cards in the star deck: those people are equally good in all four genres.

If you bring several professionals with a similar genre specialization together, you are bound to make a popular movie that will perform well at the box office.

Genre Crew

A film will gross substantially more if the crew specializes in a single genre and if a suitable Script is available.

The genre of a film is defined by its Script. If a Worthless Script is used, the player can choose any genre for the movie. Each card that bears the icon of the movie genre adds a number of millions to the box office performance corresponding to the number of cards present in the film.

Example: the movie is an Action film and contains three cards with Action icons. Each of the cards with an Action icon adds 3 million to the box office tally. The Score Writer card has no genre, but if it were replaced by an Actress with an Action icon, each card would gross an extra 4 million.

If a movie features both an Actor and an Actress (Lead Duo), each of these cards grosses an extra 2 million. If two Actors or Actresses are featured, no Lead Duo is formed, so no extra bonuses are awarded.

Marks on Cards

Apart from genre icons, some of the cards can have additional markings on them.

Coins represent extra money earned by the movie at the box office. The number on the coins varies from 1 to 4 and stands for bonus millions.
Figurines represent professional awards issued by the Hollywood movie industry. There may be 1 to 3 of them on a card. The number of figurines present in a film defines which movie receives the Film of the Year award.
Some Film Crew cards contain extra information, with a description of the card's extra abilities. You can find a detailed explanation of how to use these cards at the end of the Manual.

Box Office Performance

Every card added to a movie means extra money at the box office. One card adds one million to the total box office performance.

If we see a coin icon on a card, it adds a corresponding number of millions to the box office tally.

For example, a Stunt Performer card adds 5 million to the total box office performance: one million for participating, and four for the coin icon on the card.

Some cards earn you extra money according to special rules described on the card. For example, a Set Designer improves box office performance as follows: the number of figurines on the card translates into extra millions received at the box office (3 million extra at the very least: one for participation and two for the figurines on the card).

Production Year

Each Hollywood game is played for the duration of 3 production years. During one production year the players choose available cards using Drafting and Auctioning. By the end of the production year, each player uses their cards to create a film and tallies up their box office performance.

Then the Film of the Year award is given to the movie that features the most golden figurines. After that all the players drop their cards into their personal discarded cards pile, and a new production year begins.

By the end of the third production year, extra income from golden figurines is received. All of the proceeds are then tallied up, and the richest player is declared the winner.

Production Year Stages

Secret Star Card Distribution
Drafting
Auction
Crew Activities
Movie Production
Box Office Tally
Film of the Year Awards Ceremony
Dealing and Discarding Cards

You will find every stage of the game described in detail below.

1. Secret Star Card Distribution

One of the players is given the right to take the top cards from the star deck and distributes them between the players at his or her discretion, making sure that the cards remain secret. During the first production year, bids for the right to distribute cards are made at the auction (see more about it below). During the second and third production years, this right is transferred to the player whose film became Film of the Year during the previous production year. If nobody receives the Film of the Year award, bids for the right to distribute the cards are made at the auction yet again.

The chosen player carries out the following set of actions:

takes from the star deck a number of cards equal to that of the players participating in the game
examines the cards without showing them to the other players
chooses one of the cards and places it in front of him or herself face down
distributes the remaining cards between the other players any way he or she wants. Players examine the cards they receive and place them in front of themselves face down.

Bear in mind that star cards are kept separate from the basic cards that the players have in their hands. Players can look at their own cards, laying face down on the table, at any point in the game.

Bidding for the Right to Distribute Star Deck Cards at the Beginning of the First Year

If this is your first game of Hollywood and if you would like to make the game progress faster, it is recommended to skip the first year's auction. In this case, each player takes the top card from the star deck, examines it and places it on the table face down. The players then proceed to the second stage: Drafting.

Each player begins the first year with 12 million. This money can be spent to bid on the auction for the right to distribute star cards. The auction takes place only once per game at the beginning of the first year.

All players must participate in the auction whether they want to or not, and they are obligated to make a bid. Players can not bid more money than they have at the moment. A player can only skip the auction if he or she is completely broke.

