During my years at China Entertainment

Chapter 801 Slaughtering the Sucker: Yifei Wants to Sit at the Children's Table

After a night of passion, Yang Mi, brimming with positive energy, embarked on a new round of promotional roadshows with satisfaction.

As the most successful female director, screenwriter, and professor at Beijing Film Academy in the Huayi Film Circle, Xue Xiaolu's bold statement that she "want to become the first female director with 10 billion yuan in box office revenue" has spread widely online.

The level of discussion, popularity, and buzz surrounding "Seattle 2" is unprecedented, and its promotional effect is nothing short of explosive.

There's no way around it; Xue Xiaolu's resume and titles, along with Boss Wei's unerring predictive abilities, are undeniably a guarantee of "credibility" in the eyes of countless ordinary moviegoers and netizens!
Moreover, with the good reputation of its predecessor "Seattle" and the halo of the series, a box office of 10 billion might not be a difficult task.

At this moment, several films released in the same period seem to be on high alert.

Especially with films like "Tiny Times 4" and "Forever Young" that have similar themes and follow the same path, they feel extremely uneasy.

Numerous press releases sprang up like mushrooms after rain, adding even more heat to the already hot summer movie season.

At this very moment, the latest batch of approved films released by the Film Bureau has attracted widespread attention within the industry!
The reason is that the two scripts submitted by Shanhe Media, "Mr. Donkey" and "The Wandering Earth", were prominently featured!

Countless industry peers are currently cursing and grumbling inwardly.

No wonder, just a week ago five or six movies were scheduled for release, and Lu Yang's "Brotherhood of Blades 3" and Zhang Yimou's "Shoplifters" were also approved. Now two more new projects are about to start. Are they trying to kill us?!
It is foreseeable that the industry's survival space next year may not be much better, and may even be more difficult.

However, compared to the indignation of their industry peers, the stars in the film and television industry were extremely excited.

Unfortunately, both of these projects are quite attractive.

Although the title of the play "Mr. Donkey" is not very appealing, its stage play is quite well-known in the industry.

With Ning Hao, a director whose films gross 15 billion yuan, directing this movie, it's clear he's aiming for awards. Countless talented actors are eager to give it a shot.

"The Wandering Earth" is even more exciting, because it is the latest science fiction work by Wei Jin, a world-renowned science fiction master, after three years!
It is well known that while the science fiction films of the Wei and Jin dynasties may not be the most successful in promoting actors, they were definitely the most commercially successful.

The three films, "The Martian," "Passengers," and "Gravity," were all box office champions in their respective years and are considered sci-fi blockbusters that have been recorded in the history of Chinese-language cinema!
More importantly, science fiction films from the Wei and Jin dynasties were not only wildly popular domestically, but also had an extraordinary influence internationally.

That's a top-tier resource that can help domestic actors go international—a huge, undeniable opportunity!

For a time, countless people were eagerly awaiting specific information about the two projects, and also hoping for the opportunity to audition for roles.

"Tianqi, notify those companies to come and sign the contracts. Let President Chen be in charge."

In the office, Wei Jin was drawing the storyboard for "The Wandering Earth" while giving instructions to his assistant.

The script has a very complex storyboard, and it's fortunate that we had three or four months to prepare; otherwise, we would have had to arrange it in advance.

"Okay, Mr. Wei."

Bao Tianqi bowed and left the office, but a short while later, there was another knock on the door.

"Enter."

As Wei Jin responded, Zhong Lifang, dressed in a business suit, walked in.

"Mr. Wei, the contract with LeEco has been signed, and the funds have been received. However, Ali heard about it and contacted me as well."

Wei Jin raised an eyebrow. "Is it also a copyright issue?"

"Yes, they've taken a liking to 'Eternal Love'."

"Huh? I remember the scriptwriting department was already working on the script, right? They just rejected it outright."

Zhong Lifang was taken aback for a moment, then realized what she meant and covered her mouth with a smile, "President Wei, are you confused? Ali has been talking about a grand entertainment strategy, they only work on the big screen."

"Hey, I thought Ah Li was just following the trend of fantasy dramas because of the popularity of 'The Journey of Flower'."

Wei Jin slapped his forehead and laughed self-deprecatingly; he had indeed made a mistake.

"What do you think?"

"Sell it to them."

When it comes to adapting TV series into movies, I've never seen a good one done during the Wei and Jin dynasties. Since Ah Li, this sucker, is willing to spend the money, there's no reason not to let them have their way.

