During my years at China Entertainment

Chapter 799 Surprise or Shock? Checking Sister's Water Meter

The production team of Shanhe Shuimo is quite efficient; the finished product of "Yunnan Insect Valley" was released just as July began.

After Wei Jin and Zhang Yimou watched the finished film, they felt there were no problems and immediately arranged for it to be submitted for review.

Regarding the scheduling, Zhang Yimou had no ideas and left it to Wei Jin to decide.

After some thought, Wei Jin called Zhong Lifang over to discuss the scheduling of several dramas.

As of now, none of the company's films that have passed censorship, including "Go Away Mr. Tumor", "Cock and Bull", and "Chasing the Dragon", have yet to be scheduled for release.

Including "The Witness," which finished filming in mid-June, "Detective Chinatown," which is nearing completion, and "Yunnan Insect Valley," which was just submitted for review, there are a total of six films.

"Mr. Wei, it's definitely not feasible to put everything on this year."

After taking over the reins from China Film Group, Zhong Lifang paid close attention to the release schedules and had a good grasp of the current status of various release dates. She then spoke fluently about it.

"At most one more film will be released during the second half of the summer season. The National Day holiday already has 'Project Gutenberg' and 'Lost in Hong Kong,' so there's not enough room for another one."

"We could release one in late October, but with 'The Rise of Fame' already in the Lunar New Year lineup, we can only squeeze in one more film at most during the entire release window, that's the limit."

Wei Jin nodded. "Then, in your opinion, how should we arrange it?"

"The two films, 'The Witness' and 'Cock and Bull,' did not receive high ratings, so we can consider scheduling them for next year. We'll see what happens."

"Go Away Mr. Tumor" can be released in the second half of the summer movie season. There's still more than a month left, so there's plenty of time for promotion.

As for "Chasing the Dragon," I heard that Wong Jing's "From Vegas to Macau III" is going to start filming next month, so I think it could be released in late October.

The remaining film, *Yunnan Insect Valley*, can be released in late December, coinciding with *Fame and Fortune*, dominating the New Year's film season!

Zhong Lifang's tone was somewhat impassioned at this moment. Back when Little Horse Galloping was in operation, it would never have been possible to produce so many blockbusters!

"What about 'Detective Chinatown'? This kind of comedy is only suitable for the Lunar New Year and Spring Festival seasons. If it's released during the Spring Festival, wouldn't it conflict with 'The Mermaid'?"

"Mr. Wei, you're overthinking it."

Zhong Lifang smiled gently, reaching out to smooth a strand of hair at her temple, exuding a mature woman's charm.

"The Spring Festival film season is getting bigger and bigger, enough to accommodate two comedy films. As for the publicity and distribution resources, they don't conflict at all. We can leave 'The Mermaid' to China Film Group and Shanghai Film Group."

At this point, Zhong Lifang paused for a moment, a hint of domineering air on her face.

"Moreover, Mr. Wei, as the largest production company in the industry, we should have a main film in every release window. 'Detective Chinatown' can prove our existence!"

"Mr. Zhong, what you said makes a lot of sense. Let's arrange it that way. We'll release the announcement this afternoon or tomorrow, giving our colleagues a surprise!"

"Pfft~ Okay, Mr. Wei."

Wei Jin's words made Zhong Lifang laugh. Was it a surprise? Or was it a shock?

However, she liked it very much!
Just as she was about to get up and leave, Zhong Lifang remembered something else. "President Wei, Zhang Zhao from LeEco contacted me before, wanting to buy the film rights to 'Love O2O'."

"Heh, so you've tasted the sweetness of success, huh?"

Wei Jin made a lighthearted joke, but it wasn't entirely unexpected.

Although the movie version of "My Sunshine" only grossed over 300 million yuan, after deducting the copyright price and production costs, LeTV will probably still lose some money.

But LeTV is a listed company, and such a blockbuster IP project will obviously boost the stock price; there are too many ways to make money.

Especially given the recent stock market downturn, it's perfectly normal for LeEco to want to replicate its previous successes through this project.

How much are you asking this time?

"It's the same number as last time, eighty million."

Wei Jin pondered for a moment, then nodded, "Alright, then give them to them."

"Okay, Mr. Wei."

Zhong Lifang was very efficient; the next morning, the release dates for several films were announced on Shanhe Media's official website.

