China Entertainment: Great directors start by winning actresses

Chapter 321: Scouting Lao Mouzi

Su Zhe smiled and secretly admired the extraordinary nature of this woman.

She has been in love with the older Zhang Yimou since she was eighteen years old. The age difference between them is thirty-one years, which is enough to make Zhang Yimou her elder.

However, not only did she become pregnant and give birth early, she also gave birth to three children for Zhang Yimou, and the youngest daughter is already three years old.

"Mrs. Zhang, I'm here to visit Director Zhang." Su Zhe maintained a gentle and polite attitude and explained his purpose to Chen Ting.

When Chen Ting heard Su Zhe calling her "Mrs. Zhang", a bright smile broke out on her face, as if this title made her feel very satisfied.

She warmly invited Su Zhe to come in: "Director Su, please come in!"

At this time, a three-year-old little girl ran out of the house. She was innocent, had a sweet smile and was very cute.

Su Zhe couldn't help but squat down and amuse the little girl. His kindness and humor made the little girl giggle.

Su Zhe gently picked up the little girl and walked in tenderly.

As soon as I entered the door, I saw Zhang Yimou wearing home clothes, concentrating on teaching a six-year-old child to recognize words.

He looked focused and serious, as if he was carrying out an important mission. At this moment, the world-famous director seemed to have lost all his glory and become an ordinary, loving old father.

"Yimou, Director Su is here!" Chen Ting shouted, and at the same time motioned Su Zhe to sit down, while she was busy pouring water.

Zhang Yimou heard the voice, looked up and saw Su Zhe, with a surprised expression on his face: "Director Su, why are you here? Give me a call, and I will come to visit you in person!"

Su Zhe smiled and waved his hand: "Director Zhang, you are too polite. I came here uninvited and disturbed your peace. I hope you don't mind."

Zhang Yimou smiled and shook his head, called a ten-year-old boy over to continue teaching the younger one to read, and then he took Su Zhe into the tea room.

The two sat down in the tea room and began to chat.

Su Zhe showed great interest in Zhang Yimou's family life, and Zhang Yimou was happy to share his family chores and parenting experiences.

The two chatted and laughed happily, as if they were old friends.

After the two exchanged pleasantries, Su Zhe got straight to the point and said, "Director Zhang, I'll be frank with you. What have you been thinking about during this period?"

His eyes were full of anticipation as he waited for Zhang Yimou's reply.

Zhang Yimou pondered for a moment and nodded: "Director Su, I naturally feel your sincerity.

The treatment offered by your Tai'a Media is indeed top-notch in the industry.

The shares, studio, director's fee and profit-sharing model, as well as your film and television project resources, are all irresistible."

Su Zhe was delighted when he heard this, and continued, "That's right, Director Zhang.

We at Tai'a Media have always adhered to the concept of open and win-win cooperation.

We are willing to provide the best resources and platforms to every talented director to jointly create more excellent film and television works.

Moreover, you can rest assured that at Tai'a Media, you will not only be protected, but also have a bright future. "

He further explained: “At present, Tai’a Media’s film and television projects have achieved very good results and are sure to make big profits.

Many film and television companies, wealthy people, and coal bosses from outside want to invest in our projects, but we all adhere to the boutique strategy and only choose partners who share the same ideals as us.

If you join Tai'a Media, you will not only receive our full support and resource allocation, but also be able to participate in more of our outstanding film and television projects in the future."

After hearing this, Zhang Yimou's eyes flashed with approval. He naturally knew the strength and influence of Tai'a Media.

He smiled and said to Su Zhe: "Director Su, I see your sincerity and the strength of Tai'a Media. I will seriously consider your invitation and give you a reply as soon as possible."

After hearing this, Su Zhe felt relieved.

He knew that Zhang Yimou's joining was of great significance to Tai'a Media.

He stood up and held out his hand: "Okay, Director Zhang, I look forward to your reply. At the same time, you are welcome to visit Tai'a Media at any time for exchanges."

Zhang Yimou also stood up and shook hands with Su Zhe and said goodbye: "Okay, Director Su. Thank you for your invitation. I will give you a reply as soon as possible."

Among the many celebrity studios of Tai'a Media, only Yifei's studio is currently qualified to invest in Tai'a Media's film and television projects.

Although Su Zhe is actively cultivating talents such as Wu Jing and Guo Fan, they have not yet reached this level.