Bidding cards are used to bid at the auction. Each player has a set of five cards for bidding 1, 3, 6, 9 or 12 million. Each player secretly chooses one (and only one) of their five bidding cards and places it in the center of the table face down. Thus, a player can only make one of five possible bids: 1, 3, 6, 9 or 12 million. One cannot make a zero bid, bid an intermediate amount (7 million, for example) or make bids over 12 million.

Once all the players have had a chance to make their bids, all the bidding cards are turned face up at once. Each of the players loses the amount they bid, which is recorded on the tallying up field. Then all the players take their bidding cards back. The highest bidder wins the auction.

If there are several bidders who made the same highest bid, the auction continues. These players (and nobody else) must participate in the next round. Each of the players who make it into the next round makes a bid using one of their five cards once again. The players once again lose the amount of money they have bid and take back their bidding cards. If a highest bidder is not established once again, the highest bidders of this round have to take part in yet another round of the auction. The procedure repeats until a winner emerges or until the participants lose all of their money.

The winner of the auction receives the right to distribute star cards during the first production year.

If nobody wins the auction, each player takes the top card from the star deck, examines it and places it on the table face down.

2. Drafting

Drafting is a special method of dealing cards used in board games. Hollywood follows the same model as many other games, which can be described as follows.

At the beginning of the Drafting stage each player has 7 basic cards in his or her hand and one star card face down on the table. Only the basic cards held by the players are used in Drafting. Players do not show their hands to each other, ever.

Each player chooses one of the cards from their hand and places it in front of them face down (next to the star card). The remaining cards from the player's hand are given to the neighbor on the left, and a set of cards is then received from the neighbor on the right. This card set exchange takes place simultaneously, once all players have chosen a single card from their hand and put it in front of them face down. The process is repeated until all the cards are taken. Each player will end up with 7 basic cards of their choice and one card from the star deck.

First year and third year: drafting passes clockwise (cards given to the left-hand neighbor).

The direction of Drafting reverses the next production year, and each player gives the cards to their neighbor on the right instead. When the third year comes, the direction of Drafting is the same as the first year (the cards are given to the left-hand neighbor).

3. Auction

Before the auction begins, each player will have 8 cards, which they will be able to use for movie production: 7 basic deck cards received during Drafting and one star deck card received at the beginning of the production year. The player will need to purchase one of the offered star deck cards at the auction. This is will be the ninth and final card of their collection. These nine cards will be used for making films during the current production year.

Players must participate in the auction whether they want to or not, and are obliged to make a bid. Players can not bid more money than they have at the moment. A player can only skip the auction if they are completely broke.

Star cards available at the auction are placed next to the tallying field. Each star card is given a number that is placed on the field right next to its card. The star deck corresponds to the place with the highest number.

Each player chooses one of the available star cards and decides how much they want to bid for it. If the player is not interested in any of the available cards, they may opt for a random top card from the star deck (however, a bid must still be made).

The player takes the token corresponding to the number of the chosen card (or the star deck if they're after a random card) from their set. The token is then placed at the center of the table face down.

The player proceeds to choose a corresponding bidding card from their 5-card set. Cards represent bids of 1, 3, 6, 9 or 12 million. Each player secretly chooses one (and only one) card from their 5 bidding cards and places it next to their auction token face down. Thus, a player can only make one of five possible bids: 1, 3, 6, 9 or 12 million. One cannot make a zero bid, place a bid of an intermediate amount (7 million, for example) or make bids exceeding 12 million.

Once all the players have placed an auction token and a bidding card at the center of the field, all the tokens and bids are turned face up.

Each of the players loses the amount they bid on the tallying up field.

Now is the time to decide which player will get which star card. If a given player was the only one to place a bid for a card, they receive the card they have bid on. If several players bid for the same card, the highest bidder gets it.

As soon as a player receives a star card at the auction, he or she is done and does not need to bid further. No additional star cards may be purchased at the auction. The players take their tokens and bidding cards back.

Players whose bids were not high enough to secure a card participate in the next round of the auction. Players reclaim their tokens and bidding cards at the end of each round of bidding and use them again in the next round.

Players can choose one of any of the remaining cards and bid on it (if they have enough funds). Any number of subsequent rounds of auctioning may be held.

Random cards from the top of the star deck are considered similar to all the others: only the highest bidder will get a random card. If somebody received a random card in the previous round of bidding, the remaining players can no longer place bids on the star deck.

