It's reasonable for me, a stuntman, to live a crazy life, right?

Chapter 1430 The Giants Collectively Fall into a "Dilemma"

"This morning, the super science fiction epic 'The Three-Body Problem,' produced by Feiyue Film and Television with an investment of up to 30 billion RMB, directed and starring Chen Fei, and co-starring Liu Yifei, Zhu Yawen, Jing Tian, ​​Zhang Yi, Zhang Ruoyun, and others, officially started filming at Shanhe Film and Television City."

At the press conference for the start of filming of "The Three-Body Problem," Chen Fei boldly declared that the box office target is 10 billion RMB!

"It is understood that Feiyue Films will create a groundbreaking science fiction matrix, explore more local science fiction IPs, and even try to integrate science fiction with other genres. Stay tuned..."

A press conference to launch the filming of "The Three-Body Problem" was like a giant bomb thrown into the public opinion field, instantly causing an uproar across the entire internet!

The hashtags #TheThreeBodyProgramStartsFilmingWith10BillionYuanBoxOfficeTarget# and #TheCeilingOfDomesticScienceFictionHasArrived# quickly dominated the top ten of the trending topics list.

Fans and moviegoers cheered in the comments section, with waves of discussion rising higher and higher:
"The day we finally started filming has arrived! I've already started counting down the days until the release date. I can't wait!"

"Since Chen Fei dares to call for a 10 billion yuan box office target, he must really have the confidence, right? His previous works were all blockbusters, the facilities at Shanhe Film City are so impressive, and with the popularity of the original novel 'The Three-Body Problem,' he might really be able to create a box office miracle."

"I sincerely hope that 'The Three-Body Problem' can take Chinese science fiction to the world! In the past, everyone always watched Hollywood science fiction films, but now we have our own hardcore IP. I hope that this time we can let the world see the strength of Chinese science fiction and promote cultural export!"

"To be honest, Hollywood sci-fi movies have really been declining in recent years. They're all using the same old formulas, and no matter how dazzling the special effects are, they're not original."

In contrast, our own works, from "The Wandering Earth" to the current "The Three-Body Problem," are increasingly developing their own style. We still need to see domestic science fiction carrying the torch!

"Actually, it's not just about 'The Three-Body Problem' itself. I'm more looking forward to Feiyue Films' sci-fi matrix. If they can unearth more local sci-fi IPs and create some fusion works of sci-fi + suspense and sci-fi + reality, then we'll never have to worry about not having good sci-fi movies to watch again."

In stark contrast to the online frenzy, many companies within the film and television industry remained completely silent.

The offices of former industry giants such as China Film Group, Bona Film Group, and Shanghai Film Group are now eerily quiet.

The executives stared at the words "3 billion investment," "10 billion box office target," and "science fiction matrix" in the news, their faces filled with helplessness.

Compare?
How to compare?
What's the point of even comparing?!
In terms of investment size, the highest amount they can prepare for a patriotic blockbuster is less than 5 million yuan, which is nothing compared to the 30 billion yuan of "The Three-Body Problem".

In terms of production hardware, Shanhe Film City has a giant real-life set built specifically for science fiction films, as well as the world's largest dome theater that is about to be completed. Their traditional shooting locations simply cannot compete with it.

In terms of channel control, Longxiang Cinema Line monopolizes 70% of the screening share. When "The Three-Body Problem" is released, it will definitely get the best screenings. Their works have to go to great lengths to even get basic screenings.

In terms of the creative ecosystem, Chen Fei not only holds onto the top-tier IP of "The Three-Body Problem," but also boasts about building a science fiction matrix, forming a closed loop from upstream content to downstream screenings...

This is no longer "single-point competition", but "overwhelming the entire ecosystem"!
In Bona Film Group's conference room, Yu Dong frowned as he looked at the budget sheet for "Operation Jiaolong".

He always felt that a 5 million investment was already a big deal, but compared with the Three-Body Problem, it suddenly seemed less impressive.

If they were to collide...

He couldn't even imagine how badly he would be tortured.

The production team leader next to him sighed: "Our project hasn't even started filming yet, and we've already been outdone. How are patriotic films supposed to compete with sci-fi films in the future?"

Yu Dong opened his mouth, but no words came out.

Because he knew that the question was completely unnecessary.

Faced with an absolute disparity in strength, any answer seems utterly inadequate.

Just then, a knock on the conference room door broke the silence.

"Enter."

Yu Dong didn't even look up, his tone revealing undisguised exhaustion.

The door was gently pushed open, and the casting director walked in with a grim expression, clutching a list of actors to be contacted. His steps were unsteady: "President Yu, esteemed leaders, there's something I need to discuss with you all..."

"what's up?"