"As for the price, should we stick with the previous one?"

Zhong Lifang tentatively asked a question, saying that she felt the price of 80 million was a bit too high.

After all, this is just a novel, not a hit TV series, and its influence hasn't been proven yet, so it's unlikely that a deal can be reached.

But to my surprise, my own boss was still not satisfied.

"No, at least this number, it could even be higher."

Seeing Wei Jin raise his finger, Zhong Lifang's body trembled. "Isn't this President Wei a bit too tall? Can he handle it?"

"Hehe, Director Zhong, Ali is different from LeEco; they have plenty of money. If you ask for too little, they'll think you're looking down on them."

At this point, Wei Jin couldn't suppress the smile on his face. "Believe me, the more we ask for, the more we believe in this show, and the less likely they are to let go."

"But what if the negotiations break down?"

Zhong Lifang still had some concerns. What if things went wrong? It could have been tens of millions of yuan in profit.

At this point, Wei Jin reassured her, "Go ahead and negotiate. If you really can't reach an agreement, it doesn't matter. Anyway, we have the copyright, and the cost isn't high."

"Okay then, I'll give it a try."

The following day, "Tiny Times 4" hit theaters nationwide amid a barrage of press releases, cheers, and curses.

The press releases were naturally issued by the production company, and they haven't stopped since the beginning of July.

The cheers came from countless fans of the original work and fans of the shorty, after all, this is the final installment of the series, and these people are all looking forward to it.

As for the curses, they came from the male lead's die-hard fans, because their brother was only shown as a body and a voice in the movie, with no visible face throughout.

Compared to the blatant disregard for the law in "Monk Comes Down the Mountain," how can one not feel resentful and curse that shorty and certain others to death?
In the past, many people in the industry would probably have been happy to watch the drama unfold and also keep an eye on the film's box office performance.

But today, no one has time to pay attention—simply because the project information for "The Wandering Earth" was jointly released by several companies.

Project Name: The Wandering Earth; Project Investment: 6 million RMB; Project Type: Science Fiction Disaster Film; Production Companies: Shanhe Media, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, Enlight Media, Wanda Group, Xi'an Film Studio, China Film Group, Shanghai Film Group.
Director: Wei Jin; Screenwriter: Wei Jin & Liu Xinci; Main Cast: To be determined.

If the industry was merely anticipating the script's approval, then the announcement truly set the entire film and television industry ablaze with excitement.

Especially the actors in the industry, their eyes gleamed and they were swallowing hard.

With production companies like Shanhe Media, Aerospace Science and Industry, Enlight Media, Wanda Group, China Film Group, Shanghai Film Group, and Xi'an Film Group, this lineup of production companies is simply extravagant!

The last time we saw a lineup like this was for the current domestic box office record holder, "Operation Mekong"!

Furthermore, it is directed by Wei Jin, a three-time European Grand Slam winner and Oscar-winning director, and boasts a record-breaking investment of 6 million.

It can be said that "The Wandering Earth" is in no way inferior to Hollywood's top-tier blockbusters, and may even surpass them!
The keyword "actor pending" in particular has captivated the attention of countless actors.

You have to understand, it's extremely rare for a Wei-Jin project not to have pre-selected actors, especially a science fiction film. This is the first time ever!
The entire industry was immediately thrown into a state of panic, with countless celebrities and artists taking frantic action.
As expected, ever since the project information for "The Wandering Earth" was made public, Wei Jin and Chen Xi have been inundated with phone calls, text messages, and WeChat messages.

For two consecutive days, every actor in the industry who had worked with them or had a good relationship with them was constantly being bothered.

The comments section under Wei Jin's Weibo post was also filled with anticipation, with countless die-hard fans urging him to start writing soon.

Many fans of celebrities also left messages recommending him, hoping that Mr. Wei would give their idols a boost.

Many clever individuals even resorted to back channels, whispering sweet nothings in the ear of the woman in Wei Jin's life and speaking on his behalf.

Sure enough, as soon as Wei Jin arrived at the villa in Xishan, he saw Liu Yifei sitting on the sofa in her home clothes, replying to messages on her phone.

This girl has been busy with press releases for Summer Fashion Week since late June, so it's been a while since we've seen her.

Unlike in the past when she would ask for hugs and kisses upon meeting someone, the little girl didn't seem excited at all when she met Wei Jin today.

She sat on the sofa without moving, her snow-white legs kicking as if to complain, "Brother, you seem so relaxed. I'm so annoyed by all these people asking me for information."

