The Wind of China Entertainment 2005

Chapter 586 Having both sides
"Wow, this wind."

By the end of October, the trees lining the streets of Beijing had quietly put on their autumn clothes, with a mixture of green and yellow. Where the wind blew, the fallen leaves fluttered and rustled.

Song Ge crushed a few fallen leaves under his feet into small pieces, suddenly retracted his neck, and tightened the collar of his black coat.

He took out a cigarette box from his pocket, with the filter slightly exposed, and handed it to the left: "Want one?"

Ye Ning glanced at it and subconsciously reached out to take it, but stopped halfway and refused: "I have quit smoking and have written a letter of guarantee to my wife. If I smoke again, I will be a Japanese."

"It's better to quit. I've tried several times but failed. Mr. Ye has such perseverance. How long has he quit?"

"Not long ago, just this morning."

Song Ge raised his eyebrows, said no more, took out his lighter and lit it himself.

"Mr. Ye, Mr. Song, let's meet again when we are free."

A black Mercedes slowly stopped in front of the two of them, the window rolled down, Lu Yuan leaned out and waved goodbye.

Song Ge and Ye Ning also responded with a smile: "Be careful on the road."

The negotiations went smoothly and Lu Yuan agreed to postpone the release date of "New World" to the end of December.

In this game between the cinema chain and the distributor, if China Film Group and others are still insisting by the specified date, Lu Yuan has the right to freely choose a camp.

In exchange, when Wanda prepares the "Ghost Blows Out the Light" series of films, Yuanfang Media will participate in the joint investment, and the proportion of funds must not be less than 30%.

In addition, the online adaptation rights of the last four parts of "Ghost Blows Out the Light" will be transferred to Yuanfang Media at a low price.

Wanda will help operate films that Far Eastern Media invests in in the future and are suitable for overseas distribution.

After Lu Yuan's taillights disappeared completely, Ye Ning crossed his arms and lightly kicked the tree trunk beside him.

"It's only him. Who else would dare to make such a request? Wanda is one of the producers of New World after all. However, if we keep the online adaptation rights of Ghost Blows Out the Light in our hands, it will be useless. It's okay to give it to him."

"Hmm~" Song Ge blew out a smoke ring: "Who told the market to recognize him now? We will have to cooperate in the future. The key is that he is also wealthy."

"If I were him, I would have retired long ago. What's the point of being an actor? People are staring at me wherever I go." Ye Ning glanced at the Santana that was chasing after the Mercedes-Benz. There were paparazzi inside.

Another gust of wind blew by, carrying with it secondhand smoke.

His nose twitched slightly, and he looked to the side involuntarily. His hands were tangled in his trouser pockets. After a moment, he gave up struggling and said, "Old Song, give me one."

"Didn't you just say you wanted to quit smoking? And you even said if you continue to smoke you'd be a Japanese." Having said that, Song Ge still handed over the cigarette box.

"Hoo!" Ye Ning took a deep breath, exhaled, and said with a squint, "Don't worry. You can't become fat in one bite. The same is true for quitting smoking. It requires a gradual process. You can't quit immediately if you want to. Finish this one first. Besides, smoking doesn't protect your lungs. At most, you'll be like Wang Jingwei."

"Should I add that those who inhale smoke are heroes?"

"Hahaha, Mr. Song, you are a wonderful person."

Ye Ning held a cigarette in his mouth and turned around: "Let's go upstairs and continue eating. Aren't actors supposed to control their weight? Why did Lu Yuan eat so much? I forgot to ask just now."

"I heard from him that he has been gaining weight recently in preparation for a new play."

……

October 11st, Halloween.

The publicity campaign for several Lunar New Year films has reached full swing.

During this period, the second film in the "Tai Chi" series invested by Huayi was released, but it received poor reviews and had mediocre box office results.

But Huayi didn’t take it too seriously, their current focus is "1942".

The publicity for this film was extremely strong, and Huayi announced it publicly as Feng Xiaogang's culmination work.

Feng Xiaogang has repeatedly stated in interviews that he had wanted to make this movie 18 years ago.

For the sake of this play, he is willing to gamble his reputation built up over decades in the industry and not make a penny.

As a responsible filmmaker, he hopes to leave behind a valuable film.

Through this movie, young people can understand the hardships China has experienced and how it has persevered through each hardship.

In short, it has enough gimmicks and is based on national justice, and it sounds sincere at first glance.

On this day, Feng Xiaogang and the main creative team were interviewed by reporters in Shanghai to promote the release of the movie at the end of the month.

There was a poster of "1942" at the interview site.

On the poster, the disaster victim is holding a cracked bowl with a grasshopper resting in it.

The group of disaster victims, represented by the old boss played by Zhang Guoli, and the group of the National Government, represented by Chiang Kai-shek played by Chen Daoming, stare at each other across the bowl.

"Director Feng, why did you choose to shoot this subject?"

Feng Xiaogang has answered similar questions many times, but publicity is just a repetitive process.