The auction closes when every player either gets a star card or runs out of money.

Example of an Auction

4 players are playing the game: Red, Blue, Yellow and Green. 4 star cards are available at the auction, as well as a random card from the top of the deck. Players turn their tokens and bidding cards face up simultaneously.

Red and Blue players have both placed their bids on Card 1 (Stage Manager). The Red player is the highest bidder with the 9 million bid. The player collects the Stage Manager card and leaves the auction. The Blue player who spent just 1 million on the Stage Manager card moves on to the second round of the auction without receiving a card. The Green and Yellow players have bid 6 million each on Card 3, the Actress. The card remains on the table, both players lose money and proceed to the second round.

In the second round the remaining players can choose from 3 known cards and 1 random card. The Yellow player places a 6-million bid on the Actress again and gets the card this time, leaving the auction. The Green and the Blue players apparently decided to play it safe, so both placed a 1-million bid on a random star deck card. The problem is that they both made the same bid, and so they proceed to the next round without getting any cards.

Players' choice in the third round has been narrowed down to 2 known cards and 1 random card. The Blue player decides to place a 3-million bid on the Director and gets the card. The Green player finally gets a random card for 1 million. The auction is over.

In the first round of the auction, the Red player paid 9 million, the Blue player paid 1 million, and the Yellow and the Green players paid 6 million each. In the second round, the Yellow player spent 6 million, while the Blue and the Green players lost 1 million each. In the third round, the Blue player paid 3 million, and the Green player paid 1 million. Thus, the total amount of money spent at the auction is as follows: 12 million for the Yellow player, 9 for the Red, 9 for the Green and 5 for the Blue.

4. Crew Activities

Each player has 9 cards at the beginning of this stage: 7 cards from the basic deck and 2 from the star deck.

Some of the cards must be played at this point. Players take turns playing their cards, starting with the poorest player and proceeding clockwise.

There are four identical Agent cards in this box, which must be played during the Crew Activities stage (see page 20). Additional cards playable during this stage may also be released in the future.

5. Movie Production

Players turn their cards face up. Each player has 9 cards at the beginning of this stage (or less if the Agent card has been used on the player). Now each player will try to use their cards to compile movies in the most profitable way in accordance with the rules listed in the Basics of Movie Production section.

Players can discard any number of cards into the common discard pile and take an equal number of Worthless Scripts from the pile. This makes sense when a player doesn't have enough Scripts or when the Scripts they have are in the wrong genre. Players can also see the films that the other players are working on and check out the number of golden figurines included in the movies. Players can rearrange their movies once they have better information.

The stage is over when all the players say that they are done assembling their movies.

6. Box Office Performance

Each player receives the money that their movies have earned over the course of this production year. The results are recorded in the tallying up field.

The tallying up field is marked up to the 100 million mark. If you have accumulated more money than that, take a 100 million token from the reserve and move your chip back down to start another loop. Once you have less than 100 million again, put the 100 million token back into the reserve.

7. Film of the Year Awards Ceremony

All players count up the number of figurines in each of the films they have made during the current production year. In other words, a player needs to tally up all the figurine icons on all the cards included in a given movie.

The movie with the most figurines receives the Film of the Year Award, and the player that made it receives a golden figurine piece that they put on the table in front of them.

If two or more players have the same maximum number of figurines in their movies, the remaining players that are not part of the running for the title vote to decide which one of the movies deserves the title of Film of the Year. Players have the right to consult with each other before voting. If no winner emerges after voting, the figurine goes to the nominee that does not yet have one. If this still does not help reaching a decision, the golden figurine goes to the poorest contestant. If there is absolute equality even on this level, no one gets the figurine that year.

8. Dealing and Discarding Cards

Each player places all their basic and star cards in their personal discard pile, regardless of whether or not they were used in a movie. Players are free to examine their personal discard piles at any moment during the game.

The player who has received a golden figurine this year places all of the star cards remaining from the previous year's auction (if any) in the common discard pile and places new cards from the star deck on the table according to the same principle as described in the Before You Start Playing section. If six players are playing the game, cards in the star deck will run out by the end of the third production year. In this case, shuffle the star cards from the common discard pile and use them as a new deck (in this case, the cards will be dealt and placed face up, and it will be impossible to place a bid on the deck in slot 7).