Su Zhe offered extremely generous conditions to Zhang Yimou. This was not only based on his considerations for the project, but also a strategy that Su Zhe had carefully considered.

Su Zhe and Zhang Yimou do not have a deep personal friendship; their relationship is purely based on professional cooperation.

Therefore, the most powerful bargaining chip Su Zhe can offer is interest.

In the entertainment industry, which is a world of fame and fortune, interests are often the most moving thing.

Su Zhe knew very well that as long as he could attract a senior director like Zhang Yimou, any amount of effort would be worth it.

Although Tai'a Media has many projects, it is relatively short of excellent director resources.

The pending film and television adaptation rights for online literature have been delayed precisely because of the lack of suitable directors to take the helm.

Therefore, Su Zhe did not hesitate to use huge profits as bait, hoping to attract more top talents like Zhang Yimou to join and jointly promote the development of the company.

With Zhang Yimou joining the team, we only need to make one movie a year, not to mention a lot. This can not only train new talents and stars, but also young directors. Even if the movies made by Zhang Yimou don't make money, Tai'a Media will still make a lot of money!
What's more, the films that Zhang Yimou has made in the past ten years or so have basically only made some profits, and he has never lost money!

Lao Mouzi was still very relieved and happy.

He felt Su Zhe's attention to him! How could he not know the situation of Tai'a Media! The conditions offered by Su Zhe were absolutely full of sincerity!

Think about it again, Boss Zhang in New Picture talks to him like a brother every day, but it is he, Zhang Weiping, who eats the meat and lets Lao Mouzi drink the soup!
This is a sharp contrast! Moreover, Zhang Weiping has been bullying people too much in the past few years, which really broke his heart! He has been patient again and again, but Zhang Weiping doesn't know how to restrain himself, and he doesn't want to tolerate it anymore!

"Yimou, you have done your best. You have done your best for Zhang Weiping. It is Zhang Weiping who has done you wrong."

Chen Ting said firmly, his voice full of support for Zhang Yimou.

She added: "Director Su's sincerity is ten times or even a hundred times better than that of Zhang Weiping. What are you still hesitating about?"

At this time, Chen Ting completely stood on Su Zhe's side. She knew Zhang Yimou's talent and value, and also understood Zhang Weiping's use and restraint of Zhang Yimou. If Zhang Yimou still had some feelings for Zhang Weiping, then Chen Ting was fed up with Zhang Weiping.

Zhang Weiping regarded Zhang Yimou as a cash cow. He not only strictly controlled him at work, but also interfered with his love life.

This almost harsh constraint made Zhang Yimou feel depressed in both his career and life.

When the "Zhang Gong love" broke up, Zhang Weiping played a role that cannot be underestimated, which made Chen Ting feel grateful but also complicated.

However, when her own relationship with Zhang Yimou was interfered with by Zhang Weiping, her gratitude turned into deep resentment.

Zhang Weiping always had prejudice against Chen Ting and believed that she had ulterior motives.

Even though Chen Ting gave birth to three children for Zhang Yimou, Zhang Weiping still insisted on this view and even repeatedly prevented the two from getting married.

As a result, Chen Ting's relationship with Zhang Weiping became extremely tense. If she had not taken Zhang Yimou into consideration, she would have broken up with Zhang Weiping openly long ago.

Now that the children are growing up, Chen Ting has begun to plan for their future.

She naturally knew that at New Picture, even if Zhang Yimou worked for another ten years, he would not be able to earn enough money to provide a house for each of his children.

Therefore, she firmly told Zhang Yimou: "Besides, the children will grow up in a few years, you must prepare a house for each of them. You can't earn that much even if you work at New Picture for another ten years!"

Chen Ting’s words made Zhang Yimou fall into deep thought.

Su Zhe felt relieved.

With Chen Ting, his capable assistant, constantly whispering in his favor, he believed that Zhang Yimou would eventually fall into his control.

Zhang Yimou looked worried at this moment, and sighed, "Hey, Director Su, I'm not afraid of you laughing at me. Zhang Weiping knows my situation very well. The tax and child issues are potential troubles. If he really spreads these things, I'm afraid I'll be in trouble."

The close relationship between Zhang Yimou and Zhang Weiping made him seem a little timid when facing Zhang Weiping's threats.

Su Zhe smiled and patted Zhang Yimou on the shoulder, comforting him, “I thought it was no big deal.

In terms of taxes, you really need to check it carefully, as this issue is the easiest to be made a fuss about.