"Because I like it." He answered truthfully, revealing a mouthful of rotten teeth on his yellow and white face.

The reporter was a young man and obviously didn't believe his nonsense.

Feng Xiaogang patiently explained: "I know very well that filming a work like 1942 is asking for trouble. Every filming requires great hardship, high costs, complex production, and the actors' physical efforts are also great. I still persisted because I love it and was moved by it."

The reporter reluctantly believed it and started to stir up trouble: "The Banquet and 1942 were both released during the Lunar New Year holiday, and New World followed closely behind, two days apart. Can you tell me whether New World caused you a lot of pressure?"

Some of the new generation of directors have already emerged, and comparison with the previous generation is inevitable.

Although Feng Xiaogang likes to speak wildly, he only speaks according to the person he is talking to. He has no conflict with Lu Yuan, so he avoided answering.

He turned to find fault with the reporter and said, "What is the Lunar New Year period? November is a normal period, why is it called the Lunar New Year period? The reason why 11 was released in November is that they didn't want to mislead the audience by labeling it as a Lunar New Year period.

Honesty is important. I don't like to play tricks. If the audience wants to watch a New Year's film, I advise them not to buy "1942" to avoid regretting it after watching it and scolding me for being unkind. "1942" has no fun, no excitement, no prosperity, only the truth of history. If you want to buy a laugh, see you next year."

"."

After the interview, Feng Xiaogang, Zhang Guoli and others were chatting, when suddenly producer Chen Guofu approached.

"Xiaogang, the crew of New World announced that the release date will be postponed."

"What?" Feng Xiaogang didn't hear clearly, and was stunned for a moment, then stood up in astonishment: "New World" has been postponed?"

If possible, he really didn't want to confront "New World".

It's not that he is afraid, but serious subjects like "1942" are not suitable. If he switches to Feng's old specialty, he would dare to jump up and slap even the biggest star.

"Yes, it will be extended to the end of December."

Feng Xiaogang was puzzled: "Why? What's the reason?"

Chen Guofu stared at him with a strange expression and said, "Wen Muye publicly expressed on Weibo that he admires Director Feng's responsibility as a filmmaker. To show his support, the release of New World will be postponed for one month."

Isn't this nonsense? Feng Xiaogang is not a three-year-old child. He immediately responded: "Is there any movement at the cinema?"

"nothing now."

Hearing this, Feng Xiaogang felt relieved.

At the end of the year, major cinema chains are rushing to achieve performance, and nine domestic blockbusters including "9", "New World", "The Grandmaster" and "Chinese Zodiac" have occupied the Lunar New Year box office, creating an unprecedented monopoly.

This is exactly the reason why China Film Group, Huayi Film Group and other companies dare to challenge theater chains.

Although he is reluctant to admit it, Lu Yuan's current influence makes "New World" play a crucial role in this game.

"It's good that I didn't become a deserter." Feng Xiaogang sighed.

He could only sigh. After all, he was just a director who made money for Huayi. Wang Zhonglei agreed to invest in "1942" because of his past hard work and contributions.

Although he told others that he didn't care about the box office, in fact he himself was closely tied to Huayi's stock price.

The production cost of "2" was million yuan. If the box office is not good, the failure to recover the investment is not a big deal.

What is even more terrifying is the plummeting share price of Huayi and the evaporation of its market value. Compared with these, the investment amount of the film itself is simply insignificant.

After sitting down again, Feng Xiaogang looked obviously much more relaxed.

The postponement of "New World" has undoubtedly cleared a major obstacle for the box office success of "1942".

Now, the only other drama that can compete with it in the same period is Lu Chuan’s “The Banquet”.

Well, Lu Chuan, apart from his family background and connections, what is he in the film industry?

The crew of "New World" suddenly issued a statement to the public.

The official release date of the film has been postponed by one month, from early December to the end of the month.

The reasons given are not convincing to the general public.

There was an endless debate online for a while. Some industry insiders said that due to the sensitivity of the subject matter, they were maliciously reported by their peers and had to send the paper back for revisions.

Some people also said that it was Wen Muye’s first time directing and he was timid in front of Feng Xiaogang and Lu Chuan.

But such remarks were quickly refuted by netizens, because the leading actors are Lu Yuan and Liang Jiahui, and with these two, there is nothing to fear.

Some people also think that this is a publicity strategy of the crew to whet the audience's appetite.

None of these could affect Lu Yuan.

At this time, he was in seclusion in his villa, studying the script of "Chinese Partners" and polishing his role.

Last September, I went to the Magnolia Awards Ceremony with Han Sanping.

During this period, they met Xu Xiaoping, one of the founders of New Oriental. Xu Xiaoping took a manuscript that he had written during his two-week retreat in Hainan and asked the two of them for their opinions.

At the dinner table, Lu Yuan gave compliments against his will out of politeness, but he didn't expect that he got himself into trouble and Xu Xiaoping specifically asked him to take part in the performance.

After the Magnolia Awards ended, Han Sanping handed the manuscript to director Peter Chan.