Yu Dong finally looked up, but upon seeing the other person's expression, his heart sank inexplicably.

The casting director swallowed hard, his voice hoarse: "We contacted the original cast and crew of 'Operation Red Sea' to invite them back... but we all ran into a wall."

Zhang Yi and Huang Jingyu said their schedules were full and they wouldn't even give them an audition opportunity.

And then there's our favorite, Zhang Hanyu. His agent was very direct, saying that he's already joined the "Three-Body Problem" team and signed an exclusive agreement, so he can't take on any other projects.

The production manager standing nearby suddenly stood up, his voice trembling, "You can't even raise the actors' salaries? We can wait until 'The Three-Body Problem' is finished filming..."

The casting director gave a wry smile, "The announced filming period for 'The Three-Body Problem' is one year, which we can't wait for."

Yu Dong opened his mouth, wanting to say something, but his throat seemed to be blocked, and he was speechless for a moment.

The fact that the original cast cannot return means that any subsequent attempts to capitalize on the popularity of "Operation Red Sea" will be significantly hampered by a lack of effective marketing.

This is definitely not good news for "Operation Jiaolong".

Seeing that no one spoke, the casting director pressed on, "Gentlemen, what should we do now?"

"You can go out first, I need to think about it."

Yu Dong waved his hand, his voice so low it was almost inaudible.

The casting director nodded and quietly slipped out.

The meeting room fell silent again, even more so than before.

More than ten minutes later, Yu Dong stubbed out his cigarette, sat up straight, and tapped the table: "Let's have a meeting first and resolve the casting issue."

The publicity manager spoke first, his tone full of anxiety: "President Yu, we can't get the original cast back. Without familiar faces, the audience's emotional resonance is gone, and it's hard to do any pre-event promotion."

The production manager frowned: "Given the current situation... how about we lower our standards? Find some decent, reasonably priced middle-aged actors?"

“No way.” Yu Dong immediately rejected the idea. “Middle-aged actors don’t have enough star power, so they won’t generate enough buzz. With the current popularity of ‘The Three-Body Problem,’ if our cast doesn’t have anything to offer, nobody will pay attention.”

"Then... find some traffic stars?" someone tentatively suggested. "It seems like several top stars are available right now. Although their acting skills are lacking, they are very popular. Just their fans alone can generate a wave of buzz."

These words immediately sparked a discussion in the conference room.

"But the reputation of popular actors is too bad. Many movies have been criticized and flopped at the box office because they used popular actors. Will we follow in their footsteps?"

"It's better to be criticized than for no one to watch it, right? 'The Three-Body Problem' has the advantage of 'strength' and 'IP,' while we can only rely on 'hype' to fight to the death. As long as the actors have something to talk about, we can create some hype before the release and release some behind-the-scenes photos, which will eventually attract casual viewers to the theater."

"I agree. Moreover, traffic has more business resources and can attract sponsorships, which can help offset some of the costs."

Everyone chimed in, discussing everything from "acting risks" to "gaining popularity," from "fan base size" to "promotion costs." The more they discussed, the more they felt that "finding traffic" was the only way out at the moment. Yu Dong listened to everyone's remarks, chain-smoking one cigarette after another.

Finally, he slammed his hand on the table: "It's settled then. If we can't get the original cast back, we'll focus on popular and high-profile actors."

Whether it's top idols or rising stars with recent hit dramas, we'll approach them all. Casting criteria can be set aside for now; the primary goal is to attract attention and generate buzz.

He paused, a hint of determination in his eyes: "The publicity department will prepare in advance. As soon as the actors are confirmed, we'll immediately release press releases, create CP pairings, generate memes, and make comparisons and contrasts... We'll do everything we can to generate buzz."

Before its release, "Operation Jiaolong" must be trending on major platforms; anything is better than nothing.

The casting director immediately responded, "Okay, I'll contact the talent agency right away."

The marketing director quickly added, "We'll revise the marketing plan tonight."

By the time the meeting ended, it was already dark outside the window.

Yu Dong remained alone in the conference room, staring blankly at the concept poster for "Operation Jiaolong".

The naval special forces members on the poster looked dashing, but he felt the image was getting increasingly blurry.

Bona Film Group, which once won over the market with its talent, now has to rely on popular actors to "attract attention." Isn't this a kind of helplessness?
Meanwhile, at China Film Group, Fu Ruoqing was frowning as she stared at Feiyue Film & Television's plan to "integrate science fiction with other genres in creative works".

They had just finalized the filming plan for "The Chinese People's Volunteers: A Battle for Survival," hoping to salvage the market with nostalgia for the sequel.

But now it seems that the audience's attention has probably already been drawn to "The Three-Body Problem".

