this man is not calm

Chapter 405 The Value of Breakthrough

It was past ten o'clock, and there were still so many young people coming to participate in the book signing and sale, which shows that offline cultural life is still very popular these days.

Lu Liao's fame is also one of the important factors that make everyone support him.

For young people, this young writer, who has received mixed reviews from mainstream public opinion, has a temperament that current students and graduates who have just entered society do not have.

The more you lack something, the more you emphasize it and the more you pursue it.

Having initially broken away from the constraints of family and school and begun to come into contact with this bizarre world, children highly value the courage to express their own individuality and to say no to tradition and sophistication.

An obvious fact is that adults think that children should be innocent, cute, kind, and just like the nursery rhymes "Little White Rabbit" and "Two Tigers", which are full of childlike fun. But in fact, what children really like are songs like "The Lone Warrior" and "Ace of Spades", which is very different from what parents, teachers and even the entire society think.

For adults who look down on children, it doesn’t really matter what children think. What they understand, what they like, and what their mental state is like are not things that need to be concerned about too much. I think it’s enough to know what you like and what you want to become.

Do children understand their situation?
They are all primates with high intelligence. Don't think of them as too stupid. In terms of intelligence, adults really don't have any advantage. It's just because of different knowledge and experience that the IQ varies greatly. When it comes to the sub-adult adolescent stage, there is no difference in intelligence. They may even have a slight advantage because of their youth and flexible thinking. In this case, a self-awakening stage called the "rebellious period" and resistance to discrimination against adults will naturally arise.

Playing rock and roll, being eccentric, wearing strange clothes, not respecting tradition, resisting authority, and showing individuality, this is what they want to do.

Lu Liao appeared at the right time and did what was expected, so he was naturally popular among young people.

"Go back and have someone evaluate his novel to see if it's worth adapting into a film or TV series."

Jin Shang and Li Xuan didn't finish the book signing event. They just took a quick look and left. On the way home, Jin Shang said very calmly,

“Although our company’s cultural strategy is mainly focused on the construction of super-large IP, we cannot ignore the hot topics that young people are paying attention to. Only by capturing the hearts of young people can we capture the future.”

"I heard someone talk about it a few days ago. It's difficult."

Not all best-selling novels are suitable for adaptation into film and television dramas. The hard science fiction and mystery novels that most readers on the market like are actually not suitable for live-action film and television adaptation, at least the time is not ripe now.

In comparison, love and youth themes have greater potential for adaptation.

In 1997, without the support of original novels, comics or social hot spots, there was a high possibility that a TV series or film would fail suddenly. The market capacity was too small. If we did not pursue the "greatest common divisor", even if the work was finally produced, the ending would most likely be to be released silently and then disappear silently, without making any splash.

On the eve of the coming of the big cinema era, the film and television entertainment industry is facing its darkest time before dawn. The box office statistics for the first half of the year have been released. After a sharp drop in the same period last year, it has fallen by 15% again this year.

Such poor data has made people in the industry feel numb.

For such a big country, the estimated total box office for the whole year may only be 800 million, or even not even that amount. This is too despairing.

Fortunately, at the beginning of this summer vacation, the opening of "The Legend of White Snake" injected a shot in the arm to the market that was about to dry up and die.

It is said that the data is quite good, but Jin Shang is too lazy to care about the specific amount. He will leave the "small business" of tens of millions to the people below to handle, and when the time comes, he will just look at the summary report.

As for Lu Liao's novel, Jin Shang skimmed through it, and the main framework was still relatively complete. Either he had some basic knowledge, or someone checked it. The details were just a lot rougher. If I look back at it in a few years, I'm sure I'll be so ashamed that I'll crawl into a crack in the ground.

The quality is acceptable, not as top-notch as touted, but still acceptable.

"Adaptation is difficult, which means it can be done with persistence, and let experienced senior screenwriters take charge. Since it is a popular book, how can it remain only on paper? Of course, it must be put on the big screen to let future young people see what kind of young writers at the end of the 20th century are like."

"You are...trying to roast Lu Liao on the fire!"

Li Xuan covered her mouth and laughed secretly. She couldn't help but feel happy when she thought of her boyfriend's bad taste.