Chen Kexin has directed films such as "The Warlords" and "Comrades: Almost a Love Story", and has won the "Best Director" and "Best Picture" awards at the Hong Kong Film Awards and the Golden Horse Awards more than once.

After receiving the manuscript, Chen Kexin initially thought that Han Sanping was deliberately making things difficult for him.

Because the manuscript has no story at all, it is just a diary, full of daily life, even the shape of the urine in the toilet was written down.

Han Sanping waved his hand and told him to make the revisions with confidence.

Later, Xu Xiaoping's manuscript was revised to only 18 words: Chinese Partners, New Dream School, and the names of three protagonists, Cheng Dongqing, Meng Xiaojun, and Wang Yang.

For a while, Chen Kexin even wanted to change "Chinese Partners" to "Mr. China".

Xu Xiaoping was extremely angry and went to Chen Kexin to argue with him, but to no avail. He then said bluntly that the script had nothing to do with him.

Peter Chan is considered to be the best storyteller in Hong Kong, and he did a good job in adapting the script.

There are three characters in the script.

Cheng Dongqing is a "country bumpkin" who was born in the countryside. He is very stupid and pitiful.

Wang Yang is a literary youth, very romantic and naive, and acts as a lubricant among the three brothers.

Meng Xiaojun was an "elite" who once yearned for the United States.

His experience in the United States frustrated his self-esteem, and he was always thinking about proving himself to the Americans. That was why he came into conflict with Cheng Dongqing in order to get the company listed as soon as possible.

Lu Yuan has another consideration for this film.

On the surface, "Chinese Partners" tells the story of three young people of that era pursuing their dreams of starting a business, but in reality it secretly shatters people's filters about the United States.

Meng Xiaojun's past is an example. Before going abroad, he was full of fantasies about the United States, a beacon of freedom and a paradise of democracy. However, he was greeted by ubiquitous discrimination.

There is also Cheng Dongqing's goddess, who was worth 2.58 million in China, aloof and cold, with high aspirations. But after just a few days abroad, she started hanging out with her foreign boyfriend and even had sex in the wild.

Based on this, Lu Yuan believes that in this era when public intellectuals are prevalent, this drama will probably receive a lot of criticism after it is released.

"Ding ding ding."

While I was making some changes on the script, my cell phone suddenly rang. It was Han Sanping.

He roughly guessed the other party's intention, and the reason why he was in seclusion in the villa was that he hoped to remove himself from this matter.

"Mr. Han."

"Lu Yuan, why did "New World" suddenly announce a postponement?" Han Sanping was anxious.

"Wanda came to me." Lu Yuan told the truth. There was nothing to hide. It would be clear if you asked around. Wanda probably wanted everyone to know.

The other party was silent for a long time before asking, "Did you promise them?"

"Of course not!" Lu Yuan said firmly.

“But Mr. Han, you have to understand my difficulties. After all, New World has Wanda’s investment, and they are one of the producers. Whether from a legal or other perspective, I cannot completely ignore their opinions.

Yesterday, Ye Ning and Song Ge met me and promised me many benefits, including new revenue sharing, but I will not be so short-sighted as to throw the future of the entire industry behind my head for my own personal gain."

Han Sanping was obviously relieved and asked, "What's the matter with the postponement?"

"Wanda and I have agreed that we will not take a stand on this matter for now. New World will remain neutral. As long as President Han can hold his ground, we will be in the same camp when the time comes."

As for the specific time point, the two of them had a tacit understanding, which was of course before the release of "New World".

"Okay, I feel relieved with your guarantee." Han Sanping vowed: "This time it won't be like Zhang Weiping last year. No one will run away from the battlefield."

Lu Yuan didn't comment, but asked knowingly: "Boss Han, I have another question. I heard that the copyright of Ghost Blows Out the Light is in the hands of China Film Group?"

"Yes, we own the film and television adaptation rights for the first four movies. What's wrong with that?"

"Can you sell me the online adaptation rights?" Lu Yuan asked tentatively.

Han Sanping paused, then laughed: "I thought it was a big deal, the rights to online adaptation? Of course, you can ask someone from your company to negotiate."

"Thank you, Mr. Han."

"By the way." Han Sanping asked casually, "China Film Group plans to develop this IP. Are you interested in playing the leading male role?"

Lu Yuan smiled and said, "Nothing has started yet, at least the script should be ready. You are just fooling me."

"Hahaha, okay."

After ending the call, Lu Yuan sent a message to Wu Lang.

Let him go to China Film Group and acquire the online adaptation rights for the first four parts of "Ghost Blows Out the Light".

Together with the last four films he obtained from Wanda, the online adaptation rights of the entire "Ghost Blows Out the Light" series of eight works are in his hands.

"Eight."

Lu Yuan murmured to himself, he was certainly on the side of China Film, but Wanda also had an investment in "New World", so he was indeed in a difficult position.

But why do I feel like I'm eating from both sides?

(End of this chapter)