After Wei Jin sat down, he reached out and, through her thin pajamas, precisely poked the girl's nipples, teasingly saying, "Yifei, if you were to tone down your teeth a little, I'd believe you."

"Ugh, I don't have any!"

Liu Yifei rolled her eyes, but her hands kept moving as she chatted with someone. She was definitely the one being flattered; who doesn't like to hear compliments?
"Brother, are you going to hold a public casting call this time?"

"Well, no rush. Let's let the bullets fly for a while, and then we'll talk about it later."

With such a long preparation period, Wei Jin hasn't even decided when to cast the actors yet. Let's put it on hold for now and enjoy life.

Upon hearing this, the girl started typing on the keyboard again, clearly trying to tip someone off.

Seeing this, Wei Jin shook his head, got up and went to the kitchen to prepare dinner.

It must be admitted that little girls really can't compare to older girls; they don't know how to take care of others at all.
Wei Jin thought that things would return to normal after dinner, but to his surprise, the young girl took out her laptop again.

"Yifei, what are you doing?"

"Let's binge-watch 'Wu Xin: The Monster Killer' together!"

"Huh? They've already started broadcasting?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Yifei blinked her big eyes and smiled, "Oh, our Director Wei, your acting is really good, you're quite convincing."

But this is Ms. Liu's first production as a producer, didn't you really care about it at all?

Good heavens, this weird and strange behavior has even confused Wei Jin. Has the celestial being turned evil?!
But to be honest, he didn't really pay much attention to this show, considering the production costs and the fact that it was exclusively broadcast on Tudou.com.

Mr. Wei is so busy with work every day, how could he have time to pay attention to these things?
However, swallowing one's anger is not Mr. Wei's style; a strong sense of authority is the way to go.

He smirked and immediately retorted, "Yifei, instead of getting jealous, you should focus on preparing for 'Shoplifters.' Have you even thoroughly studied the script?"
"Let me tell you, this movie is probably going to start filming later this month. I hope I don't get completely outshone by my fellow actors and end up at the kids' table."

Zhang Yimou was very dedicated to "Shoplifters," and casting began immediately after the Golden Film Awards.

Because the auditions were conducted on a small scale using a combination of invitation and recommendation, the event didn't cause too much of a stir, and the Wei and Jin dynasties didn't interfere.

Ultimately, the male lead role was given to Ning Li, who graduated from the Shanghai Theatre Academy, has outstanding acting skills, a suitable appearance, and a very good audition performance.

Many people may not recognize the name, but everyone should know "Li Fengtian, who smokes backwards" in the TV series "The Untouchable".

The role of the grandmother was given to Wu Yanshu, who had previously worked with Wei Jin and Cao Baoping.

After all, it's better to use someone familiar than someone new, and besides, his age is quite suitable. He also acted alongside Liu Yifei in "Back to 20," so he's definitely the perfect choice.

However, it took Zhang Yimou a lot of effort to finalize the casting of the two young actors, and it wasn't until just before the Shanghai Film Festival that the roles were completely confirmed.

One is Amy, a child star who just debuted last year and is only 7 years old; the other is Rong Zishan, recommended by Section Chief Jia.

The little boy is not even ten years old. He appeared in "Mountains May Depart" and his acting skills were quite good.

His later performance as Zhu Chaoyang in "The Hidden Corner" was also commendable.

With Zhou Xun, the female lead who was already cast, it's safe to say that "Shoplifters" has an absolutely stellar cast.

Of course, it would be a bit much to say that Liu Yifei's acting skills are inferior to those of children, but children's roles are simple and their acting styles are relatively limited.

On the contrary, Liu Yifei's character is a special worker, which is very different from her own past experiences and social perceptions.

Although Wei Jin's words were mostly a joke, weren't they also a reflection of his true feelings?
But Liu Yifei was not convinced. She put down her laptop, her eyes wide open, and her face full of arrogance.

"Who do you think you're underestimating? I may not be as good as Xun-ge, Teacher Ning, or Teacher Wu, but do you think I'd lose to two little brats?"

Wei Jin continued teasingly, "Oh? So confident, huh? Then let this director give it a try?"

"Let's give it a try."

The words that were about to spill out were abruptly cut off by Liu Yifei, who glared at Wei Jin with annoyance, "I'm not falling for that, you just want to..."

As her red lips were sealed, the girl's fists continued to fall, but under Wei Jin's superb kissing skills, they quickly became weak and powerless, allowing him to do as he pleased.

(End of this chapter)