After that, the player with the golden figurine deals each player 7 cards from the main deck. If six players are playing the game, cards in the basic deck will run out by the end of the third production year.

The next production year begins. If the third production year has ended, the game ends here.

End of the Game

A game of Hollywood ends at the end of the third production year.

Extra Box Office Proceedings for Golden Figurines

Each player who has received at least one golden figurine for winning the Film of the Year award receives extra income from the cards with golden figurine icons. This feature of the game reflects the fact that movies favored by critics and the audience alike keep making money for their creators years after their release.

Each year players who have at least one Film of the Year figurine count all golden figurine icons on the cards from their personal discard pile. The number of these icons is multiplied by the number of Film of the Year awards in the player's possession. The resulting number is the extra income in millions, which is added on in the tallying up field.

An Example of How to Calculate Extra Income Based on the Number of Figurines

Let's say a player received two Film of the Year figurines over the course of the game. The player's personal discard pile contains 27 cards, 10 of which have figurine icons. The player counts the total number of figurines on these cards: there are 17 of them altogether.

Here is the calculation for the total amount of extra income received by this player:

17 x 2 = 34 million

total number of figurine icons x number of Film of the Year awards

Figuring Out Who Won the Game

The wealthiest player wins. Their chip on the tally up field has to be in front of all the other chips. In case of identical box office performance, the player who has the highest number of golden Film of the Year figurines wins. If it's a case of parity with figurines as well, the game has several winners.

Useful Tips

At the beginning of the Draft you have one star deck card on hand and need to choose one of the 7 basic deck cards to keep. When you are choosing what card from those 7 to keep, think about which one of them will complement your star card the best.
There is a good reason why the star cards for the auction have been lying face up since the very beginning of the production year. You can start planning which card you intend to bid on at the auction.
Every card available at the auction has a reasonable cost limit. Calculate how much revenue this particular card could bring you if you were to include it in your film. There is no point to pay that much money if you intend to get any profit from the card.
If you have been lucky enough to distribute the star cards during the first stage of the year, do not forget that you can also take a look at your 7 basic deck cards. The star card you choose must work well together with one of those 7 cards.
When you hand your set over to your neighbor during drafting, remember that the set will come back to you again and that you will be able to take at least one more card from it (will depend on the number of players).
Do not go chasing after scripts if you do not have any. You can always discard a card and pick up a Worthless Script. A shortage of directors may be a much more serious problem.
Always check whether there are Agent cards in sets during Drafting. Do not get lured by the dreams of a perfect 9-card film. An Agent card in the hands of another player could easily mess everything up.
Golden figurines can help you win the game even if you are behind the other players on box office performance by the end of the third year. Do not underestimate the figurines.
Hollywood is a fun game, so jokes and funny comments are an integral part of the gaming process. Find a title for your thriller. Criticize the talent of a star actress. Try to guess which famous director the artist was paying homage to on the card. Launch an aggressive ad campaign for your new blockbuster. Basically, all you have to do is enjoy the time spent with your friends to the max!

Film Crew

Agent

Play the card during "Stage 4: Crew Activities" (you must play this card if you have it). Drop the Agent card into the discarded card pile. Choose a player. This player will have to give you a director, actor or actress of their own choice. In this case, once "Stage 5: Movie Production" begins, the chosen player will have one card less than nine.

Stage Manager

The star deck has four Stage Manager cards, each with an icon of one of the four movie genres. The only way to end up maximum with a number of cards of a single genre is to have a Stage Manager card: 5 cards (Script, Director, Actor/Actress, Actor/Actress, and Stage Manager).

Makeup Artist

When you add a Makeup Artist to the movie, you may use one of the Actor cards in lieu of an Actress card or vice versa (you are, however, under no obligation to do so). The Makeup Artist can be very helpful in assembling a Lead Duo. The Makeup Artist does not affect the genre icon or any other information on the card of a given Actor or Actress.

Double

Doubles the income from a single card in a movie. For example, if a movie contains five cards of a single genre, an Actress can gross 7 million paired with an Actor (5 million for herself and the genre and another 2 for being a part of a Lead Duo). If we add a Double and link the Double's ability to the Actress, the Actress alone will gross 14 million. Another example: if a film contains 9 cards, one of which is a Producer, and another, a Double whose ability is linked to the Producer, the Producer will gross 20 million instead of 10. In either case, the Double alone will only gross 1 million.