The difference between voluntarily paying the debt and being investigated later is huge.”

Su Zhe went on to analyze: "As for the children, society has progressed now and is no longer as strict as it was in the 1980s and 1990s.

Even if you violate the law, you will only be fined, not jailed. If you take the initiative to accept the punishment, this matter will not cause any trouble. "

Su Zhe's words were full of confidence, and he continued: "As long as money can solve the problem, it's not a problem!"

Afterwards, Zhang Yimou and Su Zhe talked about the issues of actors such as Zhou Dongyu.

These talents were discovered and cultivated by Zhang Yimou. Naturally, he did not want to leave them at New Picture without caring about them after he left.

Su Zhe was delighted, this was exactly what he wanted.

He recruited Zhang Yimou not only because of his talent, but also because of the potential actors he had.

Especially Zhou Dongyu and others, they are all good talents in the film industry. With them, Tai'a Media's agency business will become more prosperous.

Su Zhe admired Zhang Yimou's vision in choosing female leads very much. He knew that these talents would be an important asset for the future development of Tai'a Media.

Since Zhang Yimou took the initiative to raise this issue, Su Zhe naturally would not miss this opportunity.

In Su Zhe's opinion, Zhang Yimou's problem was neither small nor big, but as long as it could be solved with money, it would not be a problem.

He immediately decided to transfer 10 million yuan to Zhang Yimou's account to show his sincerity and determination.

The injection of 10 million yuan was undoubtedly a timely help for Zhang Yimou. It was like the last straw that broke the camel's back, making Zhang Yimou determined to leave Zhang Weiping and join Su Zhe's Tai'a Media.

Boss Zhang's past stinginess was in sharp contrast to Zhang Yimou's dissatisfaction, while Su Zhe's generosity and sincerity made Zhang Yimou see new hope and opportunities.

No one is unwilling to make friends with generous and magnanimous people, and Zhang Yimou is no exception.

He recalled Feng Xiaogang's success at Huayi, where he easily earned hundreds of millions of dollars, while he had worked with Zhang Weiping for many years but had never been able to realize his dreams and values.

This contrast made Zhang Yimou more determined to leave.

On the same day, Zhang Yimou contacted his lawyer and jointly drafted a contract with Tai'a Media's lawyer.

He signed the contract without hesitation and officially became a member of Tai'a Media.

Zhang Yimou's situation is indeed unique. His relationship with New Painting is more of a cooperative relationship than a subordinate one, so there is no bondage of contract.

One night a few days later, Su Zhe finally met Zhou Dongyu and Ni Ni, two highly-anticipated artists.

New Picture has a total of 12 artists, among which Zhou Dongyu, Dou Xiao and Ni Ni are undoubtedly the three with the greatest appeal and ability to make money.

However, Tai'a Media does not lack resources in male celebrities, so Dou Xiao is not their target this time.

Su Zhe's attention is mainly focused on Zhou Dongyu and Ni Ni. These two talented young actors are exactly the money-making machines that Tai'a Media urgently needs.

Zhou Dongyu and Ni Ni were shocked when they learned that Zhang Yimou had decided to leave New Picture and join Tai'a Media.

Although they had heard some rumors about the discord between Zhang Yimou and Zhang Weiping before, they never thought that things would develop to this point, and that the two heavyweights in the film industry would part ways so decisively.

Zhou Dongyu and Ni Ni now face an important choice: whether to stay at New Picture and continue to fulfill their eight-year contract, or choose to join Tai'a Media, which seems to have a more promising future.

Obviously, joining Tai'a Media is a more attractive option for them, but the difficulty facing them is the issue of contract and liquidated damages.

Zhou Dongyu expressed their concerns frankly: "Director Su, our contract with New Picture has lasted for eight years. If we terminate the contract now, we will have to pay a huge penalty."

As new actors, they signed long-term contracts with New Picture from the beginning. As the main source of the company's revenue, the company often takes most of the income, and the actors can only get a small part of it.

Zhou Dongyu took herself as an example. Her pay for starring in "Under the Hawthorn Tree" was only 15 yuan, which was far from enough to cover the penalty of millions of yuan.

Moreover, she comes from an ordinary family, and such financial pressure is undoubtedly huge for her.

Nini's situation is similar. They are facing the same difficulties. These problems are not easy to solve, although they are willing to follow Su Zhe.

(End of this chapter)