Xiao Jin actually doesn't have so many evil thoughts. He shouldn't think about the affairs of intellectuals in such a tasteless way. Strictly speaking, it is also a realistic subject matter that reflects the current thoughts of young students. He can't turn a blind eye to it, let alone pretend it doesn't exist.

“Even a novel as hypocritical as First Contact was adapted and released. Although the mainstream entertainment industry didn’t take it seriously, fans within the film’s scope still gave it many positive reviews because it was low-cost and well-executed, and it was even able to barely make back the investment.”

"As long as you think it's okay, this is what you call a fan-oriented movie, right? The money earned is from the mindless fans' efforts..."

"Making money is better. It would be even better if we could promote one or two representatives. The current Lv Liao still doesn't have enough influence."

"You just think the entertainment and media circles are too quiet and boring. I think you just have nothing to do."

"Nonsense, I'm a big boss worth tens of billions. Even if I'm rich on paper, I'm busy with all kinds of things. How can I have time for something like this..."

Just as he was about to make a few more explanations, the cell phone beside him suddenly rang. Jin Shang, who was driving, was too lazy to answer it. At this late hour, how could the boss answer the phone to work overtime?

The owner didn't move. Li Xuan thought it was too noisy, so she picked up her phone, looked at it, and said in surprise:
"It's Nan Dabiao. It's rare to find you at this time."

It’s not that there haven’t been gatherings or phone calls at night, but they’re mostly things that were agreed upon in advance. It’s rare for people to call suddenly in the middle of the night.

It’s okay for other people, but Nan Dabiao is an old acquaintance. Although they are peers, he is the elder after all, not an ordinary partner.

After finding a safe place, Jin Shang stopped the car and pressed the answer button.

"Hello, Uncle Da Biao?"

"At this time? All right!"

"I'll be there in ten minutes. Don't worry, I'm still outside. It won't be a bother!"

After saying a few words, Jin Shang sighed.

"We are going to Lu Yu Music Bar. Nan Da Biao must have drunk too much, or something has happened that has made him lose his composure."

"Drunk?"

"I don't know. I probably drank a lot. I can hardly speak straight."

It's almost eleven o'clock. I should go and meet him early to see what's going on, and then go back and rest early. This time is relatively late for young people in a big city.

After a while, Jin Shang drove to the destination and walked straight into the bar. Together with Li Xuan, he went up the stairs. Then, in the high viewing area, he saw Nan Dabiao, who was tasting wine alone. He could smell the alcohol from a distance.

Looking around, Dai Yiqun was not there, and her younger brother Nan Dalong was not around either. There was only a man who looked like an assistant, about thirty years old.

He looked familiar, having met him a few times before, but he didn't know his name, so Jin Shang ignored him and walked over. "Why did you drink so much by yourself?"

"You came?"

Trying hard to keep his drunken eyes open, Nan Da Biao forced himself to stay alert.

"I'm happy!"

"What's so great that one person should drink so much? There's not even much snacks to go with the wine..."

"Dai Yiqin is very busy, and I don't know where Xiao Biao has gone. I can't control him either. I guess only the old man at home can give him a few beatings to make him behave himself."

"Just teach him to know his limits. The increasingly vulgar literary and artistic circles are just a stinking world of fame and fortune. Xiao Biao is actually quite suitable for this circle."

"Someone needs to control him and teach him to be fearful. I didn't set a good example since he was young, and I didn't have the time or the opportunity to teach him, so he became like this now. Forget it, let's not talk about it anymore. Everyone has their own blessings..."

With a wave of his hand, Nan Dabiao asked the assistant who had been carefully watching out for the drunk man to step aside first, and took Jin Shang's hand to sit down, while Li Xuan sat opposite him not too far away.

"A Shang, your uncle Da Biao has been through a lot these days. It's only today that I can finally take a breath and rest assured."

“Well, the box office is out?”

This data is definitely not bragging for the purpose of promoting the so-called first weekend box office, but it is the real amount of money earned.

"Twenty-seven million. As of today, the data is better than the previous two days. The reputation has improved. Professional analysts estimate that the total domestic box office may be around 120 million. This is the only movie in the theaters that has exceeded 100 million since formal box office statistics were established in China. It has also directly increased the box office ceiling by nearly double, which is quite scary."