As expected, the news was widely reported by the media, which indeed surprised and delighted the industry!
The entire film and television industry is filled with criticism, especially the movies that were scheduled for release during the Lunar New Year holiday; they're practically going crazy!
"Damn it, summer movie season, National Day movie season, Lunar New Year movie season, Spring Festival movie season, what is he trying to do? Monopolize all the movie seasons? Seriously?"

In the Huayi Brothers' office, Wang Zhonglei saw the news online and suddenly felt that the cigar in his hand was no longer delicious, so he couldn't help but grumble.

"Shanhe Media has about a dozen directors, and they're all incredibly energetic, making at least ten films a year. It's unavoidable; we just need to focus on doing our own thing."

Although Wang Zhongjun was verbally comforting him, he was also feeling a bit annoyed.

Since Wei Jin became the richest man in Asia, Wang Zhongjun has given up any thought of competing with him, because the level is indeed too far apart. It would be more appropriate for Jack Ma to personally take the lead.

But understanding the gap doesn't mean you can accept it well.

Especially in the past two weeks, Huayi's stock price has plummeted, while Shanhe Media has been thriving, which is very frustrating!

"I know, but the popularity, attention and topicality of the two dramas, 'Fame and Fortune' and 'Yunnan Insect Valley', have been quite high since the projects were first proposed."

Ning Hao and Zhang Yimou's star power is obvious, and their cast is also very strong. With Xiao Gang's "Mr. Six" sandwiched in between, I'm worried.

"Don't worry about Zhong Lei. The three films have different themes and take different paths. Besides, they've all been released several days apart, so the competition isn't fierce. I'm confident the box office won't be low this time!"

While acknowledging the achievements of Ning Hao and Zhang Yimou, Feng Xiaogang didn't think he was lacking in anything, and his words revealed a great deal of confidence in "Mr. Six".

"That's true, but we still need to plan our publicity strategy in advance. Xiaogang, even though you're not the director, as the male lead, you'll have to work a bit harder."

"no problem."

Feng Dapao's decisive nod pleased Wang Zhongjun, who then got straight to the point: "Xiao Gang, the reason I invited you here today isn't about 'Mr. Six,' but rather to ask about the new project you mentioned earlier. How's it going?"

Huayi's market value has recently plummeted by nearly 20 billion yuan. Although Wang Zhongjun cannot stop it, he cannot let it go unchecked and must think of a solution.

As a shareholder of the company, Feng Dapao was naturally the best candidate to boost the stock price.

“Zhongjun, we already have a direction for the script. It's still based on Zhenyun's novel, and he's already working on adapting it.”

Feng Dapao's tone revealed confidence; he and Liu Zhenyun had been partners for many years and were well aware of each other's abilities.

"Is it the movie 'I Am Not Madame Bovary'?"

"Yes, that's the one. The script should be finished by the end of the year, and the project can be approved after the new year."

"It will take that long?" Wang Zhonglei frowned. This project is supposed to boost the stock price, but by the time it's officially launched at the end of the year, the flowers will have withered.

“Zhong Lei, this is how a meticulously crafted script should be. If you rush it, you can’t guarantee the quality.”

"Can"

Before Wang Zhonglei could say anything more, Wang Zhongjun made the final decision: "Zhonglei, Xiaogang is right. Let's take our time working on the script."

However, we can proceed with the project approval process first. Let's submit a draft script for review. Once the revised script is ready, we can then amend the registration documents.

"Hmm? That works too."

Feng Dapao was taken aback at first, then slowly nodded, looking at Wang Zhongjun's smiling face with some admiration.

No wonder he can become the chairman of a listed company; he's really smart.

The following day, the first major film of the summer season, "Monk Comes Down the Mountain," which had been generating buzz for several days, was released.

As the latest work by Palme d'Or-winning director Chen Shiren, who has been working on it for five years, and with the participation of Aaron Kwok, Wang Baoqiang, Fan Wei, Lin Chih-lin, and others, "Monk Comes Down the Mountain" is generating a lot of buzz.

From the morning onwards, media reports have been nonstop, overwhelming, seemingly poised to dominate the summer movie season.

It must be admitted that the first Palme d'Or awarded to China twenty years ago was truly a source of immense pride for the poet Chen.