In the realm of patriotic themes, it has clearly lost out to science fiction...

“Sigh, we’ve even fallen behind in terms of subject matter,” he couldn’t help but whisper to his secretary beside him, “We’re still relying on our old patriotic themes, while they’ve already started planning for the next generation of content.”

The secretary was speechless for a moment.

What made Fu Ruoqing even more desperate was that Chen Fei not only had content, venues, and channels, but also mature experience in creating hit products.

From his stunning performance at the Asian Games opening ceremony to the box office success of many of his directed films, he has almost never made a mistake.

This "must-win" aura has almost robbed its competitors of the courage to even compete.

The era of "a hundred schools of thought contending" is long gone. Today's film and television industry has become a "one-man show" for Feiyue Film and Television.

Companies that were still debating "whether to make a sequel" and "how to secure screen time" suddenly found themselves losing even the right to participate in the game.

The silence continues to spread in the meeting rooms of many companies.

At this moment, no one mentions the words "competition" or "surpassing" anymore.

Because at the moment when filming for "The Three-Body Problem" began, they finally came to terms with reality.

The outcome of this contest was never in doubt from the very beginning.

In fact, it's not just traditional film companies like China Film Group and Bona Film Group; even film companies that started with internet capital, such as Alibaba Pictures and Tencent Pictures, are collectively in a state of "being stunned".

In Alibaba Pictures' office, CEO Fan Luyuan held the project proposals for several low-budget films, including "Breaking Through Hell," staring blankly at the "tens of millions in investment budget" on the title page, muttering to himself, "We can't compete... we really can't compete!"

In recent years, Alibaba Pictures' film business has undoubtedly been getting worse and worse.

A few years ago, I followed the trend and invested in several big-budget productions, but they either flopped at the box office or received poor reviews, resulting in huge losses.

Nowadays, he can only rely on some TV series to maintain his presence and barely keep his name in the industry.

As for mega-projects like "The Three-Body Problem," with a 30 billion yuan investment and support across the entire industry chain, they wouldn't even dare to touch them.
There's no way around it; the risks behind the "10 billion yuan box office target" alone are enough to make Alibaba Pictures, which has suffered losses multiple times, back down.

On the other hand, Tencent Pictures is not faring much better.

Sun Zhonghuai frowned as he looked at the list of projects on the table.

The only notable film projects currently available are "Under the Strange" (an adaptation of a manga) and "Hot Wave" (directed by Jia Ling), which he co-invested in.

The former relies on the IP's fan base, while the latter relies on a comedic sentiment.

However, in terms of production quality and industry influence, it is not even in the same league as "The Three-Body Problem".

As for the rest of the plans, they are almost all focused on the TV series field.

From historical political intrigue to urban romance, despite a considerable output, films have consistently failed to break into the film market.

“Feiyue Films has raised the bar for the film industry to the sky.” Sun Zhonghuai couldn’t help but complain to his secretary, “30 billion yuan investment + its own cinema chain + real-world film sets, even if we could raise the money, we don’t have their ecosystem, we simply can’t compare…”

In contrast to the predicament of these giants, the newly established small film companies have "keeping a low profile" to their very core.

Several new companies had previously quietly launched low-budget suspense and realistic film projects, hoping to gain a share of the market through "differentiation".

However, as soon as the news of the start of filming for "The Three-Body Problem" came out, these companies immediately pressed the "pause button".

They dared not do any publicity, dared not release any news, and even changed their contact with actors to private communication, for fear that being too high-profile would attract the attention of Feiyue Films, or be overshadowed by its overwhelming popularity.

At that moment, the entire film and television industry seemed to have been silenced.

Giants are struggling with their project lists, mid-sized companies are busy adjusting their strategies, and small companies are simply choosing to lie low.

The once vibrant film market, under the overwhelming dominance of Feiyue Films' entire ecosystem, found itself unable to find a competitor to rival it.

The clapperboard that lit up at the launch ceremony of "The Three-Body Problem" not only marked the start of a science fiction blockbuster, but also seemed to set a new "rule of the game" for the entire industry.

To survive in the film industry, you either have to keep up with the pace of Flying Leap Films, or you can only struggle to survive in its shadow.

Of course, amidst the industry's silence and wait-and-see attitude, there are quite a few companies that have chosen to actively align themselves with Feiyue Films.

For example, companies such as Enlight Media, Xi'an Film Group, and Mahua FunAge have long been closely tied to Feiyue Films, becoming core members of the "film and television industry community".

Among them, Happy Twist is the fastest in terms of action.

The filming of "The Three-Body Problem" had just started when Zhang Chen and his team came to visit the set, bringing with them a new project that was about to be launched...

(End of this chapter)