Sound Engineer

Grosses an extra million for each genre icon present on the film cards. If a single card has several genre icons, each of them can be counted. Since there are four different genres in this game, the Sound Engineer may gross up to 5 million: 1 million for the Sound Engineer card and 4 for different genres.

Extras

Grosses an extra million for each green Film Crew card including itself. If a film has two Extras cards, each green Film Crew card will gross 2 million, including both Extras cards.

Editor

When you add an Editor to the film, you define the part for them — an Editor can replace a Director, Actor or Actress (or simply remain an Editor — a green Film Crew card with no special properties). Editors have no genre. An Editor acts as a full replacement of another card. By turning into an Actor or an Actress, the Editor can form Lead Duos with Actors and Actresses alike. When calculating the effects of other cards (such as Extras and Casting Specialist, for example), the Editor is counted as both a green Film Crew card and the kind of card it replaces.

Producer

Brings an extra 1 million for each card in the movie including itself. Since a film cannot contain more than 9 cards, a Producer can gross a maximum of 10 million: 2 for itself (1 of those for the card's ability) and 8 for other cards.

Script Rewriter

When you add a Script Rewriter to a film, you gain the ability to define the genre of the script and the film. The Script is thus presumed to bear the icon of the genre of your choice, even if it's a Worthless Script. This virtual icon can be used to make other cards in the film with the same genre icon gross more. The presence of a Script Rewriter does not eliminate the necessity for having a Script card in one's film.

Casting Specialist

Makes every Actor and Actress in the film gross an extra million. Since there can be a maximum of two Actors or Actresses in a single film, a Casting Specialist can gross up to 3 million: 1 for itself, and 1 for each of the 2 Actor or Actress cards.

Set Designer

Grosses an extra million for every golden figurine shown on the cards included in the film. The two figurines of the Set Designer card are also taken into account, so it will gross at least 3 million for itself.

Quick Tally-Up

How to quickly tally up the box office performance of your new movie?

Find out the genre of the movie by checking out the genre of the Script. If you used a Worthless Script, you can define the genre yourself.

Count the cards bearing this genre's icons. Multiply the number of cards by itself to get the total for all the cards bearing this icon. You can use the following simple table to facilitate things:

Cards of the same genre	1	2	3	4	5
Total tally for these cards	1	4	9	16	25

Count the rest of the cards (including the Worthless Script card if you used it). Each of them grosses 1 million.

If the movie features a Lead Duo (an Actor and an Actress), add an extra 4 million.

Are there any cards with coins in this movie? If there is a coin icon on a card, add a corresponding number of millions to the box office tally.

If a film contains green Film Crew cards with special box office abilities, count the extra earnings from these abilities.

Example

A movie contains: a Worthless Script, a Director, an Actor, an Actress, a Stage Manager, a Casting Specialist and a Special Effects Expert.

A Worthless Script gives us the opportunity to choose any genre for our movie. Let's choose Thriller.
Director, Actor, Actress and Stage Manager all have a Thriller icon. These 4 cards will gross 16 million.
The three remaining cards (Worthless Script, Casting Specialist and Special Effects Expert) gross 3 million.
A Lead Duo grosses an extra 4 million.
Director and Special Effects Expert grosses an extra 2 million each for the coins with the number two on it. The Stage Manager grosses an extra 1 million for the coin with the number one on it.
The Casting Specialist adds another 2 million: one each for the Actor and the Actress.

Total: 30 million. That is a very good result!

Developers

Game concept by: Nikolay Pegasov Art and graphic design: Sergey Dulin and Uildrim Cover art: Ruslan Svobodin Character sketches: Ilya Komarov

Publisher: Hobby World General management: Mikhail Akulov and Ivan Popov Editor: Aleksandr Kiselyov Layout: Daria Smirnova and Ivan Sukhovei

All inquiries related to game publication should be sent to [email protected]. Please make sure to put "Game publication" in the subject line.

Special thanks go out to Ilya Karpinskiy.

Any copying or publication of the rules, components or illustrations of the game without prior permission of the copyright holder is prohibited.