Even after a decade of repeated setbacks, Chen's reputation as a poet has never completely collapsed, and theaters still have high hopes for "Monk Comes Down the Mountain".

As a result, even with Shanhe Cinemas and Jiahe Cinemas refusing to screen the film, its average screening rate still reached 32.73%, the highest in the entire period.

Meanwhile, "I Am Somebody," which was released at the same time, only had a 17.7% rating.

The jungle law of the entertainment industry was on full display at this moment.

But Wei Jin knew that this was just a fleeting moment of prosperity, and that "The Taoist Priest Comes Down the Mountain" would eventually have to face public opinion.

After all, moviegoers are different from industry professionals who attend premieres; they might ignore or even remain silent about certain characters!

As expected, when Wei Jin returned to his villa in Yanjiao that evening, the internet was in an uproar.

The entire comment section of "Monk Comes Down the Mountain" was filled with a large number of doubts, ridicule and insults, which had a "resounding and deafening" feel to it.

The first to be targeted was, of course, the poet Chen himself, who was almost the central figure in the criticism.

"Profound and unfathomable yet incongruous, erudite yet utterly nonsensical, straightforward yet thoughtless and chaotic, a packed house yet the entire audience booed."

This film proves once again that Chen Shiren is a director utterly devoid of talent and inspiration—trash!

"The story is disjointed, the special effects are exaggerated, there are many ridiculous moments, the characters are just passing through, the kung fu is fake and empty, there is no Zen thought at all, and the enlightenment at the end feels forced. In short, it's a terrible movie!"

"The first half was decent martial arts, but the second half turned into a cultivation story, and it's a bunch of lunatics cultivating immortality. The plot completely fell apart. What kind of crap was that?"

"To be honest, I've always been a fan of Director Chen. But now, I really have to wonder who the director of 'Farewell My Concubine' really is."

"It has too much personal bias, completely losing the essence of the original work, and is filled with tedious preaching. Poet Chen's approach is outdated!"

"I won't comment on whether it's a bad movie or not, I just want to ask, why is there a scene with the Dragon Prince, and it lasts for 20 minutes?!"

"."

"Okay, that's all for now. But I'm boycotting 'Monk Comes Down the Mountain.' If any brothers support me, type '1' so I know I'm not alone in this fight!"

"+1"

"+10086"

To be honest, while some netizens' comments were somewhat extreme and even reflected a lot of "hatred of evil" and anger, they were indeed correct.

This time they really went too far, no wonder the public is outraged.

"However, with so many posts and comments, and the speed and scale of this escalation, it's likely that by tomorrow morning..."

"Xiao Jin, Xiao Jin, come quick!"

At this moment, Da Meiyuan's voice suddenly rang out, interrupting Wei Jin's mutterings and sighs.

He stood up and walked towards the beauty, asking, "What's wrong, Sister Yuanyuan?"

"See for yourself."

As she spoke, Da Meiyuan handed her phone to Wei Jin, who was stunned when he took it and looked at it.

His personal Weibo account was already covered with a dense barrage of comments and messages.

"Holy crap! Boss Wei is really something else! So that's why Shanhe Cinemas didn't release 'Monk Comes Down the Mountain'!"

"Definitely. Boss Wei is indeed a breath of fresh air in the entertainment industry. Although he plays some tricks, his stance is really firm. So what if he's a big director? He just won't let you have a role!"

"Awesome, awesome! I'll go support 'Bad Genius' again tomorrow!"

"Boss Wei, I love you! I want to have your babies!"

"."

Wei Jin browsed through the comments carefully. Starting in the afternoon, people began to post comments one after another, and now the thread had reached several thousand floors.

Besides showering him with compliments, there's also the idea of making him the ringleader, digging a pit for him, and getting rid of a few old guys.

"These people really think I'm a god!"

Wei Jin closed the comment section as he spoke. It's better not to get involved in this kind of thing. He has already done what he should and could do.

Da Meiyuan seemed a little disappointed, pouting her red lips as she leaned in and teased, "Xiao Jin, are you scared too?"

The beauty's fragrance and the gentle caress of her hair stirred something within Wei Jin, who pulled her into his arms. "Sister Yuanyuan, you're the one who should be afraid, aren't you?"

"Ok?"

~~~
(End of this chapter)