"This... is really good, but... it doesn't pay back the money, right?"

"The lifting of the upper limit means that the so-called restrictions that everyone thinks of do not exist. The previous judgments that the market is not good have failed. The film industry is not without a future, but there were no high-quality films that made the audience pay to go to the theater..."

"This...is true!"

The best director, the most popular star, the hottest subject matter, the best publicity and promotion, all to support it all the way, and the box office would be at most 40 or 50 million. If it wanted to go higher, some extraordinary measures would have to be resorted to. A film of this scale is really too shabby.

The profit level is there, which means that for general film projects, if the production budget exceeds 10 million, it is basically impossible to make a profit.

What can you do with this little money?

A well-made urban sitcom that invites one or two somewhat recognizable stars would cost more than five million.

It’s not that people don’t want to make quality films, but that they can’t find investors.

Don’t worry about whether the production cost of the movie "Legend of White Snake" is too high or whether it can make a profit in the future. The fact that the box office has exceeded 100 million now proves that the ceiling that was thought to be unbreakable in the past does not actually exist.

Big productions worth 30 million yuan that previously would have been almost impossible to pass risk control are now worth investing in.

This is how the entire market became so popular.

"In addition, the feedback from foreign film producers is also very good. The number of moviegoers in neighboring countries and regions is very high. The buyout offer from Europe, America, West Asia and other places is nearly 100 million yuan in local currency."

"That means the box office and selling out the regional broadcasting rights alone will be enough to make back the investment, or even make a small profit?"

With the sponsorship of advertisers, the results are ideal.

Image licensing, DVD rentals and sales, original soundtracks and the like, it’s pure profit.

Can you really make money by shooting blockbuster movies?
There seems to be some problems with the domestic market. Due to the gap in actual conditions, it is not conducive to cultivating movie fans, so it is understandable that it does not make much money.

But if you look at the world, it’s actually not that bad.

Even though the broadcasting rights for a single country are not worth much, if they are sold to more than a hundred countries and regions, the total amount is a huge sum of money.

In the past, Jin Shang didn’t care about the foreign market at all, but now it seems a bit narrow-minded.

There is no doubt that it is quite difficult for IT software and hardware, food industry, marine chemical industry, consumer electronics and the like to enter the international market and enjoy the benefits of globalization at their current levels. It is only the epoch-making product MP3 that has made Jinxi Culture and its sister companies a little famous, but generally speaking, they are still very weak.

For example, operating systems, browsers, anti-virus software, mobile phones, game consoles, etc., it is not easy to earn foreign exchange overseas.

It is difficult to sell tangible goods and services, but when it comes to exporting cultural and artistic products overseas, there are not so many restrictions.

As long as it is suitable for all ages and appeals to both the elite and the masses, it is easy to operate.

Foreigners on the other side of the earth may not understand why humans and demons cannot fall in love, what the rules and regulations, the Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues are, but they can still understand love, family and so on. As for the sound and light effects based on special effects, as long as you are not blind or deaf, you can understand what is going on.

Outside the Chinese cultural circle, foreigners actually like traditional arts as long as they are not too complicated or obscure.

Moreover, the money comes in quickly, and it can also allow other business models to follow suit and go overseas.

This is extraordinary.

"No wonder movies are at the forefront of the propaganda front. There is really nothing comparable to them."

To read authentic novels, one must understand foreign languages. Television dramas are restricted by relatively closed television networks, while movies, as a literary and artistic product that is easy to understand, are very direct.

All you need is a brain and eyes. Even if it is a silent film, you can guess the plot based on the pictures. There is not much barrier at all.

The above was what Jin Shang thought, but there was more that made Nan Dabiao happy.

"This 3D cinema is a great thing! Ah Shang, do you know how many giant screen IMAX canvases there are in China?"

"Last time I heard there were only seventy-five!"

"Seventy-nine. That's how many there are now, and they're only in a few big cities. With so few 3D theaters, they contribute one-third of the total box office. It's really amazing."

The expensive ticket price is one thing, but the popularity is truly unquestionable!
(End of this chapter)